Talk about the different smells around the house and community. Words to learn are bar-b-cue, seasonings/spices, fumes, You can also play a game with smells. Get a few jars out of the kitchen (peanut butter, soy sauce, mayonnaise, mustard, etc) and wrap a kitchen towel around the jar. Ask your child to smell and guess what it is.

As you are working on this one, words to learn are hard/soft, sharp/dull, hot/cold, and rough/smooth. After your child has learned the words, play a game by closing eyes (or using a blindfold). Your child can feel the texture and tell you what it feels like without looking. Another game is to put some household items in a box (fork, cup, marble, etc.) and let him/her put her hand in the box and guess what it is by feeling the object.

Talk about the different sounds that you hear in the home and in the community. Listen and try to identify different birdcalls. Turn off the sound of the TV and just watch the picture. Try to guess what is happening. Turn on the sound and see if you were right.

This is a great opportunity to learn colors. You can’t see, taste, hear, or smell colors, you can only see them. If you child already knows the basic colors, teach them shades like light blue and dark blue. You can also teach them other color words like burgundy, gray, tan, etc.

Talk about different tastes and learn words like sour, sweet, salty. When you are eating dinner, ask your child to close his eyes. Give him a small bite of something on the plate and see if he can guess what it was.