Are you tired of constantly searching for new activities to keep your 14-month-old entertained? Look no further! I’ve curated a list of engaging and development-boosting games and activities for 14 month old toddlers that will keep your little one captivated and give you a much-needed break.
4 Spectacular Sensory Activities For 14 Month Old Toddlers
14 month old toddlers love to touch and feel the world around them so give them plenty of opportunities to explore it. Here are 4 spectacular sensory activities for 14 month old toddlers:
Cornflour Painting
How:
Mix some cornflour in a bowl with some food colouring. Sit your toddler in their high chair and pour the cornflour mixture onto the highchair tray and let your toddler explore how it feels. Cornflour has the unique ability to feel both solid and liquid and your toddler will find it fascinating!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
This is a long time favourite activity of mine that young toddlers love. It is a great way for them to get messy and feel with their fingers and hands in a way that you don’t have to stress too much over the mess as it washes off so easily!
Skills Developed?:
Fine motor skills
Sensory Sand Bin
How:
Choose a suitable bin or box container around 60 cms long, 35 cms wide and 15 cms deep. Fill it with some non-toxic play sand, put some small scoops, spoons, a funnel and different sized containers in the bin and encourage your toddler to discover what they can do with the sand!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Sand is a simple and safe medium that is great for toddlers to play and explore with. It is easy to set up and you don’t need a load of fancy toys as anything that you can find in your kitchen cupboards will do!
Skills Developed?:
Fine motor, cognitive and problem-solving skills.
Water Play
How:
Water play can happen in all sorts of places. In the bath, at the kitchen sink or in the garden with a bowl. Choose a variety of things for your toddler to play with such as cups, mini watering cans, sponges or sieves. To add another layer of excitement, you can also add food colouring to the water or bubbles.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Any activities for 14-month-old toddlers that involve water are going to be a win as I am yet to find a toddler that does not enjoy playing with water! This activity is so versatile and you can add different toys and objects to play with so that each water play experience is different!
Skills Developed?:
Fine and gross motor skills, sensory and cognitive development.
Messy Play
How:
Set out paper and toddler-safe paint, dress your little one in old clothes or a mini apron and let them loose!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Getting messy is so important for children as it enables them to freely explore what their bodies can do, how the medium they’re playing with flows and how the world around them works! Messy play is a fantastic activity for 14 month old toddlers and you can get so creative with the endless opportunities too!
Skills Developed?:
Sensory and cognitive development.
5 Magical Motor Activities For 14 Month Old Toddlers
As your little one becomes more mobile, it’s important to engage them in activities and games that promote both fine motor and gross motor development as well as balanced muscle development. So here are 5 magical motor activities for 14 month old toddlers to get you started:
Pushing and Pulling
How:
Give your toddler lots of opportunities to push and pull a wooden baby walker as well as a wooden toy to pull along behind them to provide great playtime fun!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Pushing and pulling toys is the best way to help your toddler strengthen their arm, leg and core muscles. After all, once your toddler has learnt to walk they won't want to stop! So embrace this newfound independence and encourage pushing and pulling toys in a fun way to practice their new skill!
Skills Developed?:
Gross motor skills.
Play Ball
How:
Take a decent sized ball and roll it back and forth between you and your toddler. Encourage them to try and kick the ball back to you as well!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
I love the fact that you can do so much with balls with toddlers and they will never tire of playing with them. You can use balls of different sizes and textures to keep your little one engaged too.
Skills Developed?:
Gross motor and sensory skills.
Building Blocks
How:
Give your toddler a selection of different coloured wooden building blocks that they can build with and put in and out of containers and walkers.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Building blocks are another great playing staple that will keep your toddler happy for years to come. Introducing your toddler to wooden building blocks helps with their problem solving and creative skills as they explore what the blocks can create!
Skills Developed?:
Fine Motor Skills
Cognitive Development
Creative Thinking
Colour And Shape Recognision
Paula's Pick
Lovevery Building Block Set
Possibly the most comprehensive wooden block set ever created!
This beautiful and brilliantly designed wood block set promotes spatial, language, and problem-solving skills through bright and solid wood building blocks, planks, shapes, people, magnetic wheels and dowels with a toggle string. All are safely kept in a wooden storage box and a cotton drawstring bag for storage at the end of a busy day!
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Laundry Basket Play
How:
Laundry basket play can come in many different types depending on the age of your child, but for a 14-month-old simply climbing in and out, sorting clothes or making a ball pit with a collection of coloured plastic balls are all great activities!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Laundry baskets can provide endless play opportunities for your 14 month old and is another great example of how simple household items can entertain this age group.
Skills Developed?:
Gross motor, fine motor and cognitive skills.
Post Through The Gap
How:
Take a container and make some holes in the lid. Next, take some straws that have been cut in half and show your toddler how to post the straws through the holes into the container. This may take a little practice but once they get the hang of it your 14-month-old will love this game.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Children of this age will love posting items into containers. You can use this homemade version or purchase one of the Montessori ball or shape posting toys. Either way, it'll provide hours of fun for your 14 month old!
Skills Developed?:
Fine motor skills.
5 Clever Cognitive Activities For 14 Month Old Toddlers
Every day your toddler will be learning more through play and about how the world around them works. This is the perfect time to really begin engaging their minds and challenging them with more complex games. So here are 5 cognitive activities for 14 month old toddlers that will boost their brains instantly:
Lift The Flap And Peek-A-Boo Books
How:
Choose simple interactive books for this age group such as those with flaps to be lifted or holes to be spied through.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
I love books of all kinds and feel they have a place in the lives of all children. By the age of 14 months old, your toddler is able to turn pages more effectively and will love to lift flaps to reveal the surprise underneath or to look through books with peepholes that hint at what is coming on the next page!
Skills Developed?:
Fine motor and cognitive skills.
Puzzling Puzzles
How:
Have a few simple wooden puzzles for your toddler to practise playing with. Wooden puzzles with brightly coloured shapes are ideal.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Simple wooden puzzles are the perfect activities for toddlers. They improve fine motor skills and help with learning colours and shapes as well as being the perfect toy to grow with your child's ability level.
Skills Developed?:
Fine Motor Skills
Cognitive Skills
Colour & Shape Recognition
Shape Sorters
How:
Take a shape sorter and show your toddler how to match up the shapes and pop them inside to box. Show them how to empty the sorter too.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
At 14 months of age, your toddler will love putting the shapes in the holes and then emptying them out! They will not be able to manage all the shapes yet, but they should be able to do the circle and maybe the square.
Skills Developed?:
Fine motor and cognitive skills.
My Top Shape Sorter
Melissa & Doug Match and Roll Shape Sorter - Classic Wooden Toy
Every child loves figuring out which shape goes in which hole and exploring the different angles they can try. This shape sorter from Melissa & Doug is robust, colourful and just complex enough to keep your 14 month old problem-solving for ages!
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Singing Songs And Rhymes
How:
Spend some time every day singing songs and rhymes with your 14 month old. They will enjoy songs with repetitive words and actions that they can copy.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Singing songs and rhymes to your toddler is a fun and bonding activity. They will love performing actions for songs such as ‘The Wheels on the Bus’ and 'Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes' as they are a great way to teach your little one parts of the body!
Skills Developed?:
Language and cognitive skills.
Hide and Seek
How:
For this game, you can hide yourself with a blanket or you can hide a familiar object and ask your toddler to find it!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Hide and Seek is a great game for teaching your 14 month old to listen and follow instructions. Toddlers of this age will thoroughly enjoy looking for the hidden item and will be overjoyed when they find it!
Skills Developed?:
Language and listening skills.
4 Montessori Inspired Activities For 14 Month Old Toddlers
And finally, here are 4 Montessori inspired activities for 14 month old toddlers that will seek to develop their natural interests and minds rather than use formal teaching methods to engage them:
Ring Stacker
How:
Take a simple wooden ring stacker and show your toddler how to stack them on the upright pole.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Stacking rings is a beautifully simple activity for a 14 month old as it is a perfect way to help your toddler improve their concentration and fine motor skills!
Skills Developed?:
Fine motor and cognitive skills.
Pop-Up Toys
How:
Any toys that your toddler can push down on an object that pops back up again is perfect for this age group.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Pop up toys are ideal activities for 14 month old toddlers who will be fascinated by this repetitive toy as they learn cause and effect and anticipate the toy popping back up!
Skills Developed?:
Fine motor and cognitive skills.
Discovery Bags and Baskets
How:
Take a cloth bag or small basket and fill it with interesting and varied objects. Offer the bag to your toddler and let them take the items out and examine them!
Why Do I Recommend It?:
This game is a lovely way to encourage independent play and develop an enquiring mind. 14 month old toddlers love to learn about new objects and they will love finding out what is hidden in the depths of the bag!
Skills Developed?:
Cognitive and fine motor skills.
Rice Rain Stick
How:
Invest in a rainstick toy or create your own by sealing a small tube off and filling it with rice. Just make sure your little one can't open it! And then show your toddler how to play with the rainstick by tipping it up & down or shaking it.
Why Do I Recommend It?:
Rain shakers are a wonderful sensory toy that is calming and fascinating for your toddler. They can also use it as a musical instrument for when they decide to put on a show for you!
Skills Developed?:
Sensory skills.
14 Month Old Toy Websites
If you’re looking to buy some toys for your little one to play with when engaging in the above activities for 14 month old, I highly recommend checking out the Little Baby Co. and Melissa and Doug websites.
They believe that good design should be available to everyone and that even the youngest child deserves to begin life in style. The products both companies offer are absolutely gorgeous, timeless and most importantly (for me) wooden and NOT battery operated. So be sure to give them a look!
PS: We are not affiliated or sponsored by Little Baby Co or Melissa and Doug. Our opinion of their shops are 100% honest and true.
And if you’re looking for play subscription boxes, I highly recommend visiting Lovevery. Their play boxes get delivered to your door every 2-3 months and contain everything you need to play with your little one in an engaged and developmentally appropriate way.
They’re the perfect solution for busy parents who want to offer their little one amazing play opportunities without the hassle of getting all the materials and doing all the research yourself.
Check out Lovevery’s Play Boxes here.
Best Toy Subscription Service
Lovevery
If the choice of toys is overwhelming and you want to get it right when it comes to developmental toys then get yourself a subscription from Lovevery. They offer stage-based play essentials from 0-4 that takes the headache out of choosing the right toys for the right age. Well worth the investment.
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We earn a commission if you click this link and make a purchase at no additional cost to you.
PS: We are affiliated with Lovevery and if you purchase through these links, we will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. As always, I fully endorse and recommend Lovevery.
14 Month Old Milestones
Here are some of the major developmental milestones that your baby will hit at 14 months old.
- Will start to use their fingers and thumbs effectively.
- May begin to play with others.
- Start walking.
- Begin to mimic actions.
- Wave bye-bye.
- Play peek-a-boo.
- Enjoy nursery rhymes and look at books.
- Begin to say their first understandable words.
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Activities For 14 Month Old Toddlers: A Recap
Open-ended play that allows your little one to explore are the perfect 14 month old activities.
Remember that play for this age group does not need to be complicated and they will find simple everyday items and wooden toys fascinating.
Young toddlers love games that allow them to play with building blocks and play with a ball to increase their fine and gross motor skills. They will love nursery rhymes, interactive books and putting things in and out of a variety of containers.
Make sure they have shape sorters and simple puzzles and expose them to a variety of sensory play activities such as sand and water play!
This is a lovely age when your little one is on the cusp of full-blown toddlerdom but is still your baby at heart.
Need More Parenting Help?
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Paula McLaren is the founder of Teething to Tantrums and a highly qualified childcare expert with over 40 years of experience as a Norland Nanny. She holds a BA (Hons) in Early Years Development & Learning (0-6 Years) and the prestigious Norland Diploma. Paula has worked as a night nanny, run a successful daycare center in London, and helped raise countless children using her tried and tested developmental and guidance methods.
Download Our FREE Bedtime & Nap Cheat Sheet
A bedtime & nap cheat sheet so good your little one will ask you to put them to bed...
Laura Williams "This is a life saver! I'm so glad I downloaded your bedtime & nap cheat sheet. My little one actually asked me to put him to bed last night! Unbelievable! Thank you so much!"
Click Here For The FREE Cheat Sheet
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