Materials:
2 child-safe bowls, 1 filled with cold water, 1 filled with warm (not hot!) water
Try It Out:
- Place the 2 bowls in front of your child. Tell her that you made 1 bowl of cold soup and 1 bowl of warm soup. Say, “Let’s find out which bowl has warm soup and which bowl has cold soup.”
- Ask your child to dip her finger into each of the bowls, 1 at a time. Say after each one, “Does it feel warm or cold?” Help your child correctly label the warm and cold bowls.
- Ask your child to cover her eyes while you change the order of the bowls. Say, “Can you feel the soup and find the bowl that has warm soup in it?”
- If your child points to the bowl with warm water, say, “That’s right, that’s the warm bowl of soup.”
- If your child points to the bowl of cold water, you can say, “Try again,” and then, “That’s right! That’s the bowl with warm soup,” when she points to the correct one.
Making the Most of This Activity:
Point out warm and cold during mealtimes. Say, “Your plate of food is warm, and your glass of milk is cold.” Or, “We need our jacket because it’s cold today!” Or, “Your bath is so warm and cozy. Time to get clean!”
Reflect:
Was your child able to correctly identify the warm and cold water when you asked? If not, she may not be quite ready for this activity. Continue using words such as warm and cold throughout the day and try this activity again later.
