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Blocks, crayons, cardboard and a pitcher on a kitchen counter

👵 Tell Me When You Were Little

The best activity in the house just walked through the door — give them a job.

🔍 Discover·20 min·Free·Ages 2–5·👶 Easy·🧑 Light

⚠️ Safety first

Keep old photos out of glass frames, and let your child opt out if a memory or game feels uncomfortable.

You know your child best — supervise the whole time and skip anything that isn't right for them. See our Terms.

Why this is good for your child

  • ✓Listening
  • ✓Family history

What you need

A visiting grandparent · An old photo if there's one to hand

How to do it

  1. 1.Ask the grandparent what they played with at this age.
  2. 2.Have them show it, not just say it.
  3. 3.Try their version together.

How it actually goes

⏱ 30-second set-up —
Thirty seconds: put a visiting grandparent, an old photo if there's one to hand on a tray or a clear bit of floor, and sit down next to it before you call them over.
🧑 What you do —
Show it once, slowly, without talking over yourself. Then hand it over and stop helping unless they ask.
👶 What they do —
Collect, look closely, and ask the questions.
✅ What success looks like —
At 2–3 they'll do it their own way, not yours, and stop after five minutes. Both of those are fine.
🧺 How to put it away —
Everything back into one basket or tray, carried back to its spot by them. Naming the spot out loud is what makes it stick.
📈 When they outgrow it —
Older? Look one of the finds up in a book together afterwards.
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