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What are play Schemas?

Posted on July 19, 2022November 16, 2022 by Clodagh Borrett
What are play Schemas?

Have you ever noticed your toddler loves putting things in prams and pushing them around? Or maybe they make fort-like structures and hide away, day after day. It could be that these little quirks we observe when our kids play aren’t just the baffling toddler behaviours we’ve come to scratch our heads at and love (of which, there are many, let’s face it!). It could be that your child is exhibiting their favourite schema. Often completely unheard of for many parents, we have a look at what schemas are, how you can embrace them and how they may even help with your child’s development.

What is a schema?

Play schemas are repetitive behaviours that children exhibit through play. These behaviours facilitate development and have been an important subject in the child development world for 100 years. Miriam Webster defines schemas as “mental codification of experience that includes a particular organized way of perceiving cognitively and responding to a complex situation or set of stimuli.” The unique way each child plays can tell us so much about them, how they are processing information and organising the world in their ever-growing minds.

A brief history of schemas in play

In 1923, Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget was one of the first to use the term ‘schemata’. His influential Theory of Cognitive Development still leads the way today. He theorized that children have three schemata: Symbolic Schemata, Operational Schemata, and Behavioural Schemata, and understood that children have a different thinking pattern than adults that must be respected and understood.

How many schemas are there and how can you support your child’s schema?

Connecting

If your child loves putting Lego pieces together, playing with construction toys, magnets, or sticking things on to Velcro, they most likely have a connecting schema. Children with this schema also like pulling things apart, knocking things down and opening/closing cupboards and doors (frustrating for you, super beneficial for them) and even holding hands (cute!). With this schema they are learning about forces, shapes, joining and separation, spatial awareness, cause and effect and much more.

Connecting activity examples that are cheap and easy:

  • Jigsaw puzzles
  • Stacking stones/blocks (and knocking them down)
  • Train tracks and connecting toy vehicles
  • Containers with lids
  • Tying objects together with string
  • Using real tools (think twisting screws into a soft cork board with a screwdriver)
  • Threading leaves
  • Lego and Velcro
  • Tying shoelaces

Enclosing

Have you ever turned your back on your toddler only to find they’ve crawled into the kitchen cupboard? Do they prefer sitting in the cardboard box way more than playing with the present that came in it? With this schema, a lot of play will involve enclosures and walls being built around toys, or food being lined up around the plate, almost like a picture frame. Skills like measuring and predicting are being developed here, as well as object permanence and pre-maths fine-tuning.

Enclosing activity examples that are cheap and easy

  • Hide and seek
  • Emptying the dishwasher/shopping and putting everything away
  • Ball pits
  • Tunnels
  • Colouring inside cardboard boxes
  • Animal toys with fences, like farmyards scenes
  • Making cardboard frames for their drawings
  • Containers with lids

Orientation

This is all about your bubba looking at things for different angles and perspectives. They’ll be interested in different viewpoints. So, you might have noticed they’re always turning their toys upside down, bending down and looking through their legs, hanging their head off the sofa, tilting their head back when they’re on the swings or climbing to see the world from high up. They’re learning body and spatial awareness, gross motor skills and more.

Orientation activity examples that are cheap and easy

  • Walking along walls
  • Climbing trees
  • Yoga
  • Swings
  • Spinning and rolling
  • Magnifying glass for seeing items or bugs, for example, in different way
  • Binoculars
  • Going higher up in a building and looking at the views

Positioning

This is where your child lines things up and puts toys or items in groups. Children with this schema are all about order, shape, and symmetry. They love lining up toy cars or making a row of blocks and placing another row on top of them. Problem solving, classifying and science skills are all covered here.

Positioning activity examples that are cheap and easy

  • Numbered stones to place in order
  • Screws and nails
  • Kitchen objects like cutlery or wooden spoons that they can organise
  • Scavenger hunts – help them collect items in nature that they can organise at home into groups
  • Threading pasta with string to make jewellery

Rotation

If your little one loves wheels, spinning around, drawing circles, playing with keys and locks and has a fascination with pouring water and watching it go down the drain, then it looks like this schema is what makes them tick! They’re learning all about cause and effect, improving gross motor skills and seeing how things move.

Rotation activity examples that are cheap and easy

  • Locks and keys
  • Rolling playdough
  • Mixing and stirring (this can simply be done in the bath too)
  • Singing songs with movement like Ring Around the Rosey
  • Hula hoops
  • Play clocks
  • Rolling pin play
  • Popping them in front of the washing machine!

Trajectory

This one is all about throwing, dropping, and rolling. Objects or themselves! A great schema for your little one to learn about visual tracking, observing, and predicting and gross motor skills.

Trajectory activity examples that are cheap and easy

  • Running water and giving them vessels to fill up
  • Outdoor items like frisbees and kites
  • Any sport that involves throwing balls
  • Percussion
  • Trampoline
  • Even chopping food!

Transporting

If your child loves carrying things with them everywhere they go, either in their hands, a bag, or a dolly pram, they’ve got the transporting bug! With this one, they’re learning about object permanence, planning and spatial awareness (they also look cute holding a basket or handbag!)

Transporting activity examples that are cheap and easy

  • A dolly pram they can push anything in, all day
  • A basket or a handbag
  • Transferring activities – like pouring water from one vessel to another, moving sand from different buckets etc
  • Wagons
  • Get them to help you with shopping by taking items from the shelf and putting it into your basket
  • Similarly, do this at home when putting your food shop away
  • Ask them to put items in the bin when you’re in a different room
  • Plant and water seeds

Why are play schemas important?

Understanding the intricacies of how and why your child plays, not only makes it clearer for you that they’re not being naughty, they don’t have OCD and it is normal that your toddler wants to spin wheels over and over (and over!) again, it will empower you to encourage play that strengthens so many skill sets they’re unable to tell us they need to explore. By establishing and embracing your toddler’s schemas, you can really open the door to endless exploratory play and see their skills broaden and improve, as well as their confidence. If you get it right, you might also nab yourself a few minutes peace while they’re engrossed in their play (or simply hiding in a cupboard!)

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How to Upcycle kid’s Clothes?

Posted on July 5, 2022November 16, 2022 by Clodagh Borrett
How to Upcycle kid’s Clothes?

There’s nothing better than finding outfits for our little ones that look good and they love wearing. Then the bittersweet day comes when they grow out of them. If there are some items you want to hold on to, and some clothes of your own you don’t wear anymore, why not try giving them a makeover and a new lease of life? Let’s have a quick look at how upcycling can transform your favourite pieces and give them a bit more time in the family home.

What is Upcycling?

Upcycling is taking an item that might have had its day in its original form and transforming it into something more usable, presentable and, oftentimes, of greater value. This can be done using many DIY techniques and is fun to do as a personal project, or as a business.

Why is Upcycling important?

If you upcycle something, it means an item gets a new lease of life and something else doesn’t have to be made to take its place. It keeps cost, production, and waste right down.

Why is it Important to Upcycle kid’s clothes?

Our little ones grow so, so fast. We can wind up spending a small fortune if we don’t buy second hand or upcycle the clothes we have. Fashion is one of the biggest impacts on the environment and because children go through so many items in their first few years of life, it’s really important to try and cut back on the number of throwaway pieces when we can.

How to Upcycle kid’s clothes

Try out online sewing tutorials

If you’re new to sewing, or it’s been a while, why not try a quick and easy tutorial online? There are loads of courses you can join and YouTubers breaking down all kinds of techniques. Have a look at your local parents’ and children’s’ centres – sometimes the council offer weekly classes for just this sort of thing.

Combine clothing items together

If there are items you want to make bigger, longer, or simply add a new fabric or pop of colour to, don’t be afraid to combine items you already have. These can be other items that belong to your kids, or adult clothes. Work with the hems and you can add panels of different fabric easily. This is a great way to make that pair of shorts your son loves longer, by adding the legs from another pair or your daughter’s favourite dress wider or more up to date by sewing in fabric from a discarded top, for example.

Introduce Quirky Sewing Patterns

There are many websites where you can download PDF sewing patterns for all kinds of designs. You can combine different pieces, change the structure of an item, add length, sleeves – anything! Whatever your skill level is, there will be an upcycling pattern available for you.

Upcycle necklines

If you or your partner have an old t-shirt that you don’t wear any more, you can take the neckline from that and upcycle it onto your child’s top. This is particularly good to do because their heads grow so big, so quickly, that often the rest of the top will fit but they can’t get their head through. There are plenty of websites with sewing patterns for just this kind of job. Any extra material you are left with, set aside for future upcycling projects.

Reuse Hems and Buttons

The goal is to create as little waste as possible and save money, so keep hold of all buttons, hemlines, and zips. You can reuse them on any garments you see fit. It doesn’t matter where they came from – now’s the time to think outside the box!

Reuse the details from other clothes items

There are many techniques you can adopt with reuse the details of other clothes times. Appliqué, patchwork, layering and tiers… Don’t be afraid to mix and match. If the fabric is very different, take in consideration they will require different sewing techniques and threads because you want to avoid pulling and stretching.

Be creative!

Enjoy the process and get your kids involved! There are so many techniques that don’t even need a sewing machine. Your little ones can paint on fabric you’re going to upcycle, and you’ll have some pretty unique pieces. There’s the amazing Japanese technique Tatakizome, or fabric pounding, that everyone will love. Go foraging for flowers and leaves, make some lovely patterns and place your fabric on top (linen works well). Using a rubber hammer, tap over the fabric until the dye of the foliage comes through and you can see the gorgeous shapes. There are ways to keep the dye lasting longer on the fabric, like soaking the linen in vinegar beforehand.

How to upcycle clothes for babies

Because their items are much smaller, it can be fun to explore crafting options with upcycled baby clothes. You can patchwork with your favourite pieces, create 3D letters with cut-up fabric, makes doll’s clothes… The list is endless. The baby clothes that you want to keep don’t have to spend the next 20 years in the loft.

How myTOT supports the reusability of kid’s clothes

We’re all about clothes having as many lives as possible, whether that’s in their original form or upcycled. The re-commerce community starts at home, with our mums and dads, and we support any way you guys think will make a garment last longer!

There is a whole world to explore with upcycling, with so many techniques and ideas waiting to be discovered. Don’t be afraid to start small and simple, ask for help and try out different ideas. And where you can, get your littles one involved, so they can see and appreciate the process. If we can avoid throwing things away, we might as well try!

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How to strip and wash cloth nappies?

Posted on June 13, 2022November 16, 2022 by Clodagh Borrett
How to strip and wash cloth nappies?

Today’s cloth nappies are convenient to use, look super cute, seriously help the environment and save long-term costs. Many families are switching from disposables but wonder how their new softer nappies are cared for. With your average cloth nappy withstanding the use of three children, here’s how you can get the best of yours and help them last longer.

What are cloth nappies?

Put simply, cloth nappies are reusable nappies. They’re made from various materials like cotton towelling and bamboo, and you wash them at home, in your washing machine. You can get all kinds of nappy styles with multiple inserts, separate waterproof wraps (that come in various colours and patterns) and unlike the cloth nappies of yesteryear, now they come with poppers and Velcro, so they’re easy to whip on and off. There’s a big misconception that cloth nappies are inconvenient, but this is simply not true.

Do cloth nappies help the environment?

On average, one baby uses 6,500 disposable nappies from birth to potty training (the equivalent to one tonne of waste per baby). Three billion disposable nappies are sent to landfill each year and they take up to 500 years to decompose. Because cloth nappies are made from natural and recycled materials, you don’t have to worry about anything gross going into the ground and they use 90 times less renewable sources than disposables. Because they can be passed down to your future children or re-sold (after a proper clean!), you’d be helping the environment for years to come.

How to maintain cloth nappies.

We asked Michelle at Little Lamb, an environmentally conscious nappy brand here in the UK, to talk us through caring for your reusable.

Step 1: Flush the majority poo down the toilet (it’s advised to do this with disposable’s, also).
Step 2: Check your detergent At Little Lamb, we prefer powder to liquid. If you’re heavy handed you can’t be sure how much you’re pouring in and if you use too much, residue can build up on the nappy.
Step 3: Rinse, repeat… And be quick! Some people use brushes, some rinse in the bath or shower but rinse your nappy before the ‘main’ wash. We suggest a rinse where the machine empties all the water. Then you go on to your main wash – the quicker the spin, the better, so all the water leaves the machine. The more water the better. A fast spin is recommended, because it gets as much water out of the nappy as possible, which means it dries faster.
Step 4:  Don’t over or under load the machine and make sure you use the right amount of detergent. If it’s three quarters full, check what your detergent suggests on the side of a box. Soiling, load size, water hardness – these are all things you should take into consideration when washing cloth nappies.

When do you need to strip cloth nappies?

You can do a strip wash if you’re nappy is becoming non-absorbent, according to Michelle. This can be down to limescale or detergent build up and your baby might be getting rashes because of it.

How can you strip and wash cloth nappies?

Put your nappies in a wash, with no detergent, says Michelle. If you see bubbles, you’ve got a detergent build up. Keep washing until there are no bubbles, then do a 60-degree wash and that solves most issues. Never use bleach or things like Calgon. If you wanted to use more ‘home remedies’ watered-down dish soap can be good, but we prefer olive oil soap. Both get rid of grease caused by nappy cream and lanolin. Make a weak solution with water, rub it in the material, rinse it then wash it.

More top tips from Michelle:

Don’t use the eco wash setting. Washing machines get eco ratings by using less water but nappies need as much water as possible, so they’re thoroughly cleaned. Wash on cotton for 2.5/3-hour washes at 40 or 60 degrees.

In times of illness, thrush or rashes, always wash at 60. If you live in a hard water area, always use a full dose of detergent without extra rinse, because the water in an extra rinse adds all the fibres back into the nappy.

Eco detergents and eco eggs can damage the material. The eggs catch on it and eco detergent they can be hard to rinse out of nappies and tend to leave a residue.

Things like essential oils and vinegar should be avoided. Essential oils go back into the ocean and can be acidic, so damage the nappy.

Remember that your nappies are going on a sensitive and precious area – your baby’s bum! So treat them with care and keep them away from harsh chemicals. When it’s sunny, take advantage – sunshine is a natural bleacher, leaving your nappies looking lovely and fresh.

Cloth nappies are a simple but brilliant way to reduce waste and cost. You can use them at home, just at night or all the time – even one a day goes a long way. Once you’ve got used to washing them, they’re easy peasy and look so cute on your little one’s bums! Enjoy the process – once you get going, you’ll be hooked.

For gorgeous cloth nappies, in a wide range of styles, go to Reusable Nappies – Cloth Nappies – LittleLamb.

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What is sustainable shopping?

Posted on June 1, 2022November 16, 2022 by Clodagh Borrett
What is sustainable shopping?

As our families grow our needs change and we need to buy more things… all the time. This kind of material accumulation can take its toll on the environment, our wallets, our communities and even our health. myTOT takes a deep dive into what sustainable shopping is and why it could change our lives and be the best option in the long run.

Why shop sustainably?

Protect the environment

It’s well known that our shopping habits impact the world we live in and the animals we live with. Stats show that as much as 713 gallons of water are used to make a t-shirt (yes, just one!) but according to Winmark Franchises (How Do Your Shopping Habits Impact the Environment?), recycled cotton clothing uses less than 3 percent of energy that would’ve gone into making something new. Most people still shop brand new, though, and from larger companies who are on the fast consumer treadmill. Animals consume plastic and their habitats are destroyed by it and this is just one problem our shopping habits cause them. Making it more accessible to shop sustainably would make a huge difference. Even if you’re only buying one t-shirt.

It’s better for your health

Pesticides, chemical dyes and micro-plastics – oh my! These are just some of the toxic elements we eventually wear, use and consume when we shop. Substances like these can affect our health in so many ways – from fertility (phalates in plastic are known to lower testosterone and studies have found that infertile women have higher BPA levels in their system than fertile women) to skin problems (clothing made of dark synthetic fibres, like workout gear, can trigger allergic contact dermitis. When was the last time you bought something and thought about what it’s made of and how those components will affect your health? By shopping sustainably, you can check out materials before you buy and help yourself and your family detox some pretty grim hidden nasties.

Support Local Business

Now is the time to shop local. Not only do local businesses need our financial support (lockdowns, dying high streets and online shopping are really not helping), they’re also amazing sources of sustainably. If you’re a foodie, have a look and see if you can get your milk, eggs and butter delivered weekly to your door from a nearby farm (milk in glass bottles waiting for you at your front door in the morning… Call me boring, but what a rush!). Perhaps there are craft makers nearby creating super-cool clothes for your littles in organic fabrics. If there’s something you’re in the market to buy, have a quick look for small business and local alternatives – you’re pretty much guaranteed to find longer lasting, better made stuff.

Protect workers

Every supply has a chain. How the links in the chain are affected very much depends on how we shop and how often we do it. It starts with the consumer – we need to knowledge up. What do you want? How is it made, how much does it cost, where is made, what is it made from and who made it? The latter of these questions is often overlooked. According to bustle.com of the world’s estimated 60-plus million garment and textile workers, only 2% earn a living wage. Sustainable businesses are changing this. It’s important that a business is transparent about all elements of its product, and that you can trace everything. If you have to hunt for information, it’s probably not sustainable.

What types of sustainable shopping are there?

Shopping second hand

Here at myTOT, we’re all about shopping second hand (check out why second hand isn’t second best here Why second hand isn’t second best… | mytot). It really is the simplest way to shop sustainably. According to the BBC, increasing a garment’s lifespan by nine months will eliminate its environmental impact up to 30%, compared with buying it new. It’s also super fun. According to an Oxfam survey, the average shopper bought 12 second hand items in 2018 and got a ‘buzz’ from it!

Shopping locally and reducing packaging

Ordering something online, for example, means it has to travel to you. I know, duh, right? But what happens when you need to return something? According to a study by GreenStoryCa (The Impact of Online Shopping on the Environment | Eco-Age), 30% of items bought online are returned and 20% of those items end up on landfill, because they can’t be resold by the retailer. That is shocking. Only 6-8% of items bought from brick-and-mortar stores are returned. If you shop locally, you can experience the product before you buy it and the packaging it comes in will be reduced. If you’re ordering online from somewhere local, the trip to you and back will emit much less emissions. Win, win!

What is the importance of sustainable shopping?

The lifecycle of clothing

The lifecycle of clothing has several stages. From manufacturing and retail, to use and end of life (with transportation in between). According to Science Direct (A systematic review of the life cycle inventory of clothing – ScienceDirect), the use phase is ‘critical’. ‘… energy and water are used for clothes washing, drying, ironing and dry cleaning. The number of washing cycles operated during the user phase is critical since it affects the durability and increases energy use.’ In a garment durability widely used by retailers, an average garment has 49 wash cycles in it. If there are items in your wardrobe going unused but you think could take a few more washes, pass them on to someone else!

Supporting fair pricing

Setting fair prices is fundamental in sustainable shopping. If the supply train is transparent and audible, you as the consumer will understand the pricing. If the price of something is too good to be true it probably is (who got undercut for the goods to be so cheap?) and most likely won’t be sustainable and if you think an item is too pricey, have a look into packaging materials and other elements of the business. It might be justified, or it might not – you are the consumer, so it is up to you.

How to be a great sustainable shopper

Buy second hand

We know you’ll love it, so give it a try if you haven’t already! myTOT marketplace

Look for quality, eco-friendly goods

Swap plastic toys for wood and try investing in natural materials like linen, cotton and wool for your clothes. (That’s where second hand comes in – you can find seriously quality items so much cheaper). Spend some time looking into the companies you’re buying from and check out their ethos and manufacturing standards. Perhaps replace wrapping paper with reusable fabric (most wrapping paper can’t be recycled and in the UK alone we send five million tonnes of paper to landfill every year). Little swaps like this make all the difference in the long run.

Support brands that have a positive impact

Most sustainable brands will have a clear mission statement and a traceable supply chain. Have a look around and see what resonates with you and give the brands you click with some love!

When it comes to shopping sustainably, knowledge is most definitely power and the good news is, it’s not about doing a huge shopping overhaul overnight. Every little purchase you make has a huge impact, so even swapping a couple of brands or items a year can make all the difference. There’s a way to go, but it’s in the right direction.

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