They love dressing up, they love being creative, they love doing things themselves, they love performing and they love recycling. If this describes your children, then why not mix up all these great elements and do a newspaper fashion show with them to get them creating, making and using their imagination.

There are all sorts of items that the children can wear made from newspaper.  Simply tape the pages of a newspaper together, cut out arm or head holes and away you go!  Here are a few ideas.

1. Top - tape together 2 pages end to end.  Cut a head hole.  Tape under the arms  and its a top!  Add some tassley sleeves (snip pieces of paper and stick on).
2. Skirt - tape a few sheets together and wrap around the children's waist.  Tape to existing clothing or tuck in.  Snip out some square or triangle shapes along the bottom to make it look unusual.
3. Hair bow - take a small strip of paper. Pinch together in the middle and pop under a clip or hair tie.
4. Bow tie - pinch a strip of paper together and tape to a narrow strip that goes round the neck.  Secure with tape and stick on the bow at the front!
5. Walking stick - roll up a few sheets and secure to make a pretend walking stick.
6. Princess hat - wrap a sheet round your hand to make a pointy hat.  Tear some long strips of paper to make a flowing ribbons and stick to the top of the hat.  Secure with tape.

Great fun!

There is a constant public health message that we must protect ourselves from the harmful damage that the sun can cause, but more importantly, we must look after our children in the sun!  We still have a limited understanding of long term damage that can be caused short term exposure to the sun, but increasingly it is believed that a single episode of sunburn during childhood could lead to skin cancer in later life.  It is essential, therefore, that you look after children when they play out in the sun, especially when on holiday to hotter parts of the world.  You must also ensure that anyone else looking after your children, at nursery, with a childminder, or at school, also looks after their health.

What precautions should you take to protect your children in the sun?

• Apply sun screen with a sun protection factor of at least 50
• Re-apply sun cream throughout the day at two hourly intervals
• Re-apply sun cream after being in water, even if the cream states that it is water resistant
• Make sure your child's body is clean before applying sun cream, rub off any sand particularly before applying lotion
• Have the children wear sun hats, make sure that the backs of necks are covered too
• Avoid being in the sun altogether during the hottest parts of the day
• Create your own shade to sit in on the beach or in other exposed places
• Wear clothes with a stated sun protection factor
• In really hot places, keep t-shirts and hats on when swimming or playing in water

Be aware that sun cream is NOT recommended for babies under 6 months because their skin is delicate and very thin.  Chemicals in sun block may actually harm the skin of a baby.  Instead, make sure that they are protected by clothing and keep them in a shaded place, out of the sun.