Toy Vet's Surgery

What you need

• three or four soft toy animals as patients
• a cardboard box as the pet carrier
• a tea towel or a scarf for bandages
• a spoon and a cup for medicine
• a chair for the waiting room
• paper and a crayon for the vet's notes

How to do it

1. Set out a chair as the waiting room and a cushion as the vet's bench.
2. Bring in a soft toy patient in its box and tell the vet what's wrong: "My dog has a sore paw."
3. Let your child look the patient over, listen to its tummy, wrap the paw and give it a spoon of pretend medicine.
4. Ask what you need to do to help it get better, then bring in the next patient with a new problem.

Why it matters

Being the vet means listening to a problem, deciding what to do and saying it, all for a soft toy that needs them.

What they're learning

Playing a role

Talking and acting like a vet, with a vet's words.

Caring for others

Gentle hands and kind words for a patient who is hurting.

Explaining

Telling the owner what's wrong and what to do about it.

What to look for

Notice them using words a vet might say, like "Let's have a look" or "Keep him warm".

A tip

Keep the problems small and fixable, a sore paw or a tummy ache, so every visit ends with a happy patient.

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