Parent guides

Short, practical guides for the questions parents actually ask. Each one answers a single question in a few hundred plain words, with the short version at the top for when you are reading one-handed. Every guide points to activities from the Little Wins library that fit the situation. There are two topics so far: food and mealtimes, and play and activities for rainy days, quiet afternoons and the hour before dinner. More will follow.

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Rainy day activities for toddlers at home illustration Rainy day activities for toddlers at home Pick one big-movement idea and one sit-down idea. That covers most of a wet afternoon. Screen-free activities for 2 year olds illustration Screen-free activities for 2 year olds At two, the best screen-free activities are real jobs: pouring, sorting, carrying, stirring. Things to do with an 18 month old at home illustration Things to do with an 18 month old at home At 18 months they want to carry, post, tip out and put back. Give them jobs that are exactly that. Things a toddler can do while you cook illustration Things a toddler can do while you cook Keep them in the kitchen, low down and busy, rather than sending them away. Activities for 1 year olds at home illustration Activities for 1 year olds at home At one, everything is about touching, banging, tipping and watching your face. Burning off toddler energy indoors illustration Burning off toddler energy indoors Aim for ten to fifteen minutes of proper movement, then a drink and something calm. Quiet activities for toddlers illustration Quiet activities for toddlers Quiet works best after movement, not instead of it. Autumn activities for toddlers illustration Autumn activities for toddlers Leaves, puddles and early dark are the three things autumn gives you. Use all three. What to do with a toddler on a poorly day illustration What to do with a toddler on a poorly day Aim low. A poorly day is about comfort and closeness, not activities. No-mess activities for toddlers illustration No-mess activities for toddlers No mess means nothing wet, nothing that crumbs, nothing that needs a bath after. When they refuse vegetables illustration When they refuse vegetables Keep offering the same vegetable, without asking them to eat it. Getting started cooking together illustration Getting started cooking together Pick one job out of a recipe you were cooking anyway. Snacks that hold them over without a fight illustration Snacks that hold them over without a fight Two planned snacks a day beat grazing all afternoon. Mealtime without the iPad illustration Mealtime without the iPad Change one meal first, not all three. Throwing food: what it means and what to do illustration Throwing food: what it means and what to do Throwing is usually finished, bored, or testing what happens. Only wants the same three foods illustration Only wants the same three foods Keep the safe foods on the plate. Removing them raises the stakes. Drinks, cups and giving up the bottle illustration Drinks, cups and giving up the bottle NHS advice is to move from bottles to a cup from around one year old. Eating out without dreading it illustration Eating out without dreading it Go early, before the rush and before anyone is starving. Helping in the kitchen safely illustration Helping in the kitchen safely Give them a fixed spot, away from the hob and out of the walkway. What a good enough day of eating looks like illustration What a good enough day of eating looks like Three meals and two snacks is the usual shape of the day.

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Activities