By Jennifer Waldman

There are tons of different ways to have fun while learning on our IVI 3D play carpets. This week we will be showing you 3 ways to tie in education with play using our Beach Houses play carpet!

1. Different rooms of the house

Take toy figures or create your own craft home accessories and items. Pick them up one by one and ask your child where each item belongs. Then, have your child place each item in the correct room. Alternatively, you can place several items in each room around the play carpet in the proper room and ask your children one by one to find each item. For example, place a small toy apple in the kitchen area of the house and ask your child "Where can Mommy find an apple?" Your child can then find the "kitchen" on the play carpet and select the apple out of the items placed within that room.

2. Water safety

It's important to know that your children will be safe around large bodies of water. But how can we teach our kids about water safety before having to anxiously bring them to the actual water? Our Beach Houses play carpet, featuring a backyard beach with ocean waves, is the perfect visual to help children learn water safety from home. Before your dolls visit the beach, ask your children “What do we do before we go out in the sun?” and have them pretend to put sunscreen on each doll. When you “arrive” at the beach, put a small doll sitting outside of the water and let your child know they are the lifeguard. Explain to your child what a lifeguard does and that we only swim when we see a lifeguard keeping watch. Review with your children that the further out in the water they go, the harder it is to reach the bottom and let your child know to look out for lifeguards if they need help. You can also explain to your child that it is important not to swim without a trusted adult. If you have sea animal toys, you can place them in the water as well and discuss the type of marine life that lives in the ocean. Some are friendly and some we should be cautious of.

3. How to be a good visitor

Imaginative play is always a great way to introduce social skills and our Beach Houses play carpet is the perfect environment to do just that! For example, grab some of your favorite dolls and have your child imagine they are visiting a family or friend's beach house for the weekend. Pull a toy car up outside and hand your child a doll then ask "What do we do when we get to someone else's house?" If your child says something along the lines of "We knock at the door" or "We ring the doorbell" let them know they're correct and then have them act out the scene with you. Explain to them that when they answer the door we say hello and thank them for having us as guests. This is a great way to work on manners and social skills with your children from home.

What are some ways you use our Beach Houses 3D play carpet? Comment below!