Week by Week Play
This is the core part of Toddler Hacks. One theme each week, with one sensory/messy play idea, one arts and crafts and one active/out and about idea. Keeping play simple and using items you should already have in your home. May not score top marks on the instagram grid, but who has time to curate that perfect messy play set up when you've got a toddler to entertain and a million other things on the to do list?
The active theme for the week is linked on our home page, but here you will find all previous week by week themes. Have a scroll through and see what other play ideas catch your eye.
Will you give car week, arctic week or dinosaur week a go?
Or learn some things with alphabet week or shape week?
Or try a seasonal autumn week, bonfire week, happy holidays or happy new year week?
Or go with an animal themed bird week, frog week, caterpillar week or farm week?
Our previous week by week themes.
Alphabet
Alphabet
Alphabet
Start getting to grips with the letters with this week's theme: alphabet week. Find the letters in this week's sensory play and around the room in the active play. Make your own A for alligator and a for apple in this week's arts and crafts.
Apples
Alphabet
Alphabet
Explore apples this week with an apple washing station, apple stamping arts and crafts and a quest to find objects beginning with the letter A.
Arctic
Alphabet
Arctic
It's getting cold outside so stay indoors with this week's arctic theme. Help the animals escape from the ice, make polar bear cards and do some arctic animal yoga.
Autumn
Bonfire Night
Arctic
On a crisp autumn day, there is little better than wrapping up warm and getting outside. This week's theme is Autumn, so head out on a scavenger hunt, build an autumnal sensory box and try out some leaf painting.
Birds
Bonfire Night
Bonfire Night
This week, learn more about birds by building nests and creating a peacock's tail, make your own robin and go on a hunt to find some birds outside.
Bonfire Night
Bonfire Night
Bonfire Night
Celebrate bonfire night in the UK this week (remember remember the 5th of November!) with bonfire week at toddler hacks. Make a fireworks themed messy play tub and fireworks stampers. Plus turn the lights off and have your own glow stick party.
Breakfast
Breakfast
Breakfast
This week, make a breakfast sensory box, a breakfast box whirly and cook some pancakes.
Building
Breakfast
Breakfast
Get out those building blocks your toddler hasn't played with in months and use them to kick off building week! We will also make an indoor soft play with sofa cushions and more.
Bugs
Breakfast
Bugs
This week, make a bug sensory box, make finger puppet bugs and build a butterfly.
Cars
Construction
Bugs
It's car week this week! Make a colour matching parking lot, make egg carton cars and download our car scavenger hunt and find as many logos as possible.
Caterpillar
Construction
Construction
This week feed your own very hungry caterpillar, make a caterpillar chain and act out your own caterpillar lifecycle.
Construction
Construction
Construction
Build a simple construction themed bin this week, do some painting with diggers and pretend to be diggers!
Dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaur
Hatch dinosaur eggs, make your own fossils and pin the tooth on the t-rex this week!
Farm
Football
Football
Welcome to farm week. Entertain your toddler by saving the animals and try out some animal feet stamping!
Frog
Football
Gardening
For frog week, feed the frog the flies, hop across the lily pads and make your own jumping frogs.
Gardening
Gardening
Gardening
Welcome to gardening week. Make a flower sensory box, a paper mache flower bowl and grow some hair on flower pot people.
Golf
Gardening
Halloween
It's golf week this week. Build golf tees for this week's sensory play, do some painting with golf balls and play some (mini) golf.
Halloween
Gardening
Halloween
It's Halloween week this week. Up the mess factor slightly with a sensory play tib full of bats, make your own ghostly Halloween cards and go out after dark on a Halloween scavenger hunt.
Happy Holidays
Happy Holidays
Happy Holidays
Celebrate Christmas with some festive-based play ideas this week. Make your own sensory bin with fake snow, make paper chains and make gingerbread.
Happy New Year
Happy Holidays
Happy Holidays
Celebrate the new year in style, well toddler style!, with fireworks in a jar, fizzy firework painting and a bubble party.
Laundry
Happy Holidays
Lunar New Year
For laundry week, match socks in the sensory play, make a sock puppet and do some laundry.
Lunar New Year
Lunar New Year
Lunar New Year
This week make your own red and gold sensory bin, cut out a red paper lantern and enjoy a quest to find the 12 animals of the zodiac!
Measuring
Lunar New Year
Measuring
Fill a sensory bin with sticks to measure, make a nature window and race and measure cars.
Ocean
Lunar New Year
Measuring
Build an ocean with sea creatures to rescue for this week's sensory play, make paper plate jellyfish and go to an aquarium.
Pasta
Pasta
Pasta
Set up a spaghetti restaurant, craft with pasta and go spotting some of Italy's best sights with this week's fun theme!
Post Office
Post Office
Post Office
This week, set up a post office for the sensory play, make postcards and go in search of post boxes.
Rainbows
Post Office
Post Office
Welcome to rainbow week! This week make a rainbow rice sensory bin, make a magic rainbow and build your own rainbow.
Shapes
Post Office
Shapes
It's shape week this week! Make a shape sorting sensory bin, stick shapes to a window (a firm fave at Toddler Hacks HQ) and do shape-based arts and crafts.
Space
Spider
Shapes
Draw out the constellations in space week, make a rocket and throw some space rocks in the active play.
Spider
Spider
Spider
Have fun in spider week with a spider-themed sensory bin, making your own spiders and going out spotting incy wincy spider.
Spring
Spider
Spider
Welcome Spring in this week by feeding the bunny carrots in this week's sensory play, making egg stamps with bubble wrap and enjoy 2 active play suggestions.
Tea
The Toddler Hacks Alphabet
The Toddler Hacks Alphabet
Maybe you'll finally get to enjoy that hot cup of tea in peace with this week's tea week theme! With a tea leaf sensory box, painting with tea bags and dancing to I'm A Little Teapot it promises something slightly different!
The Toddler Hacks Alphabet
The Toddler Hacks Alphabet
The Toddler Hacks Alphabet
A whole sub-list of sensory play awaits you in this section of the site, with week by week play ideas themed around items beginning with each letter of the alphabet!
Tiger
The Toddler Hacks Alphabet
Valentines
Enjoy acting out A Tiger Who Came To Tea, make tigers out of orange card and play keepy uppy with a tiger this week.
Valentines
Valentines
Valentines
This week make fizzy hearts, heart shaped arts and crafts and go outside for some heart themed hopscotch.
Washing Up
Valentines
Washing Up
Get your toddler to help with washing up and putting away cutlery this week. Plus try out some fork painting in this week's arts and crafts.