LENA Grow Lakeshore kits

LENA’s 14 Talking Tips show simple ways to increase conversational turns. Engage children throughout the day — any time is a good time to talk!

Hide and Seek Discovery Ball
Explore spatial relationships, colors, and sounds while building dexterity.

• Select other objects and items to compare size. What else fits inside the ball?
• Use vocabulary that supports a position of the smaller balls in relationship to the large ball. The green ball above, the blue ball is inside, next to, behind, etc.
• Hide the smaller balls around a play area, encourage children to find them by color.

Infants and toddlers love looking at realistic images and begin to recognize objects they see.

Infant/Toddler Poster Pack
Infants and toddlers love looking at realistic images and begin to recognize objects they see.

• Hang images in transitional areas to provide visual engagement. Ask children questions about what they see in each photo.
• Increase vocabulary by describing what you see in each image. Add words about color, size, and events.
• Make connections between the image and a child's lived experiences. "This child is wearing shoes! Where are you shoes? What color are they?"

Support children as they explore their environment: sort, compare, and play with items based on color, shape, texture, or size. 

Soft & Washable Sensory Balls
Touch, toss, squeeze …and build sensory awareness. Balls have lots of fun textures, colors and sounds to investigate.

• Roll down ramps or across play areas to encourage early math thinking: Which rolls fastest? Slowest? 
• Sort according to size, color, texture, or sound.
• Create rhythmic patterns for children to copy.

Some children are faster eaters than others. These items give children who are finished something to engage with at the table or on the floor.

Little Wobblers
Weighted toys allow children to experiment with movement, balance, and coordination.

• Support developing vocabulary by using directional words such as front, behind, next to. Ask children to place wobblers accordingly.
• Explore simple cause and effect by asking children, "What happens if you... (push it, pull it, tap it, hit it, hold it down).
• Use the wobblers as characters in a short story that you and a child take turns telling.

Develop language skills and build vocabulary by reading together or encouraging children to "read" on their own.

Bilingual Board Book Collection
Each board book provides colorful illustrations to introduce shapes, numbers, and common places such as school, city, or room.

• Encourage children to describe what they see on each page. "What do you see?" "What else can you find?" "Do you see all of the ____ on this page?"
• Support early math thinking by counting objects on each page. "How many ___ do you see? Let's count them together."
• Help children build critical thinking skills. "What do you think happens next? Why?"

Lacing Keys
Build hand-eye coordination, color recognition, and early counting skills!

• Sort by color or ask patterning questions. "Green, orange, green, what comes next?"
• Count keys — see how many each child can put on the ring.
• Encourage imaginative play. "What are those keys for? What can they open?" 

Words and conversations are the building blocks of early literacy. Even before they can talk, children begin learning skills such as identifying sounds, communication, and vocabulary that will help them make sense of printed words when they begin reading.

Infant/Toddler Photo Library
Use these real-life photo visuals to build observation, critical thinking, and language skills. 

• Encourage children who speak a language different from you or their peers to share their word for the image.
• Hang images in transitional areas to provide visual engagement. Ask children questions about what they see. (Describe the image yourself as needed.) "What do you notice? What do you think is happening in this picture? I see a girl visiting the doctor..." 
• Select 3-4 images. Encourage children to sort by color, item, event, or a criteria of their choosing. "How are these alike? How are they different?"

Early math learning goes beyond just 1, 2, 3. Talk about patterns and shapes exploration while comparing sizes, building, and counting.

Stack & Nest Sensory Toys
Bright colors, bold patterns, fun-to-touch textures — lots to explore! Use indoors or out, in a water table or sand box.

• Encourage turn-taking by alternating which child adds a block to the tower next.
• Use directional words to support spatial thinking: putting objects in/out, placing a block over/under, to the side, above, beneath, etc.

Using songs and rhymes throughout the day helps children increase vocabulary, learn sounds, and hear the rhythm of language!

Wrist Ribbons
Attach to wrists for hands-free dancing, waving, swaying music play.

• Add a color element to movement exploration. "Yellow and blue, wave your arms high. Purple and green, sway your arms low."
• Arrange children by color to create a pattern (or rainbow!)
• Encourage critical thinking skills by turning into different animals (place ribbon at nose for an elephant or behind your back for a cat's tail) and ask children to guess.

Best Behavior Board Book Collection
Develop skills in language development, social-emotional development, self-regulation and positive behavior.

• Encourage children to describe the illustrations. "What do you see?" "Why do you think is happening?"
• Support socio-emotional awareness by helping children identify with the characters. "How do you think they feel? Why?" "Point to the child who looks..."

LENA’s 14 Talking Tips show simple ways to increase conversational turns. Engage children throughout the day — any time is a good time to talk!

Indestructible Giant Beads & Patterns
These beads are great for little hands! Work on fine motor control while learning colors and shapes.

• Ask patterning questions using shape or color. "Blue, red, blue, what comes next?"
• Support early numeracy skills when sorting by color or shape.
• Build and stack, then encourage pretend play. "Tell me about this..."

Encourage children to take an active role in their daily routines. Describe your actions, give choices when possible, and ask questions!

All About Me Photo Card Library
Use these real-life photo visuals to build observation, critical thinking, and language skills. 

• Ask children about their own lives at home, using the images as prompts.
• Hang images in transitional areas to provide visual engagement. Ask children questions about what they see: What do you notice? What do you think is happening in this picture? How do those people feel? 
• Create a sequence with three images. Ask children to tell a short story around these images.

Support children as they explore their environment: sort, compare, and play with items based on color, shape, texture, or size. 

Design & Build Water Blocks
Build natural creativity and spatial awareness (while working on gross and fine motor skills). These can be used for indoor or outdoor play — blocks stick together when wet!

• Encourage turn-taking by alternating which child adds a block to the tower next.
• Ask children to describe their construction, "Tell me a story about what you built!"
• Support early math thinking with float/sink experimental play. "How many blocks (or other items) can we stack before our buildings sink?"

Connect during this busy time of day to share experiences, model behaviors, and learn more about children's likes and dislikes.

Burger Sequence Stacker
Develop sequencing, fine motor skills, and encourage imaginative play! 

• Use descriptive clues such as color, size, or taste. "Please make me a burger with something red and yellow."
• Support early math thinking by using words such as first, next, last.
  
• Talk about other foods similar to hamburgers that children might eat such as sandwiches, tacos, or pitas.
• Incorporate peer learning by encouraging one child to describe what to build, and another child assembling.

Develop language skills and build vocabulary by reading together or encouraging children to "read" on their own.

Learning to Get Along Book Set
Each illustrated book focuses on positive ways for children to interact with one another.

• Encourage children to describe the illustrations. "What do you notice?" "What do you think happens next?"
• Support socio-emotional awareness by helping children identify with the characters. "How do you think they feel? Why?" "How would you feel if this happened to you?"

What Goes Together? Activity Box
Develop skills in building vocabulary, sorting and classifying, and comparing and contrasting. Each manipulative is the perfect size for little hands.

• Ask children to explain their thinking, introducing new vocabulary as appropriate. Talk about shape, color, and other similarities.
• Encourage silly matches (mouse, monkey, rabbit all match with different hats) and support children in identifying why they might go together. (They are all something that can be worn on the head.) 

Words and conversations are the building blocks of early literacy. Children begin learning skills such as identifying sounds, communication, and vocabulary that will help them make sense of printed words when they begin reading.

Best Behavior Board Book Collection
Develop skills in language development, social-emotional development, self-regulation and positive behavior.

Encourage children to describe the illustrations. "What do you see?" "Why do you think is happening?"
Support socio-emotional awareness by helping children identify with the characters. "How do you think they feel? Why?" "Point to the child who looks..."

Early math learning goes beyond just 1, 2, 3. Talk about patterns and shape exploration while comparing sizes, building, and counting.

Snap-bots
Easy snap pieces are great for building fine motor skills. Follow the suggested designs to support sequencing skills or encourage imaginative play!

• Support early math and problem-solving skills. Build a snap-bot, then ask children to recreate it exactly.
• Practice color and shape recognition by sorting all the pieces and building by color.
• Ask children to tell a story about the snap-bot they create. 

Using songs and rhymes throughout the day helps children increase vocabulary, learn sounds, and hear the rhythm of language!

Storytelling puppets (Use with Week 5: Reflection item)
Use characters to act out classroom-favorite stories or make up your own! Promote language, joint attention, and turn taking.

• Support early math thinking by sequencing a story. "What comes first? Next? Last?"
  
• Explore prediction skills by asking children, "What do you think happens next?"
• Take turns adding a new sentence to the story. Prompt children to begin with, "And then..."
• Encourage imaginative play by mixing characters from different stories. Ask children to help you tell a brand new story using those characters.

Storytelling glove (Use with Week 4: Songs and Rhymes item)
Use characters to act out classroom-favorite stories or make up your own! Promote language, joint attention, and turn taking.

Support early math thinking by sequencing a story. "What comes first? Next? Last?"

Explore prediction skills by asking children, "What do you think happens next?"
Take turns adding a new sentence to the story. Prompt children to begin with, "And then..."
Encourage imaginative play by mixing characters from different stories. Ask children to help you tell a brand new story using those characters.