The Menifee County Family and Consumer Sciences agent hosted the “Laugh and Learn Playdates” in the summer of 2021. From the months of May through August, participants ages 2-5 years old met at the Menifee County park on the second Thursday of each month for the “playdate”. Each playdate consisted of an interactive story reading, a craft, a learning game and a healthy snack, along with socialization amongst peers. Each month had an educational theme that coordinated with the season, such as gardening, insects and all about apples. 

The activities provided at the playdates were designed to improve children’s fine and gross motor skills. For example, cutting and pasting construction paper pieces to create paper bugs improved fine motor skills, while tossing bean bags into a spider’s mouth to “feed” her helped develop gross motor skills. Working with peers helped participants gain important social skills such as clear verbal communication and cooperating with others.

The Laugh and Learn Playdates program in Menifee County had a total of ten participants, with an average of six participants at each meeting. One parent of a participant stated that she enjoyed seeing her children get to interact with other children their age after being away from others for such a long time (during the pandemic restrictions).Others stated that they enjoyed the program and hoped that it would be held again in the future.