Today Tile Triggered Content

There are probably only so many times you can listen to 'Pop Goes the Weasel', or 'We Don't Talk About Bruno' from Encanto! Finding pop music to share with your child can feel like a bit of a minefield at times – pretty much everyone has turned up their favourite track before realising that it might not quite be as three-year-old friendly as they originally thought.  

Your baby is learning so much and their brain is going through extreme development. They are starting to gain head control, vision, posture and balance, while working out early social, emotional and linguistic forms of communication.

Love your baby 

Your baby will be learning to move in more ways now. This is a great phase of their development and there is so much going on. While your baby is finding out how they can move around, they learn about movement, judging space, directions, effort required and safety.  

It's no surprise that some babies miss out crawling all together. When a baby learns to crawl, all manner of things are happening in their body and brain. We're not going overboard here when we say that this seemingly 'simple' process is actually incredible!

Uh oh, what was there has now gone? That’s right, your toddler is beginning to find more strength and they are pushing larger items and toys around the room. Let’s take a moment to think about all the skills your toddler shows off when they get busy with their own removals! 

Pushing toys can help your toddler develop in a number of ways; firstly, it helps them with their walking skills 

When your toddler first begins to draw and write they control their movements from their shoulder. With lots of practice they will gain greater control of their arm, elbow, wrist and fingers and their writing will become smaller and eventually more precise.

Swinging is great fun and has many benefits for your child’s development: 

Bilateral coordination is the movement of both arms, or both legs, together. The movements can be made at the same time with both arms, like raising them to make a ‘T’ shape, or alternate like using one hand to hold paper still while the other cuts it with scissors.  

Many, if not most, of the tasks we do each day require us to use bilateral coordination, and often to control and combine our movements so that our hands (or arms, or legs) are working together to achieve the same goal.  

Choosing a first bike can feel daunting. There is so much information out there to work through, and once you’ve decided what type and brand you’re going for, you have to start making decisions about size, too!  

We asked Karen Wood, balance bike expert and co-owner of Kidvelo® Bikes, to share some advice on choosing the right balance bike for your child...  

Obstacle courses are typically challenging, yet fun, for toddlers (well, all ages of children and adults!) They bring loads of benefits for overall development, encouraging problem solving and creativity as well as physical skills galore. Tackling obstacles also stimulates a number of senses; let’s delve into which ones and how... 

Tactile sense – the sense of touch