Taking Care of the Little Things

The year is coming to an end, and this December has been a time to reflect on many things, including our sustainability as a nursery. There are many things we do at Inspirations to be as sustainable possible, not only to save our planet from harm but also because it is essential for human well-being.

With 1 in 6 of the world's species facing extinction, a growing pollution problem, and a pandemic jeopardising the health of loved ones we are reminded how important it is to teach our younger members of society how to help us take care of our planet.

Taking care of the little things helps the big things fall into place.

Children often mirror behaviour of their adults or carers, so what do we do at our nursery to help save the planet?

• Recycling- We have a recycling bin in all of our rooms and staff room, and in the older rooms we teach the children which bins they can put their rubbish in. Helping them get into the habit of considering which bin things should go into will stay with them in the future.
• Use less paper- This is a tricky one at nursery as we would never want to limit a child's creativity. Recently we acquired paper from a local company that was scrap and headed for the bin. We also use white boards, blackboards, chalks, digital drawings, and transient art using loose parts. All of these help to reduce the amount of paper waste.
• Outdoor learning- Our pre-school setting is primarily outdoor, with outdoor play being a huge part of the younger age groups also. "Playing in natural spaces supports a child's sense of self, allowing children to recognise their independence alongside an interdependence and connectedness with their ecological worlds.''
• Reduce and Reuse- We said goodbye to plastic toys a few years ago, and swapped these for more natural ambiguous resources. We repurpose old cable reels throughout, and will always aim to acquire our resources second hand or from SCRAP.

Read more about where we shop- http://simonr30.sg-host.com/news-and-blog/loose-parts-in-the-community/

• Wormery Composting- The children in pre-school take great pleasure in putting their wasted fruit and veg into our wormery. About a third of household waste is organic, so by recycling this as compost we are reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill.
• Water Play- We teach our children that water is a precious resource and that it should be used wisely and reused where possible. To support this we discourage water play from the sinks and taps and instead use purpose build water basins for them to explore water in, and use this to water the garden after use.
• Growing Fruit and Veg- We grow fruit and veg from potatoes to strawberries, our children can learn the pleasure and reward from growing their own food at nursery.
• Care for living things- From bee hotels to worm houses, from night-cams capturing local wild life to having our own nursery dog, it is instilled in our children from a young age to treat all of our insects and wild life and with love, care and respect.

Striving to Improve

There's still so much more we want to do at Inspirations to be sustainable and are constantly growing and developing. We are currently in the process of building a nature reserve with a pond behind our yurt- updates to follow.

Please share with us how you at a home or in a nursery setting help to create a a more sustainable environment, maybe you can inspire us here at Inspirations. This Christmas why not consider second hand books or toys or gifting experiences rather than material possessions.

That's a wrap

As we wrap up our blogs for 2020; the year we will always remember, let's make sure we wrap only with paper that can be recycled with brown paper tape, and remember that taking care of our environment will help us build a brighter 2021 for ourselves and our little ones.

-Nathalie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?fbclid=IwAR3Gm_i8xebIYk8Y9pn9g6-qImJ16ECVU97UKdpMls2EdmIbEl5g_nqZApc&v=y_6UFaNqbx0&feature=youtu.be

by Inspirations

Number Frames

Resources – chalk, spring finds, or alternatively pens and paper

Implementation

Draw 10 grids of 10 boxes and number them 1 to 10. Add the amount of items to match the corresponding numbers into the boxes.

If your child is working on numbers to 5 just draw 5 boxes, similarly if your child is working beyond 10 add more larger boxes.

Intent- Learning Goals

Maths – Numbers

30-50 months

• Uses some number names and number language spontaneously.
• Uses some number names accurately in play.
• Recites numbers in order to 10.
• Knows that numbers identify how many objects are in a set.
• Beginning to represent numbers using fingers, marks on paper or pictures.
• Sometimes matches numeral and quantity correctly.
• Shows curiosity about numbers by offering comments or asking questions.
• Shows an interest in number problems.
• Shows an interest in numerals in the environment.
• Shows an interest in representing numbers.

40-60 months

• Recognise some numerals of personal significance.
• Recognises numerals 1 to 5+
• Counts up to three or four objects by saying one number name for each item.
• Counts actions or objects which cannot be moved.
• Counts objects to 10 and beginning to count beyond 10.
• Counts out up to six objects from a larger group.
• Selects the correct numeral to represent 1 to 5, then 1 to 10 objects.
• Counts an irregular arrangement of up to ten objects.
• Estimates how many objects they can see and checks by counting them.
• Uses the language of ‘more’ and ‘fewer’ to compare two sets of objects.
• Says the number that is one more than a given number.
• Records, using marks that they can interpret and explain.
• Begins to identify own mathematical problems based on own interests and fascinations.

by Inspirations

Make your own Leaf Man

Resources: Leaves, paper, glue,

Implementation

Lots of children have been sharing their leaf play and discoveries with us. We hope you enjoyed our Leaf Man story read by Nicola, you can find it here- 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLEMeqLITwo&t=20s

Go for a walk and look for Autumn leaves and have a go at making your own Leaf Man, don't forget to ask your children some questions along the way. Below we have listen the criteria of learning development this activity meets. 

• What does Leaf Man look like?
• Who will you make?
• What will you need?
• What could you use to make their face?

Intent – Learning Goals

Moving and Handling

22-36 months

• Shows control in holding and using jugs to pour, hammers, books and mark-making tools.
• Beginning to use three fingers

30-50 months

• Uses one-handed tools and equipment

40-60 months

• Uses simple tools to effect changes to materials.
• Handles tools, objects, construction and malleable materials safely and with increasing control.

Literacy

22-36 months

• Has some favourite stories, rhymes, songs, poems or jingles

30-50 months

• Describes main story settings, events and principal characters.
• Shows interest in illustrations and print in books and print in the environment.

40-60 months

• Uses vocabulary and forms of speech that are increasingly influenced by their experiences of books.
• Enjoys an increasing range of books.

Being Imaginative

22-36 months

• Beginning to use representation to communicate, e.g. drawing a line and saying ‘That’s me.’

30-50 months

• Captures experiences and responses with a range of media, such as music, dance and paint and other materials or words.

40-60 months

• Create simple representations of events, people and objects.

Exploring and using media and materials

30-50 months

• Joins construction pieces together to build and balance.
• Realises tools can be used for a purpose.

40-60 months

• Understands that different media can be combined to create new effects.
• Manipulates materials to achieve a planned effect.
• Constructs with a purpose in mind, using a variety of resources.
• Uses simple tools and techniques competently and appropriately.
• Selects appropriate resources and adapts work where necessary.
• Selects tools and techniques needed to shape, assemble and join materials they are using.

by Inspirations

Leaf Weaving

Resources – sticks, leaves and string

Implementation

This activity needs a lot of focus, time and adult support when needed, but is a great activity to encourage concentration and fine motor control. It can be made simpler with less string to thread through.

Make a square with the sticks and string, then tie lengths of string across to weave the leaves through. There are lots of leaves around of varying colours to make colour patterns, what do you observe when you look through it at the sun?

Intent – Learning Goals

Characteristics of Effective Learning

Being involved and concentrating

• Maintaining focus on their activity for a period of time
• Showing high levels of energy, fascination
• Not easily distracted
• Paying attention to details
• Finding ways to solve problems
• Finding new ways to do things

Keeping on trying

• Persisting with activity when challenges occur
• Showing a belief that more effort or a different approach will pay off

• Bouncing back after difficulties

Enjoying achieving what they set out to do

• Showing satisfaction in meeting their own goals
• Being proud of how they accomplished something – not just the end result

• Enjoying meeting challenges for their own sake rather than external rewards or praise

Making links

• Making links and noticing patterns in their experience
• Making predictions
• Testing their ideas
• Developing ideas of grouping, sequences, cause and effect

Choosing ways to do things

• Planning, making decisions about how to approach a task, solve a problem and reach a goal

• Checking how well their activities are going
• Changing strategy as needed
• Reviewing how well the approach worked

Finding out and exploring

• Showing curiosity about objects, events and people
• Using senses to explore the world around them
• Showing particular interests

Being willing to ‘have a go’

• Seeking challenge
• Showing a ‘can do’ attitude
• Taking a risk, engaging in new experiences, and learning by trial and error

by Inspirations

The Five Big Questions - Part One

After recently announcing her 5 big questions survey, Inspirations has decided to take a closer look at what exactly the Duchess of Cambridge is interested in finding out. Starting with question one: 

WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE IS MOST IMPORTANT FOR CHILDREN GROWING UP IN THE UK TODAY TO LIVE A HAPPY ADULT LIFE?

We are offered the four options below and asked to put into priority order.

• Good physical and mental health
• Good friendships and relationships
• Access to opportunities
• Access to a good education

I found it tricky to prioritise these categories, as here at Inspirations we view each point as being an equally important factor in raising a healthy happy child.  Much thought has gone into how Inspirations operates in order to successfully cover these four areas.

Physical and Mental Health

Our outdoor learning environment and forest school ethos naturally promotes good physical and mental health. Children with spaces for running around and climbing trees naturally develop muscle strength, aerobic fitness, and better coordination. A Scottish study found activity levels were 2.2 times higher in a typical Forest School day than during a school day that included PE lessons. Not to mention that as parents we love our children to get plenty of healthy fresh air which our location offers in abundance, set a fair way from any roads and surrounded by country fields and a section of the wooded Leeds Way.

Friendships and Relationships

Playing alongside our children every day are of course their friends.  Friendships in the early years are so important to our developing children, they help them build self-confidence, develop their social and emotional skills and their understanding of the world around them.  Sometimes of course, children struggle to mediate their emotions and play can quickly turn to squabbling and tears.  It is then that our expert educators’ step in and support our children in understanding their emotions and help support them to make the right choices.

Access to Opportunities

Its safe to say that Inspirations children have an abundance of opportunities on offer! Daily forest school sessions, an art studio compete with art teacher, an array of fabulous loose parts and open-ended resources and the freedom to choose where and what they do with their day!

A Good Education

At Inspirations we pride ourselves on getting our children ‘school ready’.  With our experienced educators we spend much of our time planning for your child’s education and learning journey.  We observe their interests and extend on that incorporating numeracy, literacy, science and anything else we can cram in for their eager sponge like brains! Throughout their time with us we will track their development and ensure they are on track for the best possible start on their journey to being happy adults.

If you decide to take the survey which would you prioritise as being your number one important factor for developing into a happy adult?

Next week look out for my blog on question two, who is primarily responsible for a child’s health and happiness?

-Nicola

by Inspirations

Ambiguous Resources

Here’s a wonderful example of how ambiguous resources can capture imagination, this week I left a small wooden door on a grass table to see what the pre-schoolers would make of it. Every group that came into the art studio used it in a different way; the first group passing pine cones through it to each other, the second group hiding behind it, knocking and opening it to reveal their faces before hysterical bursts of laughter, and others simply playing with the lock figuring out how it worked.

Some thought it was the best thing ever, others ignored it.

One little girl spent a long time playing with the door and when I asked her what it was, she whispered to me...

’This is how you get into the magic forest!’

Every child really is completely unique.

by Inspirations

All Hands on Deck

Earlier in the year some coffee playdough lead to an interest in mixing with smells, so we used basil, ginger, rosemary, lemon, thyme and cinnamon to incorporate into our mixtures.

'I smell ginger, let's make ginger bread men'

This interest in mixing and ingredients lead to the creation of gingerbread people, we used the gingerbread cutters on the projector which brought them to life and provided the opportunity for the children to climb into the ginger bread projections.

'When i was little i used to be a gingerbread man'

'I didn't eat mine when i got home it just ran as fast as it could out my door and a bear ate it'

Some children were expressing an interest in pirates at this point and whilst playing around on the light projector with the ginger bread cutters a piece of foam piping became a pirate hat for the gingerbread man.

'He's a pirate! A gingerbread pirate'

We placed a vote to decide if we should use our large cardboard box for a Pirate ship or a Gingerbread house, the majority chose pirate ship and so piece by piece they created their own ship, flag, wheel and parrot.

We used scales to measure the weights of treasure, created maps, used compasses, flags, telescopes and one child decided our ship needed a parrot. During forest school the children followed clues left by a pirate who had stolen some of our nursery toys and buried them in the woods, and they even used literacy skills to write back to the pirate.

This pirate interest developed as the children turned to makers, explorers and adventures, they had the chance to build their confidence whilst engaging in role play, sailing to far away islands to reclaim treasure and being completely in control of their own learning.

by Inspirations