Play Learning - More than a memory!

Sweetpea received this adorable memory game for her second birthday. While she loves the cards and frequently asks to "play" with her Dora cards, she really isn't ready to play memory as the instructions would indicate. Until we can follow the directions more closely, we've been playing with these sweet cards in other ways:

• With about 16 cards lying face up, we match like cards
• Group cards by like colored backgrounds and practice color recognition
• Make up names for each of the characters and create short stories with them (who is this, Sweetpea? That's princess Dora! What is princess Dora doing today?)
• Create slightly more intricate stories with sets of created characters
• Create designs and towers by stacking and arranging the cards around the table
• Practice counting the cards or the cards with specific characters on them