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It’s raining it’s pouring, everything’s wet and boring…The weather has changed and winter has arrived. Often when this happens and the rain rolls in it is hard to find things to do outside to keep your child busy and active. Rain puddles are just made for jumping. You can try jumping over puddles with your child.
Cheese or ham? Brown bread or multigrain? It’s lunch time. Let’s make sandwiches.Your child can make their own sandwiches. First encourage them to choose what sort of bread and which fillings they would like.Look in the fridge and see what’s there. Would you like tomato and cheese?Count out how many slices of bread you will need. We’re making one sandwich for you and one for
How you load or unload the dishwasher can be unique to you or your family and might be different just because of the type of dishwasher you have. As you work with your child to load or unload the dishwasher, explain to them how you will go about the task and the reason for the decisions you are making. This plate is longer and has sharp corners compared to the plate that has
Look, up in the sky - what can you see? Take some time to encourage your child to stop and look up while you are out walking or lying on the grass. Talk about what you see. Clouds are always changing. Sometimes they are white, sometimes shades of grey. There are lots of clouds today. Are they big, fluffy clouds or long thin ones? What colour are they? You can also talk about
The sun has risen and it is time to get up. Are you hungry because it’s time for breakfast?Will you have toast? If you’re having toast, are there different types of bread and spreads to pick from?We have 3 different types of bread in the fridge. There is brown, white and multigrain. Which one do you want?Yesterday you had butter and Vegemite on toast. Do you want the same
Children naturally want to move and be active and will try out different ways for their bodies to move. You can combine language with your child’s natural interest in moving. As you talk, sing or chant with your child you can combine action rhymes and words with movement patterns. Take turns leading the rhyming and instructions. You could make up nonsense words that rhyme.
Have you ever noticed how many numbers there are around you? Next time you and your child are out walking take a look and see how many you can find.You might find numbers in surprising places. Remember to look up high and down low. Look on letterboxes and doors, gates and fences.There’s a number on that fencepost. Can you read it?Talk about why houses and buildings have
It’s time to go off to the shops and do the shopping. Have you checked that they’re open? How could you find out?We need to buy pita, hummus and stuffed vine leaves. I am not sure what time the shop opens. I might ring and see if they are open yet.Explain to your child that shops have opening and closing hours and they can all be different. Some shops will open very early in
Looking at a takeaway menu to choose what to eat is an activity that can involve the whole family. Talk about what you want to eat. Will all the family eat the same thing from the menu or will individuals be able to choose their own items from the list? Will the serves be large enough to share and if so how many people will each serve feed?
Babies love to be outside. There is so much for them to experience all year around. In spring you could show your baby flowers growing in gardens or parks. Talk with them about the colours, the size and the smell of the flowers. Brush their fingers in the petals. Listen to their babble and respond to it. Look how pretty this rose is. It has soft, pink petals. It smells