FRUIT AND VEGETABLE GUESSING GAME
For Sensory Learning and Vocabulary Development
A fun and educational sensory game for toddlers and preschoolers!
Play this simple Fruit and Vegetable Guessing Game to help young children learn to use their senses and logical reasoning to deduce what's hidden behind their backs, while developing their vocabulary at the same time ....
[Family Fun and Learning]
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| Image: Clare Bloomfield / FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
We played this one night as our 'family game night' activity. Our two (aged 3 and 5 at the time) loved this game and have requested to play it as a party game the next time we have a kids' party. We got a large bowl of various fruits and vegetables. The children examined each piece and we talked about the textures, using words like 'smooth', 'rough', 'hairy', 'fuzzy', 'bumpy', 'papery', 'jagged'. We taught them the names of some they didn't know, like kohlrabi or pomegranate. (See more vocabulary suggestions at the end of this post.)
Then they had to turn their backs and we put one piece of fruit or vegetable into their hands behind their backs. They had to describe how it felt and then guess what it was.
[Variations]
To make it harder for older kids, skip the part where they get to see what's in the bowl, but encourage them to describe what they feel and model new vocabulary for them when it's your turn. Have them talk through their reasoning, e.g., "It's bumpy and round, smaller than an orange, and it has a knobby end, so it must be a lemon!"
For younger toddlers or babies, let them just feel and explore the produce, while you talk and describe them.
So simple and easy to throw together in less than 2 minutes, but it brought so much fun and family laughs!
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| Excuse the crummy picture from my phone in the dark! |
[Suggested Textures Vocabulary]
smooth, rough, bumpy, hairy, fuzzy, soft, jagged, smushy, hard, flaky, dry, prickly, slick, slippery, spiny, lumpy
[Suggested Fruits and Vegetables]
lime, garlic, pomegranate, kohlrabi, carrot, onion, orange, lemon, peach, pineapple, strawberry, raspberry, banana, grapes, mango, kiwi, coconut, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, eggplant, peas
A great book to read to learn more fun, descriptive vocabulary is Old Hat, New Hat by Stan and Jan Berenstein [affiliate link] - a hilarious favourite in our family and in my classroom!
