How to Play Follow the Leader With Toddlers

Getting Started

Begin by explaining to your child that you want them to imitate or copy the things that you do. Use language that your child understands. Start with movements that you know your child is capable of performing, like clapping their hands.

If your toddler doesn't seem to know what to do, ask, "Can you do it?" Then help them do the movement. Keep doing this until your child seems to follow your lead.

A nice board book to read to get things going is Eric Carle's From Head to Toe which encourages children to act out animal movements.

Choosing Moves

Reinforce old skills by choosing things your toddler already knows how to do. This will give your child a feeling of confidence and success as well.

Sprinkle the old movements in with new ones your toddler hasn't mastered yet. Here are some ideas to help keep the game interesting and gradually more challenging:

Clap
Crawl
Walk
Run
Climb a hill
Blow in the breeze like a tree
Flap your arms like a chicken
Hop
Skip
Jump
Gallop
March
Spin
Twist
Walk on tiptoe
Stomp
Roll
Fall like a leaf
Wiggle
Fly like an airplane
Twirl like a helicopter blade
Shake your hips from side-to-side
Crawl sideways like a crab
Kick
Step-kick like a chorus line dancer
Swim like a fish
Swim like a person

Ending the Game

Keep the action going until you or your toddler tire of the game. It's fun to end with a quiet movement so that your toddler knows it's time to wind down (try "sleep like a baby" or "be as still as a statue").

Once they've mastered the game, give your toddler a chance to be the leader, too. You'll know what their favorite moves are (and those they can perform best) by what they ask you to do. Pay attention to their choices and use those moves to get the game started in the future.