Activities

Make your own dinosaur world or mini Jurassic Park! It’s a great water play and sensory play activity that toddlers and preschoolers will love. Dinosaur worlds are easy to set up with things you have to hand and kids will have fun as they make their dinosaurs come to life through imaginative play.

Who remembers making mud pies? Making mud pies is sadly not as common as it used to be, but here’s a very easy mud pie recipe you can try at home with the kids to help bring back their revival. Making mud pies is a great learning activity too and perfect for messy playtime in the garden.

Nature art activities are a fun, affordable way to engage toddlers and preschoolers in messy play outside. It teaches them new skills and opens up so many more opportunities beyond using just paper, paint and glue for their artworks.

Toddlers and preschoolers will love this fly swat painting activity! Fly swat painting is a great outdoor messy play activity you can do at home with a cheap fly swat and homemade or shop-bought paints.It’s such a fun way to paint and will take your toddler’s or preschooler’s artwork to a whole new level!

Have a go at making your own gloop at home with this easy recipe and ingredients from your pantry. Gloop is an interesting mixture with a unique texture that toddlers and preschoolers will love to explore and play with. It’s great for moulding and developing their fine motor skills too.

Foam dough is easy to make and lots of fun for the kids. All you need are just 3 ingredients! Check out this easy recipe.

A sensory board or busy board is a fun, hands-on activity for babies and toddlers to help them touch, explore and learn about different objects all in one place. They have lots of developmental benefits too and are really easy to make at home with things you have to hand.

Easter just isn’t Easter without an Easter egg hunt! Whilst Easter egg hunts are lots of fun for kids of all ages, you may need to scale it down a bit when it comes to toddlers and preschoolers so that they enjoy it just as much as the older kids. Check out these 6 tips for organising a fun Easter egg hunt.

Looking for kids Easter craft ideas? Why not make some fun Easter Baskets for the kids this year. Two easy Easter basket designs made from paper cups and craft supplies – an Easter rabbit and an Easter chick! Perfect for little Easter eggs.

Turn your favourite pancakes into Easter bunny pancakes for the kids this Easter! They're easy to make using homemade or shop-bought pancakes.

This painted Easter bunny footprint art makes a great personal gift for kids to give to family and friends at Easter or to hang on their bedroom wall. It’s an easy Easter activity to do at home with young kids and a great way to capture their feet whilst they’re still young.

Autumn activities are lots of fun for toddlers and preschoolers. They provide a great opportunity for young kids to get outside in the garden or local park, foraging for autumn leaves and twigs that have fallen to the ground. Autumn foraging activities also help to teach children about the wonders of the seasons and to incorporate natural foliage into their arts and crafts and play.

Have a go at making your own autumn trees with the kids. In autumn, leaves on the trees are at their most vibrant. They start to change colour and fall and are perfect for using in this easy activity.

Hosting a kids bat party is lots of fun! From preschoolers’ parties to Halloween gatherings, this monochrome bat party idea is sure to delight your kids and is a breeze to whip together. Check out these tips on how to set the scene, fun party food ideas you can use and games you can play to keep your little bats busy.

Have a go at these fun beach games for young kids! Games you can enjoy on the sand this summer once they’ve had enough time swimming in the sea.

Painting with ice chalk paints is lots of fun! Make the most of the summer weather and have a go at this easy ice chalk paints recipe. It’s a great outdoors messy play activity, science experiment and painting material all in one!

Your baby’s first Christmas is such a special time, so here are some ideas on ways you can celebrate and make it memorable for years to come.

Baking soda clay handprints are a great way to capture the size of your kids hands whilst their still young, and make Christmas decorations too. Made with ingredients you’ll have in your pantry, these handprint keepsakes are fun and easy to make.

Is your toddler or preschooler a fussy eater? It can be stressful at the best of times trying to find food that they’ll eat, but with the Christmas holidays just around the corner you may experience added pressure. However, there are some great ways to support your toddler or preschooler to help avoid some of the flash points that can dampen your Christmas cheer.

Even babies and kids who are usually good sleepers may find it difficult to get enough sleep or settle during the busy Christmas period. So here are some useful sleep tips for the Christmas holidays to help ensure your baby and kids sleep is not disrupted during this hectic time of year.

Have a go at making your own handprint Christmas wreath with the kids this year. It’s a really fun Christmas craft activity from Mud Mates and easy for toddlers and preschoolers to do with a little help from you. Why not make a new one every year and keep a record of the size of their hands and fingerprints as they grow!

As we head into summer here's a quick reminder of what we need to do and what we need to teach our kids to do. We’ve all heard the phrase Slip Slop Slap and Wrap a thousand times, but it’s so important as parents and caregivers to keep kids safe in the harsh New Zealand sun whilst they're playing outside, swimming in the pool or visiting one of our many beaches.

We all love summer, but it can wreak havoc with kids sleep patterns with balmy nights and daylight streaming through their curtains. A good night’s sleep is important for all of us, so help make things more comfortable with these 5 easy tips to help them get to sleep during the warmer months.

Going to the beach this summer? A YMCA Auckland Lifeguard shares 7 lifesaving tips that could make the difference to your family’s lives this season.