Fall activities for 18-month-olds

Fall ideas for 18-month-olds

Fall fills a toddler's world with crunchy leaves, apples, pinecones, wind and busy squirrels, so every walk brings new sounds, colors and textures. Cooler air adds a jacket-and-hat routine to getting out the door, and earlier evenings make cozy indoor play and books a bigger part of the afternoon. The 8 ideas below overlap the 18-23-month band, best fit for 18 months first.

How to do Leaf Pile Helper

Your child helps push and carry leaves onto a sheet with hands or a small rake, then gets to toss them up, a real fall chore with a fun ending. Words to model: push, pile, big, help. Keep adult rakes tines down and out of reach.

1. 1

   Spread the sheet on the grass and say 'leaves go on the sheet'.

2. 2

   Push an armful of leaves over yourself, saying 'push, push'.

3. 3

   Hand them the rake and step back; let them work at their own pace.

4. 4

   Pause to admire the pile: 'big pile! you helped'.

5. 5

   Toss a handful up together and let them throw the next one.

More fall ideas at 18 months

The ideas written up here sit closest to 18 months; Warm Applesauce Spoon Practice (12-18 mo), Floating Apple Grab (13-18 mo) and Find a Leaf Like Mine (20-26 mo) also overlap this age and are described on the neighboring age page.

• Sticky Leaf Window Picture

  Your child presses leaves onto loops of painter's tape stuck to a window, making a light-filled fall picture while practicing a careful pinch and press. Ages 18-24 months, 5-15 min, indoors. Start: stick a few loops of painter's tape, sticky side out, low on a window. Say: stick, press, red. Safety: Tape scraps and crumbled leaves are mouth-sized: collect them as you go.

• Squirrel Run and Hide

  After spotting squirrels, your child pretends to be one, running to a tree, hiding a ball 'nut' in the leaves and racing back to find it. Ages 18-24 months, 5-12 min, outdoors. Start: watch a squirrel together and say what it does: 'run, run, up the tree'. Say: squirrel, run, hide. Safety: Use a ball, never real nuts or acorns: both are choking hazards.

• Whose Warm Hat?

  As the air turns cool, your child hands each family member their hat from a basket by the door and then finds their own, linking names to belongings. Ages 18-24 months, 3-8 min, indoors. Start: put the hats in a basket by the door before going out. Say: hat, whose?, mine. Safety: Skip long scarves: use a neck warmer instead, and take drawstrings out of hoods.

• Big Apple, Little Apple Sort

  Your child sorts a bag of apples into a big-apple bowl and a little-apple bowl, hearing size words used for something they can hold and compare. Ages 19-25 months, 4-10 min, indoors. Start: put one big and one little apple in front of the two bowls. Say: big, little, apple. Safety: Serve snack apples very thinly sliced or cooked soft, never in chunks.

Fall safety for 18-month-olds

Seasonal hazards first, then the precautions of the ideas on this page. Stay within arm's reach whenever water, food or small decorations are involved.

• Acorns, nuts, small pinecones, berries and seeds turn up on every walk: check hands and mouths often, and keep collected finds bigger than your child's fist.
• Wild mushrooms pop up on lawns after fall rain and some are poisonous: remove them before play and call your local poison control center if one is eaten.
• Leaf piles can hide sticks, stones, animal waste and holes, and drivers cannot see a child in one: never let children play in piles near the street or driveway.
• Remove drawstrings from hoods and jacket necks, and use a neck warmer instead of a long scarf that can catch on play equipment.
• Hard raw apple chunks are a choking hazard for young toddlers: serve apples very thinly sliced, grated or cooked soft.
• Keep adult rakes tines down and out of reach.
• Tape scraps and crumbled leaves are mouth-sized: collect them as you go.
• Serve lukewarm, and stir well after reheating to remove hot spots.

Fall words for 18-month-olds

Fall books to share

Kinds of books to look for at the library. At 18 months, point and name, then pause and let your child point.

• Board books about leaves changing color and falling from the trees
• Picture books about animals getting ready for winter
• Lift-the-flap books about an apple orchard or a harvest farm
• Books about getting dressed for cool weather, from jacket to boots

Fall gift and basket ideas for 18-month-olds

Open-ended things that fit 18-23 months; check every part against the choking-size rule (nothing that fits through a toilet-paper tube).

• A small toddler-size plastic leaf rake
• A cloth tote bag or basket for nature walk finds
• Waterproof boots and a warm jacket without drawstrings
• Jumbo crayons and a pad of large paper for leaf rubbings
• A set of large blocks for indoor play on darker afternoons

Library activities that suit fall

Everyday activities from our library that fit 18-month-olds and the season's leaves, walks and cooler outdoor play.

• Big Sock, Little Sock Sort

  From a heap of clean laundry, your toddler sorts grown-up socks from their own small socks into two piles, hearing 'big' and 'little' with real things. Why now: practices size words and sorting. 5-10 min, no prep.

• Two-Hoop Nature Sort

  Outdoors, your toddler gathers big pinecones and leaves into a bucket, then sorts them into two hula hoops on the grass, one for each kind. Why now: tagged outdoors and nature and practices sorting. 8-15 min, no prep.

• Hoop Island In and Out

  A hula hoop on the floor or grass becomes an island your toddler steps or jumps into and out of, linking 'in', 'out' and 'around' to whole-body moves. Why now: tagged outdoors and practices jumping. 5-12 min, no prep.

• Towel Speed-Bump Walk

  The child walks down a hallway with rolled towels laid across it like speed bumps, lifting each foot higher to step over them without stopping. Why now: practices walking on their own. 4-10 min, 2 min prep.

• Push-the-Box Train

  The child pushes a sturdy cardboard box carrying a stuffed animal across the floor, practicing steady walking, pushing with the whole body and steering. Why now: practices walking on their own. 5-10 min, 2 min prep.

More seasonal ideas