Tag Archives: #earlyyears

Baking, Snack, Social Studies, Special Event

Cart Mill Pancake Party

March 4, 2025 Mr Edwards Leave a comment

Today at Cart Mill we have been celebration Pancake Day or Shrove Tuesday. We have been busy baking and tasting pancakes as part of our daily snack.

In the morning, a small group of children worked together to follow a simple gluten and dairy free pancake recipe. Using their numeracy skills, they carefully measured the dry ingredients with scales and poured the wet ingredients into a jug, developing hand eye coordination, number recognition and teamwork skills.

Once everything was ready, Izumi kindly cooked the pancakes to perfection for everyone to enjoy.

Snack time was extra special as we got to taste our homemade pancakes alongside some fresh, tasty fruit. The children shared their thoughts — take a look at some of their comments:

“It’s Pancake Tuesday today!”

“We are having pancakes because it’s Pancake Day.”

“The pancakes are delicious!”

“I’m going to try them and see if I like it.”

“It tastes good!”

“I love pancakes.”

“I love pancakes with honey.”

What a wonderful way to celebrate the day while building life skills and trying new foods!

Why not have at home using our simple recipe

Ingredients (Makes 12 pancakes)

200 g gluten-free self-raising flour
1.5 tsp gluten-free baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
300 ml milk (dairy free if necessary)
2 large eggs
vegetable oil for frying

Article 1 – All children under 18 have rights

Article 7 – The right to have a name an nationality

Article 28 – The right to an education

Baking, Snack, Special Event

Mini Master Chefs

January 21, 2025 Mr Edwards Leave a comment

This week, we were very lucky to have Beth visit us from East Renfrewshire Council. Beth is rolling out a fantastic new program called Mini Master Chefs, which encourages children to get involved in preparing healthy snacks at nursery using a variety of vegetables. It’s a wonderful initiative to help little ones enjoy an extra portion of veggies in a fun and interactive way!

Take a look at what we’ve been up to so far:

Morning Session

A small group of children had the chance to take part in a sensory “touch and taste” session, exploring a range of different vegetables. The children were introduced to some new veggies they hadn’t seen before, like cauliflower. We discussed their textures, smells, and how they grow.

Next, the children had the opportunity to chop the vegetables. Beth taught us how to use knives safely, showing us two new cutting techniques: the bridge hold and the claw hold.

Taking turns to use our new knife skills Everyone took a turn to chop the vegetables. Once they were chopped, it was time for a taste test! One child said, “I like the mushrooms.” Another shared, “I love tomatoes,” while someone else commented, “The onion is spicy.”

Afternoon Session

In the afternoon, we made some delicious carrot flapjacks. Beth guided us through the preparation, and the children had another sensory experience, exploring the carrot peelings and oats. We discussed how they smelled and felt as part of the activity.

One child remarked, “The carrots are like worms,” while another said, “It tickles my fingers.”

Once the flapjacks were ready, the children got to enjoy them as part of their afternoon snack.

It has been such a fantastic experience for the children, and we can’t wait to try out more activities with our Mini Master Chefs later in the week.

article 24 (health and health services)

article 3 (best interests of the child)

article 28 (right to education)

Special Event

Our Mighty Mini Kickers

October 24, 2023 Mr Edwards Leave a comment

Watching the Cart Mill children taking part in todays Mini Kickers session it was easy to see that they were having so much fun!. The boundless energy our children have helps to develop essential skills, and one of the most exciting skills to nurture at this stage is ball control. Ball games can help develop coordination, confidence, team work and physical development. Take a look at some of the activities “the coach” set us today to help develop these skills.

Using our feet to dribble the ball practicing control. This helps children improve hand-eye and foot-eye coordination, which are essential life skills. We were dribbling the ball round the room using little kicks. Picking the ball up and placing it back down ready to kick.

Mastering the ball can boost a child’s self-esteem, helping them feel capable and proud of their accomplishments. Todays group did amazing taking part in all the activities. They responded well to praise and were proud of their achievements. Well done team!

Football is a team sport, taking part in the activities with their peers and working together to build relationships. We were in 2 different teams today. The blue team and the red team. We played a game of trying to score goals in the other teams net. “If you get the ball in the net you win”

As you can see it’s never too early to start nurturing ball control in young children. Mini kickers can develop this skill while having fun a blast with our peers. By making the learning process fun, playful, and supportive, we can help these little athletes embark on a journey filled with confidence, teamwork, and physical development. So, grab a football and let these mini kickers enjoy the magic of ball control.

Article 31 (leisure, play and culture) Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.

Maths Week Scotland, Outdoor Learning, Special Event

Maths Week Scotland in the Garden

September 28, 2023 Mr Edwards Leave a comment

Numeracy is all around us, and for our young children at Cartmill, developing our numeracy skills can be an exciting adventure, especially when taken outside into the garden. In Scotland, we celebrate the importance of numeracy and outdoor learning with Math Week Scotland. Take a look at a snapshot of the activities going on this week in the Cartmill garden.

Creating Patterns

Exploring patterns using natural resources in early numeracy involves using items like shells, pebbles, or branches to create and expand patterns. This hands-on approach not only enhances understanding of early numeracy but also encourages an appreciation for the natural world. By taking part in these activities, children develop problem-solving skills, boost their creativity, and gain a deeper understanding of numeracy in the early years. Take a look at some of the pictures below and the patterns that were created.

Measuring

Measuring with our hands and feet is a practical and fun way to introduce children to the concept of measurement. They can use their hands or feet to gauge the size and length of everyday objects. We explored different objets in the garden which you can see in the photos below. This interactive activity not only helps them develop an understanding of measurement but also enhances their fine motor skills and gross motor skills.

One of the children used their hands to measure two separate pieces of wood, and then combined them, exploring addition. He said “this is 11 and 4 together” and then counted out 15 with support.

Measuring using our feet “It’s 10” showing 10 fingers.

Shape Hunt

An outdoor shape hunt is a amazing adventure where our children explored their natural surroundings to discover shapes in the world around them. Together with curiosity the children of Cartmill embarked on a quest to find circles in tree trunks, squares in windows, triangles in buidings, and countless other shapes. Take a look at the shapes we found on our shape hunt.