Need playtime inspiration? We’ve got you. 🧸

Hi Claire, I am a mum to two children, one being four and starting school in September. I am a teacher but I work in upper ks2, so my knowledge of early years is limited. What are the essentials in eyfs that my daughter should know before starting. Thank you.

We’ve just found out my daughter has cow milk protein allergy what foods can she have

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Message me as my son has dairy and egg allergy

It would be great to have some suggestions for activities at home with a 4-5 month old baby.

Please can you recommend any activities or toys that would be suitable for a 4 month old. Finding days to be repetitive now in lockdown and want to have some more variety. Thanks!

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Hi Katie, my 5.5 month old loves dancing with me to music, toys that you can press buttons and they make noise. It seems to still be very much about your interactions with them at that age! I found it was quite tedious at the 4 mth mark but as soon as she could sit up playing got more fun with her

Same here...theres only so much of tummy time and playmat that can b done 😂 so looking for an answer to this also!

My nearly 11 month old keeps waking up with what seems to be night terrors almost every night, for nearly 2 months now, I'm not sure what I can do to help her stop having these

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Hi, my son sometimes wakes up like that and it looks like is the teething so we have to put at least 2 soothers in the cot so he can find one. I also leave a night light for him and it seems to calm him down when he wakes up.

Some inspiration and ideas to keep an 8 month old entertained and support his development would be great. Although it’s early we’ve been doing flash cards and animal noises etc. but looking for other ways I can keep him stimulated when it’s just us and 4 walls!

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Same boat, also ways to encourage independent play while mama works

My two year old doesn’t want to talk unless he feels like it and if I try to get him to repeat after me he gets upset and shuts down. What can I do besides read to him to get him to use two word sentences?

Hi Claire, I have a 21 months old and I'm working from home full time, my husband is an essential worker so I'm on my own most of the day every week. I would like to have ideas for activities/games for my son that require little supervision if possible.

Hi, my little girl is nearly 10 months old and is desperately trying to crawl and walk what activities are best in aiding her to do this? And what other general play activities are good at this age too? 🙂

Almost 14 month LG, her attention span is so poor (except for tv 🤦🏻‍♀️) usually any activity I try she will do it for 5 or 10 minutes but would rather be up my a*se seeing what im up too! Any activities for a very active, inquisitive smart sassy little girl. She loves books, but I can't just keep doing books all day. Also any recommendations on good animal figures to play with, as I want to set up some animal scenes for her i.e. jungle, artic etc. Thank you!!!

Hi Claire How can i make learning to recognise ABC and 1,2,3's fun for a 3yo almost 4. Also besides from talking, repeating and reading how can i make learning new words entertaining for my 14mo. I use flash cards for both the girls and writing books for my toddler but i want it to be fun for both of them. Thanks for your advice Lauren x Hope your staying safe 😄👍

It would be great to know how much play time a baby needs at each of the different stages.

7.5 months old. Can’t crawl yet, but is bored and wants to do more. We’re at home all day bc of the quarantine and I’m running out of things to keep him busy.

Playtime ideas/expectations for a 3 month old?

What are some playtime suggestions for a 17 month old to play independently? Also, what do you think might be the impact of the social isolation component of covid on a 17 month- 2.5 year old ? Thanks !

Ways to encourage independent play in a 8 month old while mama works

I have a one year old who gets bored easily hates being alone and is insanely smart all her toys are for toddlers because once she figures a toy out she doesn’t wanna play with it because it’s boring to her and as a single parent I can’t keep her constantly entertained especially since I’m starting back school and work full time a typical playtime for her is her running around eating on something while playing with 2-3 toys all at once it’s exhausting just trying to come up with things that entertain her any advice for activities for her

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For clarification too when I say she’s smart she’s smart she can watch me do something and immediately imitate it almost exactly such as she can put sunglasses on dress herself latest thing is plug cell phone in she’s one going on 5

I have a 6 month old that is not yet crawling. What other games can I play with her to keep her on tummy time and encourage crawling? Also how long should she play per awake period?

Looking for advice for side by side play for a 2.5 year old and 10 month old. 2.5 year old is never excited to share toys or try an activity with the baby, and the baby always gets into the toddlers space. Thanks!

Not sure how to keep my 7 month old entertained during quarantine.

2.5 years old and I'd love to know how to make learning fun and interesting

I have 15 month old - I'm trying to find new fun games to play with him that do not require me buying one more thing, lol - all this in between doing my own work from home...would like to decrease the amount of screen time (!) and encourage more speech- he's babbling in his own language and says dada, SOMETIMES says momma but that's about it:) Thank you in advance!🥰

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I do when I hand her something or she touches something I tell her the word and make her say it even if I don’t understand the word also when driving I run through a b cs seems to work she’s learned to say brother sister sissy Godmama god daddy cookie and thank you working on other words but she does what she wants when she wants

How do I encourage my 5 month old to make more sounds? And also how do I entertain him?

Looking for activities for 13 months old (working from home during quarantine)

Nervous about so much isolation from other kids with my 18 month old and how that’s going to dampen his reception to his sibling in October

What are the best activities to try with a 4.5 month old, that are age appropriate, fun and help their development? Thanks 😀

Activities for a 6 month old!!!

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Yes!!

How do I entertain a 1 month old. I know they can't do much, but he isn't interested in toys or anything.

Any activities I can do for my 6week old baby who has severe hearing loss just been fitted with hearing aids Friday so anything that can help her development

How can I foster independence in a nearly 3 year old?

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Or 5 year old!

I have a 21mo and a 3.5yo. We have lots of toys, books, drawing/coloring tools, watercolors, etc., but they still seem like they tire of most things within a couple of minutes. I’m in my third trimester with our 3rd, and I’m constantly feeling exhausted (just getting up and moving around tends to make me feel winded much of the time). I really need to find some new activities that can engage them but that doesn’t require a lot of extra movement on my part.

I have a 27mo old boy. He is very independent when running and playing in the garden. But when we are in the house I can't think of many activity games that keep him "safely" moving. Would appreciate some ideas.

8 months activities?

My son just turned one. looking for activities to make play time funand how can I encourage him to talk

Hey everyone, thanks for taking part in our Q&A! Sadly, we couldn’t answer each and every question, but we’ve put together some handy tips for the most popular topics below. You can also watch Claire answering questions over on our Instagram (@peanut) if you prefer. ❤️🥜

👶 How much play? 👶 • It’s difficult to put a number on it, every baby and routine is different • When it comes to play, it’s about making it fit into your day • Sometimes you won’t even get a chance to think about play, and that’s ok! • Some important rules are: when baby is tiny, you’re the toy! All the cuddles, songs, snuggles etc count as important playtime • When they get older, sensory play is key

📚 Making learning fun 📚 • Number one rule is to forget pen and paper! • Always try to think outside of the box and make things hands on, not just pen and paper based • For example, if they’re learning letters or spelling their name, bury some letter bricks in sand, or add them to bath time and let your little one spell things out that way - its more exciting for them and they’ll persevere more!

🌟 Supporting their development 🌟 • Playtime is key! It allows a child to practice, experiment, and explore • But remember each child goes at their own pace and ability • You can start with fun activities that encourage skills - for physical development, get them outside! Running around, making big movements, painting on a big scale, riding a bike, all of these big movements help develop the little movements that come later in their life

🗣 Speaking 🗣 • Children develop at their own pace but there are things you can do to encourage ur little one to explore speech more • Try to make your child a cosy corner or a den. When they’re in there they don’t think anyone is listening, so they’re more likely to play around with sounds and speech • Another good tip is to let them play with mirrors, soft toys with faces, or pretend phones - these can also encourage them to speak without worrying an adult is listening to them

💸 Do I need to buy new toys? 💸 • Our houses are full of more than enough stuff! • You just need to explore play potential. For example, your recycling box! Cardboard tubes and boxes are great for playtime. If you’re not sure what to do with them, give them to your little one and see what they come up with. • Try swapping and moving toys too - if it hasn’t been played with for a while, take it to another room. It’ll encourage them to explore that toy again.

🧒 Independent play 🧒 • We assume this is something they will do but it is actually a skill we need to teach our children • When you catch them playing on their own, try not to distract them - turn off the TV and put your phone away • When they’ve finished, praise them. Share that playing on your own is an amazing skill, and support them.

🖐 Sensory play 🖐 • You don’t need to make time for sensory play constantly, there’s no pressure! • When you do have time, it’s amazing. It stimulates all the senses of your baby’s body and allows them to make connections that’ll benefit their development later in life when it comes to solving more complex tasks. • It supports language development, motor skills, problem solving skills and social interaction.

3 almost four months. Something that makes tiny and floor time interesting