Toddler Group Activities

Threading

Threading beads is an activity that children love and can be a great aid to learning… But why?

· Children love repetition, it’s how they learn to perfect a skill

· Threading can be an activity that grows with your child helping them to sort, create patterns, count and sequence

· The activity can help  them  to concentrate and to unwind

· It aids dexterity and improve fine motor skills

 

When can children start to thread?

Ages 1-3: Try large beads with big centre holes on a fairly thick shoelace with a plastic end that helps the threading process. Your young child may need a little help the first few times, for example, holding the string, or starting the bead on the string, but soon they will be impatient to do it themselves! Try threading other objects that have a hole in the centre such as small hoops, cotton reels, toys with jug like handles, hair bobbles, hoop breakfast cereal (lovely to eat as part of the activity)

Ages 3-5: Use progressively smaller beads, or beads of varying sizes and colours. Try a thinner twine or skinny shoelace at this age!  Introduce a bodkin type needle. Begin to create repeating patterns using different colours or shapes. Thread pasta, breakfast cereal or sweets. Count the ‘beads’ and look at counting in 2’s, and 5’s by creating number sequences.  

Extending the activity:  Use a pipe cleaner as the lace to create a bracelet , make necklaces and bracelets, make themed strings of beads e.g. snow flakes, Christmas baubles. Let your child design their own necklace. Create massive threading fun using rope and airflow balls for outside. Shop at charity shops with your child and help them find some amazing beads for their creations. Make some little party gifts by putting bead collections and thread or elastic into little bags so their friends can make their own jewelry. Try threading buttons and for a more masculine bracelet use leather threads and wooden beads/symbol beads.
 

     

 

 

 

Autumn fun

                                                         Autumn Creativity
I always think Autumn positively overloads your senses...all the beautiful Autumn colours, the sound and feel of rustling leaves beneath your feet, misty mornings, damp vegetation and smoky bonfires, bonfire toffee, chestnuts and hotdogs yummmmm! So much to get creative about and to celebrate!

Here are some activities to do with your little ones:

• Go on an Autumn walk and make a collection of signs of Autumn...create an old fashioned nature table / nature basket and with the help of a magnifying glass simply explore.
• Collect leaves and do leaf rubbings using Autumnal coloured wax crayons. If you then place them face down on plain fabric and use plenty of scrap paper to protect the iron and table you can iron the leaf rubbings onto fabric to create lovely Autumn material.
• Create an Autumn bouquet using grasses, twigs, wheat and barley, Autumn flowers.
• Make an Autumn collage either abstract or create a recognisable picture using strong glue.
• Make an Autumn picture as a transitional piece of art work...take a photo as you don't keep the picture, the pieces are used again and again.
• Use a cardboard tube to scan the countryside / park for signs of Autumn...use it like a telescope.
• Fruit printing...half apples create a lovely shape to print with.
• Create an Autumn weave using leaves, grasses etc. woven through a basic frame work created using a forked stick and wool or string.
• Make a scarecrow puppet using a wooden spoon and bits of fabric and natural materials.
• Make a simple headband using a ring of card and decorate it with Autumn leaves forming an Autumn crown.
• Memory tray game using a number of Autumn objects...take a good look, cover and remove an item...children guess what is missing.
• Cut out felt leaves using orange, brown and red felt and then decorate them, either sewing simple stitches or sticking collage sequins, buttons etc. onto the surface.
• Attached leaves to string or ribbon and hang up to form a temporary Autumn banner.
• Create a simple Autumn treasure bottle for a toddler by filling a plastic see through bottle with orange, yellow, brown and red ribbons, pom-poms, cut out leaves, conkers and acorns. Seal the bottle if your child is still at the stage where everything goes in their mouth or leave to open if they enjoy tipping, sorting and posting.

• Create an Autumn treasure box, including everything mentioned so far but also include Autumn clothes such as hat scarf and gloves, photographs of Autumn days and some autumn themed drapes and ribbons.
• Draw around leaves on coloured card, decorate them and glue onto a polo shaped ring to create an Autumn wreath.
• Make an Autumn sun catcher using a paper plate with the centre cut out. Replace the centre with clear sticky backed plastic and lay a few really pretty Autumn leaves onto the sticky surface. Hang up against a window and let the light shine through.
• Cut out different leaf shapes from strong card and simply let your child wrap them with orange, red or yellow yarn...it's really easy, good for fine motor skills and very satisfying.
• Play hide and seek with apples or conkers around the room.
• Use Vivaldi's Autumn music and let your child move to the music. They can be Autumn leaves floating, twirling, falling and tumbling around in the wind. The addition of some ribbons or my special dance bands adds to the enjoyment. I make them to match themes and they Velcro easily onto the wrist. They have even been used on wheel chairs so those using them can join in the dance fun.

• Create a simple feely bag with lots of Autumn related items inside to encourage descriptive language.
• Make Autumn shakers by filling plastic bottles with Autumn seeds, one with acorns, one with conkers...try sunflower seeds and anything you find when out and about this autumn. Use the shaker to accompany some Autumn songs...you can find lots on the internet.
• The PVA glue can add weeks to the life of Autumn leaves so they can be used long after others shrivel and collapse. It also enhances the colours...just paint each side leaving to dry each time. They will need to be thrown away after a few weeks but that's fine because Winter is on it's way as soon as Autumn begins!
• Make Autumn necklaces using conkers and leaves...an adult will need to drill a hole in the conkers prior to the activity.
• Look at the Scripture Union web site to explore an alternative to a Halloween Party...hold your own Light Party.

An Apple Project

• Visit an orchard, a fruit farm, a green grocers, the veg stall at the supermarket
• Photograph where the apple comes from
• Buy a selection of apples...are they all the same? What do they taste like? What do they smell like? Which do you like best?
• Cook apples - make apple pie, baked apple, toffee apples, apple chutney
• Look at the apple on the outside, guess what's on the inside, Cox, Russet cut it open, print with it. Look at the funny names of apples - Granny Smiths, Golden delicious, Look at the different sizes and order them from smallest to the largest
• Wonder at the way an apple is constructed/created
• Apple parts: peel. skin, stalk, core, pip, leaf, flesh -What is wind fall
• Questions to ask: Are apples red? Is an apple dead or alive, where are the pips, what are the pips,
• Investigate apples using a knife, a peeler, a juicer, a corer, a grater

Hope these ideas are enough to get you started on making the most of Autumn with your children.

Babies, Toddlers and Childrens Spirituality

Spirituality can be defined in many different ways but I particularly like the way Rebecca Nye, a prominent Christian writer,  explains it....
"All human beings are spiritual people...this is the way God made us...spirituality is something already there to be cherished, rather than something to be added on...What is spirituality? Delighting in all things. Being absorbed in the present moment. Not too attached to self and eager to explore boundaries beyond. Searching for meaning. Discovering purpose. Open to more."
I believe every baby is born with a strong spiritual aspect to their lives and this should be nurtured just as any other aspect of their lives such as creativity and physicality.
The UN Convention on the rights of every child refers to children having spiritual rights and it is the law in English and Welsh schools to encourage spiritual development in all areas of learning ensuring children gain the ability to be reflective about their own beliefs....to develop their sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves, others and the world around them...to develop their use of imagination and creativity in their learning and develop a willingness to reflect on their experiences.
What an exciting mission for those who look after children either at home or away from their homes.
I believe children's spirituality has been forgotten by many and it is time we redressed the balance and look creatively at ways we can help children explore life in spiritual way...creativity and spirituality go hand in hand. One of the defining elements of spiritual learning is that children experience awe and wonder, develop respect for the world and living creatures, develop wisdom, learn to ask questions, reflect upon answers, trust in their own ideas and develop a clear sense of right and wrong. By developing the "whole child" including their spirituality they grow up with a firm foundation that prepares them for all that life will throw at them. Look out for my posts that encourage spiritual development.