Helping your child at home

Here are some suggestions about how you can support your child’s learning and development at home.

Encouraging Independence
When children come into Nursery, we encourage them to be independent, for skills such as:

• Taking their coats on and off (trying to do zips)
• Taking their shoes on and off
• Beginning to use the toilet by themselves
• It is important to develop children’s self-esteem and co-ordination skills. These skills can be practised at home.

Communication and Language Skills
Developing speaking and listening skills is really important.

• Read books and stories to your child, especially at bed time.
• Help them build sentences – your child will start to put simple sentences together around age two. Try to reply using sentences that are a word or two longer. For example if they say, “sock off” say “yes, we’re taking your sock off”.
• Get your child’s attention by saying their name at the start of a sentence. If you ask a question, give them plenty of time to answer you.
• Switch off the television and radio – background noise makes it harder for your child to listen to you.
• Talk as you clean – children this age love to help out. Chat about what you’re doing as you do chores like shopping, cooking and cleaning together.

Physical (Gross and Fine Motor) Development
Encourage your child to be physically active everyday.

Gross Motor Skills

• Walk, run, and start learning to jump with both feet
• Pull or carry toys while walking
• Throw and kick a ball; try to catch with both hands
• Stand on tiptoes and balance on one foot
• Climb on furniture and playground equipment
• Walk up stairs while holding the railing; may alternate feet
• Walk to Nursery

At-home activities: Balloons, bubbles, bouncing, trampoline, hopscotch, playground play, bikes and scooters and dancing.

Fine Motor Skills

• Start brushing own teeth and hair
• May pull pants up and down
• Turn on the faucet and wash hands
• Build a block tower of at least four blocks
• Start practicing snaps and zipping up (if you start the zip)
• Hold utensils and crayons with fingers instead of a fist, although at this age the grasp still may not be quite right

At-home activities: Playdough, painting, playing with sponges and water, water play, threading, gardening and planting.

Hungry Little Minds
Simple fun, activities for kids aged 0 – 5 (campaign.gov.uk)

Simple, fun activities for kids, from newborn to five

Many little things light up hungry little minds. Kids take everything in, and even the smallest things you do with them can make a big difference. They love it when you chat, play and read with them, even when they’re too young to understand everything. Whatever the time and wherever you are, you can turn almost anything into a game. And every little thing you do together will help set them up nicely for the day they start school.