But first!
Read Our Monthly Themes for Play:
for our full list of themes
and to learn why we loveeee monthly themes.
june’s themes:
insects, bugs, butterflies, bees, spiders, etc
Activities + toys:
this toob of insects + these coordinating cards
I also set out our Boon Drying Rack (the one that looks like grass) next to this and KK liked taking the insects in and out
I also can’t wait to try all of busy toddler’s ideas with these.
also this Rescue the Pups fine-motor activity, but with bugs!
See a quick tour of our playroom (and how we store our toys) in this reel.
Magnetic activity for our big ol magnetic chalkboard near the kitchen:
printed + laminated + added magnets to the back of this butterfly matching activity
Books:
Here's the three ways we store our toddler’s books.
We have a little bookshelf in our den, where we do a monthly book rotation. See a quick reel here!
And a gentle reminder that we love to ask for books for holiday/birthday gifts. Here’s the five gifts we love to ask from loved ones.
And we love these PaperPie books. Any time you purchase through my PaperPie links, I earn free books for our home library - KK and I send you the biggest hug of gratitude!
Art supplies + activities:
Here’s how we store our art supplies + activity books in our home.
this bug coloring book + these beetle coloring pages + this bug coloring book
this 100 bugs to fold and fly - KK LOVES!
this bugs magic painting book + this butterflies magic painting book
this dot sticker activity from Busy Toddler, but draw butterflies instead of flowers
dot marker activities like these free bug-themed printables
we use these markers or these dot stickers
We also love to work on these as apart of our beloved Evening Quiet Family Time ritual.
We only offer our insect-themed art supplies during June, our insect-themed month - so we reuse these things year after year. Here’s how we store monthly art items the rest of the year.
A gentle reminder that we love to ask for these things for holiday/birthday gifts. Here’s the five gifts we love to ask from loved ones.
Play dough activity:
I’d love to add play dough mats like these beetle-themed ones
Also:
Here’s how we store our art supplies and our play dough tools.
Here’s how we store these monthly play dough items the rest of the year.
Here's a post on our favorite play dough, our favorite tools, and when we use play dough.
Sensory bins:
KK loves her two sensory tables! For this month’s sensory bin, I:
reused last month’s black beans
added this bug game
last year KK was too young to play the game, so she just played with the materials and loved it. but this year I think she’ll be old enough to play the game, too!
and added this bug catcher adventure set
this way she can use the bug pieces from the game to play the game as intended, or she can pretend to “catch” the bug pieces with these tools. fine motor practice (and a multitude of other skills!) either way!
See a quick tour of our playroom with KK’s two sensory tables in this reel.
Here’s how we store these monthly sensory bin items the rest of the year.
We have a separate, simple rice bin - like this Busy Toddler post! - that KK LOVES.
this month we gave the rice bin an easy Red White and Blue theme. see the post here!
Here’s how we store these monthly rice bin items the rest of the year.
Play kitchen:
Here’s a quick reel on the 13 things we keep in our play kitchen. And then each month we rotate 2-3 “new” food or cooking toys. This rotation works really well for us!
So in June, I will add…
a little picnic basket (rom the Dollar Spot), with this felt sandwich set inside
and these shape-sorting cupcakes (as a nod to kk’s June 3rd birthday!)
Also:
Here’s how we store these monthly kitchen toy items the rest of the year.
See a quick tour of our playroom with our play kitchen in this reel.
Here’s a blogpost on our DIY-ish Play Kitchen with a Phone and Mailbox.
Resources + other ideas:
My Local Places List for local summer fun ideas
Whew!
Want to see photos? Follow me on Instagram - I’m always sharing peeks into our home and our daily life on my stories. I’m always tweaking our home and our routines and our systems to best meet our current needs in our current season, so my Instagram has the most up-to-date photos.
Loved this post? I highly recommend the “play area” highlight on my Instagram!
Read Our Monthly Themes for Play for our full year of play themes.
I created these monthly play themes as part of my baby prep for Baby #2. See the full list of other things I’m SO happy I did to make Joey’s arrival easier here!
And see my Amazon storefront for more of our favorite things.
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