Stability is a good thing for a preschooler, but there is something called too much of a good thing. A little change in your child’s routine can actually stimulate her mind. Look at it this way - our minds become numb when we follow the same routine everyday. We begin to operate on auto pilot. But when something happens to change that routine, we find ourselves more enthused, more alert. It’s the same for kids.

Bear in mind you don’t want to make frequent and drastic changes to your child’s daily routine, just a few little things on occasion that can seem exciting for her , and get that little brain ticking! Here are a few things you can do to stimulate your child’s mind, by changing her routine.

• Change the way she usually does her art - let her work under the table instead.
• Or tape a sheet of paper under your table, and let her her lie down on her back, and draw on it.
• Move things on her table or in her room around a little, just enough that she actually has to look for things.
• Sing rhymes with different words. For instance, Mary had a Little Lamb to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
• Use old and empty cardboard cartons to make a tunnel from the front door. Your child has to crawl through the boxes every time she wants to go out into the garden.
• Make up new endings for her favorite stories. Little Red Riding Hood, for instance.
• If she’s playing the same computer games, or having fun on the same old sites, check out some new sites for her. Here’s a list.
• Let her be mommy for a day - let her decide on the menu, let her decide how much TV you can watch, and let her tuck you into bed with a bed time story. Or do just one of these things in reverse.

Change is a good thing, if you introduce it well. Having a fixed clockwork routine that never ever changes might be great for a robot, but preschoolers need to experience some flexibility.

What do you think? Would you dare to upset the cart?

Challenge your preschooler’s mind with these problem solving activities. Placing a new challenge or problem before your preschooler helps her brainstorm new ways to solve it. These are necessary life skills your child has to learn, not only in the classroom environment, but also as an adult.

Try these simple activities:

• Push her toy under the couch, and ask her to retrieve it. Watch what she does. If she needs help, give her a rod or stick to try pushing the car towards her.
• Ask her to fetch you something that’s on a higher shelf she can’t reach. Observe how she solves the problem. Make suggestions if necessary – she can drag a chair or stool over…
• Mix a cup each of beans, salt and rice in a large bowl, and give your child three smaller bowls, a strainer and a colander. Ask her to separate the beans, rice and salt. talk about the different ways you could do this.
• Spill some water on the ground (you could do this when she actually does spill something on the floor!) and give her a variety of materials to wipe the mess with – paper napkins, a wash cloth, sponge, a synthetic piece of fabric etc. Discuss what material is best for mopping up the water.
• Draw two parallel lines in the yard with a piece of chalk, about four feet apart. Place a piece of crumpled paper just inside one line. Ask her to get the paper to the other line without touching it. Brainstorm different ways she can so this – the obvious one would be to blow on it. See if there are other ways to move the paper forward – fan it with a plastic plate or magazine, perhaps.

Memorizing things alone won’t prepare your child for serious learning. The brain is exercised when you throw these little challenges at it.

Have fun!