Cup Rinse at Bath Time

What you need

• a small plastic cup
• a towel

How to do it

1. Give your toddler a small cup once they're settled in the bath.
2. Show them how to fill it and tip it out down their arm.
3. Fill it yourself and pour it slowly over their hands so they see it come.
4. Let them tip cupfuls over their own knees, their toes, the side of the bath.

Why it matters

A cup in the bath gets filled and tipped dozens of times in a few minutes, which is more repetitions of the tipping movement than a mealtime ever gives you.

What they're learning

Judging the tip

Fill, lift, tilt, empty: the same sequence as a drink, repeated far more often.

Wrist control

Pouring slowly down an arm needs a much steadier hand than pouring fast.

Water on skin

Warm water arriving where they aimed it joins up what they did with what they felt.

What to look for

Watch for them aiming the pour at something, like a knee, a toe or the taps, rather than just emptying the cup.

A tip

Stay within arm's reach for the whole bath, and keep this cup for bath play only. Bath water isn't for drinking.

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