This weekend, my brother sent me a video of his kids playing on the beach in Tasmania, it's summer there right now. Ok, I have to admit I was a little envious...I live in Canada and it's winter here, cold and snowy! But the video got me thinking and inspired a sensory play activity outside that encouraged exploration of the natural environment and ...

Get busy and creative, turning recycled materials into life- sized images of you. Can you name and label the basic parts of the human body? What about organs like the heart and stomach?

What you need:

• Large piece of recycled cardboard, e.g. a flattened packaging box, or sheet of paper (Top ...

Ever wondered what to do with odd or worn out socks? Recycle them into sock puppets. Making sock puppets is an easy, inexpensive craft that keeps your kids busy, encourages imaginative play and promotes the development of fine motor, creative and language skills.

What you need:

• An old, clean sock

• Materials ...

Be creative and develop your maths skills as you print with paint to make repeating pattern art. Display your art work on a wall, or fridge, or use it to make your own wrapping paper and greetings cards.

Go on a repeating pattern hunt around your house and garden.

• Can you find any examples of repeating patterns, ...

Grab a bowl of water, a few empty washed out plastic food containers and some spoons and get playing.

Water play is a fun, sensory activity that encourages exploration, investigation and creativity. Water play activities can be set up indoors, or outdoors, and help your child to develop language, motor, cognitive and social skills.

What ...

An inexpensive craft that keeps kids busy and develops creativity. Display their art on the wall, or fridge, or use it to make inexpensive personalized cards or bookmarks.

What you need:

• Wax crayons or oil pastels

• Paper

• Tempura or acrylic paint

  (Top tip: ...

Making drawings or collages of favourite foods is an easy, inexpensive craft that keeps your kids busy and promotes the development of fine motor, creative and language skills and scientific understanding.

What you need:

• Recycled cardboard or card-stock to cut a plate shape from (or you can use a paper plate)
• Pencil ...

Encouraging your child to draw, or make collage, faces can provide opportunities for discussions about emotions and mental well-being.

Ask your child how they think their drawn or collaged face is feeling? Why do they think this?

Draw their attention to how facial features (and body language) can give us clues to ...

Play dough is an easy to make, inexpensive, modelling material. Using just a few ingredients, your kids can get creative making their own modelling dough and sculpting it into their own role-play toys, letters and models.

• Store your home-made play dough in an airtight container in the fridge and re-use it.

Print the Play ...

Getting your kids to design, and make, their own versions of a magnetic fishing game keeps them busy and promotes the development of fine motor, creative and language skills and scientific understanding.

What you need:

• Recycled cardboard or card-stock (for game pieces)
• Box lid or a box with the top cut ...

Making stick puppets is an easy, inexpensive craft that keeps your kids busy, encourages imaginative play and promotes the development of fine motor, creative and language skills.

What you need:

• Recycled cardboard (from food packaging or boxes) or card-stock
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Materials ...