Today I gave Veronika a game with the easiest set up ever: balls + an empty muffin pan.
Having recently played with pom poms in a muffin tin, I knew she would like the concept. This time, I filled the tins of a standard 12 cup muffin pan with balls of various sizes. I included golf balls, tennis balls, and a few toy sensory balls.
I deliberately left some of the compartments empty so she could transfer from one to another, making this almost like toddler whack-a-mole. She immediately got busy!
I also placed a small box to the side so she could gather up the balls if she wanted to, but she preferred moving them either from tin to tin or directly onto the floor.
She has never really played with tennis balls before, making these the most novel part of the game, and was delighted when she realized they bounce. So after that it became a game of chasing tennis balls all around the first floor of our apartment.
What simple but pure fun!