Hello Everyone

We hope you are all well and enjoying the decent weather.

The government recommend during lock down you access the outdoors once a day to benefit your physical health as well as mental health, so we have suggested idea’s you can share with your child outdoors incorporating into your daily walk to help access much needed daylight, fresh air and exercise.  We are lucky to have so much green space and natural woodland on our doorstep. These will help to capture your little one’s interest, imagination and continue to support their learning.

There are many nature related activities you can do allowing your child to experience and explore natural materials. These ideas have been tried and tested at East Calder Nursery in the past and they always prove popular with the children.

Art with Natural Loose Parts

     

Encourage your child to collect natural loose parts outdoors and excite their curiosity and creativity by giving them the opportunity to experiment with them.  They can have fun recreating what they have seen during their walk or simply enjoy exploring the materials – no end result is necessary!  Allow their imagination to guide them. L.1. Working on my own and with others, I use my curiosity and imagination to solve design problems.

Numeracy/Maths

If your child is showing an interest in numbers and counting reinforce this by using collected sticks, leaves and stones to match, sort, count and recognise numbers.  The above idea can support them with their learning in numeracy and maths.  Borrow a dice from another game and turn this activity into your own game. Roll the dice and sort, match and count the amount of natural loose parts to the numbers/dots on the dice and copy the number with sticks.

L.1. I can match objects, and sort using my own and others’ criteria, sharing my ideas with others.

 

Literacy and Communication

If your child is showing an interest in letters and writing their name, use collected sticks to copy letters, names and words.  The following idea can support them with their learning in literacy.  Chatting with your child about what they are doing and your shared experience of your walk – what you seen, found, and heard supports and extends their vocabulary and listening skills.

L.1. As I play and learn, I enjoy exploring interesting materials for writing and different ways of recording my experiences and feelings, ideas and information.

Exploring and caring for Wildlife

    

            

Engage your child in caring for plants and animals.  Indoor plants and pets are fine, but it’s even better to engage children outdoors. Consider working with your child to provide habitat for wildlife. You can do this by setting up a bird bath or bird feeder. You might also plant a butterfly garden. It’s also important to show children how to relate to other living things in a gentle and caring way: water the plants; avoid breaking branches or stripping bark from trees; and avoid disturbing the homes of birds and bugs. If you collect an animal from outdoors for closer observation (such as a snail or beetle), return it to its natural habitat within a short period of time and explain to your child why this is important (wonder: a survival skill – www.communityplaythings.co.uk 2020). L.1. I have observed living things in the environment over time and am becoming aware of how they depend on each other.

 

Have fun and enjoy the outdoors safely! And remember you can access more play and learning ideas at http://blogs.glowscotland.org,uk/wl/snonursery