Children's toys from 5 to 6 years.

Trampoline, hula hoops: Get those muscles moving and improving.

Balls, bats, goals, skipping rope: In these days of computers, television and two dimensional activities, three dimensional ones are oh so important.

Hop balls, water slides: We have watched children who were deprived of movement and exercise come alive with these. Exercise balls are wonderful and can be easily used in confined spaces.

Sandpit and sand:

Screw construction and marble runs: Go for the big plastic sets as small pieces can get lost very easily.

Building blocks and interlocking blocks: Fascinating to watch how skills develop and they are lots of fun.

Colouring, painting, play-dough, scissors:

Board games: These provide so much entertainment and enjoyment in such a small space. And there are many good ones to choose from.

There are wonderful activities to play with bean bags, skipping ropes etc. Check your local library or bookshop for ideas.

60 piece plus puzzles: Some may not find these as amusing as others but puzzles are good for shape and colour skills development.

Toys that encourage the use of imagination such as fairy castles or forts, baking and tea sets, fire engines, pirate ships, little town sets, playmats and others. Matching dolls for the dollshouses or castles and car sets which include little scale sized men will stimulate children to use and develop their imaginations in a creative way. Remember that you can use these activities to formulate rewards of add-ons for there creative efforts.

Story books: Theme books of big trucks, animals, ballet dancing and so on will lay a foundation for later.

Dress up clothing and supporting toys depicting different careers: Fireman, policeman, chef, nurse, doctor, hairdresser, shopkeeper, baker and others.

Full face mirror with child safe face paints and/or make-up.

Dress-up clothes of some favourite characters. Charity shops are a wonderful source of hats, handbags, shoes for little girls and hats or other bric-a-brac for boys. (Remember to have your camera handy for those timeless family album pictures!)

Felt board: The soft felt shapes are excellent for stimulating creative storytelling and design.

Water based paints, enough to paint cardboard boxes that can be used to make hideaway homes.

Watering can and seed pots: Understanding how plants grow and watching their progress day by day is a wondeful instructional tool.

Wooden train sets: Little people love to pull these around with a 'load' of things to deliver. Or just hold onto!

Spiritual development: Over eighty percent of spiritual converts are made before teenhood. The foundation of spiritual strength is always vital and cannot be underestimated. Teach your children from the large variety of resources. Remember your own personal experiences might carry the most weight. Keep your eyes open for special sales on children toys.