By playing with your child, you can help them to grow and learn – it can be a great opportunity to bond with your child and it can also be a lot of fun! Remember to plan a play-friendly environment in advance and expect and prepare for some mess.

Making playtime safe
To make sure they have a safe environment for playing and exploring, it is a good idea to get down to their level and see what possible dangers they may encounter, e.g. cords or tablecloths that can be pulled, and hot drinks that can be reached. Using guards for fires and heaters, as well as around stairs, safety catches for cupboards and safety plugs for power sockets are a great idea.

Playtime with babies
Babies thrive on attention, they learn by watching, listening and touching.  Through play you can provide activities that will help your baby learn about themselves and the world.  Take time to talk to, play with, cuddle and have fun with your baby.

Your baby might enjoy activities such as, playing peek-a-boo games, going for walks and meeting people, feeling different textures, e.g. crawling in the grass or lying under a tree in the grass or even something as simple as looking at themselves in a mirror.

Time on the floor time and tummy time provides a good opportunity for baby to roll and move, placing bright things nearby on both sides of your baby encourages them to move and turn to both sides.  Lying on the floor on their tummy when awake, with you watching helps strengthen and develop neck and back muscles.

Playing with toddlers
Toddlers seem to have an endless supply of energy and they’re constantly on the move. As they play, children learn to think and discover how things work (e.g. through touching, feeling, and moving things). Children learn by exploring and trying things for themselves, and they learn best when they are encouraged and experience success. They will often play with things for only a short time and then move on to new experiences.

Some activities your toddler may enjoy are painting and drawing, playing in large cardboard boxes, copying you and helping you around the house and outside, (e.g. sweeping, washing dishes at the sink with you) singing, dancing and playing with musical instruments.  Fancy dress and imaginative play are also a great way to learn

Choosing toys
Try to find toys that can be used in different ways to develop skills, encourage imagination and help learn about sound, touch and how things work. To keep your child safe, check toys are not too small (babies especially need toys to be larger than a 35mm film canister), that pieces cannot be broken off, chewed off, pulled off, or swallowed.

You may like to join a toy library, as they provide an educational and safe toy-hire service at affordable prices. Plunket staff or other Well Child Health Providers will be able to tell you if there is a toy library in your area.

You could put your imagination and dress up skills to use this month in support of Plunket’s Annual Appeal, Be a superhero for under fives (13 – 19 October)  ‘Don a cap’ or wear your underwear on the outside and join in the fun!  For more information visit our website www.plunket.org.nz

For more information, support and advice talk to your Plunket Nurse or call PlunketLine 0800 933 922 (7am -12midnight).

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