Books & Early Literacy
ZazzyKid Magnetic Calendar & Weather Chart
A hands-on daily calendar your child updates every morning: day of the week, weather, season and how they feel. Two minutes a day of moving magnets builds an entire family of time words — today, tomorrow, first, later, always — that are almost impossible to teach from picture books alone, because time has to be LIVED to be learned.
We earn a tiny amount from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
This toy stars in:
How to Use This Toy for Talking
Let your child explore first — follow their lead. Watch what they look at, copy what they do, and add words to their ideas rather than directing the play. Then weave in the goals below for your child's level. A few minutes of shared, chatty play beats a long structured session every time.
Speech Goals by Level
Pick your child's level — not sure? Read the level guide. Each level shows goals for understanding (receptive language — what your child takes in) and using words (expressive language — what they say). Understanding usually comes first, so it's completely normal for the two to be at different levels. And every card has a step down and a step up — meet your child where they are on the day.
🥉
Bronze · First Words
Understanding · receptive
- Point to the sun, rain and snow magnets when named
- Follow 'Put it ON the board' and 'Take it OFF'
- Understand 'hot day' and 'cold day' with dressing-up gestures
Using words · expressive
- Say 'sun!', 'rain!', 'wet!' looking out the window
- Say 'on!' as each magnet clicks onto the board
- Say 'cold!' with a brrr shiver
- Say 'uh-oh!' when the weather magnet is wrong
Key concepts
- Weather words
- On/off
- Hot/cold
- Wet/dry
Finding it tricky? Drop all demands. Just play side by side and say the words for them — hearing words with zero pressure to speak is still powerful learning.
Too easy? If they copy words easily and use lots on their own, peek at Silver: take their word and add one of yours ('pop!' becomes 'big pop!').
🥈
Silver · Phrases
Understanding · receptive
- Understand 'day' and 'night': 'Is it day time or night time now?'
- Follow routine talk: 'FIRST breakfast, THEN we change the calendar'
- Understand 'not now — LATER' when they ask to do the magnets early
Using words · expressive
- 'It's sunny today!'
- 'First calendar, then park!'
- 'Before we eat, I do the weather!'
- 'Monday is first, Sunday is last!'
- 'Do it now? No — later!'
Language structures
- Day/night words
- Sequencing (first/then, before)
- Time words (now/later)
- First/last
Finding it tricky? Step back to the Bronze single words. Say their word, then add just ONE more ('ball' → 'big ball') — no need for them to repeat it.
Too easy? If two-word phrases are flowing, start modelling the Gold sentences during play and leave a pause — many children will surprise you.
🥇
Gold · Sentences & Stories
Sentences to model · expressive
- 'Today is Tuesday, so tomorrow is Wednesday!'
- 'We ALWAYS do the calendar in the morning, but we NEVER do it at night'
- 'We were early for school because we got dressed fast'
Higher language
- Answering 'when?' questions: 'When do we go swimming?' — 'On Saturday!'
- Today/tomorrow/yesterday talk at breakfast each morning
- Always/sometimes/never: 'It sometimes rains in summer, but it never snows!'
- Whose turn: 'Whose job is the weather today? It's mine!'
- Every/each: 'We change it every day — each morning after breakfast'
Finding it tricky? Shrink your sentences back to the Silver phrases and slow right down — long sentences are harder to process in the middle of exciting play.
Too easy? Move into storytelling: ask 'what happened?' after play, retell it together, or explore the final bands of the Talking Journey.
Julia's Parent Tip
Make the calendar a two-minute breakfast ritual and narrate the same script each day — 'Yesterday was... today is... tomorrow will be...' Time words only make sense through repetition inside a real routine. After a few weeks, pause before 'tomorrow' and let your child finish the sentence.
Ready to turn this toy into talk time?
Grab it on Amazon, then come back to this page during play — the goals work best with the toy in hand.
