Children aged 3 to 7
Young children are constantly learning from everything that is going on around them; being with you, siblings and others in your household talking and listening, singing, helping around the house, playing make-believe games, having fun and being active. Children learn best when they are having fun.
Children learn through different types of play including playing alone or with others. Play is the way they learn best – so let them do it as much as possible. This could be indoors or outdoors, if you have an outside space they can use safely.
You know your children, so follow their interests and whatever suits your daily routines. Here are some suggestions.
- Do tasks – encourage your children to dress themselves, help with jobs like tidying up, preparing meals, washing up and setting the table. Encourage them to do these jobs well. This will give them a sense of responsibility and achievement.
- Share books together – talk about the characters and the pictures. There are many ways to access stories on the web, including electronic books, readings and videos which you may find useful.
- Play together – encourage make believe games, like playing shop, going to the café, playing at being at school, or an explorer. Let their imagination fly and be creative.
- Play alone – let them spend time playing with their toys alone, such as blocks, bricks, cars, dolls, jigsaws.
- Be creative – if you have paper, pens, crayons, pencils, chalk or paint, let children use these to make pictures, signs, lists, maps or write letters. Activities can take place indoors or outdoors. Young children love to communicate in this way; you could send these onto family and friends as a way of connecting.
- Be active – try making up games to encourage children to crawl, jump, hop, skip, balance and throw and catch confidently. Learning good coordination and developing their physical strength will give them confidence.
You should contact your children’s school if you have questions about how to support your children’s learning. If you require any further help or ideas try the following information.
Cyw and S4C have brought together Welsh language programmes for younger children, with links to educational games, stories, etc., for nursery and primary school aged children.
Playful Childhoods provides advice and activities to help parents and carers give children the time, space and support to play at home.
International Play Association, provides help and activities to support play, in many different ways.
Busy Feet Explorers, provides physical activities to help keep children’s active and busy.