Rhyme and repeat
Say a nursery rhyme or sing a song together, leaving off the last word of each line for your child to fill in.
Under 5. Words and reading. About 10 minutes.Picture-book talk
Read a favourite picture book. Pause to ask "What can you see?" and "What do you think happens next?", and let your child turn the pages.
Under 5. Words and reading. Half an hour or more.Sound hunt
Pick a letter sound and find five things in the room that begin with it. Swap and let your child choose the sound.
5 to 7. Words and reading. About 10 minutes.Read it, then retell it
Read a short chapter or story together. Ask your child to retell it in their own words, then draw their favourite scene.
5 to 7. Words and reading. Half an hour or more.Two-minute story
Give three random words, such as dragon, bicycle and soup, and ask for a story using all three in two minutes.
8 to 11. Words and reading. About 10 minutes.Library detective
Visit the library with a question your child chooses ("How do bridges stay up?"). Find a book, take notes and tell the family what you found.
8 to 11. Words and reading. Half an hour or more.Sum it up
After reading an article or watching a programme, ask for a summary in three sentences, then a one-sentence opinion with a reason.
12 to 15. Words and reading. About 10 minutes.Write to someone real
Write a letter or email to someone: a relative, a local councillor, an author. Draft, revise and send it.
12 to 15. Words and reading. Half an hour or more.Count the stairs
Count steps, spoons and apples as you go. Ask "How many are left?" when you eat or give some away.
Under 5. Numbers and thinking. About 10 minutes.Kitchen measuring
Bake something simple. Let your child scoop, pour and level the ingredients, and talk about full, empty, more and less.
Under 5. Numbers and thinking. Half an hour or more.Number bonds game
Hold up some fingers and ask how many more make ten. Take turns to be the one who asks.
5 to 7. Numbers and thinking. About 10 minutes.Shop and change
Set up a pretend shop with price labels up to 20p or 20 cents. Take turns to buy and give change.
5 to 7. Numbers and thinking. Half an hour or more.Estimate, then check
Guess how many steps to the end of the road, or how many pasta shapes are in a cup. Check, and talk about how close you were.
8 to 11. Numbers and thinking. About 10 minutes.Plan a meal or trip
Give a budget and let your child plan a meal or day out, working out costs, times and quantities.
8 to 11. Numbers and thinking. Half an hour or more.Spot the percentage
Ask about discounts, tips or scores you see in everyday life. Work out the real price together and compare with an estimate.
12 to 15. Numbers and thinking. About 10 minutes.Real-data project
Collect something the child cares about, such as game scores, distances run or phone use, and chart it. What does it show?
12 to 15. Numbers and thinking. Half an hour or more.Animal walks
Hop like a frog, stomp like an elephant, slither like a snake. Take turns choosing the animal.
Under 5. Moving. About 10 minutes.Park adventure
Go to a park or woodland. Climb, balance on logs, roll down a slope and collect leaves of different shapes.
Under 5. Moving. Half an hour or more.Obstacle course
Use cushions, chairs and a rope to make a short course. Time each go and try to beat your own time.
5 to 7. Moving. About 10 minutes.Bike or scooter trip
Plan a safe route to somewhere your child chooses. Talk about road signs and landmarks on the way.
5 to 7. Moving. Half an hour or more.Active break
Between tasks do one minute of star jumps, wall sits or skipping. Swap who leads.
8 to 11. Moving. About 10 minutes.Learn a new sport
Try a new activity together, such as swimming, climbing or a ball game, and keep a tally of progress.
8 to 11. Moving. Half an hour or more.Walk and talk
Go for a ten-minute walk. Many teenagers talk more side by side than face to face.
12 to 15. Moving. About 10 minutes.Set a personal challenge
Choose something your teenager picks, like a 5 km walk or run, and plan the training together over several weeks.
12 to 15. Moving. Half an hour or more.Dough play
Roll, squash and cut play dough. Make snakes, cakes and animals, and count and compare.
Under 5. Making. About 10 minutes.Junk-model box
Collect boxes, tubes and tape and make a house, a car or a robot. Ask your child to tell you about it.
Under 5. Making. Half an hour or more.Draw and describe
Ask your child to draw something without showing it to you, then explain it so you can draw the same.
5 to 7. Making. About 10 minutes.Upcycle a jar or tin
Decorate a jar or tin to make a pencil pot, a lantern or a plant pot.
5 to 7. Making. Half an hour or more.Build with limits
Challenge: build the tallest tower you can with 20 pieces of paper and a bit of tape. Test it and improve it.
8 to 11. Making. About 10 minutes.Make it, fix it
Choose a broken toy, a torn bag or a wobbly chair and repair it together, learning a basic skill such as sewing or gluing.
8 to 11. Making. Half an hour or more.Sketch notebook
Keep a small notebook for ideas, drawings or designs. Take two minutes a day.
12 to 15. Making. About 10 minutes.Real project
Let your teenager choose a project with a finish line: a piece of music, a short film, a garden bed, a piece of furniture.
12 to 15. Making. Half an hour or more.Feelings faces
Make a happy, sad, cross and surprised face together. Ask "When do you feel like this?"
Under 5. Feelings and friends. About 10 minutes.Calm-down corner
Set up a cosy spot with cushions and a book. Practise going there when calm, so it is familiar when upset.
Under 5. Feelings and friends. Half an hour or more.Rose and thorn
At bedtime, share one good thing and one hard thing from the day. Parents too.
5 to 7. Feelings and friends. About 10 minutes.Play a feelings story
Act out a situation with soft toys, such as a character who is left out, and ask what could help.
5 to 7. Feelings and friends. Half an hour or more.Feelings weather report
Ask "What is the weather inside you today?" Sunny, cloudy, stormy. No wrong answers.
8 to 11. Feelings and friends. About 10 minutes.Family meeting
Hold a short weekly meeting where everyone can raise a worry or an idea. Take turns to chair and to take notes.
8 to 11. Feelings and friends. Half an hour or more.Check-in without a lecture
Ask one open question, such as "What was the best part of your day?", and listen without fixing.
12 to 15. Feelings and friends. About 10 minutes.Do something kind together
Volunteer, cook for a neighbour, or help a younger child learn something. Helping others builds a sense of purpose.
12 to 15. Feelings and friends. Half an hour or more.
Nothing matches all three. Try setting one of the choices to Any.
