Celebrate the new year

Fresh and full of ideas – make the most of this fun feeling

January starts with a J and February starts with an F. Ask your child how many friends he has whose names start with J or F. It is 2018. See how many sums your little one can make with 2, 0, 1 and 8. Do your children know the names of all the months in order? If not, practise. Take last year’s calender and this year’s calender and transfer all the birthdays and anniversaries that you want to remember.

Introduce a new household rule to live a little lighter. If you buy a new toy or item of clothing for your child, donate an old toy or item of clothing immediately.

Pack away all the Christmas decorations, but buy a bunch of flowers or a pretty potplant so your house doesn’t look drab all of a sudden. Eat grapes. Visit a dairy so your child can experience where milk comes from.

Capetonians: wait until there is a cloud hanging over Devil’s Peak and tell your child the story of Van Hunks and the devil. Gautengers: Wait for the next thunderstorm and point out to your child how the lightning comes first and then the thunder. Count the seconds in between. Every three seconds represents a kilometre. Use this to work out how near or far the eye of the storm is.

Play Johann Strauss’ Radetzky March to your children. The famous Viennese New Year’s concert always ends with this infectuous music. Impossible not to clap or march along! Teach your children how to make a basic salad. If you’ve never done a CPR course, commit to making 2018 the year in which you do. Try out another form of transport, such as a bus or train. This can be a big adventure for your children. Count to see if you all manage to eat at least five fruit and veg every day. Children can become quite competitive about this – encourage it. Drive somewhere spectacular to watch the sun set. How about moving the furniture around in some of your rooms?

Make silly hats out of a watermelon once you’ve eaten it.

When your helper gets back from her holiday, share a peaceful cup of tea and discuss any changes in your expectations of her if things have changed at home. Look up your surname in an old-fashioned phone book and see how many people share it with you. Do your children have piggy banks? Talk about what you would all like to save for this year.