Close your eyes and try smelling different kinds of food to see if you can guess what they are without peeking!
For the reluctant eater, it may be enough to simply smell a new food a few times before feeling brave enough to put it in their mouth.
Take a tour through your spice cabinet and explore some new smells. We recommend cinnamon, cloves, garlic powder and curry powder to get started.
Save your old bottles of vanilla, lavender or mint extract to smell when you need a moment to refocus or find a sense of calm.
Why Play This Way?
Never underestimate the power of a unique smell to ignite a memory or elicit a deep and powerful emotion. When we eat, it is the smell of the molecules in our food that creates the flavor. This activity takes advantage of that one-of-a kind scientific/emotional connection to engage your little one while also exposing them to new olfactory experiences. Plus, you can use this activity the next time you need to keep your little one quietly engaged by creating a small collection of scents in a to-go bag.
