When choosing gifts for children your main focus should be on the safety of your children and not just on the product itself. Those ten important facts will guide you to choose the right and safe toy for your child.

1.Toys (as well as their components) intended for children under three should have dimensions that make it impossible to swallow them. The lack of adequate certifications or a manual means that the product might be a health threat to your baby.

2. Each toy, should include:

• CE certification
• Name and address of the manufacturer or importer of the toy
• Information about the purpose of the toy

3. Check for warnings,  in particular:

• Whether it is suitable for children under three years old, together with information about the specific risks associated with the toy
• Wether it is intended to be used under adult supervision;

4. Read the instructions and a warning about the skills necessary for the use of toys

5. Find out how to maintain the toy so that it does not become a hazard in the future

6. Please note that the only mandatory labeling on toys are CE marked. Any additional certifications such as the Institute of Mother and Child and producer associations provide greater assurance that the toy is safe, but their use is voluntary.

First thing is to find a rope and put it around the ankles of two people.

Second, another person jumps in the rope and then jumps out with both legs outside of rope.

Another “exercise” is to jump from one side to another having rope between your legs.  Finally, the child takes the rope, crosses it using their legs, so that the feet are in side of an x. Then the child or an adult has to jump out and straddle the rope.

If a person who makes a jump lands on the rope, then they are out.

With each jump if they land on the rope when they are not supposed to, then they are out. Or if they are trying to land on it and miss they are out. Once you accomplish the ankles, you move up to the waist, then below the arms, then finally the neck (I have never seen it go that far.) With each sequence you say, “in, out, side, side, on, in, out.”

Contributed by Alicia

If you have any fun games that you wish to send to us then please do so by using this email address: woodensandpits@yahoo.com

You may buy Chinese Jump Rope here:
Chinese Jump Rope

When kept indoors in a cage some sawdust or straw should be put on the floor. The cage should be placed in a well ventilated area with a free flow of fresh air every day.  Also it is recommended to change the sawdust every day to avoid unpleased smell and soil and place the cage as close to the ground as possible. As rabbit is a very active pet and love jumping and running around, very often it should be let out for a while. This will help it to keep its body in shape. Therefore, the door of the cage should not be shut permanently; it should be left open from time to time. If this is not possible and the bunny will spend most of the time in its cage then get the biggest cage that is practical in the home. However, the rule is that the cage should be a minimum of five times the size of the rabbit. The rabbit should have enough space to stretch out in his cage and stand up without bumping his head. Also it is not recommended to use cages with wire flooring as they are not very friendly; however in this case the floor can be covered with cardboard or any other material for example plywood. What is more, it is good to think about rabbit’s needs and by placing cardboard box inside the cage, the animal can have place to hide when needs quite time. Finally, the door to the cage should be large enough to get the rabbit out without any problems. It is recommended to have a cage with side door as top-opening cages made it more difficult to get out the bunny. Also the opening should have smooth edges.  Applying this rules will make your and your pet life better.

Step 1: Deciding who will be “It” can be done in a few ways for example the oldest child or the youngest can be “It”.

Step 2: Swinging. The person that was “It” will have to swing the rest of the players around. The number of swings can be three or four and then “it” should let go.

Step 3: Keeping the balance. The swung player must then balance himself or herself in a statue stance as he or she was swung. Balance is very important here if a player move, laugh or fall then that person will become “it”.

Step 4:  Staying still. If everyone is keeping the balance then “it” will try to scare or trick the rest of the players into moving without touching them. The first player that will move will become “it”.

 This game is perfect for testing child’s concentration, determination to win.

Here are the few steps to follow:

• Selecting the players. The first thing is to select players. At least three players are needed to play the game. Nevertheless the more players the better.

• Selecting an area. The next thing that has to be done is to select an area in which to play the game. A specific area with clear boundaries should be designated. An outdoor location is better, although indoors is fine if is raining.

• Determining who will be “It”. Deciding who will be “It” can be done in a few ways for example the oldest child or the youngest can be “It”.

Starting “Hide and Seek” game.

• After choosing the person who will be “it”, he or she should stay at home base then close his or her eyes and begin counting out loud. The number should be between 10 and 100 depending on the ages of the children playing. Also the more players involved in a game the higher the number should be.

• Hiding. The person defined as “it” should stay and count out loud and the rest of the players should run off and hide quietly. The person who is “It” is not allowed to peek at the players hiding from him or her.

• Seeking. When the player who is “It” has finished counting, he or she call out, “Ready or not here I come” and starts looking for the player who have hidden. A person defined as “it” should touch, or “tag,” found player.

• Changing the person who was “It”. The player who was touched or tagged first becomes “It” in the next round of the game.

This is enormous fun for your children, but also for you to unwind after stressful day.

The game I Spy is very common one and is played by children quite often. Initially started by parents to occupy bored children during a car journey.

• I spy is one of the first games that a lot of children learn to play when they know colors or letters. This game is ideal whenever a kid has to wait for example for a meal in a restaurant or to see a GP in a hospital, however, it is also a good game when a child is outdoors, e.g. in a sand pit.

• A child or a parent has to choose something from the place where everyone is and that thing has to be easily visible in order to be guessed. The person gives it color: example “I spy with my little eye something yellow”. Then the other players have to guess what is it until someone gets it right and then that person does the same.

• Also it is possible to use letters instead of colors. Then a child or a parent has to give the initial letter of the object instead of its color: example “I spy with my little eye something beginning with C

•If the object is difficult to be guessed then few clues about this object should be given. Example a dining table can be described such as “something that is made of wood and is rectangular and has four legs”

• Also it is possible to change this game slightly especially when outdoors and instead of “I spy with my little eye” use “I hear with my little ear something beginning with B”. Then a child or a parent choose something that makes noise that everyone can hear it and tries to describe it.

This game can be played everywhere at home, in the car or in your garden, e.g. in the sandpit.

To find out more ideas and buy a sandpit visit wooden sandpit.

Long summer days are approaching fast and they may seem endless if children are bored.

A lot of parents already know that summertime can be very difficult to survive with child or children that are simply uninterested in doing anything.

The number of activities that a child can do inside can be limited; therefore playing outside during the summer might be more interesting thing to do.

One of the ways to keep child/children busy and entertained is to buy a sandpit. Sandpits are easy to use and fun to play with. What is more, they can be easily set up and used in any garden. Wooden sandpits blend in with outdoorsy textures and colors.

The best sandpits are those which come complete with two attached side benches, a table and an umbrella to protect child/children from the sun. Such an innovative wooden sandpit makes a great tool for children to play outdoors and on top of that to get some fresh air and exercise. Sandpits sit in millions of gardens all over the country. When they are filled with sand, they can give hours of fun for the whole family. Furthermore, the sandpit is probably one of the favorite outdoor toys for toddlers and young children, offering different experiences and learning activities.

Children can move the sand around; dig holes and bury things and this is something they can either play on their own, or with their friends. All children enjoy playing with sand and water as it opens up a whole new world for them through imaginative play. Finally, incorporating water into the sandpit allows children to start to identify cause and effect, e.g. what happens to sand when it gets wet? As a result this will keep them entertained for a while.

So what are you waiting for? Buy a sand pit or outdoor sandpit today! ]]> https://woodensandpit.wordpress.com/2009/05/05/learning-through-play-part-2-outdoor-sandpit-activities/feed/ 1 WoodenSandpit https://woodensandpit.wordpress.com/2009/05/03/swine-flu/ https://woodensandpit.wordpress.com/2009/05/03/swine-flu/#respond Sun, 03 May 2009 14:41:01 +0000 http://woodensandpit.wordpress.com/?p=101 Hi,

Recently, whenever I watch the news, all I hear about is swine flu. Some people are taking it seriously while others completely do not care about this. What about you? We would like to find out what our readers think about this. Please take a part in our poll and find out how others voted.

Toddlers will start to use their imagination while creating different creatures or items from sand. They can build almost entire universe from it.

Learning through discovery, children can discover new things while building sandcastles especially when incorporating water into the sand pit.

 Children will learn social skills such as how to share the bucket and shovel with other kids.

Children will learn new vocabulary, speech and develop communication skill while playing outside with other kids in a sand pit.