Skip to main content
search
Category

Education

Aug 09
Love0

Facts as well as fun at the farm

By Education, Family Farms

Here are five educational benefits of visiting a farm:

• Sensory development – toddlers discover and learn about their world through the five senses: touch, taste, smell, hearing and sight. What better place to awaken all of these than a farm? Stroking animals teach children about what different textures feel like. Do they prefer the soft touch of a rabbit compared to the wiry texture of a sheep? A farm is also the perfect place to develop the skill of listening. All of the baas, moos, oinks and neighs will help children identify the animals’ unique sounds. And there is no need to mention how smelly farms can be…

• Motor skill development – motor skills are constantly being developed through a toddler’s life. Motor skills are simply anything that uses their muscles. Gross motor skills involve large movements such as running across the field to greet a cow, or climbing up on a haybale. Fine motor skills are small movements such as holding a brush to groom a horse, or picking a blade of grass to feed the goats.

• Language development – this is the process by which a toddler learns to understand and communicate. Now, the animals may not be able to talk back but children love to chat away to them and perhaps because they can’t respond the children fill the silence happily with even more chatter. And what a great place to learn lots of new words – it isn’t every day that you would need to use the words ‘combine harvester’.

• Empathy – toddlers begin to develop the ability to understand and share the feelings of others and this isn’t limited to other humans. Asking children questions such as, “Do you think the sheep likes being stroked?” and “Do you think the rabbit is hungry?” will help children consider their feelings.

• Food production – it is more relevant than ever that children start understanding where food comes from. Learning that the lovely soft, feathery chickens produce eggs and that pulling on the tuft of green leaves will pull out a carrot is a great starting point. But why stop at the farm? Why not create a vegetable patch at home, or start with something more simple such as growing cress in a pot. The possibilities are endless!

Aug 08
Love0
Forest school benefits

Exploring the world of Forest School

By Education, environment, Gardening, Green, Mental health
by Rachel Martini
Nursery Manager, Little Lancing Day Nursery & Forest School

There’s been a real buzz about Forest School in recent years – but what’s it all about and why is it becoming increasingly popular?

Forest School in the UK is based upon the Scandinavian concept of ‘friluftsliv’ – free air life – an open-air culture which has long been very much a way of life in those countries. It first made its way to the UK as long ago as 1993 and has grown in leaps and bounds since then, both here and around the world.

The UK Forest School Community, way back in 2011, came together to define the ethos of Forest School in this country. Broadly it is a child-centred learning process that inspires children through play, exploration and supported risk-taking. It inspires children to undertake hands-on learning experiences in a natural setting and builds confidence and self-esteem through regular play sessions.

The provision for Forest School covers a wide range. From Early Years settings that operate completely out of doors, to those nurseries and schools with bespoke outdoor learning spaces, to sessions for children that take place outdoors in their nursery garden or school grounds.

Whatever the format offered, Forest School is firmly aimed at sparking children’s curiosity with the world around them, building an awareness and connection with the natural world and using their outdoor environment to develop important life skills. It also gives children a chance to make connections and to experience fun and challenging activities, away from the lure of the electronic world they are growing up in. Yes they are becoming digital natives but they are first and foremost natives of the ‘real world’ too!

In summary, the six basic principles of Forest School are that it:
• Offers a long-term programme of frequent and regular sessions, with careful planning, adaptation, observations and then review.
• Takes place in a woodland or natural wooded environment, wherever possible, to support the development of a relationship between the learner and the natural world, although good Forest School practice can of course be well supported in other sites with only a few trees.
• Fosters resilient, confident, independent and creative learners, with experiences linked to home and nursery/school where appropriate.
• Provides learners with the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves, using tools and fires where appropriate and within the framework of a baseline risk assessment.
• Is run by qualified practitioners with a minimum of an accredited Level 3 Forest School qualification, who continuously maintain and develop their professional practice. It has a high ratio of practitioner to learners. Practitioners hold up-to-date first aid qualifications, including paediatric elements.
• Uses a learner-centred pedagogical approach that is responsive to the needs and interests of learners, with play and choice an integral part of learning and development.

The benefits to young children of learning through play within the natural environment are clear to see. Forest School helps children to develop holistically, at their own pace, into resilient, confident, independent and creative learners. They learn teamwork skills building ‘nests’ or shelters and are encouraged to develop risk awareness through activities such as bushcraft. They instinctively use natural resources for inspiration, following the flow of the seasons to explore for example bluebells in spring, birds nesting and leaves changing colour in the autumn. They take learning outdoors and make connections with the natural world around them. At a time when climate and environmental issues are becoming critically important, Forest School is a great – and, we believe, essential – grounding for our future citizens.

Rachel Martini is the Nursery Manager at Little Lancing Day Nursery & Forest School. For further details please call 01273 465900 or visit www.littlelancing.co.uk

Aug 08
Love0
nursery job

Does anyone want a job?!

By Education, Music and singing, Playing, Work employment
by Sally-Ann Potter
Potter’s House Preschool and Forest School

There was a time a few years ago when the hardest thing about recruiting new staff was sifting through the masses of CV’s emailed to me via Indeed. I’d advertise and within 24 hours I’d have 20-30 applicants and have to scan each application to find the basics I was looking for – it was almost a full-time job just to find someone who fitted the bill. High quality staff was easier when the pickings were strong. Recently though when I’ve lost valuable staff for various reasons, I’ve found recruiting harder than ever. I have had four applicants in a month, two of which didn’t show up to an interview. It’s disheartening.

But even I find myself curious about whether I still have the same drive and passion so I can only imagine many other people in our industry have similar thoughts and feelings. It is by far the most rewarding job I’ve ever done, but often it is thankless, exhausting and the cause of lots of anxiety.

I belong to a brilliant community of practitioners online on a Facebook page called Keeping Early Years Unique, which was set up by a true genius in our field Elaine Bennett. It’s where I go for advice, inspiration and answers and I took to this forum with my concerns over recruitment to see if others were having the same trouble.

The general consensus was ‘YES’. It seems that across the board people are struggling to employ new staff or even maintain staff that were once loyal and dedicated. I had a small idea of why this was happening – a minimum wage job that requires constant and consistent attention and returns very little in the way of perks unless you count the natural immunity to illnesses your body has developed from years of being licked and coughed on by toddlers. We really do seem to have cast iron constitutions, don’t we?

The passion has somewhat dispersed in the past few years with the pressures of maintaining standards during the pandemic while not being recognised for our efforts in helping keep the country going. So many practitioners were expected to work through the pandemic continuously putting themselves at risk with very little acknowledgment at all – expected to fund and provide their own PPE and with little regard to the heightened pressure they were under. It was always going to leave people feeling a little bit unhappy.

On top of that, the anxiety driven stress surrounding Ofsted inspections heightened when the new reforms came in. The feedback from many settings was that inspections didn’t go as well as usual and ratings were lower but staff felt like they had been working harder than ever. A quote from a nursery room leader said: “It was like when you’ve spent all day cleaning and keeping house for your family while working an eight hour day from home and home schooling your children, you’ve made a delicious meal that your toddler ate happily last week and instead he spits it all on the floor and screams that he wanted something else – except he doesn’t know what.”

Throughout the pandemic children’s development has suffered in ways we couldn’t have expected – their social communication being the biggest cause for concern but I’ve also noticed a rise in children as young as two years old suffering from intense anxiety but often without the ability to process why or the vocabulary to say how they’re feeling. This seems to be as a direct result of being born into a pandemic causing untold worry to mothers who had no support from professionals and isolation from family members. It was always going to affect children massively, we just didn’t necessarily predict it early enough. With all this added concern, the job takes on a brand new meaning, the workload/mental load triples and the wage remains minimum. I get it, I really do appreciate why so many people are saying they’d rather work in a supermarket for more money and less stress.

But hold on because on the flip side of all the negativity is opportunity. If there’s one thing we know as practitioners it is that we have the potential to make the world of difference to children all over the country – and we do. The child who can’t settle, the child who finds social situations overwhelming, the child who draws his feelings instead of using language, the child who hits out, the child who needs constant reassurance – they all still go to school confident, resilient, bright and brilliant little people – because we did our job and we did it well.

“Don’t be afraid to take on big challenges. They give the best rewards.” – Spencer Christensen.

Now, does anyone want a job because I’m still looking?

For more information please contact Sally-Ann at sallyann@pottershousepreschool.co.uk or call 07375 379148 www.pottershousepreschool.co.uk

Jul 04
Love0

Get out of the classroom and into the kitchen to make learning fun!

By Education, environment, Food & Eating
by Kate Doran
www.veggienauts.com

Cooking with small children can be chaotic to say the least. But if you can embrace a little mess and allow them some autonomy, in amongst the madness there are so many exciting opportunities to learn.

This summer, keep your children entertained and teach them important life skills with these kitchen classroom favourites.

Reading
From shopping lists to recipe instructions, reading is an essential skill when it comes to cooking. Younger cooks will enjoy identifying letters – like ‘C is for carrot’ – or being read aloud to, whilst older children can gain real confidence by reading and following instructions by themselves.

Writing
Writing out and/or drawing steps for a favourite recipe is a great activity for little learners of all ages. Make shopping lists, jot down observations, or why not encourage your little cook to create their own recipe book as a record of what they’ve enjoyed making this summer?

Maths
Maths is everywhere you look in the kitchen, from measuring out ingredients to setting a timer. Younger cooks can get involved by counting scoops or spoonfuls out loud or identifying single numbers on packaging or scales.

Science
What makes cakes rise? Volume vs weight. Liquids vs solids. Science is a cook’s best friend and the kitchen is a brilliant place to experiment, often with delicious results. Why not set up a blind taste test and use smell, touch and finally taste to identify a rainbow of foods, recording your results for maximum science skills?

Art
If cooking is a science, there’s also a place in the kitchen for art. Decorating cupcakes, preparing a beautiful vegetable platter or simply laying the table and folding napkins are all opportunities for children to express their creative side.

History and culture
Every ingredient has a history. Encourage your child’s natural curiosity by talking about where an ingredient comes from or experiment with different world cuisines – a family meal themed to a different world cuisine each week is a great way to do this with so much scope to get creative with playlists, decorations and more.

Nutrition
Cooking together can provide the perfect opportunity to talk about the benefits of individual ingredients with your child. Orange foods give you super sight. Red foods keep your heart strong. Maybe runner beans help you run faster?!

Organisation
Not a topic you’ll find on the curriculum but one we could all do with more of. Portioning out equal quantities of dough for cookies, stacking bowls or loading the dishwasher are all examples of tasks that engage your child’s frontal lobe.

Confidence and independence
Understanding food, how to shop for, prepare and make their own recipes are skills that set children up for life. It can be stressful letting small children take the reins and often easier to do it yourself, but try to let your child have as much autonomy in the kitchen as possible and they’ll really reap the benefits in the long term.

Safety
Which brings us nicely to our final lesson, safety. With open flames, ovens, sharp knives, blenders, graters and more, the kitchen is a potentially dangerous place for small children. But with the right discussions they can learn important life lessons. Talk about the safe way to handle certain implements, the importance of staying away from the oven or maybe even write up a list of kitchen safety rules to stick on the fridge.

Small children are naturally curious. Getting them away from screens and into the kitchen is a brilliant way to make lasting family memories, learn life skills and try new things. Yes, cooking with children can be messy, but the rewards are endless.

Who knows, maybe by the end of the summer your little cooking companion will have learnt enough for you to be putting your feet up whilst they take control of the kitchen?

Kate Doran is a cookbook author, mum of three young children and founder of The Veggienauts Club,

a monthly vegetable discovery subscription box for children age 3 – 8.

To find out more and join the club visit www.veggienauts.com

Jul 03
Love0
kids shouting in ear

Ten strategies to develop your child’s communication skills

By Education, family, Language, reading
by Ellen Martin
Help Me to Talk

It can be difficult to know how to encourage the development of your child’s communication skills. There are lots of things you can do at home to help. Here are my top 10 strategies for helping your child’s communication.

1 Get down to your child’s level
When communicating with your child, get down and be at their level. Play with them face to face where possible, hold toys up to your face this will draw your child’s attention to you. For example, you could kneel or sit on the floor holding a bubble pot close to your face.

2 Watch and wait
We can often respond to children’s nonverbal requests and needs before they have even initiated them. As parents, you know when your child gets hungry, and you know what snack they will want. So, you pre-empt it, you already have the snack ready before they realise they wanted one! This can remove the need for interaction. Watch your child and wait, see if they will tell you in some way that they are hungry or want something. This could be verbally or it may be through gesture. For example, they may take your hand and guide you to the biscuit tin!

3 Naming/commenting
Simple is key when learning language. Label what you see, keep it to one word, and keep it simple. For example, when playing with bricks you might say “oh look a big red brick”, instead you could say “brick”. Think about what target words you would like your child to say or learn.

4 Use gestures
Use a gesture or sign when you name or do something. Gestures provide a concrete visual representation and can help your child to understand what you are saying. Make sure with any gesture you are still saying the word. We want the gestures to support talking development, not replace it. Some children do pick up gestures before words, but it is important to continue to model the words.

5 Reduce the questions
When we are asked a question, especially one we do not know the answer to, we feel under pressure. This is the same for children when we ask them questions. They can feel put on the spot, which is difficult for children who are learning to talk. Instead, use a naming or commenting approach and explain what is happening. So rather than asking your child “what’s that?” tell them what it is, give them the opportunity to learn language.

6 Offer choices
Offer your child a choice of two things, for example, at snack time you could offer a banana or a cereal bar, make the choice visual. As you offer each one hold the item up, so it is clear what you are referring to. Offering choices encourages a child to interact, especially when it is something as motivational as food or toys! Your child may indicate their choice using words or gestures.

7 Repeat, repeat, repeat
We learn best when things are repeated, and children are no different. Repeat key words or gestures over and over during play or in your daily life. This will help your child to link the word/gesture with the action or object.

8 Functional communication vs ‘ABC’ and ‘123’
It’s important your child can express their needs and wants using functional communication. This may include words such as ‘go’, ‘more’, ‘help’ ‘stop’ and ‘open’. Words that can be used on their own to communicate but also built on to increase communication. Shapes, letters and numbers aren’t as useful when it comes to communication as they can’t be used to express needs or wants.

9 Follow your child’s lead
We often try to teach children as they play or direct them towards a new activity. Whilst this may create more opportunities for them it can limit communication. Children are more likely to communicate in a familiar activity they enjoy. Allow your child to show you what they enjoy, follow their lead and join in with their play and interactions. You can then use language appropriate to their interests which will help build language and attention skills.

10 Pausing – count to 10 and then give them time
When we are learning something new we need time. Time to listen, process and then respond. This is the same with learning language. By pausing and counting to 10 in your head, we give children time to understand what you have said and respond. If after pausing, they do not respond you can model the words/gestures you would like them to use.

If you would like more strategies and support with your child’s communication skills, then please do get in touch. Help Me To Talk provide engaging sessions at home, nursery, school and virtually to families across Surrey and Hampshire. For children as young as two years old.

www.helpmetotalk.co.uk, ellen@helpmetotalk.co.uk

Jul 01
Love0
`Xtraordinary people

The seven dyslexic archetypes How to spot, support and empower your dyslexic child

By Education, numeracy skills, reading, Relationships
by Kate Griggs
Made By Dyslexia

How can you tell a child is Made By Dyslexia? As many as 1 in 5 children are dyslexic but research suggests that 80% of dyslexic children leave school without being spotted. This proves that in order for parents and teachers alike to spot, support and empower dyslexic children, there needs to be more awareness about what the signs of ‘Dyslexic Thinking’ are.

Dyslexic brains are wired slightly differently, which means they have a different way of processing information. This difference results in a pattern of challenges, but extraordinary strengths too.

Children with dyslexia have trouble learning to read, write and spell as well as remembering lots of facts and figures or concentrating and following instructions. Tests are particularly tricky for dyslexic children as they are a combination of all these things and can make them feel embarrassed or even stupid, which they are not! This can make school particularly frustrating for dyslexic children. But if spotted early, and given the right support, they can and will do well.

How to spot your child’s dyslexic superpower
• Think about what your child loves to do and would do for hours, if left to their own devices. These are usually their ‘Dyslexic Thinking’ skills.
• Find out what they are passionate about, what they love to talk about, watch or learn about.
• Encourage them to do both of the above, lots and lots. Skill + practice + passion = superpower.
• Easy-to-spot strengths include sport, art, music and dancing. But empathy, kindness, imagining, listening and questioning are all incredibly valuable superpowers too.
• Acknowledge their expertise. Dyslexics often don’t realise how good they are at these things, so may not recognise them as their superpowers.

To identify ‘Dyslexic Thinking’ skills in children, we conducted one of the largest research projects of its kind. Our extensive research with dyslexic people, teachers, psychologists and parents, helped us to gather a unique insight into dyslexic strengths and thinking skills in children. These are the things that dyslexic children are naturally good at, and love to do. Because they love to do them so much, they practise them a lot and become extraordinarily good at them and these things become their ‘superpowers’.

From this research, we developed seven dyslexic archetypes:
1. Storytellers
2. Makers
3. Entertainers
4. Movers
5. Imaginers
6. Questioners
7. ‘People’ people

Dyslexic children have a natural ability in some or all of these seven archetypes. While all children will show ability and interest in these areas, dyslexics tend to immerse themselves and become very good, often ‘expert’ at them. You can develop resilient confident learners by nurturing these natural abilities, which can develop into valuable skills in work and life.

Here are some of the signs for each dyslexic archetype in children:
• Storytellers:
Persuasive. Tell tall tales. Elaborate explainers. Invent stories. Love stories and films. When they grow up, Storytellers often become journalists, teachers, writers, filmmakers, politicians or campaigners.

• Makers:
Jigsaws. Puzzles. Lego. Building things. Making things. Cooking. Crafts. Art and painting. When they grow up, Makers often become architects, craftspeople, chefs, designers, gardeners, artists or programmers.

• Entertainers:
Music and rhythm. Singing. Dancing. Jokers. Expressive arts. Like putting on a show. When they grow up, Entertainers often become actors, musicians, comedians, salespeople, PR people or presenters.

• Movers:
Fidgets ‘on the go’. Physical risk takers. Sports/ball skills. Balance. Climbing. Skateboarding. Gymnastics. When they grow up, Movers often become musicians, sportspeople, dancers, sports coaches, choreographers or firefighters.

• Imaginers:
Daydreaming. Making up games and fantasy/imaginary worlds. Create dens and ‘worlds’ out of things. Get lost in their imagination, immersed in activities. When they grow up, Imaginers often become scientists, inventors, entrepreneurs, artists, actors, photographers or filmmakers.

• Questioners:
Constantly ask ‘what if?’ and ‘why not?, Challenge norms and rules. Have an answer for everything. Always curious. Problem-solvers. Explain things to everyone. When they grow up, Questioners often become detectives, spies, entrepreneurs, journalists, writers or real change-makers.

• ‘People’ people:

Peacemakers. Social organisers. Busybodies. Helpers. Charmers. Carers. Leaders. When they grow up, ‘People’ people often become nurses, doctors, teachers, care workers, managers or presenters.

So, by far the most important thing we can do for any dyslexic child is to identify their strengths and place as much importance on them
as we do on their challenges. With help, our children will learn to do all they need to do well enough, but it’s their dyslexic strengths that will help them to excel in life.

Early identification and the right support is vital for dyslexic children, so that’s why Made By Dyslexia has created our free online dyslexia awareness training films, so parents and teachers around the world can gain the knowledge they need to begin to support their children.

Kate Griggs is the founder and CEO of global charity Made By Dyslexia and author of dyslexia guide This is Dyslexia (Penguin, £11.99) and children’s book Xtraordinary People: Made By Dyslexia (Penguin, £6.99).

 

This is dyslexia

Jul 01
Love0

How to introduce your second baby to your firstborn

By Education, family, prenancy, Relationships

Introducing a new baby into the family can be an exciting yet nerve-wracking time for parents. In this article, experts at UK-leading baby brand, Nuby, have looked at some of the best ways to prepare your little one for the impending arrival and help them to stay feeling loved and included.

Explain what’s going to happen
This can simply be dependent on how old your first child is. If they’re under the age of two, they may not be that interested and take the new addition to the family in their stride. However, a slightly older child might be bursting with questions or struggle emotionally with the transition.

To alleviate some of this, it helps during this time to help them know what to expect – that the new baby is going to be with mummy or daddy most of the time, and the baby is either going to be sleeping, crying, or feeding. This will also help manage their expectations – that their new sibling won’t be able to sit up by themselves, let alone be a playmate from the moment they enter the home.

The more prepared your eldest feels at this point, the easier it will be for them to make the transition from an only child into an older sibling.

Tell the story of when they were born
One other tip is to show your eldest some old photographs of your or your partner’s pregnancy before they were born, or of them when they were a baby. Talk to them about what it was like when they were younger and how they too cried and fed all hours of the day.

This will not only give you all a few laughs but also help to ease some of their worries and better understand why the new baby needs more attention for the first few months.

Roleplay looking after the baby
Using a doll is a great way to introduce your firstborn to the idea of having a baby around.

They can use this time to practise how to hold the baby, how to talk to them, and how to be gentle with them. Overall, this helps to normalise the idea that there’s soon going to be a new arrival.

Better still, if you’ve got friends or family with small babies of their own, try to set up meetups or playdates so your child can get used to hearing baby cries and babbling.

Get them involved in the planning
Include your child in the naming process. Ask them what they think of the names you’ve got picked out, for example. Chances are they won’t like your choices and would much prefer you to name their sibling Spider Man or Peppa, but the key thing is to value their opinions.

Take them on shopping trips while you’re gathering up your newborn essentials to make the situation feel more real. They’ll feel even more important if you let them pick an outfit for their younger sibling.

If they’re not good with shopping, let them contribute in other ways, such as putting new items away, helping pack the baby changing bag, or even helping you to redecorate the nursery.

Get them involved in the caring
It’s tempting for any parent to be extra cautious when managing a toddler or young child around a baby. However, allowing your firstborn to have some involvement in looking after the baby is key in making them feel included rather than pushed out.

Singing to the baby, helping bathe them, or passing the wipes or a clean nappy are all easy little tasks that can help the new older sibling feel like they have an important role in the family.

Let them meet their new sibling as soon as possible. A hospital can be a big scary place for your eldest, but the more included they feel at this stage, the more they will continue to do so down the line.

One thing to avoid is punishing your first child or telling them to go away if they make a mistake. Just be patient, calmly explain what they should do instead, and let them have another go.

Make them the focus
Family and friends will be enamoured with the new baby, but it can make your eldest feel much more secure and loved if you heap attention on them as well. Being full of praise, especially when they’re around the baby, will really help boost their confidence and self-esteem.

A ‘gift’ from the new baby to their older sibling is also a wonderful way to instil good feelings from the get-go. It also shows how much the newborn loves their older sibling already and can’t wait to meet them.

The stress of the change can cause older siblings to act out or behave badly in order to get attention from you. They may also start to regress and act younger than their age, for example, when it comes to feeding or changing. As they get used to being around a newborn, being patient and praising them for their good behaviour might help reduce this.

When introducing a second child, one of parents’ biggest fears is that their eldest child will feel left out. At some point, they may also feel guilty for not spending as much time with their firstborn. Unfortunately, this is almost certainly going to happen but you shouldn’t feel guilty about it. Focus on the quality of time you spend with your eldest rather than the quantity.

This is a huge change for the whole family, and it’s going to take some time for everyone to get used to the new dynamics. Being patient and following the tips above can help your firstborn feel more involved before and after the little one arrives.

Jun 02
Love0

Ten little things to do with the family

By Education, fun for children, Mental health

Mums, dads, and carers across the UK can often run out of ideas of what they can do for fun entertainment with their children when they are at home. Here, Gabriella Egleton, UK Brand Marketing Manager for Bebeto sweets, has compiled her top 10 little things you can do to help keep the whole family entertained during free time.

1 Start a feather collection. When out walking keep your eyes peeled for unusual bird feathers. From magpies to pigeons, you’ll be amazed at how beautiful some feathers are.

2 Grow some herbs. Instead of buying fresh herbs, invest in a few packets of seeds and let the children watch them grow. As the kids grew them, they will be more likely to try to see what they taste like.

3 Have an indoor scavenger hunt. Create a list of items and set a time limit to find a range of different objects around the house. Objects could include a sock, a pencil, and a book. And of course, you’ll need a bag to collect the objects.

4 Make your own board game. Come together as a family and brainstorm what your boardgame is going to be about, the object of the game and the rules. Then, as a team, set about creating it together.

5 Make paper planes or paper dolls. Host a paper plane throwing competition and see whose creation can fly the furthest. Alternatively, cut out paper doll chains and decorate them. Once completed you can attach lolly sticks to either end and make the dolls dance for you. Maybe you could then host a puppet show with them.

6 Make an indoor den. Raid the airing cupboard for blankets, towels and cushions and build a den in the sitting room. This activity offers hours of fun as the den could become a castle or a tent.It will grow with your child’s imagination.

7 Compile a list of things you have enjoyed or are thankful for. Every day add an activity or event to the list that has made your child happy. This will become a memory for your child to treasure in years to come.

8 Host an indoor picnic. Inject some fun into lunchtime by hosting a picnic on the kitchen floor. Grab your rug, sandwiches, and crisps for a lunchtime with a twist.

9 Draw with your eyes closed. Art is always a nice way to fill time but why not try drawing objects, places, and people with your eyes closed. You might surprise yourself.

10 Hold a talent show. Some people have natural talents, and others have ones they haven’t uncovered yet.Whether you have one or not maybe you could learn something new to show the family like a magic trick, whistling with your fingers, or juggling. The list is endless. Enjoy!

Bebeto is available at all good convenience stores nationwide.

For further information please visit www.bebeto.co.uk or find them at Bebetouk on Facebook.

May 30
Love0

First aid for parents

By baby health, children's health, Education, Safety
by Feola McCandlish
Daisy First Aid

Would you know what to do if your child choked, swallowed something they shouldn’t have, hit their head, was burned, had a seizure or fell unconscious? Would you know how to recognise the early stages of meningitis or a severe allergic reaction?

No parent wants to think about their child being harmed; but unfortunately accidents do happen and learning essential first aid skills can make all the difference in an emergency situation.

What is first aid?
First aid is the immediate treatment given to a person before medical help arrives. Your first actions while you wait for an ambulance can make all the difference and can sometimes even mean the difference between life and death.

There is so much to think about when you have a baby and it’s understandable that first aid might not be at the top of your list – especially when you are sleep-deprived and trying to figure out how to keep your tiny human alive.

Learning first aid can be scary, particularly when it is our own children we are talking about, but it doesn’t have to be. Learning first aid with like-minded people in a relaxed and informal environment can actually be a lot of fun.

Perfect for pregnancy
Did you know you can do a first aid class when you are expecting? It’s safe to do during pregnancy and it’s something you can tick off that ever-growing list of things to do! Learn with your antenatal group, friends and family.

Choking
Lots of parents, understandably, worry about choking when they are beginning to wean their baby. Did you know that babies have extremely sensitive gag reflexes, which are there to help keep your baby safe from choking?

When a baby is weaning it’s completely normal to experience a lot of coughing, gagging and going red in the face. A common misconception is that you will hear a person choking but you won’t; severe choking is usually completely silent. Knowing the difference between gagging and severe choking is really important, particularly when you are about to wean your baby. If they’re coughing and going red in the face that’s a great sign, we can usually let them work it out themselves; if they’re silent and turning blue they need our help.

Doing a first aid class can put your mind at ease when it comes to weaning your baby so you can relax and enjoy the process (and focus on cleaning the mess!) and feel confident that you know what steps to take if your baby does choke.

Not just for babies
It’s not just babies who sometimes require first aid. Once your child is mobile, a whole new world will open up to them; it’s an exciting time for them and you! Young children love putting things in their mouths. Did you know this is for sensory reasons? They have more nerve endings in their mouths than they do in their fingers so they find out more about an object if they put it in their mouth! But this obviously poses a choking risk.

Once your child is walking, running and climbing it’s normal for blows to the head to become a fairly regular occurrence (at least, they are in our house!) Would you know how to treat a head injury? And would you know what signs to look out for in a serious head injury?

Learning vital first aid skills gives confidence to parents and other child carers so that they would know what to do in an emergency involving their baby or child. All it takes is two hours.

Daisy First Aid teaches award-winning courses to parents, expectant parents and children all over Sussex in homes and public venues. They also provide OFSTED compliant courses for teachers and childcare professionals in local venues and private settings. For more information visit www.daisyfirstaid.com

May 30
Love0

The true value of curiosity

By Education, fun for children
by Tiger Cox
Explorer and author

When I returned home to Sussex after a year sailing the world with my parents, I enrolled in a new school and quickly became aware that my life until this point had been lived inside a bubble, surrounded by people who valued nature and exploration.

Now I was a lamb among the wolves, a Waldorf Steiner educated 13 year old with no street cred and a strange name, sitting in my first national curriculum religious education lesson wondering if throwing things at the teacher was perhaps a group learning activity set before my arrival? Alas it was not. Despite my lack of familiarity with the state education system (I had never even sat a formal test, let alone an exam), I retained a curiosity and love of learning that many of my peers had lost years before. In the next three years I would pass 13 GCSE’s and three A-levels in maths, physics and programming. So how did I stay curious and apply what I had learned outdoors to academia?

outdoor-skillsThe world at large
“Nature is the source of all true knowledge. She has her own logic, her own laws, she has no effect without cause nor invention without necessity.”
– Leonardo da Vinci

In June 2011 my parents and I went travelling by sea. As we sailed from our home harbour of Newhaven, a few family and friends waved teary eyed from the shore (tears unconfirmed). What they saw was a dumpy three ton catamaran, with two masts and netting spread between her wooden hulls like a badly designed trawler. Despite her considerable weight, and length (32ft), cabin space was, let’s say,”cosy”.

My bunk was additionally cramped by a complete set of homeschooling books. Stacks of Key Stage 2 maths worksheets, a science set with an ammeter and powerful light bulbs (our solar panels just about managed to light two LED strips), and enough classic novels to get me up to speed on English literature. Some of those novels I would eventually become bored enough to read, such as Jack London’s ‘White Fang’ which I finished off the coast of Portugal. A brilliant book! The vast majority of that homeschooling kit however, stayed safely stored below my bunk where, the last time I checked a few years ago, it remained.

While my parents bickered about the setting of the anchor, I focused on fishing. I fished for pollock to feed my pet seagull, I fished for mackerel using homemade lures, I fished for sardines in Spain alongside toothless old men, and for skipjack tuna chased by dolphins in the Canary Islands. In Morroco the water was so dirty I dared not fish at all. I learned about the tides and the weather, about materials and lengths of line, weights of fish and water pollution. I learned about people too, our many languages and similarities. Without really knowing it, I covered the homeschool curriculum. Everything tied back to fishing. Looking back now, I see that fishing could have been photography, or fossil collecting, or a fascination with different types of pizza. It really doesn’t matter what that focus is, because connections can be made everywhere. It is simply learning by leading with reward, a pursuit that is already enjoyed.

Using the spirit of adventure to your advantage
“Okay Tiger, I get it, lead with reward, use the outdoor classroom, but we can’t all go live on a boat, and my children don’t have one thing they are interested in for more than a week…”

Perhaps the answer to many people’s concerns about children spending less time outdoors than prison inmates, is to use more imaginative storytelling. I just told you a story about my adventures living on a boat. I led with that story because I know it is more captivating than “let’s talk about outdoor learning”. I am not the first to lead with stories. For thousands of years, the Aboriginal peoples passed down their knowledge of nature through stories, the characters in the stories were captivating and young people practiced their teachings. Here in the West, we have made stories from explorers in history part of our culture, but do we use them to motivate young people enough? I don’t think so. The story of Mathew Henson reaching the North Pole, perhaps being the first person to get there and at a time when men of colour were considered less, is certainly inspiring. But it feels far off, almost like he was born to explore and we are not. The truth is, all great explorers in history started playing with a compass in the back garden. If we can communicate this to our young people, and enable them to start practicing basic outdoors skills, reading the weather or making rope from scratch, then spending time outdoors becomes more like being part of an interesting story, rather than a waste of time.

Creative problem solvers as the celebrated explorers of the future?
I imagine that creative problem solvers will be the celebrated explorers of the future. There are no more unknown seas to cross or foreign lands to find. There is only the deep ocean, outer space, and a whole lot of problems here on Earth. All of which are going to require some serious problem solving. As humans, we often turn to tool use to solve our problems. Technology is our latest tool and it is a powerful one, but we must not forget that nature has spent three billion years solving problems, far longer than humans. We can learn from nature, but we need to make sure that our young people retain their curiosity, for with it will come perspective.

I wrote my first book, How To Be An Explorer, for this very reason. For months I wrote down every outdoor skill I had enjoyed as a youngster, and the stories of explorers in history who inspired me. Then I selected my six favorite stories and 25 most rewarding activities, and broke them down into something easy to read and put into practice. Photographs and illustrations followed. Now I’m hoping, really hoping, that the book we’ve created is enough to spark a curiosity for nature and the outdoors in a few young people’s minds. For the true value of curiosity is that it gives you perspective, and the younger you gain perspective, the more freedom of choice you have throughout your life. Freedom of choice is a beautiful thing.

How to be an Explorer by Tiger Cox, Button Books, RRP £16.99, available online and from all good bookshops.

 

Close Menu