The Land of Me
£14.95 per chapter
This suite of software for children aged two and up has been developed by new publisher Made in Me, in collaboration with early years ICT specialist Professor John Siraj-Blatchford of Swansea University's Centre for Child Research.
The software, designed to develop children's language and creativity, features lovable characters, appealing landscapes and creative activities across six themed chapters. 'Shape, size and colour' and 'The world outside' are now available, while Chapters 3-6, which include 'Making things' and 'Rhythm and dance', will be released during 2010.
Children journey though the chapters to create their own monsters, manipulate the environment, compose music, choreograph dance, conjure stories and more.
The software aims to capture the magic of classic children's picture books and has been created by a team of animators and visual effects artists who have worked on films including 'The Chronicles of Narnia'.
Each chapter costs just £6.95 for parents and home use, or £14.95 for shared computers in pre-school settings and schools. Volume pricing is available for larger nurseries and primary schools.
'It's the first time that this level of visual quality has been combined with early years research,' says the company.
'The Land of Me is founded on proven approaches and best practice in developing creativity and communication in early childhood.'
Multicultural Picture Books
Eileen Browne, author of the picture book classic Handa's Surprise, has created a website in her name, listing more than 200 multicultural picture books that she recommends. The list, aimed at anyone with an interest in books for children aged 0-11+, will be updated every few months.
'As a children's author and illustrator,' she says, 'I delight in reading picture books and am particularly interested in those which portray a rich diversity of people and cultures. This list is based on simple criteria, the most important of which being what engages children and holds their attention from the front cover to the back. They are all "a good read".'
Young writers' role play pack 
£144.99
A one-stop solution for literate role-play provision is now on offer from Child's Eye Media. The pack includes eight films (on two DVDs) giving a child's eye view of the jobs done by 'people who help us'; eight sets of teachers' notes (linked to EYFS and KS1); 30 printable role-play sheets, differentiated for both mark-makers and emergent writers; eight printable 'story-talk' sheets to develop language for thinking and oral story-making; and a CD providing lots of ideas to encourage writing through role play.
Stone Wall Bricks 
£59.99
Keen builders will delight in this range of pretend rocks from TTS. The stackable rocks (18 x 15 x 12cm) come in a mix of three colours and work well with wet sand and cement. A large pack is also available, priced £139.97.
Find It
£15-20
All good retailers
Twist, shake or spin to find an item in the capsule. There are no rules with this game, so create your own or have none at all - find an item, tick it off your sheet and then pass the capsule to the next player, or just have another go yourself if playing alone. The three versions - Glitz & Glamour, Sports or Kids - are licensed by University Games UK and available from retailers including Argos, Amazon and WH Smith, priced between £15 and £20.
Treehouses 
www.playahead.org or call 08452 577 995
Bespoke treehouses, aerial walkways, climbing frames and platforms are now available from Play Ahead, which specialises in the design and manufacture of timber outdoor play equipment. All the timber is pressure-treated with a non-toxic material and is environmentally sourced to FSC standards. Enquiries are followed up with a free consultation.
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