Playing with toys

Bing wants to play his car park game with Flop, but Charlie, a younger visitor, keeps parking vegetables and tips over the garage. Flop sets Charlie up with a separate game and then takes him to the kitchen so Bing can play on his own. Bing soon finds he does not enjoy playing alone, so he drives Charlie's potato back and the two play together. The episode ends with Bing deciding that playing together is more fun.

S01 E01

Silly Sundays

Broken Ducky

A young girl named Sonia has a new toy ducky that will not move, and she is convinced it is broken. Her brother Mel, her uncle, her parents and her visiting granny each try to help, testing whether it swims, flies or needs winding, in a sunlit family home by the sea. The family realizes the ducky simply cannot run like a real duck, and they find new ways to include it in their play. The episode closes with everyone playing together and a short song.

S01 E13

Me & Winnie the Pooh

Help Piglet Go Back to Sleep

Piglet wakes in the night after a loud noise and, feeling scared, asks the viewer to stay for company. Alone in a cosy treehouse bedroom, Piglet worries about a lost pair of comfort toys, then calms down by picturing tomorrow's fun with Winnie the Pooh and other friends. As the fear fades, Piglet grows sleepy again and asks to be tucked in. The episode closes with a quiet goodnight before an autoplay card for the next episode.

S01 E05

Bea's Block

New Kid on the Block

When a moving truck brings a new family to the block, Bea and her friends welcome the new kid, Priya, with homemade cookies. Priya cannot find her favourite puppets among the moving boxes and grows worried, so the friends form a 'kindness club' and play detectives to track them down. They follow clues, a smiley face on the box, its large size, and the oink of a piggy bank inside, until they open the right box. Priya reunites with her puppets and the group welcomes her to the neighbourhood.

S01 E05

Me & Winnie the Pooh

Cleaning Up With Pooh Bear

Pooh Bear greets the viewer and invites them to help him clean up his cluttered room. One by one he puts his books on the shelf, his crayons on the table, his stuffed Heffalump and Woozo into an empty honeypot, and his honey dipper in the cupboard. He talks directly to the child throughout, asking where things should go and thanking them for helping. At the end he admires the tidy room and says goodbye until next time.

S01 E12

Me & Winnie the Pooh

Pooh Bear Plays Hide-and-Seek

In a bright storybook forest, Winnie the Pooh introduces his stuffy Baxson and then teaches the viewer how to play hide-and-seek. He explains the rules, counts to five, and takes turns hiding among the honeypots and being found across a few short rounds. Pooh speaks straight to the camera the whole time, treating the viewer as his playmate. The episode ends with Pooh thanking the viewer and saying goodbye until next time.

S01 E02

Moon and Me

Pepi Nana Crosses the Bridge

At bedtime, a glowing Moon Baby travels down from the moon to the Toy House, where the toys come to life. Pepi Nana asks for a story, and the friends tell and act out a tale about Mr Onion and his beloved toy bridge, which Pepi Nana steps across with him. Back home the toys share tea and agree it was a lovely story. As the moon song returns, everyone says goodnight and settles back to sleep.

See all Playing with toys shows for 2-year-olds

For 3-year-olds

Around three, toys start to stand for something. A wooden animal gets a voice, a box becomes a house, and a familiar routine like shopping or bedtime is played out in miniature. Sharing is still hard, and a favourite toy can spark real upset. Look for series that show pretend play unfolding step by step, and that handle disputes over a toy honestly, with feelings named and a workable ending instead of an instant fix.

S01 E03

Pocoyo

Swept Away

Pocoyo builds a block tower and knocks it down, then learns that his friend Ellie is coming over to play. A warm narrator reminds him to clean up, and Pocoyo grabs a broom, which he first turns into a pretend horse, hockey stick and guitar, making even more mess. In the end he uses that same playful energy to sweep the blocks away just in time. Ellie arrives and the two play together.

S01 E03

Max & Ruby

Max's Bedtime

It is bedtime for Max, a young rabbit, and his older sister Ruby helps him get ready for sleep at home. Max keeps climbing out of bed and wandering into Ruby's room to play instead of settling down. Ruby patiently brings him comfort toys, reads to him and tucks him back in again and again. The night ends with Max finally settled in his own bed.

S01 E01

Max & Ruby

Ruby's Piano Practice

Ruby settles in to practise her piano piece, reading sheet music and keeping time with a metronome, while her younger brother Max busies himself with his own plans, including making a sandwich in the kitchen and playing with a favourite red toy. The two rabbits move between the living room, the kitchen and the hallway of their home, with a brief moment outdoors. Their small differences play out gently as Ruby keeps returning to her practice. The episode closes with the siblings together.

S01 E01

Esme & Roy

Monster Trucks

recommended age co-watching from 3

Esme, a girl, and Roy, a yellow monster, are monster sitters spending the day looking after Tilly, a small pink monster who loves her cars. After a backyard race leaves Tilly muddy and smelly, the two need to get her into a bath, but she only wants to keep playing. When Tilly melts down, Roy helps her calm down with a glitter jar and slow breathing, and then the sitters turn the tub into a pretend car wash. Tilly happily drives through it, gets clean, and asks to go again.

S01 E04

Max & Ruby

Hide And Seek

Max and Ruby, two rabbit siblings, play a game of hide and seek through their home. Max hides behind plants and furniture while his older sister Ruby searches room by room, from the living room and staircase to the kitchen. Along the way Max plays with his toys, including a small red jester doll. The game ends outdoors in the garden, where Ruby brings a plate of cookies and the two are back together.

S01 E05

Jessica's Big Little World

Glow Toy

Jessica visits the fair and wins a glow-in-the-dark dino toy she names Glow Glow Dino. Back home she and her small uncle try many ways to make it glow, from hiding under a blanket to searching the closet, but nothing works and she grows disappointed enough to want to trade it away. Her mother helps her notice the dino can still dance, tickle and roar, and Jessica starts having fun with it. That night the toy finally glows, and the family realises it just needed sunlight to charge.

S01 E15

Jessica's Big Little World

Rain Rescue

Jessica, a young girl, plays in her backyard with her toy friend Small Uncle until Mommy warns that rain is coming and asks her to put her toys away. When Jessica realizes she forgot them outside, she launches a 'rain rescue,' gathering Harry the Hippo, Glow Glow Dino and Princess Priscilla while Mommy helps by radio as 'Commander Mommy.' Jessica braves wind, tall grass and puddles, then heads back out with an umbrella to save Small Uncle. The episode ends indoors with everyone dry and sharing hot cocoa.

S01 E06

Max & Ruby

Louise's Secret

Ruby and her friend Louise share a secret, and Max, Ruby's younger brother, spends the episode trying to find out what it is and join in. The story moves between the rabbits' home, where an old telephone keeps Ruby and Louise in touch, and a small neighbourhood shop. Max keeps angling to be included while playing with a toy ambulance. By the end the secret is out and the situation settles.

S01 E02

Caillou

Caillou's Not Afraid Anymore

Grandma reads the children a story about a time when 3-year-old Caillou was afraid of his neighbor Mr. Hinkle, who looked spooky from a distance. After running away from him outside, Caillou hides at home when Mr. Hinkle comes over to apologise. Mr. Hinkle turns the moment into a game of hide and seek, and by the time he finds Caillou, the two are laughing together and become friends.

S01 E13

Peppa Pig

Secrets

Mummy Pig gives Peppa a special box to keep secret things in, and Peppa fills it and refuses to tell George, Daddy or Mummy what is inside. George and Daddy take turns guessing and get it wrong, and then Peppa discovers George has a secret box too and grows frustrated that she cannot guess his. Mummy suggests they each reveal one item at the same time, so the children show a trumpet and a drum. George also has a custard donut, and the family ends by sharing donuts together.

See all Playing with toys shows for 3-year-olds

For 4-year-olds

By four, play has plots. Children assign roles, invent rules mid game, and can keep an imagined world going for a long stretch, with ordinary household objects standing in for whatever the story needs. Negotiation with a playmate matters as much as the toy. Look for episodes where children lead the game and adults join in without taking over, and where a plan that falls apart gets rebuilt rather than rescued. That models the flexible thinking real play asks for.

S01 E09

Bluey

Horsey Ride

Bluey plays with her toy pony when her cousins Muffin and Socks arrive for a family visit with their parents. All four puppies want the pony at the same time, which sparks a series of small disputes and tearful moments. Through trial and error the children invent new games, a horsey ride, a dress-up salon and a pretend pampering parlour, so several of them can take part at once. By the end the cousins leave happily and Bluey hands the pony over for a final goodbye.

S01 E42

Bluey

Hide and Seek

Bluey wants to play hide and seek, and after Dad jokes about a statue dog 'practising not getting distracted,' she becomes the seeker. She keeps wandering off to play with a rediscovered Chattermax toy, feeding it, hosting a tea party and losing track of the game while her family waits in their hiding spots. Eventually she remembers and finds everyone, then the roles swap so she hides and Bingo counts. The episode ends with a cheerful 'Found you!' as the game comes full circle.

S01 E19

Bluey

The Claw

Bluey and Bingo want to win a toy from a claw machine, first at a shopping centre and then from Dad, who turns himself into the pretend 'Magic Claw' at home. When they need coins, Mum tells them to earn money, so they make the bed for 20 cents and keep playing round after round. Bingo's favourite toy ends up 'stuck', until the kids tickle Dad to make him let it go. The game wraps up with ice cream and Dad's joke about whether anyone learned a lesson.

S01 E02

Lucas the Spider

The Big Squeak

Avocado the dog receives a squeaky toy for finishing puppy school, but the constant squeaking bothers her friends, who take it away and hide it. When Avocado is left sad, Lucas the spider tracks the toy down and reminds his friends to make things right. Playing 'Dr. Lucas', he removes the squeaker so the toy is quiet again, and everyone is happy. The episode closes with another squeaky toy appearing and the whole cycle starting over.

See all Playing with toys shows for 4-year-olds

For 5-year-olds

At five, children take on projects. A building gets planned before it gets built, a game gets fair rules, and losing or having a construction collapse tests patience in a new way. Play also starts to borrow from real life, from jobs to money to running a household. Look for series where a child works towards something over the whole episode, handles a setback, and gets to finish the job themselves, including the less popular part of clearing up afterwards.

S02 E02

Rosie's Rules

Iggy's Check - Up

Rosie, a young girl, helps her little brother Iggy get ready for a doctor's check-up. At home she plays pretend doctor with him and their stuffed animals to show what the visit will be like. At the clinic Iggy gets nervous and runs off, but his dad, Rosie and the doctor reassure him and the check-up goes smoothly. By the end Iggy is calm and back to playing with his toy train.

S01 E10

Dora and Friends: Into the City!

The Search for Mono