Toddlers at Home: 7 Kid Science, Nature, and Art Activities for January 2021

It’s January 2021, and we’re back with a list of fun stuff you can do at home with the kids.

This time, the activities are from a handful of Children’s Discovery Centers, Museums, and Nature Conservancies across America!  You’ll want to put these places on your bucket list for when it’s safe to travel again! 

1. Oceans & Marine Life , from the Monterey Bay Aquarium (California):

You can watch the  animals live from the web cam (and, as the Aquarium says, build empathy for animals in the natural world) and learn to move just like they do!

2. From the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose (California)

With activities like  Animal Detectives, Build a Nest, Nature Painting – you’re sure to have a good time with your kids!

Go to More Toddler activities (in English and Vietnamese) for Nature Collage Suncatcher, Baby sign language, Gravity Painting, Shadow Tracing, and Walking Water.  

3. From San Diego Children's Discovery Museum (California):

This Museum’s YouTube channel has videos with learning activities around clouds, engineering, world culture, and nature talks. 

This page has Music and Movement, Tinker Time, World Culture, Art, and Chicken Chat.

4. Butterflies & Flamingoes from The Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservancy (Florida):

Watch the daily antics of the famous flamingo pair, Rhett and Scarlett, in the conservatory. You can also see quail, ducks, and hundreds of butterfly species. Get your questions answered on these daily Facebook Livestreams, or watch the videos at your leisure. 

5. From Children’s Museum Houston (Texas):

This museum 's Early Childhood Corner publishes video playlists on animals, toddler arts & crafts, story bags, and their famous  Tot*Tunes (even bilingual, so you can sing along to a new language)!

6. Discovery Place: Stay At Home Science (North Carolina)

Make a toy for your dog, a tornado in a bottle, moon dust, glowing constellation jars, and bouncy balls with this group of videos for young ones. You can watch on the  Discovery Place website, or on their YouTube channel.

7. California Science Center: Discovery Rooms for Little Learners (California)

The California Science Center's Discovery Rooms (virtual) provide "inquiry-based investigation" experiences to help foster young children’s first ventures into science exploration. Try the city street (community) puppet experience, or the animals program (see boa constrictors, scorpions, and other fascinating animals), or try the home habitat learning center.

What to do next? 

When you’re done with these videos, you can put these places on your “Toddler Bucket List” for the near future. When you go, don’t forget your  Piggyback Rider so everyone can enjoy travel and adventure together!