Sending your child to a childminder or nursery may actually help them in later life, according to a recent study.  Many working parents hesitate before sending their children to a carer, wondering how the separation will effect the child in later life.  However, according to one academic it does them good to be away from home for a few hours!  So, parents working long hours need not worry.  Mothers returning to work, need not feel guilty!

The Professor in charge of the study claims that those children who were in a cared for environment aged 2 and under, do actually go on to form better relationships later on when at school.  She said that nursery does the vast majority no harm at all.  Previous studies had concluded that children who were not at home most of the time when under 2 turned out to be more agressive when attending school, were more difficult to disipline and more inclined to be naughty and lead others astray.  But this new research disputes that, stating that this doesn't appear be the case.

The study followed 3,000 children over a 14 year period from 1996.  Parents have welcomed the findings, many of whom had believed earlier studies which suggested that there was a link between attendance at a nursery and aggression in later life, plus impaired social skills.

Of course, there are various ways of ensuring your child is in the best possible setting. Speak to other parents - get their opinion and recommendations.  Check thoroughly the standards of care whether it be a nursery or childminder.  Drop in, unannounced, and see what is going on!

Watching the cartoon character Popeye eat spinach really does encourage children to eat more of the green leafy vegetable in real life it has been reported.

In the cartoon, Popeye the Sailor man, eats cans of spinach to give himself extra strength and becomes stronger once he has eaten.  It has been found that when children watched the cartoon, and saw him eat spinach, they copied and did the same. They too wanted to eat spinach, despite historically not wanting to.

According to a study published in the medical journal Nutrition & Diet, researchers studied children aged 4 and 5 years old.  They looked at their diet of fruit and vegetables before and after the study.  All 26 children were encouraged to plant their own seeds, tave tasting parties and watch Popeye cartoons.  The Professor in charge of the study said their intake of vegetables almost doubled!  In addition, the children become more interested overall in the fruit and vegetables forming part of their diet.

Teachers were also encouraged to get involved and were asked to be role models at lunch time in shcoold.  Teachers were invited to eat fruit and vegetables at meal times with the children.  It was reported by parents that even the talking about vegetables increased after the children were involved in the study.  They also came home proud from school having eaten their vegetables at lunchtime.

A happy child plays, exhibits curiosity, shows an interest in things and other children; an unhappy child tends to need constant attention, they are withdrawn, quiet, and don't eat much.  They tend not to get involved with other children and don't ask questions or speak very much.  However, if you have a shy child who doesn't interact a great deal, that does not mean they are unhappy.  Being shy is not being sad.

P. Hollinger notes there are nine inborn signals that babies use to communicate feelings.  The following signals can also be spotted in toddlers and are good pointers to how happy the toddler is.

• Interest - a positive feeling
• Enjoyment - a positive feeling
• Distress - a negative feeling
• Anger - a negative feeling
• Fear - a negative feeling

Dealing with  Children and making them happy

Play - Toys, expensive clothes, lashings of ice cream: do these make children happy?  Perhaps in the short term, for an hour or two, but what really makes them happy is having fun with parents, grandparents or their childminders.  When they have fun and play games and laugh with you, that play creates joy.  It also helps with their imagination, creativity and relaxation.

Talents - Help children develop their own talents. If they are good at something, they will feel happy about that.  If they like modeling, keep some cartons and lids and let them create a robot out of boxes.  If they like drawing, then let them make a picture and hang it on the wall.  Help them master a skill and see how happy they will be.

Let them do what they want - Within reason, this is an important lesson for parents to understand.  No matter how much you want them to learn piano, if they don't want to then they won't enjoy it.  Try not to push them to do things they aren't interested in.  Listen to their own ideas.  If they are talking about going to football, rather than ballet, then give it a try.  And, try not to stick to gender prejudices.  Girls can play football, boys can do ballet!

Healthy bodies - To enable the children to play and run and enjoy life to the full, give them a healthy diet.  With good food, and lots of sleep they will have the ability to really tackle tasks and situations with energy. Give them lots of time to run around.

Sad time - Being a bit sad is okay so don't try and shake them out of a mood if they are feeling a bit down.  They need to be independent people and able to gauge their own moods.  You can encourage them to explain how they feel and try and explain or get out of the mood together.

Be a Good Role Model - Children pick up on moods and are sensitive to other's feelings so try to be positive in your own mood and outlook.  They will pick up on this and it will influence their own behaviour.

We're delighted to announce the launch of our new app for iPhone, Shape Bugs, aimed at teaching preschool children to draw and recognise simple shapes.

If you trust your children with your iPhone or iPod Touch then let them choose a shape to draw.  They can select their favourite colour and must draw the shape as cleanly as possible - squares, rectangles and diamonds must be drawn with four straight lines, triangles with three straight lines and circles and ovals with one.  Don't take your finger off until the shape is complete!

If the shape is reconisable as the one you set out to draw, then you'll hear a cheer and a face will appear to make your Bug.  If the lines weren't drawn cleanly then you'll hear a comiserating 'Ohhh!' and can try again!

Download Shape Bugs from the Apple store, and have hours of fun...!

Children generally love dried fruits such as apricot, apple, pear and raisins, and they make a great snack, helping kids consume their '5-a-day', but be aware that many dried fruits contain high levels of sulphites which could be detrimental to their health.  Sulphites (or sulfites) are commonly used on dried fruits to preserver them.  You can't detect them, but if they have been used then the list of ingredients should state this fact.

Sulphites can cause breathing difficulty soon after consumption and you should be especially careful with young children who suffer asthma and who may be more acutely affected by sulphites.  Whilst we don't suggest that you don't give dried fruit to children, it is good to be aware of symptoms should a reaction occur.  You may also want to shop specifically for 'preservative free' dried fruits - inspect the labels for such products.

At ToucanLearn we encourage you to keep a daily diary for your little ones, but if you have children of a school age who can read or write, why not have them record a diary of their baby and toddler siblings?  A diary kept by a young child of their younger sibling would make for a fascinating account, you would get a glimpse of their understanding of the world and interpretation of events.  If your children are too young to be able to write, then how about trying to keep a recorded diary, making an audio or video recording each day?  It's really easy to make audio and video recordings these days, using mobile phones, smartphones or laptops or computers with webcams.

Keeping a diary of a young baby from a siblings perspective would make for an interesting project for you, but would become an invaluable record for your children in years to come!

Researchers have carried out tests on 1,200 children and maintain that those children who have reached the stage of learning how to tell lies have actually reached a milestone in their mental development.  They claim that the children who lied about turning round to look at a teddy while alone in a room, have better cognitive abilities than those who did not lie.  They were able to make it look convincing, keeping the truth at the back of their minds rather than at the forefront.

By age 2, 1 in 5 children will lie.  By age 5 about 90% will lie.  However, this doesn't mean you have a delinquent on your hands!  And, if your toddler tends to lie, then it does not mean they will cheat at exams.  The age where children are most likely to tell fibs, is age 7.  It is by then that you must make sure children do not lie about important things.  White lies to protect someone or avoid hurting feelings shouldn't cause too much concern.

One test that will shed light on whether you child is good at lying or not is to carry out the 'Pinocchio Test'.  If your child asks for a biscuit or treat, reply with, "What did Daddy say?".  If they reply with a convincing "He said yes!" and look rightwards, this shows they are probably lying because their eyes are "seeing" an image of the treat rather than remembering an image.  If they look left they were not lying as they are recalling an image that is actual rather than creating an image in their head.  Try it out!

It has been reported that teachers and carers who are afraid of spiders and creepy crawlies are stopping our children learning about the natural world!  Children are not getting involved with nature because teachers and carers are afraid of getting mucky from soil in the great outdoors and are too scared of insects to teach about them.

Experts have said that natural history and nature in general is not being taught in schools.  Not so for the childminders and parents who enjoy ToucanLearn! There are some great outdoors activities that introduce insects and teach children about their natural environment.  We don't agree with the 'don't get mucky'! philosophy of learning and teaching!  The whole idea is to get children involved.  Get them interested and inspired!  The muddier the better!

The Chairman of the Association for Science Education said teachers need more support to carry out experiments and take children outside.  Perhaps these teachers should join ToucanLearn!

He also said that Parents should take their children outside to enjoy the natural world, to learn where their food comes from, what grows in the woods and what goes on in nature.

So, let's take his lead, pull on some wellies, grab a magnifying glass and get out there in the undergrowth!  Have fun, explorers!

Children can use drawing as a way of expressing feelings or emotions that they don't understand - drawing can reflect how they are feeling, or fears they might have  However, don't worry that your child only draws in black or never puts hands on the people she draws because it doesn't necessarily mean they are unbalanced or unhappy.  However, it is interesting to see how different children interpret things in different ways: both the instructions and the application of drawing can be very different between children of the same age who have been given the same instructions.

Here are a few pointers which may, or may not, reflect different traits in our children.

• If a picture is in the middle of the page, the child is happy, content or it could mean they are egotistical.
• If the picture is in the top half, they are ambitious.
• If the picture is in the bottom half, they child may be insecure.
• If the picture is towards the top left, they are musical or artistic.
• If its in the top right, they are eager.
• If features are missed out in a person, this may indicate mistrust.
• Children tend to draw what they love most: sibling, toys, fantasy world ie. fairies etc.
• Using a ruler frequently in a picture could mean anxiety.
• Lots of dark colours or black could mean sadness, anger or anxiety.
• If they coulour in with bright colours, they are warm and happy children.
• Pictures drawn very small could mean they are shy.
• If the hands are too big, this could indicate aggression.
• If there are no hands or small hands, this could mean they have an inferiority feeling.

However, don't worry too much and get too stuck on interpretation!  If your child draws lots of circles it could be that's what they like to draw.  If they draw people with their hands up that's not helplessness, it could be a cheer. If they keep drawing bees, it's not a hidden anxiety about insects, it could be just that they are fun, nice things to draw.  If they draw lots of flowers, it doesn't mean they are optimistic, it could just be something their Mummy has shown them!

So, looking at and trying to interpret children's drawings is just an interesting exercise to see how your child draws differently to others... so don't read too much into it.  And, after all, incoherent pictures don't mean confused or bewildered children, it could be that your child is just not good or practiced at drawing!

What do you do when your little one seems a bit down in the dumps?  Saying, 'Cheer up', 'Stop being so moody', etc. certainly doesn't help.  With little ones, its best to do something to lift the mood.  Here are a few tips for getting little ones to perk up!  You'll probably find you all end up having fun!

Make an observation and give out a bit of praise. Get them to do a picture and say how great it is. Praise them for something good they have done.  It can work wonders.

Wash away the bad mood - if its sunny go outside and using a hose or a spray or a watering can, wash away the moodiness.  Have a giggle while you wash and use some bubbles too!

Simply ask what's wrong - if they can tell you try and get them to explain why they seem unhappy.  See if it's something you can help with.

Go for a run around the park or garden - Scoop your child up, put on some trainers and head off for a windy walk and a run in the park.  Or go out in the garden for a wild run around, some chasing, a bit of high spirited screaming and giggling.  It will do you all the world of good!

Think of things - ... that you love, that you like doing, that you like playing.  Act them out, have a laugh as you try and enjoy yourselves.  You will see the mood lifting!

Put on some music - dance your troubles away!  Have a boogie and have some fun!

All children under five will continue to have the chance to get free milk in preschool settings according to the recent announcement from Downing Street.  The Government has confirmed that 1/3 pint of milk will be given to all under fives who attend a day care setting.

It had been reported that Anne Milton, UK Health Minster, intended to scrap the scheme on the grounds of cost.  It currently costs around £50m (double what it was five years ago).  By 2011/12 it is expected to cost around £59m a year.  Instead of providing milk, the value of Health Start vouchers were to be increased, which would help the poorest families rather than all under fives no matter what their parent's income level.

Milk is vital to children's development.  It contains vitamins and minerals that are important for growth and development as well as calcium which is important for healthy teeth and bones.

However, Downing Street has confirmed that free milk is set to stay!

Toddlers and pre-schoolers are for ever playing around the place and one day will inevitably get themselves a splinter.  Most can be brushed away or removed with a pair of tweezers or long finger nails.  However, if it needs a bit more attention, here are some pointers.

1. If it's sticking out - Sterilize a pair of tweezers and wash your hands before you start.  Give lots of encouragement and reassurance to your child.  Try and get hold of the splinter at the base (where it comes out of the skin) hold tightly and pull out.  If it doesn't come out easily, don't force it as it might break and remain inside.
2. If it's not sticking out or has broken inside - Sterilise a needle with a flame and cool.  Soak the area in warm water, and use the needle to create a slit in the skin and carefully remove the splinter.  It won't hurt, but the idea of it may scare your child, so give lots of encouragement and perhaps get someone to help hold your child still while you do it.
3. If it's a big one! - If it's big, or curved, or glass you should take your child to the doctor.
4. If it's a little one - You may find that leaving the splinter alone it will eventually work loose and fall out itself.  Try washing in warm water a few times a day.

If it gets infected

If it seems swollen, red or pussy, you must take your child to the doctor and make sure that your child's immunisations are up to date.

How to prevent splinters

• Make sure your child keeps shoes on in the garden and wears slippers indoors if you have wooden floors.
• If you break a glass use a vacuum and clear up all the tiny fragments carefully.
• Keep away from garden sheds and any other wooden items in the garden that are not sanded down.
• Be aware of wooden edges to pathways or climbing equipment at the playground that may be damaged.

Whilst a splinter can be rather painful, most of the time the pain subsides as soon as the foreign body has been extracted.  Take care.

Could it be that some children born happy while others not?  Some children certainly seem happier than others even if they come from the same family, so can it be that some children are going to be happy from day one and others will always be moodier or more inclined to be unhappy?

If they fall over, some children laugh and others burst into floods of tears.  When they wake up, some laugh at the sunny morning and jump out of bed.  Others turn over in a moody shrug.  If they don't get their own way some get stroppy and remain miserable for hours.  Others just move on to the next activity and forget about it.  Why is this?

Some scientists would say that yes, some children do have a tendency to be happier than other children.  However, it cannot be proved beyond doubt.  Wherever your child is on the happy/sad spectrum, the important thing is to be aware of how they might respond in certain situations and react accordingly.

Child psychologist Dr. Lise Eliot, Associate Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at the Chicago Medical School, maintains that happiness is a state of mind, a mood, rather than an inborn trait.  However, certain aspects of a baby's temperament (shy or bold for example) will play a role in determining how happy they are.  And, it is this emotional information that is embedded in the brain.

This doesn't mean to say that if your little one is scared of going to pre-school, or nervous of new people that they will be unhappy later in life.  Not at all.  In fact nature and nurture play an equally important role in the first years of a child's life.  Just because a baby's temperament (confident or reserved) may be determined by nature, it doesn't mean it's permanent.  Nurture plays a very important role too and those early traits can be modified and honed down with careful parenting.  The end result is personality... a blend of the two.

Personality is controlled by the frontal lobe of the brain.  We feel good things in the left frontal cortex and bad things in the right, according to scientists. It is said that people with happier dispositions have more activity in their left frontal lobe.

So, spot any signs of unhappy tendencies and deal with them.  Support a nervous child; try to tame a bold child; nurture a nervous child and try to guide them to be rounded, happy and creative individuals.

A little two year old may loose her sight in one eye, thanks to the discraceful negligence of a dog owner.  Little Amiee Langdon was playing in a park, she fell over and put her hand in some dog mess that had not been cleared up. Before her mother could stop her, she rubbed her eye and it is now dreadfully infected and she may end up blind in one eye.

The little girl is on antibiotics to try and clear up the painful swelling and to attempt to contain the toxocariasis infection. If the infection doesn't clear up her eye will have to be removed to stop the spread of the infection to her brain.

A different type of toxocariasis, which is the main risk for humans from contact with dog faeces, can cause inflamm­ation of the liver and abdominal pains and fever. There are, thankfully, only a few cases each year. But there is still a risk.

In Aimee's case, if her mother had not spotted the infection immediately and taken her to hospital, the toddler may have died! Apart from the swelling, the little girl developed flu like symptoms the day after the incident. Despite her mother bathing the eye as soon as they got home, the infection had taken hold. She was woken in the night by the screams of the little girl who was in agony.

Even if the infection clears, it may still mean that Aimee will lose her eyesight or may have to deal with the dreadful reality of impaired eyesight for the rest of her life.

Irresponsible dog owners are the bane of parks and play grounds all over the country. The majority are careful when it comes to picking up their dog's mess and keeping their dogs close by and under control., but most of us have experienced the disgusting sight of dogs being allowed to foul the pavements or parks and the dog owner just strolling away. It's a disgrace!

Be aware how dangerous dogg mess can be and act immediately if you see your children touching it by accident.

A baby's teeth start growing in the womb - while a mother is pregnant, the tooth buds appear in the gums and these are the foundations of milk teeth.  Between 4-6 months milk teeth begin to break through the gums although this differs between different children.  By age three, most should have a full set of teeth.

Teething pain

As each tooth develops, the gum above becomes very red and sore and swollen.  Baby's cheeks can look flushed and they may get restless and irritable for some time prior to the tooth appearing and indeed once it breaks through.  Eventually you'll see a tiny white bump on the gum.  This is the new tooth!

Help through teething

Offer lots of comfort during teething and lots of cooled boiled water to drink.  If your baby goes off food, try to offer more milk to keep them sustained and offer little meals more often, rather than trying to get them to eat if they don't want to.

Facts

• 1 in 2,000 babies are born with teeth already formed!
• Some babies don't cut their first tooth unti they are over a year old.
• Premature babies may get teeth later than full term babies.
• Most develop milk teeth when they are about to start eating solid foods.

Dealing with sore gums

• Rub baby's gums or show them how to bite on a teething ring.
• Keep any favourite chweing toys in the fridge as coolness will sooth the irritation. Try giving them cold things from the fridge to eat such as yogurt or cold apple.
• Offer teething gels or granules (available from a pharmacy) to sooth the pain.

Be aware

Teething does not result in fever, chestiness, rashes, diarhoea or convulsions so if you baby gets any of these symptoms, take them straight to the doctor.