Age: 1-5

Get Ready: Have a muffin pan in your kitchen? If not, purchase one at your local dollar store. Any tennis balls lying around the house or in the garage? You will need a dozen. Now, you have everything you need for this awesome activity.

Get Set: Place the muffin pan and balls in front of the child.

Sit Back and Watch Your Child Go: With a young child, you might want to show them how to place each ball in the muffin pan. For older children, just let them be creative.

Want To Amp Up the Learning: If you are using different colors of balls, ask your children to make patterns with the balls.

As Your Child Grows: As your children near age three to five, you can incorporate kitchen tongs into the activity. Using tongs strengthens muscle development in children’s fingers and improves hand-eye coordination. To make the activity more challenging, you can ask your children to add or take away the balls. Next have them count the total number of balls in the muffin pan.

You Will Love: How this activity helps children to improve hand-eye coordination, critical thinking skills, and builds math concepts.