My little guy loves visiting his grandparents. They always have the coolest toys: golf carts, iPhones they let him actually use for hours, and now an actual drum set. Yes, Grandpap bought some sweet drums and, boy, did every male in the household—including my two-year-old—want to slap the skins.
Since my little musical prodigy has more enthusiasm than skill—or aim—I decided to give him his own, damage-proof drum set. I raided Grandma's pots and pans collection and let my little guy go to town. Using every pot, pan, and plastic container I could find, I arranged them in a large circle, handed my toddler two wooden mixing spoons, then plopped him in the middle of it all.
What happened next might depend on your child's personality—but my kid's preference for loud, banging noises is right up there with, I don't know, Keith Moon, Dave Grohl, or Animal. After a quick demo by yours truly, my rug rat went to town. He banged. He bashed. He clashed. He moved in a circle, hitting every surface he could find. He made a stupendous amount of noise. And he smiled and laughed the entire time.
This was the easiest—and for my boy's personality—most successful DIY activity we've done to date. After his initial concert-worthy performance, we left his drum circle on the living room floor, and in between playing with cars, reading books and causing minor acts of destruction, he would return again and again to play his drums. My only caveat is: Once addicted to the sticks, you might have to teach your toddler that not every surface of the house is drum-able. For example, flat-screen TVs, the dining room table—and the cat—are all out-of-bounds.
But overall, this is an easy, mess-free, and incredibly entertaining DIY activity, both for your child and any audience members. And when our future rock star got tired, he chose to return to his drum circle to, well, play on Grandma's iPhone. (Don't grandparents rock?) With this activity, so will your toddler!
