At Wilf & Friends we believe play is super important from birth, and here is why...

Play isn’t just for fun (although that is important too!); each play session is a learning experience in which children can make sense of the world around them. Through play, children gain social and cognitive abilities, understand their emotions and gain confidence. 

All of our toys support your child’s development & each product page will tell you how. Here’s an outline of each skillset (taken from Development Matters):

Personal, social &
emotional development.

Personal, social and emotional development in a child’s early years involves understanding their own feelings and those of others, management of emotions, making friends, co-operating and resolving conflicts, developing a positive sense of self, setting themselves simple goals & building confidence. The toys in this section aid these skills and this will provide a secure platform from which children can achieve at school and in later life.

Physical development

(fine motor & gross motor skills)

Physical activity is vital in a child’s all-round development, enabling them to pursue happy, healthy and active lives. Gross and fine motor experiences start with sensory explorations and the development of a child’s strength, coordination and positional awareness through tummy time, crawling and play movements. They then develop other skills such as core strength, stability, balance, spatial awareness, agility, fine motor control and precision - which is later linked to early literacy. Repeated and varied opportunities to explore and play with small world activities, puzzles, arts and crafts and the practice of using small tools allow children to develop proficiency, control and confidence.

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Cognitive development

(Numeracy, Literacy, sensory & communication)

Language comprehension starts from birth. The number and quality of conversations little ones have in a language-rich environment is crucial. On top of this, reading frequently to children, and engaging them actively in stories, is also important to develop a life-long love of reading. Numeracy also begins from a young age with children developing a deep understanding of the numbers to 10. By providing frequent and varied opportunities to build and apply this – such as using manipulatives, including small pebbles and tens frames for organising counting – children will develop a secure base of knowledge and vocabulary.

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Understanding the world

Understanding the world involves children gaining knowledge and a sense of the world around them through personal experiences and role play – from visiting parks, libraries and museums to meeting important members of society such as police officers, nurses and firefighters. In addition, listening to a broad selection of stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems will foster their understanding of our culturally, socially, technologically and ecologically diverse world.

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Expressive arts and design (Creative/imagination)

The development of children’s artistic and cultural awareness supports their imagination and creativity. The quality and variety of what children see, hear and participate in is crucial for developing their understanding, self-expression, vocabulary and ability to communicate through the arts. The frequency, repetition and depth of their experiences are fundamental to their progress in interpreting and appreciating what they hear, respond to and observe.