Early years

Doddl Educational Children's Cutlery is put to the test by Joanna Roberts and her 13 month old son.

Making the switch to solid foods is an exciting time. Piccolo know weaning can be somewhat daunting – from knowing what to feed them and when to wondering whether they’re getting the right balance of nutrients they need to grow. They pulled together their favourite tips and insights to help you along the way on your little one’s weaning adventure.

Graceful Changes – Ethical Baby & Toddler Clothes Rental Subscription Service tried out by Hannah Smith-Hughes.

The Starting School Book by Sarah Ockwell-Smith reviewed by Anne Coates.

The Baby Feeding Book by Vanessa Christie reviewed by Joanna Roberts.

As part of the Department for Education's next phase of its Hungry Little Minds campaign, child physchologist Dr Elizabeth Kilbey gives her top ten tips on supporting children’s learning at home to give your child the best start in life.

Alteya Organics for Infants reviewed by Joanna Robertson.

News about Prince George learning Spanish along his sister Charlotte has been taking over the news lately and considering that the little prince is third in line for the throne, it would make absolute sense for Prince George to speak another language. Here Absolute Translations give their six top reasons why teaching your kids another language, and Spanish in particular, is a good idea.

Kathryn Mayle tests Aveeno® Baby products on her baby son who suffers from dry skin and patches of eczema.

The few weeks in the summer before starting school are an important time to prepare your child for school, writes Anne Coates.

Parents, children, experts and Disney Junior have come together to create How to Make Friends and Influence Five-Year-Olds, a video guide on how to make friends after research revealed “making friends” was a top concern for parents and guardians when it comes to their child starting school. Plus Linda Blair gives her top tips for parents.

Today, Aardman the Oscar winning animation studio behind family favourites such as Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep launches Learning Time with Timmy, a fun and interactive learning series teaching English for children aged two to five. Plus they commissioned Dr Sam Wass (The Secret Life of Four and Five Year Olds) to reveal his top tips to parents on how to tell good from poor quality online video content for young learners.

Naomi Mckeri has tested out a range of oat based products Aveeno has created for babies, recently introduced to the UK. She was impressed. 

The Flavour-led Weaning Cookbook by Zainab Jagot Ahmed reviewed by Naomi Mckerl.

For babies and young children consistent companionship, affection and playful communication provide the foundation for their emergent emotional, social and language development. How a child manages their emotions in difficult situations shapes pathways in the brain, which in turn create the "blueprint" for future emotional responses and behaviours, explains Mine Conkbayir, author of Early Childhood and Neuroscience.published by Bloomsbury.

Naomi Mckerl has just begun the weaning process with Elspeth and, wanting to know exactly what her daughter is eating, was delighted to discover the Babyease range of baby foods.

Are you worried about your toddler’s touchscreen time? The National Literacy Trust gives reassurance and top tips on how to make technology beneficial for your child’s early learning.

Laura Molloy, Founder of one of the UK’s leading baby swim class companies, Swimbabes, discusses the importance and advantages of teaching children to swim as early as possible.