Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Written by Bill Martin Jr. Illustrated by Eric Carle
This clever book entices the reader right from the first page. “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, what do you see?” the reader asks the bear at the start. The bear then describes what it sees to the reader. As the story continues, the same question is asked of all the animals and people who star in the book.
Because it focuses on combining rhythmic and repeating phrases throughout, young children have plenty of opportunities to join in. They might not be able to resist the urge to growl like a bear or woof like a dog!
Moo Bah La La La, by Sandra Boynton
This is a fun little book that’s great for children who love animals. It brings together a lovely mix of farmyard, safari and domestic animals to explore the different sounds they make and how those snorts, barks and baas can rhyme.
The words have a delightful rhythmic pattern to them, and it’s a terrific book for getting even the youngest children involved. The sounds can be read in a variety of silly voices to make it even more entertaining.
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Outdoors is a great place to paint and draw
When you notice the changes in the environment as the seasons progress, encouraging your child to notice the differences and paint and draw out doors will produce really great work based on observations and freedom to use colours and self-expression.
Do you remember? Simple ways to support your child’s cognitive development
Your child’s memory and concentration skills develop in conjunction with the experiences they have, the people they know and the places they go to. This is because for everything we experience, our brain combines information from our senses with our body’s reactions and our lived experience to create meaning[1]. As cognitive skills develop, and children encounter more things, their brain can recall these moments as memories to help it make sense of what is happening and know how to react to new situations.
This is not always a reliable, or linear, process. You may find yourself surprised at times when your child recounts events from long ago which you thought they had forgotten about, or they bring up something in a context you'd never have expected.
Using the stairs – a simple way to get more activity into your day and great for your toddler’s development too!
We all know keeping active is important; but despite your watch telling you to move more, or a daily goal of 10,000 steps, the reality is that most parents don’t have time for sport, the gym or an exercise class every day. Which is where the stairs come in as a perfect way to fit in a bit of extra movement for your and your toddler.
As well as being vital for our bodies, physical activity can help us manage stress and sleep better. It's good to think that every minute counts and exercise in various forms and guises can be spread across the day. Physical activity is important for our physical and mental health, it can help us manage stress and sleep better.
Seesaw science, how your child learns physics as they play
Do you remember learning about forces and pivots in science lessons?? You might possibly remember diagrams of the forces acting on a seesaw, but surely all of this is way too complicated for your child?
We aren’t going to suggest introducing written equations to your child just yet! But the wonderful thing about giving them lots of time to play and move is that they are experiencing these forces in action.
Jumping with both feet off the ground – the benefits of jumping for your child (and you)
The more your child moves, the more they develop not only strength and control of their muscles but also a healthy cardiovascular system. We know physical exercise is also good for our wellbeing, and with concerns that children (and adults) should move more[1] – we thought: why not look at the benefits of something as simple as jumping!
We often look at our children’s apparently endless energy and think they must be moving enough, but it is worth thinking about the guidelines for children under five and if your child gets the time and space to be as physically active as possible.
Watch our five tips for introducing a balance bike
Now your toddler’s balance is developing, you might be starting to think about a balance bike.
Balance bikes don’t have pedals, so these are simple for your toddler to use, and help them to develop the balance they need to ride a bike.
