Playtime Pocketbook Handy hints and tips to help keep the little ones entertained from #100daysofplay
Foreword From Jenni Falconer
There’s nothing more rewarding than taking time to play with your little ones. Even a simple 15 minutes spent dressing up as princesses or fairies, getting creative with paints and crafts or building a secret living room den out of blankets and cushions these are some of the happiest moments of my day with my daughter. Whether it’s old favourites, games that we remember from our childhood, or newer Disney ‘Frozen’ inspired sing-alongs, playtime is precious, and that’s exactly why we’ve put together this Playtime Pocketbook. It’s a celebration of all things silly! The next few pages contain a few helpful parenting tips for busy mums and dads, an overview of why playtime is important for your child’s development and a full-to-bursting list of 100 play ideas for when you need a helping hand with what to do on the weekends. As for what playtime looks like in the Falconer household, my little girl Ella loves to play shop-keeping at the moment. Most days each week I form an orderly queue in the garden whilst she sits behind a little table dispensing imaginary fruit, vegetables, milk, flowers – almost anything you could want actually. When she’s not giving the big grocery store giants a run for their money, she’s religiously training to be the next Maria Sharapova, showing us her best opening serve. Whatever the weather, indoors or out, she’s running around, racquet and ball in hand preparing for her Wimbledon debut!! I’m so proud…my gorgeous two year old is already on her way to becoming a retail magnate and one of the country’s most successful sportswomen, all through the power of imaginative play! But it’s not always easy to think up new ideas for ways to keep things creative. Several mums and I have clubbed together to form impromptu playdate groups where we all take turns to suggest things to do during the school holidays. To help grow this spirit of sharing, I’ve been working with Chad Valley on its #100daysofplay campaign which celebrates playtime in all its forms. By posting photos and stories using the hashtag, we want to create an ongoing supply of suggestions for what to do with your little ones. Have a flick through the next few pages, let us know what you think and get sharing using #100daysofplay!
r e n o c l a F Jenni
FROM ROB QUARTERMAIN
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hild psychologists, parenting experts, industry bodies and charitable organisations alike have championed the power of play as a necessary part of a child’s development showing that just 15 minutes a day can help improve learning and spark greater levels of creativity. But playtime is important for more than just these developmental benefits – it helps grow your child’s imagination, helping them make every day magical. A plastic pirate ship becomes an intergalactic spaceship driven by dinosaur scientists gliding through the Milky Way. A prim looking rider and pony become jungle explorers, cutting their way through thick foliage to find hidden treasure guarded by a 12 foot baby! The fantasies and fictions that traditional toys make possible help foster creativity whilst promoting stronger social bonds between play groups. Various studies have shown that letting your child take 15 minutes to rest and relax during playtime also has significant benefits for educational and intellectual development, helping your child maintain greater levels of focus and engagement throughout the day. Play helps your little one familiarise themselves with shapes, sounds, textures, colours,
words and letters, letting them develop an understanding of the world informed through action. In order to help mums and dads make the most of the time they spend together, Chad Valley asked parents up and down the country where they look for inspiration when looking for play ideas. A hefty 45 per cent said they We want to celebrate relied on social play in all its form, media and encouraging mums and ideas shared by other mums dads nationwide to share and dads when their suggestions for all looking for to use. suggestions of what to do. That’s precisely why we kick-started #100daysofplay – we want to celebrate play in all its forms, encouraging mums and dads nationwide to share their suggestions for all to use. It’s for families by families. Share your play ideas using #100daysofplay and take inspiration from other mums and dads up and down the country for ways to keep your little ones entertained.
PLAYTIME POCKETBOOK 2/3
Parenting Advice From Tanith Carey
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laytime is some of the most precious and memorable time we will ever share with our children. And though it sounds simple enough, there are a few ways to make it even more rewarding for both parents and kids. Firstly make playtime a regular slot. Fifteen minutes of dedicated one-on-one time is a good goal. With parents so busy these days, telling your little one that you have set aside a slot totally for them will really allow them to relax so that theur imagination is free to wander. Secondly, although it’s tempting for us grown-ups to suggest games we think will help kids learn, resist the temptation to turn every second into a teachable moment. While it’s fine to make suggestions, ultimately let your youngster take the lead – and see where it takes you. During your play session, really start to see life through the eyes of your child. Don’t worry about looking silly. Get right down on the floor so you become part of their world. If your child wants to play farms, what’s really stopping you from becoming a baa-ing sheep or a moo-ing cow too? Your youngster will love you for it. The other benefit of letting your children take charge for a while is that it reaps benefits in behaviour too. Letting your child be the boss means letting them tell you what to do, their need for power will be met and
they won’t feel the need to take control at other times. But don't let the fun end there. Remember too that play can be found in the most unlikely places, even housework. So try mixing playtime into your everyday chores. As you sort the laundry, get your child searching for the matching coloured sock. If your living room is a bombsite after a play session, turn tidying into a game. Get them a mini shopping trolley to pick up whatever toys are left lying on the floor. For older kids, crank up the music, switch on a timer and make it a race. And of course, don't forget to make the most of the biggest playground there is – nature. Whether it’s letting the kids hop round the park on a space hopper, or allowing them to invite some friends round to play parachute games in the local community garden, your child will get extra benefits from the bigger, physical skills they learn from playing outdoors. Remember that even in rainy Britain, there’s no such thing as bad weather. Only the wrong type of clothes. So buy some rain-macs and wellies for the whole family and get out there and play some games. You may not realise it because you will be having so much fun – but you will be making your child’s favourite memories of childhood.
•H ave a dedicated slot of time for your child • Join in and play with them, they'll love that • Let them be in charge for while, to satisfy their 'need for power' • Try mixing playtime with everyday chores • For older kids, crank up the music • Don't forget to make the most of nature: go to the park, make the most of your garden • If it rains, put on some rain-macs and wellies and get out there, make it an ocassion to remember!
About Tanith Tanith Carey is an awardwinning national newspaper journalist and parenting author. As a mum of two girls aged nine and twelve, Tanith is committed to writing practical books which tackle the most pressing issues for today’s modern parents. Her books include How to be An Amazing Mum – When You Just Don’t Have the Time
4 PLAYTIME POCKETBOOK
and Where Has My Little Girl Gone? How to Protect Your Daughter from Growing Up Too Soon, which has been translated into ten languages. Her next book Taming the Tiger Parenting – How to put your Child’s Wellbeing First in a Competitive World is published by Constable Little Brown this September.
#100daysofplay PLAYTIME POCKETBOOK 5
tips for 100 days of play 8 With a piece of chalk, allow
your children to draw on the outside walls and fences; they make perfect canvas as the chalk washes off with water.
9 Create a volcano in the garden
13 Put together a scavenger hunt for the children to find a list of objects in the garden. 14 Have a sword fight using wrapping paper rolls wrapped in tin foil as swords.
by building a small mound of dirt with a deep hole in the middle. Put two teaspoons of baking soda in the hole. Then slowly pour in vinegar and watch your volcano erupt!
15 Make toy parachutes by
10 Make a den in the garden
16 Draw a target on the floor
2 Go into the garden and play
using sheets, blankets and cushions suspended from branches.
3 Tie a series of strings in a
11 Have a treasure hunt by hiding some toys in the garden and a series of clues to help them find them.
17 Make puppets out of wooden spoons and put on a puppet show.
12 Set up backyard bowling
and allow the children to use them to paint.
1 Set up an obstacle course in
the garden and let the children examine the course. Let them work their way through the obstacle course, the child to make it through the fastest wins. hopscotch by using chalk to draw the court.
zigzag pattern between 3 or 4 trees to make a string maze. Get the children to climb through trying not to touch the strings.
4 Drill holes in a plastic bottle
using plastic bottles and a tennis ball.
and attach a hose pipe to it to create a sprinkler for your toddler to run in and out of.
6 PLAYTIME POCKETBOOK
19 Freeze your child’s favourite
21 Make your own fresh lemonade and lemonade stand. 22 Tie-dye a t-shirt. 23 Stack up some paper cups
6 Create a water balloon piĂąata
the garden using your child’s favourite toys and snacks.
18 Make stamps using potatoes
20 Play a game of dodge ball using water balloons.
using some string, the kids must get the apple down without using their hands, and whoever is the quickest, wins.
7 Have a teddy bears picnic in
in chalk and get the children to toss water balloons at it, trying to get as close to the centre as possible.
action figure in a block of ice, let them retrieve it using a water gun.
5 Hang an apple from a tree
by tying a water balloon to a branch using string. With a stick or bat get the children to hit the balloon until it bursts.
attaching napkins to toy soldiers with string and releasing them from the top of climbing frames or windows.
Emma and Amish a love being creative!
in a pyramid shape and using a water pistol, try and knock them down.
24 Make and decorate frisbees by sticking together 2 paper plates.
100 tips for 100 days of play
36 Whilst skipping, think of a rhyme and try and act out the rhyme as you skip. 37 Do some ice painting by filling an ice tray with a mixture of paint and water, once frozen, use the cubes to paint. 38 Melt some wax crayons onto a canvas to make art. 39 Tape together a cluster of
straws and dip one end in bubble solution to produce loads of tiny bubbles.
25 Make homemade cards
using felt and coloured paper to decorate them.
26 Make a skipping rope by
threading string through pen lids.
40 Decorate a milk carton and turn it into a bird feeder. competition, take turns wrapping each other in toilet paper to see who is the quickest.
46 Cut out fish shapes from a piece of foam and glue them to your flip flops- when you walk in the sand you will leave a fish stamp!
42 Go on a bug hunt with a
47 After a day at the beach
41 Have a mummy dressing
27 Make sock puppets and put
magnifying glass to see how many different bugs you can find.
28 Draw a race track on your
43 Paint by splashing some paint on paper, and to spread it out you can only blow through a straw.
on a show.
Playing in the garden, nice and sunny.
collecting wood, shells and pebbles, use wires and string to create a holiday wind chime.
planes and have a competition of whose can fly the furthest.
48 Lay a large plastic sheet or ground sheet outside in the garden (ideally on a slight incline) and cover in a mix of water and washing up liquid to create a slippery water slide.
30
49 Give your kids a massive
drive to race all the cars you can find.
29 All build different paper
Make your own mini bean bags by wrapping crumpled up napkins in a napkin you’ve decorated and securing with an elastic band.
pile of newspapers and some sellotape and challenge them to make different things e.g. a sail boat that you can all fit into, pirate costumes, or a shelter you can all sit inside.
31 Do some nature painting by collecting leaves and sticks from the garden and using them as stamps and brushes to create a masterpiece. 32 Make telephones out of cups and strings. 33 Set up glow in the dark bowling by putting glow sticks in water bottles. 34 Using a skipping rope and a
Fun in the park, never want it to stop! 44 Take the top off an egg and
cup of water, have a competition to see how many time you can jump before you’ve spilled all the water.
hollow it out, put some damp cloth inside and spread your cress seeds evenly. Put in a warm place and wait for the egg to grow cress ‘hair’!
35 Using pillow cases as sacks
45 If the weather is bad, why not
hold a sack race in your back garden.
"We are space explorers"
create a den indoors and read stories aloud to each other?
PLAYTIME POCKETBOOK 7
100 tips for 100 days of play
55 Create your own bushtucker trials by taking it in turns to wear a blindfold and trying ten unusual fruits and veg.
56 One person hides whilst the others count to 100. Find the person hiding and join them... see how many people can fit into the hiding place until there is only one seeker left. 50 Make your own bubble mix using water and washing up liquid. 51 Use two sticks and two long pieces of string to create a giant bubble making machine to dip into your washing up liquid mixture! 52 Make pasta pictures using different types of dried pasta and glue to stick to paper.
53 Give your kids a small
container (old plastic film canisters used to be ideal) and ask them to go outside and find 26 items, one starting with each letter of the alphabet, and they’ve all got to fit in the container e.g. a blade of grass for g, a daisy flower for d. The first one to complete the challenge is the winner.
54 Using an old skipping rope
and two friends, take it in turn to make your own limbo. How low can you go?
57 Play the memory game pick ten objects and cover them with a cloth, remove one each time. Whoever can identify the missing object is the winner. 58 Why not grow sunflowers
and see whose sunflower grows the highest- this could be a fun competition for your children and their friends.
59 Get creative in the kitchen
by decorating your pizza with an edible ‘face’. Use peppers, sweet corn and pieces of ham to create a face good enough to eat.
60 Have a dance off! You
will need two teams and your favourite music, get dancing and put your routines to a vote.
61 Create a map of your local
park and plan a bike route or a route to walk and take your kids on a magical mystery tour.
62 Get your kids to shut their
eyes and draw pictures of one another from memory. They will laugh when they open their eyes and see the results.
63 Collect leaves, feathers,
flowers and twigs from outside and use them to create a collage of your favourite animal.
64 Why not use old wrapping paper to make colourful paper aeroplanes that you can race against one another? 65 You can even decorate them and race them against one another! My son is over the mo with some new goodies on pla y with over the su to mm er!
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66 Hide an alarm clock and give
your children a series of clues that will have them running all over the house to find it. If it goes off before they do then they have to do a forfeit!
Painting is fun 67 Create a beach collage on
canvas with interesting pebbles and shells you have found whilst beachcombing. You can choose some photos from your holiday to stick on too, and it can be a lovely memento of the summer.
68 Put two hula hoops on the ground and mark one ‘true’ and the other ‘false’, read out anything from facts to statements and get your children to answer true or false by running into the correct hoop! 69 Use glitter glue, gems and stickers to create cardboard photo frames to give to friends and family at Christmas. 70 Play catch with a water balloon.
71 Using salt, water and plain flour, create salt dough which can be easily moulded into shapes. 72 Your children’s mission is to find interesting textures to take rubbings of on a walk – the next day will they be able to identify which tree, brick or leaf the rubbing came from? 73 Using household objects, create an obstacle course for your children to navigate around. 74 Make animals from fruit and vegetables using toothpicks and paint.
100 tips for 100 days of play
83 Make your own cocktails with different types of fruit juice. 84 Why not start planting some vegetables in the garden, ready for spring? 85 Recreate famous paintings through collage... try to make your own version of Monet’s sunflowers from coloured paper and pages from magazines.
75 Using clay or dough, play
Pictionary and create what you are trying to describe in the dough. A great and interactive guessing game.
76 Fill up glasses with different amounts of water and dye them with food colouring, when you tap the glasses gently with a spoon, they will make different sounds – you now have your own multicoloured xylophone! 77 Use up old plastic bottles
by painting them and making a homemade skittles set.
78 Using couscous and dried
beans, fill old plastic bottles and cans to make your own musical instruments.
79 Build a fort outside using
86 Turn designer for the day and use old plastic bags, crisp packets and newspaper to make eco-fashion outfits. 87 If you are on a long car
93 Buy plain white bathroom tiles from your local hardware store and paint them to create homemade coasters your children can keep forever. 94 Ice rich tea biscuits with different coloured icing and sweets. 95 Decorate fairy cakes with edible icing and sprinkles.
96 Feed the ducks at the local pond.
journey, why not play a classic game of eye spy?
88 Harness your child’s entrepreneurial spirit and play shopkeepers with them. 89 Play a game of 5-a-side football in the local park. 90 Why not try out handball?
It is a popular children’s game in India and unlike football, you aren’t allowed to use your feet or lower body to touch the ball!
91 Play ready steady cook with
your children. Give them a bag of 5 ingredients and ask them what they would like to make. Perhaps the dish could be served as part of a picnic lunch!
picnic blankets and bed sheets – if its summer time why not try camping outside in your back garden!
Exercising in the park! 97 Play stuck in the mud. 98 Turn your paddling pool into
80 For a twist on the traditional treasure hunt - hide little objects in sand and get your little ones to use a sieve to find them...
a mini ball pit with plastic play balls.
99 Design bunting with your
81 If you have made shapes out
little ones to customise their room. You can use magazines, paints and photos for a funky look.
of salt dough or clay with your children, you can bake them and when they are cool they can be painted. They make great gifts for the family!
82 Use old cardboard boxes to create your dream playhouse, or castle or fort... the possibilities are endless.
92 With large groups of children why not play a game of tag rugby?
Giving change to a custom er!
100 No need to use a paintbrush. Fill balloons with poster paint and get your children to create their own work of art together by throwing the balloons at a white canvas! PLAYTIME POCKETBOOK 9