Two Hands Full

What you need

• a basket of chunky toys that fit in one hand, none small enough to fit through a toilet roll tube

How to do it

1. Sit facing your toddler with the basket next to you.
2. Hold out one toy to the hand nearest it, and let them take it.
3. Hold out the next toy to the same hand, and wait. They may pass the first toy across to make room.
4. Keep offering one at a time, and let them decide what to keep, swap or put down.

Why it matters

A full hand and a new toy on offer is a little puzzle, and moving one toy across to the other hand is the answer they find for themselves.

What they're learning

Both hands together

One hand passing to the other is both sides of the body working as a team.

Making choices

Keep the car or take the block: their call each time.

Letting go

Opening a hand on purpose to free it up is harder than holding on.

What to look for

Watch for the first toy moving across to the other hand just before they reach for the new one.

A tip

Hold the new toy still and wait, rather than putting it into their hand for them. The pause is where they work it out. Stay with them, and put the basket away when you're done.

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