Articles
A selection of favorite articles, covering everything from play to birth.
Teaching Eco Literacy Through Children's Craft Activities
Crafternoons came about as a way of offering crafts for children that don't end up in the bin! We wanted to give children something meaningful to make and for their creations to be use-full with a real-life purpose. On top of that, we noticed that many children's craft activities were...
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How We Teach Eco-literacy
While putting together the Authentic Learning Environment education model, it was essential to address the environmental crisis. The planet is struggling with a decline of nature, increasing pollution and ecocide, all happening at local and global levels. This is everyone's crisis, especially for our children! We need to educate now, people who can address this growing crisis...
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Key-Hole Garden
There are three amazing things to know about the Key-Hole Garden design; it can successfully provide food for a family all year round (one), regardless of the soil quality of the area (two) and in just about any climate (three). If ever you were going to grow-your-own, it figures that learning to build a garden that is guaranteed to yield is a must.
KEEP READING Published on the Root-and-Branch Out CIC website blog June 2019 |
The Genius of Emmi PiklerThere are many roads that can lead us to discovering the work of Emmi Pikler. Whether we are seeking a successful infant group-care model, information on how to parent with respect, sourcing indoor play equipment or material on motor development - these roads are formed and paved with original ideas that began with Emmi Pikler and developed throughout her life’s work.
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Schemas in Childrens Play
Schemas are such an important part in every child's development that they are covered in training for anyone in the business of care and education of young children - yet not too many parents seem to know about these natural, uncontrollable and totally necessary urges that all children have.
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Five Easy Steps for the Observer
We always have good reasons when we chase, follow, call out, or hold our children’s hands. Yet unwittingly, these very behaviours of ours hinder our children stepping into the rich world of child-led play.
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The Adult Role in Child-led Play – How to Become a Learning Ally
Many people believe that children are around three years old before can safely play unassisted, before they will be in control of their bodies enough to not hurt themselves, and be in control of their emotions enough to not hurt or be picked on by peers. Unfortunately for many children, many adults do not understand that it is the uninterrupted play itself that grows the very qualities they are waiting for - and long before a child's third year.
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The Nature Connection
How do we foster a love of nature and evolve imaginations and creativity in our young children? The answer is simple; take your children out into nature and leave the toys behind. At Nature Play we do not bring toys, we are there to bond with nature, not with toys.
KEEP READING Published in The Space Magazine (Child Space NZ) 2013 |
Keeping Curiosity Alive
It’s a bit hard to miss: the media are saying it, the environmentalists and naturalists are saying it, there are campaigns and organisations working hard to get the message out there… our planet Earth is in trouble. KEEP READING
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Some Practical Play Support GuidelinesWhat kind of play? The word ‘play’ is used in many ways to mean different things. Here we talk about the play intelligence that is embedded into the very nature of the human being. And through play, intelligence unfolds.
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There's No Such Thing as Miserable Rain
If I started talking about something as being miserable, horrid, ghastly or awful - what sort of picture am I painting about this 'something'? Many of us unconsciously talk about nature in this negative way.
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The Tale of Olivia’s Birth - Homebirth After CesareanThey say that most parents these days will reflect back on their birth experience and think, “well thank goodness we’re all alive”, and hopefully you can add, “and healthy”. “What’s wrong with that?” you ask? For us, we had that whole phrase on repeat after our firstdaughter’s birth. We were thanking our lucky stars that after a very long three day labour which ended in an emergency C-section, that everyone was alive and healthy at the end of the ordeal. KEEP READING
Published in Midwifery Matters Autumn 2016 |
Adventure is Out There
Nature Play has been designed to bring together three key elements that contribute to the healthy development of the child; time spent outdoors in nature, 100% child-led play and offering the adult’s ways in which to support children in their child-led play. KEEP READING
Published in PACEY Childcare Professional Magazine Summer 2016 |
Castle Meadow Project
Wildflowers in November? It did seem a bit early, a bit cold and wintery to be thinking about wildflowers in November. However, that is when planning started for the Castle Meadow Project. Would it be possible to transform part of the Oakham Castle mote wall into an English wildflower meadow? KEEP READING
Published on the Oakham Castle blog July 2018 |
An Introduction to
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Teaching Social Literacy Through Behaviour PolicyThere was a problem among the children at our weekly Home Education group, a mixed age group ranging from three years to 14 years, numbers sometimes reaching around 15 on a busy day. As with many communication breakdowns, it began slowly, the first signs were spotted one late summer afternoon. By winter the breakdown had escalated... KEEP READING
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Imagination 101
Imagination: the ability to bring to mind things and experiences that are not present. We are not born with imaginations already 'installed'. Imaginations are developed at a tremendous speed in childhood, through the environments we grow up in, and through play. KEEP READING
Published in the Early Childhood Outdoors (ECO) online library December 2019 |
Slings: An Essential Piece of Newborn Kit
What to look for when buying a sling for your baby and you? You... you need a sling that will support your back. Baby... understand how your baby should sit.
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Shoes: Healthy Feet
Young feet are soft and malleable things, and with ill fitting shoes feet can easily mould themselves into foot problems. Foot trouble can also come with knock-on affects such as bad posture, knee, hip, back pain, headaches and more. Having healthy feet depends on having healthy shoes and plenty of barefoot time.
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Sleep: A Place to Sleep
Babies sleep a lot, will sleep anywhere, and we need to find a safe place for them to sleep. There are a couple of options to consider when shopping for a ‘place to sleep’ for your baby but first its important that we look at what sleep is for babies and children…
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Mealtime - Connection TimeStarting solids can be such a big topic when we have little people in our lives- it's helpful to know that its not all about food though. To understand this important developmental journey, we can start by looking at the two key parts, mealtimes being about food and about the relationship! KEEP READING
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