Winter is nearly over and if you’ve recently done an audit of your outdoor space, you might now be thinking about giving your mud kitchen a revamp, and introducing some new resources. If you haven’t yet set up a mud kitchen, now is definitely the time to start planning one.
Extending conversation around exercise is a great way to help children to make connections with how their body works. It also helps them to focus on setting their own physical challenges.
Children aged between 18 months and three years can sometimes go through a phase of biting others. A careful approach is needed to address this, taking into account underlying, developmental factors.
Physical development and imaginative play go naturally together and there are lots of ways you can resource the environment to ensure that children can be active within their own creative worlds.
Revisit your sand trays with these new ideas to promote concentration, hand-to-eye co-ordination and ne motor skills. Children can also get to grips with how tools can effect changes to materials.
Revisit your sand trays with these new ideas to promote concentration, hand-to-eye co-ordination and fine motor skills. Children can also get to grips with how tools can effect changes to materials.
Sand is a tactile, sensory and endlessly versatile resource. Try some new ideas for making the most of it in your setting.
Find out how one setting sent ‘borrow bags’ home with children to help parents understand how they could support their ‘fundamental movements’ as a precursor to skills used in games and specific sports.
A project in Walsall highlights how practitioners are successfully building upon children’s favoured schemes and schema to build in new challenges, extend learning and improve EYFS outcomes.
In this new series on making the most of your outdoor space, Karen Hart suggests foraging for materials to make a woodland sensory play area, building a bug box and making a fun assault course.
It may come as a shock having to match your energy levels to the children’s when they arrive back after the Christmas break – so lay plans to get them outside and letting off steam, while supporting their learning and physical development.
'There's no such thing as bad weather – just inappropriate clothing,' as the saying goes. Use children’s colourful winter clothing as a link to many areas of learning.
Beanbags are easy for young children to hold, catch and throw. They can be visually pleasing, tactile and can have the added element of weight, smell and sound. Jenni Clarke shares some simple, fun and increasingly challenging physical activities to share with young children.
Try these easy-to-play games which will entertain children and extend their physical and communication skills, while out for a stroll.
Autumn leaves are a key sign of the changing seasons and make a colourful, accessible and versatile resource for play and exploration. The beauty of them is that at this time of the year they are available in abundance – and completely free.
My activity idea is great for covering Physical Development: Health and self-care. I use our much-loved puppet, Bertie, to show children the importance of good hygiene.
When we talk about fine motor skills and coordination, it is often only hand-eye coordination that we consider. However, foot-eye coordination is just as important, says Kathy Brodie.
Challenging play is all about opportunities for extending physical limits and experiencing excitement – along with a little fear and uncertainty. From this children ultimately gain self-esteem and resiliance.
Taking risks is how young children develop strength, balance, co-ordination and body awareness. In part two of this series Jenni Clarke investigates how loose parts placed outdoors can build and challenge skills. For three-years and older.
Don’t be surprised if your child comes home from pre-school looking a little grubby. They will have been exploring messy play, an activity which is all about tactile exploration, says Annette Rawstrone.
The final article in this series focuses on children using real tools while creating and building outside. The benefits include building core body and arm strength, hand-eye co-ordination and concentration.
A new report takes a practical approach to recommending strategies to support the development of literacy in pre-school. As part of this it flags up the need for regular, universal eye tests.
There is one thing you can predict about a British summer, it is completely unpredictable! But as we know, with the right assortment of clothes, we go outside come rain or shine.
Friday 5th October marks World Smile Day, which provides a timely reminder about the need to look after our teeth, but also links to fun activities and storytelling opportunities.
With Ofsted’s recent announcement that its inspectors would put a greater emphasis on movement, exercise and control activities, how can childminders get children moving?