Come join us at one or all of our children's week events!

Who doesn't need a reliable playdough recipe?! This is one of our favourites and we encourage all our families to try it out. You may also like to use our scavenger hunt suggestions for a family outing, or make up your own scavenger hunt!

It's very common for parents and extended families to feel like children need high quality toys and exciting things to facilitate their play. Here at Melbourne Community Toy Library, we believe that almost all toys have value and can be played with in different ways to promote imagination and creativity. Our toy library members benefit from being able to borrow toys for short periods of time, being able to try new things, and having opportunities to explore what is out there in the world of toys. However, not all toys need to be fancy, and every day objects can promote play and creativity just as well (if not better than) some conventional toys. For children's week this year, we've put together 7 play ideas that encourage kids to think, connect with nature, and use their imagination to play with regular objects they would find at home. We hope you enjoy them!

To read more about the importance of play based learning, we've found some great information here.

For more tips on how to encourage open-ended play at home see here.

Some more simple nature play ideas can be found here.

Oral language development lays a strong foundation for kids' learning and future success in life. One of the best things you can do for your child is to talk to them, and encourage them to talk back. To support parents with creating opportunities for talk, we've created this fridge magnet (below) with some ideas of ways to get conversations going, strategies for encouraging your child to solve problems and questions that promote reflection. These questions are best suited for children aged 3 and up, and it is our hope that they will help you strengthen your connection with your child.

If you're interested in finding out about the academic evidence and background for this then you may like to start with 'The Snow Report' and this article from Reading Rockets. Further suggestions for supporting your child's oral language development can be found here.

If you're worried about your child's language development, then this continuum from the Queensland Government can help you understand when to seek help.