A new book is chock-full of knowledge and know-how to help you be the best grandparent you can to under-5s.

Written by Dr Jane Williams and Dr Tessa Grigg, Grandparenting Grandchildren is aimed to help you raise well-rounded, ready-to-learn, happy grandchildren - even if you only look after them for a few hours a week.

It explains the latest neuro-developmental and neuro-educational research to reaffirm what most will instinctively know, while providing new tools to help build your grandchild's imagination, creativity and curiosity.

Combining the authors' practical experience as childhood development professionals with international research, it will help you understand the key influences on healthy development in the first five years - movement, music, sleep and food.

There are some great playtime ideas for babies, toddlers and preschoolers, as well as tips on the joys of singing and music. Have you ever thought it might be nice to sing a story instead of simply reading it?

And when it comes to sparking curiosity, creativity and imagination there's just so much you can do. Like having a dress-up box or exploring the backyard, neighbourhood or further afield.

Questions are good, too. Not theirs, but yours. Ask them about their day... what they did, what they wore, how did they get there?

You could even get their creative juices flowing - and yours too - by creating your own book.

Armed with the right strategies, knowledge and guidance, grandparenting will take on a new meaning.

Grandparenting Grandchildren: New knowledge and know-how for grandparenting the under 5s (Exisle Publishing) RRP $32.99, available wherever good books are sold or HERE