Author: Lorna Norton

Time to get messy?

Time to get messy?

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Last week our theme included a bucket of agar agar jelly (if you follow me on Instagram/Facebook you’ll see I was mighty proud of it!)

This taste safe pink wobbly jelly was intended for play, and wow did it get played with, but not by everyone.

Some children really aren’t keen on messy play. Fact. So as parents are we meant to encourage, cajole and entice little fingers to get messy or is it ok if they resist? What even ARE the benefits to messy play? How is it STEAM learning and should you be worried if your little one doesn’t like getting messy? So many questions!

I suppose to start with it’s important to say, messy play is anything which obviously involves getting messy Paints, jelly, dough, pasta, water… you get the idea. There’s more though, think about your every day and how those little hands interact with the world around them. Hummus at dinner time is a messy experience in our house, as is bath time, playing in the garden and going to the woods.

When children are able to get their hands interacting with the world around them, they’re able to fully experience all the materials have to offer. Grasping, grabbing, squeezing, flowing through fingers, immersing their hands, covering and uncovering, measuring, weighing and problem solving. The list of could go on.

In terms of movement skills, messy play helps develop fine motor skills, muscle development (not just in the hands but the whole body) and proprioceptive awareness. STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and maths) learning and messy play also go hand in hand. Learning about substances, textures and quantities. It’s also a fantastic chance to explore measuring and weighing and did you know attempting to stack and sort pasta helps develop spatial awareness ready for more advanced maths skills too!

So what happens when your littlest doesn’t want to engage in messy play during class? Well, absolutely nothing. It’s really no big deal. So they don’t want to cover themselves in blue paint or play with the pink jelly. That’s ok! They will still explore the world around them and will learn just as much as a child who goes headfirst into the bucket full of cooked spaghetti!

There is no right or wrong answer. Just like the old “love it or hate it” Marmite debate, messy play just isn’t for everyone.

Connecting with the world around us

Connecting with the world around us

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This topic is a big one for me. I love the outdoors, I love nature, I love trees and being in a woodland. It’s my happy place. Of course that’s really rubbed off on my son who’s now happiest with a stick in his hand, digging in the mud. So imagine my sadness when I overheard a parent say this to her daughter last week at the park…

“That’s too much mud! Come now out of the mud, I hate getting dirty.”

I scuffled my filthy boots in front of me as I turned away from them. On my scale of “muddy” it wasn’t even registering! A completely dry day with barely a squelch of mud around. If I walked the line the little girl did, I don’t think any mud would even stick to my boots!  As the pair walked away her words began to tumble in my memory again. Last week in class we made mud ball seed bombs.

“What’s the big deal” I asked myself. Of course, I have no idea of the context, perhaps she was on the way to something important where mud was not appropriate. Perhaps it was the guilt of the pile of mud sat not a few meters from us in my van, the remnants from making seed bombs.

In the scheme of things it’s no big deal this mom didn’t want her little one to get dirty that day.

There are however plenty of parents out there doing battle with an ever growing mountain of sticks at the back door or tumbling drifts of mud from their car boot as they take out the shopping. I’m sure I’m not alone when I scrub my sons muddy fingernails at the end of a wonderful day playing outside at kindergarten.

When children get down to the basics of being inquisitive they inevitably get hands on. Some hang back and don’t get fully head-to-toe involved but they’ll be carefully watching what’s going on around them. What I love most about children being outside is they’ll be using all 7 of their senses to explore their surroundings; so much more intensely than adults.  

Nature asks that we observe what’s around us. The changing seasons, wildlife in front of us and the weather all demand our attention and for the most part we as humans oblige. Discussing the inclement weather, the blossom on the tree or spotting a deer dashing through a field, we stop to watch and take it in. Imagine experiencing all of that for the very first time. There’s so much wonder in seeing a shooting star or playing in long grass, how lucky to be a child.

 

This week my #steammsunday is a plea to you. Go outside, embrace the world around you and indulge in your little one’s inquisitive nature. Mud washes off whilst experiential learning sticks around. They’ll remember the times they played in the woods or went for a paddle in the stream. We need to help our little ones respect the world around us, after all they’ll be the ones to take charge when we’re gone.

You can make a simple check sheet to try on your next outdoor adventure. I’ve listed a few below to get you started.
FERN TIP: Try putting your little one in charge of a camera; either a phone camera or a camera they’re able to use. Ask them to take snaps of everything you find to show [insert name of important person in their life here.] It’s a great way to help them to be observant.

  • The tallest tree you can see
  • A white flower
  • A piece of litter (bonus point if you can put it in the nearest bin)
  • Water
  • A patch of mud
  • 10 stones
  • An animal with wings
  • Bark on a tree
  • Draw a face with a stick

The more enthusiastic you are, they will likely follow suit!

Have fun, get muddy, laugh and learn. Then head home for warm baths and relive the adventures in your bedtime stories.

Filling and Refilling

Filling and Refilling

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Filling and emptying things is a big part of childhood… like, really big! My almost 1 year old loves it, at The Fern Club our big boy 7 year olds love it too. So what makes it such a big hit and why do we stop doing this as we get older?

My son is almost 1 and for the last few months his favourite toy (even more than his absolute favourite toy… his granny) has been an empty bottle or tin and putting little things in it. We’ve given him things which will fill that need for emptying and filling in so many different ways; a milk container and wooden marbles, an empty tea tin and pinecones, a plastic bottle and little sticks…the list goes on! This part of childhood is a really big one, that realisation that things can go in… well, other things!

It’s been amazing to see how each child approaches this activity but there are some really important milestones and real world realisations which are happening.

The exploration of transporting objects to containers allows children to examine space, movement of objects and volumes. It also allows them to explore how permanent an object is and also how to encompass it.

The repetitive movements allow them to refine and master skills like pouring and aiming, it also helps to calm as they find their flow. This semi-meditative state is something we saw all week during our classes. The little black-eye beans being scooped up and dropped into the demijohns allowed the children to slow down and become more accurate in their approach. Any quick sudden movements were very rarely rewarded with successful filling!

Children as they get older will lose this innate need to fill and empty objects because they master the skill quite simply. But don’t put away those containers just yet, give them chance to master the skill in more complex ways!

If your little one is beyond 6-7 years try these skills to prolong that wonder, creativity and give them some more real life, real world skills to master along the same path.

  • Give them a set of weighing scales and a “target” number to reach. Once they’ve achieved it, set another one! And if that becomes too easy, how’s about mixing a recipe all by themself?
  • Play with water and set levels to reach on the side of a bottle. Lines drawn in a marker pen on the side can provide a challenge as they fill to reach the line. Anything over the line and they’ll have to start again from scratch!
  • How’s about mixing solids and liquids with a healthy risk taking – can they help make a cup of coffee or hot chocolate? Give them a jug, a lighter alternative to a heavy kettle to pour the hot water.

So this weeks #steammsunday is a simple one. Get moving by filling and emptying!

Giving Control to Learn

Giving Control to Learn

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How do you give children the opportunity to take control of their own learning journey? And more importantly, how can you play a part in ensuring that they’re able to keep moving forward? 

“Play is the work of the child” Maria Montessori

It’s so easy at home to fall into the routine day to day, the rhythms of the week create a certain amount of security and comfort for young children. So what happens when we want to start introducing activities which we know will be fun, giving the child extra depth to their play but with a secret educational element, does your little push back and resist? 
If you have a preschooler, it might be that they’re happy just playing with their usual toys, deep into a flow which they perhaps don’t want to break. For school children it might be they’re so overloaded from a day at school they just don’t want any more “organised” activities. 

I’m a firm believer in giving children autonomy in their learning journey, they have the choices and they have the reigns as to how and what they want (and are ready) to learn. However…. I also believe in the Vygotsky theory of education; the Zone of Proximal Development. 

The ZPD is essentially saying that if a child were to continue their learning trajectory with no intervention, their learning would not reflect their abilities and stage of development. With carefully thought out small advances from a parent or teacher, the child will continue to progress and learn new subjects and topics which are slightly out of their current learning ability. 
Basically being able to assess where your little ones needs are in the present and how to give them activities which are just a step more advanced. That balance between a step and a leap is something you’ll get to learn in time and with practise. 

As a parent and teacher, I would be looking for signs to see where my little is currently happy playing. Then I would begin to introduce activities which are slightly out of their current ability. For example, my son is able to pick up two blocks and hold them together. He’s not quite ready to “build” a tower from the floor. I show him how I put a block down first, take a second and place it on top. He tries, he fails, he tries again and fails. He’ll do this over and over for the next 5 minutes until, he finds the key, a slightly softer hand, slows down and carefully places the block onto the other…. it’s not perfect, it stays for a moment then wobbles off, but he understood what was needed. He might not be able to fully accomplish building for weeks yet but he’s building (!) the framework he needs now. 

So, my #steammsunday tip this week. 
So as not to overwhelm or disrupt your little one from their current learning objectives, formulate a plan! 

– Firstly collate 3-5 activities which you really think your little one would enjoy. 
– Then together (this really is the key) with your little, have them pick 1-3 of the activities which THEY would like to do during the week. 

That’s the plan… simple. 

When you collate the activities yourself, have no expectations about which you WILL do. Having the intention is the first step here.
By giving your little the control over what they’d like to do really builds their confidence and trust in you. Becoming Learning Buddies is the goal here. Long term the goal is when you’re able to suggest activities which will be greatly received. But that takes time. 

Here’s the final thought though, what happens when you don’t do all 1-3 of the activities you’d planned? Well, that’s over to you. If your week ran away with you and you genuinely didn’t have chance, that’s OK! Give yourself a break, you’re a parent and that’s a damn tough job. 
If you had the chance but didn’t take it, gently ask yourself why. What was stopping you? And be honest with yourself. Was it the mess, was it the energy, did you lose confidence in the activity? Try not to dwell too much, just roll it onto the following week and try again. 

Let me know what you think, is there anything you struggle with or need more inspiration with? I’m here to help so get in touch. 

Thanks for reading, 

Lorna x

Learning to Enhance Learning

Learning to Enhance Learning

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This weeks #steammsunday isn’t an activity. For you parents it’s something to think about and perhaps begin to integrate into your week if you feel it’s right for you. The language and actions we present as parents. A lot comes down to you as a parent and how you guide your little one.

These are my top tips and hopefully little elements for you to add in;

Being conscious of how you speak to your little one. Giving them language which speaks about their actions rather than them as a person. Avoid using “good girl/boy” if possible, it tells them that them as a person is good/bad, rather than the action they’ve just done. By separating the child and the behaviour, you’re able to guide their actions without telling your child THEY are good/bad inherently.  

“You worked so hard building that tower, did you enjoy making it?”

“It’s such a shame your tower fell down when you pushed it, perhaps you could build it again?”

“I’m not sure George is ready to stop playing with the blocks yet, I can see you’re feeling frustrated. We can ask him to give them to you when he’s done perhaps?”

If they’re set on an activity and not ready to move on, guide their play by describing what you see. Imagine you’re picked up and dragged away from something you’re not quite finished with, rightly you’d be pretty grumpy too! Allow your little one the time to master the skill they’re working on, if they’re in a flow you’re in a great place to extend their learning.

“I see you’ve used the block there, is that a wall?”

“I wonder how your cup will fit under that tap, lets see”

“Look at the way your fingers grab the play dough, can you make it look like a hand?”

Or if it’s time to leave or finish a session try giving them a 5 minute warning to begin bringing their play to an end. They’ll gain a sense of control by ending the activity themself rather than being told to stop. Potentially avoiding meltdowns.

“Just to let you know the session is finishing in 5 minutes, where shall we go next?”

“Our class is due to finish in 5 minutes, is there anything else you’d like to play with before we leave today?”

Putting your child at the centre of their own learning journey. When a child has a say in what they want to explore, the likelihood is that they’re more likely to be engaged and ready to learn. HOWEVER this comes with a word of caution. You as a parent have a duty to your little one. Would they be happy watching TV eating ice cream all day? Probably, but are they going to be progressing in their life? I’m being overly dramatic of course, but the point still stands; children don’t know what they don’t know.

Presenting children with options and choices to guide their learning and interests gives you a great opportunity to broaden their world. Give them the options to choose from and let them feel some autonomy in their learning journey.

There’s so much to consider day to day when you’re a parent. Loving our children unconditionally will always be number 1. They’re incredible little souls, just waiting for each opportunity to grow. This week, pick one thing to try if it feels right for you. Let me know how you get on.