How to Prepare Toddlers for New Experiences
Let’s be honest, change is hard for anyone. But when you’re experiencing the world for the first time, like babies and toddlers, different can be downright scary. Since toddlers lack the verbal skills to communicate their fears, new experience can be riddled with tears and tantrums… unless you prepare toddlers for new experiences ahead of time.
As a traveling family, our kids are constantly presented with new experiences. To make sure they are met with smiles instead of tears, we follow a few simple steps.
Why it Helps to Prepare Toddlers for New Experiences
When you prepare toddlers for new experiences ahead of time, you’re doing a few things at once:
- Giving them a sense of control in a world where most things are decided for them
- Helping them build a mental “story” of what will happen, so it doesn’t feel scary in the moment
- Giving them simple language to describe feelings like “nervous,” “loud,” or “too many people”
This doesn’t make every moment perfect, but it usually means fewer surprise meltdowns and more chances for your child to feel proud of themselves for trying something new.
Step-by-Step: How to Prepare Toddlers for New Experiences
Below are the exact steps we use before a big change, like a trip, a special outing, or even a new class. You can use just one, or layer them together for extra support.
1. Talk to Them
Well ahead of the new place, event, person, or thing they’re going to experience, start talking them through what’s going to happen. Go step by step, speaking slowly, using words they understand. Track their facial expressions for any concerns that may arise. Use your initial chat as a script, and go over daily to make sure they are ready. We like to do this daily at bed time, but any time would work.
2. Show Them Pictures and Videos
Show them pictures and videos of the new experience. It’s easy to do this if it’s a place you’ve been. If you haven’t, YouTube and Google image search are great resources. Comment like a narrator on what’s happening in the video or picture, and let them ask questions. As you did with the talk track, show them these visuals often leading up to the new experience.
3. Role Play How the Experience Will Unfold
Role play how the experience will unfold. For example, if you’re going on a flight, grab an empty suitcase or backpack. Pack it into the car, and pretend you’re headed to their airport. If they’re meeting a new person, pretend you are that person and let them interact with you. Notice when they get stuck, and listen for how they role play to catch any potential concerns they can’t verbalize.
A Real-Life Example: First Flight After a Long Break
These simple tricks have helped our toddlers become pros at facing change and new experiences. In fact, our older son just had his first flight since before the pandemic, and he faced it like a champ. He had been on over 20 flights before the pandemic, but he didn’t remember any of them! He was slightly nervous about the plane being too loud, which he was able to communicate head of time. This helped me show him videos with plane noises, so he could hear what it will be like and mentally prepare. I also brought noice canceling headphones to help with his concerns about the noise. He didn’t even need them!
This is exactly why we continue to prepare toddlers for new experiences even when they’ve technically “done it before.” Time passes, they forget, and their brains process the world differently as they grow. The more we practice, talk, and play through things in advance, the more confident they become when it’s time to actually go.
If your next new experience happens to be air travel, pairing these preparation steps with the ideas from Toddler Flight Essentials will give you a full game plan: how to get them ready emotionally and what to pack so they’re comfortable on travel day.
Final Thoughts
Preparing toddlers for something new does not have to be complicated or perfect. A little bit of talking, showing, and role playing ahead of time can go a long way toward turning big, unfamiliar moments into experiences your child can actually enjoy. When you prepare toddlers for new experiences, you are not only trying to prevent meltdowns in the moment. You are helping them build confidence, learn to name their feelings, and trust that you will guide them through whatever comes next.
What new experiences do your toddlers have coming up? Let me know! Feel free to email me or send a message on Instagram, I’m always happy to share more tips and insights to help you travel.
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