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<strong>Issue</strong> 6 April <strong>2015</strong><br />
GUEST:<br />
Teaching young<br />
children to develop<br />
good sleep habits<br />
Are you<br />
paying your<br />
staff the<br />
right wages?<br />
Top tips to encourage<br />
toddlers to learn to talk
Contents<br />
GUEST:<br />
Benefits of sensory play for children with SEN<br />
GUEST:<br />
Teaching young children to develop good sleep<br />
habits<br />
GUEST:<br />
Top tips to encourage toddlers to learn to talk<br />
GUEST:<br />
Identifying and managing food allergies in<br />
young children<br />
How to get a business loan<br />
Are you paying your staff the right wages?<br />
Making an origami dress<br />
We hope you enjoy our latest edition<br />
Daffodowndilly<br />
She wore her yellow sun-bonnet,<br />
She wore her greenest gown;<br />
She turned to the south wind<br />
And curtsied up and down.<br />
She turned to the sunlight<br />
And shook her yellow head,<br />
And whispered to her neighbour:<br />
“Winter is dead.”<br />
by A.A. Milne<br />
April <strong>2015</strong>
Benefits of sensory play for<br />
children with SEN<br />
by Lisa Lane<br />
Incorporating sensory play<br />
We are all different and how we learn is different too. Therefore, it is important to<br />
recognise, particularly for SEN children, how their needs can be met to give the best<br />
learning experience possible. By incorporating various forms of sensory play into the<br />
everyday learning experience we are able to enhance the learning journey of every child.<br />
Allowing children the luxury of discovering their world in more interesting and stimulating<br />
ways means they can experience challenges, success and peer teaching, whatever<br />
their ability!<br />
We know from research that sensory<br />
play allows children to engage with their<br />
environment, develop social skills,<br />
language and learn. For children with<br />
special educational needs where a child’s<br />
ability to learn in the same way as their<br />
peers is affected, sensory play can be<br />
highly beneficial.<br />
Social development<br />
A sensory play tray can engage<br />
numerous senses, creating an inviting,<br />
calming and tactile stimulus for children of<br />
all abilities. Playing alongside peers in such<br />
an environment takes away the pressure<br />
for a particular outcome and allows the<br />
children to develop their own games,<br />
scenarios and learning experience.<br />
Social relationships become more natural<br />
if children are all engaged in digging in the<br />
sand or finding letters in the tub of dried<br />
pasta. While the learning aspect is what<br />
letter sounds are found, the focus is on the<br />
fun of digging! A sensory table filled with<br />
animals, vehicles, different textures, scent<br />
pouches, nature items and sound<br />
shakers is a platform for all learning<br />
abilities and open-ended play. By theming<br />
the play table, different learning goals can<br />
be incorporated because - as Albert<br />
Einstein stated - ‘Play is the highest form of<br />
research’.<br />
Learning through<br />
sensory stimulus<br />
As children learn to use their senses more<br />
and more, the better they become at<br />
exploring the world via those senses. For<br />
instance, if a child with SEN is more open<br />
to tactile learning, then teaching with<br />
this in mind will be beneficial to their<br />
individual development.<br />
Learning to write doesn’t have to be just sat<br />
at a table with a pencil and paper, but can<br />
be mark making on a tray filled with foam<br />
or forming letters out of play-dough. Once<br />
the letter formation and hand-eye coordination<br />
is learnt, the finer motor skill of writing<br />
can be introduced.<br />
Using a combination of senses can also<br />
be beneficial to everyday learning. By<br />
listening to a story read aloud whilst<br />
following the words in a book and hearing<br />
the difference in expression, a child can<br />
develop language, emotion and social<br />
skills. Music and dance will allow gross<br />
motor skills to develop and can incorporate<br />
learning key information such as days of the<br />
week, the alphabet or number sequences.<br />
The use of different approaches to play and<br />
learning will allow a child with SEN to get<br />
the most from their environment.<br />
Lisa Lane launched Sensory Scenes in 2014 with the aim to provide<br />
themed bags of fun for play, exploring and learning. With three boys<br />
of her own, she is passionate about children being able to manipulate,<br />
explore and use their imagination. Sensory Scenes’ themed bags are perfect for<br />
individual play, sensory tray play and themed subject planning.<br />
Follow Sensory Scenes on Facebook, on Twitter @sensoryscenes,<br />
visit the website or email lisa@sensoryscenes.co.uk
Teaching young children to<br />
develop good sleep habits<br />
by Tracy Newberry<br />
Tracy Newberry, a baby sleep coach and sleep consultant, is the founder of<br />
Happy Baby and Me. She teaches sleep in a gentle reassuring way; never using<br />
any of the ‘cry it out methods’. Tracy was passionate about working with children<br />
from an early age and began working as a nanny in London when she was 18. A<br />
year and a half later, she returned to her home country of South Africa, where she<br />
nannied and worked as a nursery school teacher. Arriving back in London in 2009,<br />
Tracy continues to work with families, growing her experience and childcare<br />
knowledge. As her passion for teaching sleep grew, she set up her own business<br />
Happy Baby and Me. Tracy now helps many babies and young children learn the<br />
wonderful skill of falling asleep in a gentle,<br />
Teaching a baby the skill of falling asleep is one of the first skills we will ever teach our little<br />
ones and indeed one of the greatest skills we can teach them. We all know how vital sleep<br />
is for ourselves and for our children. Having adequate sleep is even more important for<br />
babies and young children who need sleep to grow, store memories and develop,<br />
mentally and physically. It goes without saying how very important sleep is.<br />
It may feel that we need to help babies<br />
fall asleep or actually put them to sleep<br />
each time, but in reality it is not always<br />
necessary. As adults, we are not put<br />
to sleep. We fall asleep. Sleep is not a<br />
science, but a skill.<br />
By teaching a child good sleep<br />
habits and positive sleep<br />
associations you are setting<br />
them up for great sleep in<br />
the future. It’s never too late<br />
to start. Teaching sleep should<br />
always be done in a gentle,<br />
loving way. Just as if you were<br />
teaching anything else to a child<br />
in life: with time, patience and<br />
consistency, sleep independence<br />
is absolutely achievable.<br />
To sleep and to fall asleep is a wonderful natural activity. A baby would have been<br />
sleeping in his mother’s womb for much of the time before he was born. Sleep is not a<br />
difficult thing for a baby to do, but if you begin to do too much for baby to get him to sleep,<br />
you begin to take away his sleep independence. He slowly learns to become dependant<br />
upon you to help him sleep. In fact, he begins to learn that he needs external help in order<br />
to fall asleep.<br />
It can get tiring very quickly for you if you take away baby’s sleep independence. By<br />
teaching baby good sleep associations and encouraging good sleep habits from early on,<br />
baby will be assured of the vital sleep that he needs.<br />
What you teach a child, they will often take as the absolute truth. Imagine you taught a<br />
child that a sock was called a banana (we wouldn’t do such a thing) but imagine it. The<br />
child, until corrected, would think the word for sock was not sock but indeed banana. That<br />
is how children believe so passionately about Father Christmas and The Tooth Fairy. They<br />
have taken us at our word. Until they learn differently, they believe it to be the truth.<br />
Similarly, if you teach baby that by rocking or feeding him to go to sleep is the way to<br />
go to sleep, he will believe that that is the only way to go to sleep. Each time you rock or<br />
feed baby to sleep, you take away from baby the precious chance and opportunity to fall<br />
asleep alone.
Top tips to encourage toddlers<br />
to learn to talk<br />
Interaction - wanting to communicate, both verbally (words)<br />
and non-verbally (gesture, tone of voice, facial expression)<br />
Listening - recognising that someone is communicating with<br />
us, physically hearing what is being said and being able to pay attention<br />
long enough to focus<br />
by Kathryn Stinton<br />
As practitioners, it’s easy to focus mainly on how children say<br />
words, particularly when they mispronounce certain sounds.<br />
But, if we think of communication as making a<br />
cake - clear speech is the icing on the cake<br />
and the main ingredients are:<br />
Understanding - making sense of the vocabulary being used by the other<br />
person, processing any comments, instructions or questions<br />
Responding - thinking carefully about how we react to what has been said, choosing the correct<br />
vocabulary and sentence structure, finding the correct sounds and physically producing them clearly<br />
and fluently<br />
Monitoring - evaluating the other person’s response, do we need to<br />
adjust our communication to help them understand?<br />
With young children, self-chosen play is the key way for them to interact while we play alongside them.<br />
It’s important we don’t try to take over the play and reduce the number of questions we ask, as this puts<br />
unnecessary pressure on them to talk. Ideally, there should be a ratio of 4:1 comments to questions.<br />
The listening stage is key to developing successful communication. Try some of the activities from Phase<br />
1 of the Letters and Sounds document.<br />
Don’t assume that children have a good vocabulary, many may have gaps in their knowledge and will be<br />
unable to identify household items, animals, items of clothing, vehicles and toys. Children need to<br />
understand what an object is before they can name it, so the following activities and strategies can help:<br />
Sharing simple books with you naming the pictures as the child points to them<br />
Laminated photos of basic objects (make sure the photo background is plain so the object is<br />
clear to the child) which you can hide around the room and find with a torch or magnifying<br />
glass, stick outside, use as stepping stones, play a matching game, stick on<br />
plastic bottles to use as skittles or throw beanbags onto<br />
Putting small world items in a feelie bag or pillow case and taking turns to<br />
pull them out<br />
Giving children choices so they can copy a word you say in a relaxed way. For example,<br />
“juice or milk? Sand or water? Teddy or doll?”<br />
Opportunities to have fun with sounds and words in rhymes and songs<br />
Further resources<br />
The Communication Trust has a useful downloadable book called Universally<br />
Speaking which outlines the typical stages of speech and language<br />
development. It also suggests ways to support children.<br />
They have also recently published a free e-learning module entitled<br />
An Introduction to Speech, Language and Communication which will<br />
help you understand more about communication<br />
development in children.
Did you Know we do?<br />
Training<br />
Level 1 Introduction to Health, Social Care and<br />
Children and Young People’s Settings<br />
Level 2 Children and Young<br />
People’s Workforce<br />
Level 3 Early Years Educator<br />
Level 5 Childcare Leadership Qualification<br />
Assessor Award<br />
Level 2 Diploma Business Administration<br />
Level 3 Diploma Business Administration<br />
Level 2 Diploma in Team Leading<br />
Level 3 Diploma in Management<br />
Nursery management software<br />
Our award winning software has been designed to<br />
provide you with more hours in the week, giving you<br />
more time to focus on enriching a child’s learning<br />
experience<br />
Footsteps EYFS Software<br />
Footsteps makes it easy for you to capture detailed<br />
notes when observing a child play or interact, as well<br />
as making it quicker to identify where that child is in<br />
their own development pathway.<br />
Dayshare<br />
Dayshare is software which allows you to capture a<br />
full day’s activities for an individual child or group of<br />
children and email this to parents, making sure they<br />
never miss a moment.<br />
Fee Collection<br />
Fee collection is a service which collect money from<br />
parents’ bank accounts every month on your behalf.<br />
This means that rather than you struggling to speak<br />
with parents about how much they owe, you can<br />
talk to them about what really matters instead - their<br />
children.<br />
Websites<br />
The internet is the go-to place to find childcare, so<br />
having an online presence is soo important. We can<br />
work with you to build a great website which reflects<br />
the services you provide.<br />
For more information<br />
Call 0844 504 5504<br />
Email contact@parenta.com
Food allergies in<br />
young children<br />
By Katharine Tate<br />
The Food Teacher, Katharine Tate, is an award winning nutritional therapist, she has founded The Food Teacher<br />
brand that combines her passion for education and nutrition to deliver a healthy childhood, focusing on<br />
promoting family health through food and lifestyle. For more information, visit her Facebook page, follow her<br />
on Twitter or email her at thefoodteacheruk@gmail.com<br />
Childhood allergy is becoming increasingly common in the UK, with 50% of children<br />
being affected. Food allergy symptoms can be wide ranging and for many, they can be<br />
life threatening (e.g. anaphylaxis). An awareness of symptoms is essential within all<br />
childcare settings and an understanding of allergies and their management can help<br />
teachers and parents work together. These factors can support a child’s development,<br />
concentration and learning and can also reduce/eliminate opportunities for exposure.<br />
What causes allergies?<br />
Allergies are caused when the body reacts to an offending protein, triggering the<br />
immune system to respond inappropriately every time there is exposure. Allergens<br />
are the substances which trigger the body’s inappropriate reaction. As allergies<br />
can be triggered by a range of different allergens, symptoms can present in a<br />
whole host of different ways and may develop suddenly without any obvious cause.<br />
Common allergens<br />
The commonest allergens in children include peanuts, tree nuts, milk,<br />
eggs, wheat, fish, pollens from tree and grasses, house dust mites<br />
and insect stings.<br />
Symptoms to note<br />
The majority of symptoms are linked to areas of the body that come into<br />
contact with the external environment as the cells which react to allergens<br />
are found in these body tissues. Some common symptoms include watery,<br />
tchy eyes, runny, blocked nose, swollen lips/tongue, wheezy breathing or<br />
bumpy, itchy skin.<br />
Allergy or Intolerance?<br />
An allergy is very different to a food intolerance, which can be<br />
a short-lived reaction to a specific food. Individuals with an<br />
intolerance may be able to eat small amounts of the offending<br />
food without the level of reaction of an allergy.<br />
Impact of suffering from an allergy<br />
The impact of an allergy can have a huge<br />
effect on a child, especially as symptoms<br />
may disrupt sleep and mood, which can<br />
affect their development and concentration.<br />
Strategies to support them within each<br />
setting can be helpful.<br />
Why is allergy becoming more prevalent?<br />
Research suggests a range of factors may<br />
relate to the rise in allergic conditions.<br />
These include genetics: with 1 in 5 children<br />
in the UK having a predisposition to<br />
developing an allergy. The ‘clean’<br />
environment children tend to live in<br />
today which reduces their exposure to<br />
micro-organisms and bacteria which help<br />
to develop their immunity may also play a<br />
role, with the lack of exposure potentially<br />
unbalancing the immune response and<br />
increasing the body’s drive to react to<br />
allergens. Other factors could also include<br />
potential nutrient deficiencies, which may<br />
increase the risk of developing an allergy.<br />
Current research is around vitamin D and<br />
omega-3 fatty acids.<br />
How can it be managed in<br />
childcare settings?<br />
1. Having agreed procedures and<br />
paperwork in place of which all staff<br />
are trained is vital (see Allergy UK for<br />
an example document).<br />
2. Reducing exposure, e.g. children with<br />
asthma should not sit near an open<br />
window in the summer, temperature of<br />
the environment is key for children<br />
with eczema.<br />
3. As there is a strong genetic link, it is<br />
useful to ask parents in your paperwork<br />
if they have an allergy or have had one<br />
in the past.<br />
4. When cooking with children, always opt<br />
for ingredients which don’t contain the<br />
common allergens, e.g. bake with gluten<br />
free flour, use seeds instead of nuts<br />
in recipes.<br />
5. For snack time - low allergenic foods<br />
can be offered including fruit, wheat free<br />
snacks, e.g. oatcakes, seeds, vegetables<br />
and hummus.<br />
Interesting developments<br />
Ongoing research brings with it new<br />
and innovative strategies for dealing with<br />
allergy, which may help to control the rise<br />
and find a resolution for many. Finding a<br />
cure for allergies is hot topic, with<br />
immunotherapy having had some success.<br />
This involves controlled, gradual exposure<br />
to the offending allergy under medical<br />
supervision, which can modify the body’s<br />
immune response to that of an intolerance<br />
rather than an allergy. This is an area of<br />
interest to watch out for as<br />
research continues.
How to get a business loan<br />
According to the European Commission,<br />
the economy in the UK is forecast to grow<br />
by <strong>2.4</strong> per cent in <strong>2015</strong>. With the cost of<br />
borrowing cheaper than it has been for<br />
many years and credit becoming widely<br />
available, demand for lending in Britain is<br />
also on the rise.<br />
This is positive news for those wanting to<br />
start a childcare business or expand the<br />
size of their setting this year.<br />
Before you jump in and apply for as many<br />
different loans as you can think of,<br />
remember that every lender will have<br />
different eligibility criteria and specific things<br />
they’re looking for. With this in mind, you’ll<br />
increase the chances of being accepted for<br />
a loan if you spend time doing your<br />
homework before submitting<br />
your application.<br />
Here’s our top 6 tips to help you<br />
get a business loan:<br />
1. Put together you loan proposal<br />
Before you approach a lender, put<br />
together a loan proposal. This document<br />
should provide some background about<br />
you and your childcare business. It should<br />
also cover these important questions:<br />
1. How much do you need to borrow?<br />
2. For how long do you want to borrow it?<br />
3. What will you spend the money on?<br />
4. How do you plan to pay it back?<br />
Use the loan proposal to demonstrate<br />
you’ve carried out thorough research into<br />
local demand for childcare in the area, rival<br />
competitors and how you’ll fill a gap in the<br />
market with your service.<br />
2. Prepare your paperwork<br />
Get your “financial house” in order.<br />
Lenders are likely to want to see your<br />
statutory accounts from the past 3 years,<br />
but ask the lender specifically what<br />
documents they want to see - as this can<br />
vary. The more prepared you are with your<br />
paperwork beforehand; the more likely you<br />
are to instil confidence in the lender to<br />
approve your loan request.<br />
3. Do you have security?<br />
Lenders will normally require some form<br />
of security from you, such as a building to<br />
secure the loan against. If this isn’t possible,<br />
you may be eligible for the government’s<br />
Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG). This is<br />
a system where the government provides<br />
75% of the security and is worth looking<br />
in to.<br />
4. Check your credit rating<br />
If you already have a childcare business,<br />
check your company’s credit rating before<br />
you apply for a business loan. Most<br />
lenders will want to assure themselves that<br />
the people they’re lending to have a good<br />
track record of managing their finances.<br />
5. Invest in a smart shirt<br />
Incredibly, it takes just 7 seconds for people<br />
to form their first opinion of you. Although<br />
comfy clothing is the norm when you work<br />
in childcare, you can create a good<br />
impression with the lender in your first<br />
meeting if you dress smartly. Having<br />
polished shoes and a well groomed<br />
appearance will help to show the lender<br />
that you’re serious about getting your<br />
loan approved.<br />
6. Prepare to talk scenarios<br />
Whilst it’s great to talk positively about what<br />
the loan will be used for, be prepared to<br />
talk your lender through your plans for<br />
dealing with possible threats to the<br />
success of your business. It may be helpful<br />
to jot down all the different scenarios you<br />
can think of: low occupancy, competition<br />
from other businesses etc and come up<br />
with a solution to overcome each challenge.<br />
Sources of funding<br />
Many people will go directly to their bank<br />
manager for a business loan, as they have<br />
already built up a familiar relationship with<br />
them over many years. However, it might<br />
be worth your while to explore other options<br />
for funding your start up or expanding your<br />
nursery:<br />
Peer to peer lending<br />
An alternative to a traditional bank loan is<br />
Funding Circle. This is a government<br />
backed lender that has lent over £487<br />
million pounds to British business since it<br />
was created. Of this, a large proportion<br />
of funding has been secured by small<br />
businesses and start ups. Funding Circle<br />
provides loans from £5,000 - £1mil and is<br />
reputed to have a quick turnaround time<br />
if your application is approved. However,<br />
interest rates can be higher than if you<br />
used a bank.<br />
Business grants<br />
If you’re looking to start up a nursery from<br />
scratch and do not currently run a childcare<br />
business, you may be eligible for a £500<br />
grant. The government has announced<br />
that it will fund a £2 mil extension of its<br />
Childcare Business Grant Scheme to cover<br />
<strong>2015</strong>-16. The scheme was set up to help<br />
with the costs of buying equipment, training<br />
and adapting premises.<br />
Whether you choose to apply for a loan at<br />
the bank or through Funding Circle, you’ll<br />
need to be prepared to provide a<br />
personal guarantee. It basically means<br />
that if the business fails - you’ll honour the<br />
debt. This can have implications on your<br />
personal and family life, so think carefully<br />
before you apply.<br />
Have you successfully applied for a loan for<br />
your childcare business? If so, let us know<br />
how you got on!
Are you paying your staff<br />
the right wages?<br />
With strict regulations imposed by HMRC around paying<br />
minimum wage, as well as rules around pay and training, it can<br />
be difficult to get to grips with how much each staff member<br />
should be paid and in what circumstances.<br />
You probably have a range of different practitioners working at<br />
your setting: from childcare apprentices, childcarers who have<br />
completed their Level 2 or Level 3, right through to much<br />
more experienced members of staff. But, what are they<br />
all entitled to?<br />
The amount of money your practitioners should be paid depends on their age and<br />
whether they’re doing a childcare apprenticeship. Currently, the adult rate for National<br />
Minimum Wage, as stated on the gov.co.uk website, is £6.50.<br />
Year 21 and over 18 -20 under 18 Apprentice<br />
2014 (current) £6.50 £5.13 £3.79 £2.73<br />
<strong>2015</strong> (1 October +) £6.70 £5.30 £3.87 £3.30<br />
Apprentice wage<br />
The hourly rate for apprentices applies to staff who are 16-18 years old and also to those<br />
aged 19 or over in their first year of working as an apprentice at your setting. In these<br />
circumstances, the wage you must pay is £2.73p an hour (minimum). However, some<br />
nurseries opt to pay a higher rate than this. All other apprentices are entitled to the<br />
National Minimum Wage for their age.<br />
Working time directive<br />
The working time directive covers how many hours an employee works per week. The<br />
amount is set at an average of 48 hours. This means that, if your staff work more than<br />
this one week, it should be balanced out by working less in another week. The average is<br />
worked out over a 17 week period and you cannot force employees to work beyond this<br />
48 hour limit, unless they choose to opt out of the directive by choice.<br />
If you employ a young school leaver who is under 18 years old, there are slightly different<br />
rules to how much time they can work. They cannot work longer than 40 hours per week<br />
on a full time contract.<br />
Pay and training<br />
Your employees (regardless of whether they are apprentices or not) must be paid by you<br />
for their working time. This does not apply to volunteers at your setting. “Working time” is<br />
defined as time spent:<br />
1. at work<br />
2. where the employee is required to be working<br />
3. travelling in connection with work<br />
4. doing training<br />
5. travelling to training<br />
Getting it right<br />
As a business, you cannot claim that you don’t know the rules about paying your staff<br />
correctly; this will not exempt you from the law. Aside from getting into trouble with HMRC,<br />
you also run the risk of losing the trust of your staff if you accidentally underpay them. If<br />
you’re still unsure where you stand in respect of paying certain members of staff, seek<br />
advice from a human resources consultant who will be able to provide you with further<br />
information.<br />
Holiday entitlement<br />
Childcare apprentices have the right to the same holiday entitlement as other employees.<br />
The standard holiday entitlement for employees in the UK is 4 weeks off each year. You<br />
may offer more than this, but this minimum still applies.<br />
You may not know that bank or public holidays do not have to be given as paid leave. You<br />
can choose whether to include bank holidays as part of an employee’s statutory annual<br />
leave of 28 days.
A simple and easy<br />
decoration and craft<br />
for kids!<br />
Instruction set 1 Instruction set 2<br />
Origami Paper Dresses
Social media can be confusing, but in today’s world it is soo<br />
important in making yourself known<br />
We will set up your Facebook or Twitter pages for you, adding in a few extras,<br />
to get you on your way.<br />
www.parenta.com/lets-talk-social-media/