Picnic time – set up a picnic so your baby can practise picking things up, moving them and putting them down

Set up a picnic by placing a piece of fabric on the floor and setting up plates and snacks. Say to your baby that you are having a picnic and you would like them to put food on the plates. Point to a plate and say, “What food are we putting here?” If your baby doesn’t look at the plate, lift it a give it a jiggle to attract their attention. You could always say, “This plate needs food, what could go on there?”

Your baby might look towards the food and pick something out. Encourage them to place the food on the plate.

It could take a lot of practice for your baby to understand what is expected from them. You can be delighted with any action that your baby makes with the picnic. Watch to see if they look towards something before picking it up. When they do, give lots of praise. You might say, “Oh wow, I saw that you wanted the apple and you got it. That is brilliant.”