Time to Connect

06/09/2025

🧼 NEW PODCAST OUT NOW

Toileting can be messy, emotional, and full of milestones.

We’re joined by Carol Grech - midwife, nurse, and owner of Baby Blossoms - to talk all things potty training, confidence, and support.

👶 When is a child really ready?
🧷 How can we reduce pressure and increase self-esteem?
💬 What do families need from us during this transition?

This one’s for the educators and parents navigating a sensitive stage with kindness and care.

🎧 Listen now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjWXCB-JoC4

Julie Karen Robinson

06/09/2025

🚨 NEW PODCAST

What would your child do if you fainted at home?

In this powerful episode, we explore the importance of teaching life-saving first aid skills to even the youngest children.

We’re joined by Carol Grech, who shares brilliant thoughts for integrating first aid into early years learning.

👂 Give it a listen - it might just change the way you think about ‘safety’.

Julie Karen Robinson

🔗

In this essential episode of the Time to Connect podcast, we discuss how even very young children can learn simple, age-appropriate skills that could one day...

09/08/2025

🎙 New Podcast Episode Alert! 🍏👶

Our Director, Julie Karen Robinson sat down with Olivia Darby, Dietician MSc Apprentice at Coventry University, for an inspiring conversation about nutrition in the early years.

From practical tips for fussy eaters to the science behind balanced meals, this episode is packed with insights for parents, educators, and anyone passionate about giving children the healthiest start in life. 🥦✨

🎧 Tune in now and let’s keep the conversation going on how nutrition shapes learning, development, and wellbeing.

🔗 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID7gDAmguEM

08/08/2025

https://youtu.be/ID7gDAmguEM?si=tZbI21_vP5B6ULN2

Early Years Nutrition: Building Healthy Habits for Life | with Olivia Darby, MSc ApprenticeIn this powerful episode of the Time to Connect podcast, we sit do...

19/07/2025

Screen time isn’t all bad. But it’s not all good either. So how do we find the middle ground?

Our latest article takes an honest, balanced look at technology in early childhood, helping parents feel informed - not judged - about how to make it work for their families.

You’ll find:

🧠 The benefits - from video calls with grandparents to phonics games and movement videos

⚠️ The risks - including reduced emotional regulation and missed social cues

📏 Boundaries that work - like screen-free zones, co-viewing, and setting simple routines

💛 Alternatives - that fuel creativity, connection, and child-led joy

This isn’t about guilt or perfection. It’s about making conscious, confident choices that support your child’s emotional wellbeing in a tech-filled world.

📲 Read the full article here: https://www.timetoconnect.org.uk/post/navigating-screen-time-in-the-early-years-a-guide-for-conscious-parenting

Let’s put connection first - and use technology to support, not replace, what matters most.

Julie Karen Robinson

19/07/2025

Stuck for ideas to keep little ones entertained this summer - without spending a fortune?

We’ve got you covered.

This article is full of budget-friendly, meaningful activities to keep children engaged, learning, and smiling throughout the holiday weeks. From junk modelling with cereal boxes to sponge relays in the garden, you’ll find inspiration that’s both creative and realistic.

What we love most? These activities aren’t just about keeping busy - they’re about building memories, nurturing independence, and creating joyful family time.

🌿 Outdoor play that builds confidence

🎨 Creative mess with purpose

📚 Learning through everyday life

👫 Real-life connection > screen-time battles

Because summer doesn’t need to be perfect - it just needs to be present.

📖 Read the full guide: https://www.timetoconnect.org.uk/post/simple-and-affordable-ways-to-keep-children-busy-this-summer

Julie Karen Robinson

We’d love to hear what ideas you try!

19/07/2025

☀️ Summer is more than just holidays and sunshine - it’s a powerful chance to slow down, connect, and nurture the relationships that matter most.

In this gentle reflection, Dr Janet Macfarlane explores how we can use the season to strengthen emotional wellbeing for children and ourselves.

From saying goodbye to familiar faces, to welcoming new beginnings, it’s a timely reminder of how connection shapes childhood - and how small, mindful moments can make a big difference.

Julie Karen Robinson

💛 Read the full article here: https://www.timetoconnect.org.uk/post/nurturing-relationships-through-summer-reflections-for-families-and-educators

29/06/2025

💬✨ Words Matter - Especially the Ones We Tell Ourselves ✨💬

Affirmations aren’t just fluffy phrases - they’re small, powerful reminders that can shift our mindset, reset our day, and help us show up with intention.

Whether whispered in the car before drop-off, said out loud during circle time, or written on a post-it above your desk, affirmations can help us:

🌿 Re-centre when things feel overwhelming

💛 Model self-love and confidence to the children around us

🧠 Rewire the stories we tell ourselves with kindness

Today, we’re sharing a few gentle affirmations to support your wellbeing and emotional resilience.

Say them. Feel them. Believe them.

Which one do you need to hear most today?

29/06/2025

🌿✨ Take a Breath With Us ✨🌿

In the rush of the day - nappies, planning, snack times, meetings - it’s easy to forget the most important pause: the one we give ourselves.

Whether you're an educator, a parent, or simply holding space for little ones, these 5 simple mindfulness tips are here to gently bring you back to the present.

🧠 Small moments of calm can make a big difference - for you and for the children watching how you move through the world.

Let’s take a mindful moment… together.

Which tip will you try today?

Julie Karen Robinson Mini Minds Matter UK

29/06/2025

At Time to Connect, our ongoing partnership with Male Childcare and Teaching Jobs is more than a collaboration - it’s a shared mission to challenge outdated narratives and build a future rooted in belonging, emotional intelligence, and inclusivity.

Together, we’re not just increasing the visibility of male educators in early years - we’re:
✨ Empowering young boys to explore a healthier, more compassionate version of masculinity
👨‍👧 Supporting fathers on their parenting journeys through mentoring, community, and practical tools
🧠 Creating safe spaces where men in early years can thrive, connect, and be celebrated

MCTJ leads powerful work that helps shift societal perceptions - proving that care, nurture, and education aren’t gendered. And we’re proud to be walking beside them, pushing this vision forward.

This is about more than gender balance in the workforce. It’s about creating a ripple effect of acceptance and confidence that reaches every child, every parent, and every setting we touch.

29/06/2025

🧠✨ Positive Minds, Connected Communities ✨🧠

At Time to Connect, we’re grateful for our ongoing collaboration with Dr Janet Macfarlane, whose work in Positive Psychology continues to shape the heart of what we do.

Jan’s approach brings science and soul together - helping educators, families, and community leaders understand how strengths-based thinking, emotional regulation, and mindset theory can transform lives. Through her guidance, we’ve been able to embed practical wellbeing strategies into our training, forums, and mentoring spaces.

Together, we’re ensuring that children and the adults who support them are not only coping - but thriving.

Whether it’s building resilience, fostering hope, or cultivating gratitude, Dr Jan’s influence reminds us that mental health isn’t just about addressing what’s wrong - it’s about nurturing what’s strong. 💚

We’re honoured to walk alongside her in our shared mission to create emotionally intelligent, connected communities.

Julie Karen Robinson Mini Minds Matter UK

29/06/2025

🚹 How do we help boys feel free to be who they are, not who they’re told to be?

Our latest article explores how outdated ideas of masculinity still shape boys’ experiences in school - and what we can do to change that. 💬

✨ Here are 5 practical ways to support boys in building dreams beyond stereotypes:

1. Celebrate caring traits - praise empathy, kindness, and emotional intelligence.

2. Diversify role models - bring boys into contact with men in nurturing and creative roles.

3. Challenge “that’s not for boys” talk - whether it’s ballet or childcare, encourage curiosity.

4. Open up career conversations - explore all options, not just the typical ones.

5. Redefine success - show that being strong includes being thoughtful, expressive, and open.

👉 Read the full piece here: https://www.timetoconnect.org.uk/post/rethinking-masculinity-supporting-boys-to-learn-grow-and-aspire-freely

Let’s rethink what boys can be - because real growth happens when we stop limiting their potential. 🌱

Julie Karen Robinson Mini Minds Matter UK Mini Minds Matter UK