January 2022 Parenta magazine

Issue 86 

JANUARY 2022 

FREE 

WIN A FABULOUS MUSICAL HAMPER FROM MUSICALITI 

Industry 

Experts 

Mark-making and 

the connection to 

reading acquisition 

in the early brain 

Supporting staff 

and apprentices 

with SEND 

2022 New Year’s 

Resolution: Get moving 

and help grow brains 

+ lots more 

Write for us for a 

chance to win 

£50 

page 8 

Sing away the blues: 

The power of music on mental health in the early years 

“Blue Monday” coincides with the end of festivities and the return to school and work. Instead of singing the blues this 

year, we’ll give you reasons and ways to sing away the blues, along with a fantastic musical giveaway for your setting! 

CHILD-LED LEARNING • 5 WAYS TO REDUCE SIBLING RIVALRY • CHINESE NEW YEAR

hello 

welcome to our family 

Hello and welcome to the January edition of the Parenta magazine! 

The year 2022 is upon us - and a new year often brings new resolutions, as some of us evaluate 

what has gone well for us; and what could be improved in the coming year. In January, the day on 

which travel agents have found that most people look for or book holidays is on 17th, now unofficially 

called “Blue Monday”. This year, of course we also have the ongoing impact of COVID-19 restrictions to 

contend with - so instead of ‘singing the blues’ for Blue Monday, we give you some reasons and ways 

to sing away the blues! Turn to page 18 to read early years musical expert Frances Turnbull’s wonderful 

and uplifting advice on the power of music on mental health. To help you even more, we have a great 

selection of musical instrument give-aways for your setting, courtesy of Frances! 

Music and movement expert, Gina Bale continues this theme as she advises us to make a new year’s resolution to “get 

moving and help grow brains”; while Kathryn Peckham and Helen Garnett, both give us some fantastic insight into just how 

those little brains are developing; and Katie White gives some invaluable guidance on “creatively expressing emotions”. 

As always, all the advice, guidance, crafts and recipes you read in our magazine are written to help you with the efficient 

running of your setting and to promote the health, happiness and well-being of the children in your care. We hope you love 

reading it as much as we enjoy making it! 

Don’t for get to check out our recipe for Chinese Dumplings which we will be making for Chinese New Year! 

Please feel free to share the magazine with friends, parents and colleagues – they can sign up to receive their own copy 

here! 

We wish you a happy new year. 

Allan 

JANUARY 2022 ISSUE 86 

JUNE 2020 ISSUE 67 

IN THIS EDITION 

IN THIS EDITION 

Regulars 

7 Congratulations to our learners 

8 Write for us for the chance to win £50! 

8 Guest author winner announced 

24 Chinese dumplings 

25 Pinecone birdfeeder 

News 

4 Childcare news and views 

6 A round-up of some news stories 

that have caught our eye over the 

month 

Advice 

12 Child-led learning 

16 Supporting children with EAL 

28 Chinese New Year 

32 Supporting staff and apprentices 

with SEND 

36 RSPB Big Schools Bird Watch 

Industry Experts 

Egg-cellent advice: Twinkle toes 30 

Supporting staff and apprentices with SEND 32 

Creatively 

expressing 

emotions 

10 

Although children need to 

learn how to emotionally 

regulate, it’s also important 

that they are able to express 

what they are feeling. 

Supporting 

children with EAL 

16 

Early years practitioners 

need to be able to help 

students with EAL access 

the curriculum and not 

allow the children to be 

at a disadvantage. 

5 Ways to reduce 

sibling rivalry 

22 

Sibling rivalry can often start from the 

day a new baby is brought home, and 

can have a huge impact on a family. 

It’s important for us to be aware of this 

so we can minimise any repercussions. 

10 Creatively expressing emotions 

14 Mark-making and the connection 

to reading acquisition in the early 

brain 

18 Sing away the blues: The power 

of music on mental health in the 

early years 

22 5 ways to reduce sibling rivalry 

26 CEO of the London Early Years 

Foundation explains WHY the Government 

must bridge the attainment gap for 

disadvantaged children through an urgent 

reform of 30-hours nursery policy 

30 Egg-cellent advice: Twinkle toes 

34 2022 New Year’s Resolution: Get 

moving and help grow brains 

38 Together we are growing children’s brains – 

understanding brain development 

RSPB Big Schools Bird Watch 36 

Together we are growing children’s brains - 


38

Childcare 

news & views 

Inequalities have worsened 

during pandemic: Child of the 

North report 

A report published by the Northern Health 

Science Alliance, Child of the North: 

Building a fairer future after Covid-19 

paints a bleak picture, caused by chronic 

underfunding in the North of England. 

Ofsted releases updated 

Education Inspection 

Framework 

On 15th December, Ofsted updated its 

inspection framework (EIF) to reflect the 

new EYFS framework which came into 

force in September. 

In the updated guidance, the following 

questions are answered in more detail: 

• “Will Ofsted expect providers to show 

the progress of a child tracked against 

the revised non-statutory guidance, 

‘Development matters?” 

• “Will Ofsted prefer to see paper 

assessments rather than those 

recorded electronically?” 

• “How will Ofsted inspect the 

curriculum? Do registered providers 

need to produce a curriculum map?” 

• “How will inspectors consider 

progress?” 

• “Does Ofsted expect practitioners to 

use the government’s non-statutory 

guidance, Development matters, 

when developing and shaping their 

curriculums?” 

• “When carrying out deep dives, 

will inspectors want to see national 

curriculum subjects, rather than EYFS 

areas of learning, being taught in 

Reception?” 

• “Does Ofsted expect the national 

curriculum in a primary school to start 

when children first join in the early 

years?” 

You can read the full story, as reported by 

Early Years Leadership here, and you can 

read “Ofsted EIF inspections and the EYFS” 

on the official government website here. 

Read the full article here at parenta.com. 

Toddlers struggling with 

sharing post-pandemic 

Ofsted has revealed that observations that 

were made during November showed 

that many two- and three-year-olds are 

struggling with social skills, like sharing 

and taking turns, post pandemic. 

Two-year-olds - who have spent nearly 

80% of their life in the Covid pandemic - 

and babies of 18 months who have lived 

their whole life in it, are often displaying 

different characteristics to those who 

started attending early years settings 

before the pandemic. 

This has been caused by (unsurprisingly) 

lockdowns and reduced availability 

of parent and toddler groups which 

resulted in these children having a lack 

of interaction outside their close family. 

With limited social interaction at home 

during the pandemic, children struggled 

to settle with unfamiliar people, were 

more wary, shyer, quieter, and some were 

overwhelmed in larger groups. Inspectors 

also found that the language and 

communication skills of children born in 

the pandemic were not as strong as those 

that nurseries had cared for in the past. 

On a brighter note, however, findings 

published in Ofsted’s report also revealed 

children soon grew in confidence in 

nurseries and became more comfortable. 

Ofsted reports that this ‘suggests that 

there is no long-term negative impact on 

children’s ability to settle into childcare’. 

Ofsted has currently halted all nursery 

inspections due to the threat posed by the 

Omicron variant and the rising number of 

Covid cases in nurseries. 

You can read the full story, as reported by 

daynurseries.co.uk, here. 


Inequalities which were in existence 

before Covid have since deepened, with 

children in the North East, North West and 

Yorkshire and Humber being affected 

disproportionately. They now have poorer 

educational outcomes which authors of 

the report predict will affect their lifetime 

incomes. 

Due to frequent lockdowns in some 

local areas, compared to the rest of 

the country, children in those areas lost 

more education. Their health and mental 

well-being has also consequently been 

impacted. 

The report states this must be addressed 

by a child-first place-based recovery plan 

and recommendations include: 

• Tackle the negative impacts of the 

pandemic in the North through rapid, 

focussed investment in early years 

services, including health visiting, 

family hubs and children’s centres. 

• Commissioners of maternity and 

early years services must consider the 

impact of pandemic related service 

changes on inequalities in families 

and children’s experiences and 

outcomes. 

• Increase child benefit by £10 per child 

per week. Increase the child element 

in Universal Credit and increase child 

tax credits. 

• Support educational settings to initiate 

earlier interventions. Teachers and 

early years professionals see many 

of the first indicators of children’s risk 

and vulnerabilities. 

• Prioritising strong pupil and staff 

relationships and collaboration with 

parents/carers will ensure a firm 

foundation for meeting children’s 

needs, and for a return to learning. 

Read the full report here and read the 

story, as reported by the BBC here. 


Ofsted report: 98% still good 

or outstanding but more recent 

inspection concerns 

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector Amanda 

Spielman has launched Ofsted’s Annual 

Report 2020-21. The report covered the 

year to September 2021 during which the 

Inspectorate carried out fewer inspections 

than normal due to closures and 

restrictions. 

Although 98% of nurseries and preschools 

still remain judged as good (76%) 

or outstanding (22%) there are concerns 

about the numbers of childcare providers 

leaving Ofsted’s register. 

Childcare places have reduced by about 

1% of the total numbers of places the 

previous year. 

Another big concern highlighted in 

the report was that 44% of early years 

providers believe children’s personal, 

social and emotional development had 

fallen behind. This was particularly strong 

in in areas of deprivation where it was 

reported there was lower take-up of twoyear-old 

places. 

Purnima Tanuku OBE, Chief Executive 

of National Day Nurseries Association 

(NDNA), said: “This Ofsted report rightly 

acknowledges the key role that early years 

settings and their workforce have played in 

supporting our youngest children through 

such a tough year with the harmful effects 

of closures and restrictions. 

“We are hearing from early years providers 

how they have worked with children who 

have displayed challenging behaviours at 

nursery. Their well-being and support with 

their language skills and personal, social 

and emotional development have been 

critical. 

It’s a great tribute to our nurseries that 

despite the negative impacts from 

the pandemic, 98% are still judged as 

being good or outstanding. However, 

we are concerned by the trend in recent 

inspections. It is vital that inspectors 

recognise the challenges that nurseries still 

face and the stress that staff are under on 

a daily basis. Due to ongoing measures 

and staff absences, nurseries are very 

different places compared to pre-pandemic 

times. Ofsted must review its complaints 

and appeals procedure to make sure that 

complaints are treated fairly. 

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic hit, we 

were reporting that staffing recruitment 

and retention had hit crisis levels but the 

pandemic has made this situation even 

worse. It’s important that this is recognised 

by Ofsted. There is therefore a question 

about how everyone in the sector, from 

Government to Ofsted can put measures 

in place to support nurseries to retain staff 

and to encourage more people into the 

profession. 

Children must be at the heart of 

educational recovery efforts, starting with 

early years. That’s why we need to see a 

clear reform of the early education and care 

policy and a funding system that is built to 

deliver this.” 

Ofsted’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman, 

said: “In order to protect older generations, 

we asked the youngest generation to 

put their lives and education on hold. As 

we look forward to the year ahead, we 

must strive to redress the balance. Every 

generation gets one chance to enjoy its 

childhood and fulfil its potential. We must 

do all we can to make sure this generation 

is not denied its opportunity.” 

Read the full report here and read the full 

story, as reported by NDNA here. 


4 January 2022 | parenta.com 

parenta.com | January 2022 5

A round-up of some news 

stories that have caught 

our eye over the month 

Source and image 

credits to: 

Parenta’s blog, The Daily Mail, 

The Northern Echo, 

Leader Live 

Congratulations 

to all our Parenta learners! 

Congratulations to all these Parenta learners who completed their apprenticeship 

in November and have now gained their qualifications. 

These range from Childcare Level 2, Childcare Level 3 and Team Leading 

to Level 3 and Level 5 Management – that’s a huge achievement in the 

current climate. 

All that hard work has paid off – well done from all of us here at Parenta Training! 

Parenta Training reinforces 

its leadership team with new 

Managing Director - Edyta White 

Parenta Training enters the next phase of 

its commitment to “fully embed unrivalled 

quality within apprenticeship programme 

delivery” with the addition of Edyta White. 

Tops Day Nursery had a visit from 

the National Manager of the year 

award winner 

The Southsea based nursery had a visit 

from Hannah Jennings who was awarded 

the prestigious award in November after 

more than 25,000 nurseries applied. 

Dorset Council educate children 

at local nursery 

Dorset council are currently creating a 

cycle Cath which passes Tops Day 

Nurseries Wimborne. The council and 

nursery have used this as an opportunity 

to educate the children on the project. 

Did you know?... Parenta has trained over 20,000 apprentices within the early years sector! 

Our Level 3 success rate overall is almost 10% higher than the national average. 

That’s down to great work from you, our lovely Parenta learners! 

If you have a learner with us who has recently completed their apprenticeship, please send in 

a picture to hello@parenta.com to be included in the magazine. 

November’s wall of fame! 

Recent data reveals UK parents 

are missing out on ‘tax-free 

childcare scheme’ 

Only a fraction of parents are taking up 

the ‘tax-free childcare scheme’ as there 

has been a £2.37bn underspend on the 

government’s flagship policy. 

Nursery group of 10 settings 

fundraise for baby hospice 

charity Zoe’s Place 

Rosedene nursery group have made an 

addition to their usual festive activities by 

asking the children and their families for 

small donations to the charity. 

Caego Day Nursery children 

take part in reindeer run for 

Nightingale House Hospice 

All of the little ones at the Wrexham 

based nursery have been taking part 

in the run for the hospice - who care for 

people with life-limiting illnesses. 

A. Jepson 

B. Tyrrell 

C. Phillips 

C. Wager 

C. Hickmans 

D. Gomes Alves 

D. O’Brien 

D. Sifanno 

E. Coulson 

E. Adams 

F. Shaukat 

I. O’Sullivan 

I. Nasar 

I. Billings 

J. Salt 

J. Selt 

K. Circuitt 

K. Paget 

K. Barber 

L. Davenport 

L. Plant 

L. Swaby 

L. Page 

L. Romanucci 

M. Kolodziejska 

M. Eriera 

M. Turner 

N. Urbano Herrera 

S. Moreno De Abreu 

S. Hussain 

T. Frisby 

Z. Geoghegan 

6 January 2022 | parenta.com parenta.com | January 2022 7

Write for us! 

We’re always on the lookout 

for new authors to contribute 

insightful articles for our 

monthly magazine. 

If you’ve got a topic you’d like to write about, why 

not send an article to us and be in with a chance of 

winning? Each month, we’ll be giving away Amazon 

vouchers to our “Guest Author of the Month”. You 

can find all the details here: 

https://www.parenta.com/sponsored-content/ 

Help change 

children’s lives 

We are recruiting Early Years educators 

that go that extra mile to join our growing 

family. Receive a competitive salary plus a 

great package of benefits: 

50% off childcare at our nurseries 

26 days paid annual leave 

8 days’ training per year 

and much more 

020 7254 7359 

apply@leyf.org.uk 

Congratulations 

to our guest author competition winner, Joanna Grace! 

Youngest Chef 

Award 

Musicaliti’s Musical Giveaway 

For your chance to win one of 8 musical 

hampers, including a Musicaliti song 

book, cd, sets of musical instruments 

and puppets for either under 2s or over 

2s, answer this question and send it to 

marketing@parenta.com 

Congratulations to Joanne Grace, our guest author 

of the month for the second time running! Her article 

“Egg-cellent advice: A little room” is two out of series 

of a 10 articles following the adventures of her son 

aka ‘Egg’. In this article Joanna explores the sensory 

fun children can have with the most simple objects 

including a cardboard box. Well done Jo! 

Sign up and receive: 

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A massive thank you to all of our guest authors for 

writing for us. You can find all of the past articles 

from our guest authors on our website: 

www.parenta.com/parentablog/guest-authors 

A fun, practical, purposeful and engaging award that ensures curriculum 

coverage and basic life skills to support long-term health and wellbeing for 

children aged 3+. The award is a ‘Mini Muncher Challenge’, which includes 

5 exciting stand-alone lessons and additional resources/activities. 

Find out more at: youngchefoftheyear.com 

info@thefoodteacher.co.uk 01582 620178 

Q: What is the name given to the Monday 

in January when most people book 

holidays? 

Send your name, answer and preference 

of over 2s or under 2s before Friday 28th 

January for the chance to win. 


Winner need updating 


Creatively 

expressing emotions 

Managing children’s emotions can be problematic. We may lose 

our patience, feel triggered by their outbursts, or become reactive 

ourselves when they behave. Or act out in certain ways. We may insist 

that they ‘calm down!’ or patiently explain to them that their actions 

are unacceptable, only to be met with more difficult behaviour. 

Although children need to learn how to 

emotionally regulate, it’s also important 

that they are able to express what they are 

feeling, and for those feelings to be seen, 

heard and validated by us. That’s why 

it’s vital that we are able to self-regulate 

in those difficult moments; so that we are 

able to create a safe space where those 

feelings can be processed, expressed and 

released. 

But how an earth can you do that in the 

middle of the supermarket? I might hear 

you ask! And what about their incredibly 

bad behaviour!? 

All behaviour is communication! Those 

outward behavioural displays are coming 

from a need in the child to feel seen, 

understood and accepted. For example, a 

child might feel angry about not receiving 

an invite to their friends party; being 

unable to communicate or verbalise 

their anger they might lash out, become 

frustrated or annoyed. Or that anger could 

turn inwards and be expressed through 

self-criticism, judgement or self-harm. 

Emotions are doing a job, pointing to an 

experience, thought or feeling. It’s our 

job to give recognition to those emotions, 

so they aren’t suppressed, ignored or 

shamed. When we are able to welcome 

in every emotion without judgement and 

reactivity, that’s when the thought or 

feeling underneath the behaviour can start 

to come through and be expressed. 

Learning how to verbalise emotions 

through language takes time. (I’m sure 

you know some adults who still haven’t 

mastered the art!) So this is where 

creative expression can play a big part 

in supporting children work through, 

understand and express what they’re 

feeling. 

Recognise the feeling 

Children can get overwhelmed by their 

emotions and fearful of them. Teaching 

them that every emotion is welcome and 

is part of being human, can help to lessen 

the need for them to suppress how they’re 

feeling. 

Finding a time to play with emotions can 

help children to recognise them when they 

arise in the moment. One of the best ways 

to explore this is through drama play or 

improvisation: as it provides a framework 

where children can safely embody 

emotions within the structure of a game. 

The ‘Potato’ game is one of my favourites, 

as it gives children the opportunity to 

explore and exaggerate what an emotion 

feels like in the body. You can play this 

game with a group of children or one-toone. 

The aim of the game is to say the word 

‘potato’ in the style of an emotion. What 

would a shy potato look and sound like? 

A stressed potato? An excited potato? 

Embody each emotion, clench fists for 

angry, hunch shoulders for sad, move and 

smile for happy. Explore the realms of all 

the emotions through movement, voice 

and posture. 

Create without an outcome 

Learning to put outcomes and objectives to 

one side and be creative for the purpose of 

self-expression can be hard for us adults. 

When we conform to a structure or are set 

to an outcome-driven activity, like making 

a card, building a vase or creating a dream 

catcher for example, the child is limited to 

the structure and therefore has little room to 

explore their feelings. 

Not all creative projects need a final piece. 

Try moving beyond a structured activity and 

explore more expressive ways to create. 

Mark-making for example can be a great 

way to release emotions. Get a big piece 

of paper and stick it to the wall, then use 

paint, chalk, charcoal or felt tips, maybe 

exploring different art tools, like brushes, 

pallet knifes and sponges. Allow those 

emotions to be released in the marks, don’t 

be afraid to make a mess! 

Release the emotion 

Movement can help to shift and release 

suppressed emotions. You can use this 

technique with your child in the moment or 

retrospectively after an event or challenging 

situation. Take a nice deep breath in, 

stretching up to the sky with your hands, 

tense every single muscle. And as you 

exhale, release the hands down and shout 

“HA! “ 

Katie White 

Katie Rose White is a Laughter Facilitator 

and founder of The Best Medicine. She 

works predominantly with carers, teachers 

and healthcare professionals - teaching 

playful strategies for boosting mood, 

strengthening resilience and improving 

well-being. She provides practical 

workshops, interactive talks and training 

days - fusing therapeutic laughter 

techniques, playful games and activities, 

and mindfulness-based practices. The 

techniques are not only designed to equip 

participants with tools for managing their 

stress, but can also be used and adapted 

to the needs of the people that they are 

supporting. 

Email: thebestmedicine@outlook.com 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/bestmedicine1 

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ 

thebestmedicinecornwall 

This exercise works particularly well for 

nerves or anxiety. HA! The feeling can go 

out the window, in the bin or down the 

toilet! 

For more information on how to playfully 

and creatively support children check out 

www.thebestmedicine.co.uk 



Child-led learning 

Situation 

Example of practitioner 

leading or taking over 

an activity 

Example of the 

practitioner 

facilitating and 

extending the learning 

Explanation 

In the revised EYFS, early years practitioners should consider “the individual needs, interests and 

development of each child in their care and use this information to plan a challenging and enjoyable 

experience for each child in all areas of learning and development.” 

A child picks up some blocks 

and begins to put them into a 

box. 

The practitioner says, “I see you 

are counting the blocks, let me 

help” and counts the blocks with 

the child. 

The practitioner goes over and 

asks “I see you are playing 

with the blocks. Are you using 

them for something special?” 

When the child explains that 

they are ‘picking potatoes’, the 

practitioner joins in and asks 

if there are other vegetables 

that the child wants to harvest. 

In the first instance the 

practitioner has assumed the 

child was counting and taken 

over. In the second example, the 

practitioner has interacted with 

the child without assuming what 

is going on. They allowed the 

child to explain their idea and 

then joined in, extending the 

activity to other vegetables. 

A child draws a picture of a tree 

which is red and yellow. 

The practitioner notices and 

says, “That’s a lovely tree, but 

trees are not red and yellow. 

What colour are trees normally?” 

The practitioner notices and 

asks, “Those are interesting 

colours, why did you choose 

those for this picture?” 

In the first instance, the 

practitioner is naming the colours 

but also placing limitations on the 

child’s imagination. In the second 

instance, the practitioner opens 

up the conversation for the child 

to explain. 

One key word here is “interests”, which 

means things that the child is interested 

in and motivated by, be that a model 

car, a bird in the tree or the glinting 

reflection of light on a carpet. These are 

important because they motivate children 

to explore, ask questions, and stimulates 

them in a natural way. But the things that 

children are interested in can sometimes 

be overlooked in favour of national 

curriculums, parental preferences, cultural 

bias and goals and expectations dictated 

by other people. 

Child-led or child-initiated learning can 

redress this balance and put the child’s 

interests back at the heart of their world. 

What is child-led learning? 

Child-led learning happens when a child 

chooses an activity to do at a particular 

time rather than have an adult choose 

for them. It assumes that each person is 

a unique expression of themselves and 

has individual and valid approaches to 

learning that are right for them, leading 

to a meaningful learning experience. An 

example could be when a child picks up a 

pen and begins exploring what marks they 

can make, or when a child’s imagination 

is captured playing with some cardboard 

boxes, or when a child chooses to explore 

an outdoor environment, looking under 

rocks to see what is there. The potential for 

the child to learn is almost endless since 

they are free to move from one learning 

experience to another. The opposite of 

child-led learning would be a controlled 

classroom where there are set learning 

goals that need to be covered and the 

children are only allowed to do the tasks 

assigned them by the teacher. 

Tips to encourage child-led 

learning in your setting 

Be prepared – ensure your 

environment is inviting 

The key to being spontaneous with 

children is sometimes to be well prepared. 

If all your toys, pens and paper are 

neatly stored away until the practitioner 

decides that she wants to use them, then 

the opportunities for children to explore 

using these resources will be limited. Your 

resources therefore need to be organised 

but easily accessible for the children. Don’t 

worry too much either if resources get 

moved from one area to another, such as 

a child taking some blocks into the outdoor 

area. You want to be teaching them 

adaptability and creative thinking rather 

than limiting their choices or ideas. 

Train practitioners to observe and 

interact 

Child-led learning is not the same as a 

‘hands-off’ approach to teaching. It does 

not mean practitioners have time off to 

catch up on paperwork whilst the children 

play on their own. Child-led learning at 

its best has a high degree of practitioner 

involvement but this involvement needs to 

be measured and follow the child’s lead. 

It is important not to try to manipulate the 

child into following the adult’s agenda. 

Practitioners need to be able to first 

observe the children at play and identify 

the moments where they can extend or 

augment the child’s learning through 

joining in with the activity, taking the lead 

from the child, or by posing high-quality 

questions which lead the child to develop 

their higher-order thinking. 

Learning to identify higher-order thinking 

questions is a skill that you can train your 

practitioners to do. Bloom’s taxonomy was 

one of the original frameworks to identify 

educational goals, but can be applied in the 

early years too since it encourages students 

not to just remember and regurgitate 

information, but to solve problems, adapt 

the situation and create something 

completely new. 

Make time but don’t worry about 

time 

A child-led learning moment could last a 

few seconds or a whole day. The length 

of time does not matter but the quality of 

the time and the quality of the interactions 

between practitioners and children do. You 

may already have free play or child-led 

learning time scheduled into your day but 

think about doing this if not. Remember too 

that you can follow a child’s lead at anytime 

if it is appropriate and safe to do so. 

Reflect and improve 

Take a moment to reflect after a childled 

learning experience and think about 

whether you could extend their learning 

through a different activity later in the 

day or in the week. For example, if the 

child was building a boat in the sandpit, 

is there a way you could introduce this 

topic later in the day at storytime or when 

mark-making for example. Practitioners 

should take the time to introduce new 

vocabulary and to encourage speaking 

and conversations to help children make 

links to other areas of the curriculum, as 

is encouraging physicality, movement and 

social interactions with others. 

A word about SEND 

When working with children with SEND, 

it is important to really understand the 

needs of these pupils and to accommodate 

them during child-led learning time. Some 

children with SEND are less able to cope 

with unstructured time than other children 

and can become anxious or fretful if 

they are not sure what to do or what is 

happening. These children may require a 

greater degree of support and guidance, 

or some help in starting out. Some children, 

such as those with autism, may become 

completely engrossed in an activity that 

they are interested in, to the exclusion 

of everything else, so it is vital that you 

understand the different needs and make 

plans for SEND children too. 

The great thing about child-led learning 

is that it plays into a holistic programme 

of education which will allow the child to 

develop across all the areas of learning in 

the EYFS and more. 

More information 

• https://www.readingrockets.org/ 

article/how-increase-higher-orderthinking 

• https://www.teachstarter.com/gb/ 

blog/higher-order-thinking-in-theclassroom-and-why-it-matters-2/ 

• https://www.teachwire.net/news/ 

how-to-implement-child-led-learningin-your-early-years-setting 

• https://www.teachingexpertise.com/ 

articles/child-initiated-learning/ 



Mark-making and the connection to 

reading acquisition in the early brain 

Mark-making is as much a dynamic motor activity as reaching, grasping and manipulating objects. But 

think about it! It is the only dynamic motor activity that leaves a ‘trail’ or a mark behind! This is literally 

mesmerising for very young children, and with the use of colourful and bright crayons and marker pens, 

mark-making can become a truly rewarding activity. 

And then there is reading – this is also a 

dynamic process. Some children can read 

at a very early age, but most children’s 

brains cannot integrate visual, verbal and 

auditory information rapidly enough until a 

child reaches five years or above. Markmaking 

is hugely important in emergent 

reading because it activates the brain in 

a way that fully supports future reading. 

We will be far more successful in teaching 

children to read if we offer plenty of 

mark-making along with shared reading 

of favourite stories, and wait for that 

natural rite of passage when children are 

developmentally ready for reading. 

Brain activity in markmaking 

Try giving a child a mark-making tool that 

doesn’t leave a mark. The reward system 

in the brain is not activated and it is highly 

likely that the child will abandon the task 

within a few moments. The feedback 

from ‘marking’ is lacking. Only tools that 

produce a visual effect result in a child 

wanting to leave more marks. And the 

brighter the colour, the thicker the mark, 

the more the child will want to carry out 

this extraordinarily satisfactory motor 

activity. 

There is a powerful activation of the 

reward system in the brain each time a 

child picks up and uses a mark-making 

tool. This will encourage them to try 

ever more complex ‘drawings’ over a 

longer duration of time. And this is where 

automaticity will take place – mark-making 

becomes automatic, and the child is able 

to make marks repeatedly without effortful 

thought, building up the letter recognition, 

drawing and writing with more and more 

ease. 


Mark-making and reading 

As already said, there is a powerful link 

between mark-making and reading. 

When children see the ‘trail’ made by a 

mark-making tool, be it a letter, a shape or 

anything else, the motor activity switches 

on a part of the brain that supports 

memory and cognitive thinking. The 

dynamic motor activity influences the brain 

activity, supporting the memory; children 

will remember the way something felt as 

they ‘drew’ it. 

That isn’t all. When children write letters by 

hand there is more brain activity, and they 

show better letter recognition skills than 

when they look at letters or trace them 

or use a keyboard (James & Engelhardt 

2012). Interestingly, it does not matter 

about any variability in the shape or size 

of letters children make, as it appears 

that this is a crucial component of their 

emergent recognition and understanding 

of letters. 

Mark-making in the setting 

Happily, we have plenty of research 1 about 

what sorts of writing instruments and 

backgrounds best elicit mark-making. Here 

they are. Give them a go in your setting! 

1 

Crayons and magic markers are associated 

with more complex and mature drawing 

compared with pencils. The more 

pronounced, bold and bright the markmaking 

tool, the more a child will make 

marks, and also the more advanced the 

pre-drawing behaviour becomes. Offer 

brightly coloured, thick and thin marker 

pens/crayons, ones that leave a satisfyingly 

noticeable mark. 

2 

Paper that already has images on it not 

only elicits significantly more mark-making 

than blank paper but also encourages 

more complex mark-making. Provide paper 

with images of people, animals, shapes or 

nature. Draw them yourselves or find paper 

with images already on them. 

Conclusion 

3 

Of all images on paper, it is human figures 

or animal images that result in the most 

complex and frequent mark-making 2 . Make 

sure you have paper with images placed in 

areas around the setting, e.g. role play. 

4 

Writing on a slant helps children engage in 

mark-making when they are using markers 

or crayons. For some reason, this does not 

apply for using pencils. 

5 

Structured and collaborative activities as 

opposed to unstructured child-led activities 

also elicits more lengthy and increasingly 

complex mark-making. As rewarding as 

child-led mark-making can be, children are 

more likely to join in and focus longer on an 

adult-led, captivating mark-making activity 

than on their own. 

In short, the more drawing opportunities children have, the more they mark and scribble, 

and the quicker they make that transition to more complex drawing. And the more children 

are given plenty of fun opportunities to mark or scribble, the more intent and engaged 

they become in mark-making. Young children learn to enjoy mark-making which increases 

their skill in emergent writing, strengthens the visual and motor regions of the brain seen in 

letter processing and production, and facilitates their acquisition of reading. 

It’s a win-win situation! 

Helen Garnett 

Helen Garnett is a mother of 4, and a 

committed and experienced early years 

consultant. She has a wealth of experience 

in teaching, both in the primary and early 

years sectors. She co-founded a preschool 

in 2005 where she developed a 

keen interest in early intervention, leading 

her into international work for the early 

years sector. Helen cares passionately 

about young children and connection. 

As a result, she wrote her first book, 

“Developing Empathy in the Early Years: 

a guide for practitioners” for which she 

won the Professional Books category 

at the 2018 Nursery World Awards, and 

“Building a Resilient Workforce in the Early 

Years”, published by Early Years Alliance 

in June 2019. She also writes articles for 

early years magazines, such as Nursery 

World, Early Years Teacher Organisation, 

QA Education, Teach Early Years, and Early 

Years Educator. 

Helen is the co-founder and Education 

Director at Arc Pathway, an early years 

platform for teachers and parents. 

Helen can be contacted via LinkedIn. 

References: 

1. Dunst C, Gorman E. 2009 Development 

of Infant and Toddler Mark-making and 

Scribbling 

2. James & Engelhardt . 2012 The 

effects of handwriting experience on 

functional brain development in preliterate 

children 


Supporting 

children with EAL 

• Staff who have access to translation 

materials 

• Taking the extra time to ensure that 

messages and home communications 

have been properly understood 

• Using stickers and praise 

Involve parents 

What is EAL? 

According to government statistics, 

approximately 17% students at the end 

of key stage 2 are classed as having 

English as an additional language (EAL). 

That’s nearly 1 in 6 students in our primary 

schools, 79% of which join in the reception 

year. Many of these children will be in early 

years settings prior to that, so as early 

years practitioners, we need to be able to 

help these students access the curriculum 

and do everything in our power to make 

sure these children are not disadvantaged 

by their EAL status. 

The percentage of EAL children varies 

widely from as little as 0.9% in more rural 

areas to 76% in some inner city areas. 

Some schools and nurseries have counted 

the number of languages other than 

English spoken by their children as over 

40. Since all children, regardless of their 

language are entitled to equal access 

to the whole curriculum, how can we 

effectively help these students to make the 

same progress as native English speakers? 

The first step is to correctly identify children 

who have EAL and according to Ofsted, 

all EAL children should be recorded on the 

school census. There are many reasons 

why children may have EAL, and it is 

certainly not a guaranteed predictor of 

poor achievement. Many EAL children 

are fluent in English or become fluent in 

English as they progress through school. 

However, many still struggle to access 

the education system as fully as those 

whose first language is English. The 

government definition of a pupil with EAL is 

“a pupil whose first language is other than 

English.” And a first language is defined 

as “the language to which the child was 

initially exposed during early development 

and continues to use this language in the 

home and community.” 

This therefore includes: 

• Pupils arriving from other countries 

and whose first language is not 

English 

• Pupils who have lived in the UK for 

a long time and may appear to be 

fluent, but who also speak another 

language at home 

• Pupils who have been born in the UK, 

but for whom the home language is 

not English 

• Pupils who have a parent who speaks 

a language other than English and the 

child communicates with them in that 

language (i.e. bi-lingual children) 

British citizens can still have EAL. According 

to a 2020 Government report, 30% of EAL 

pupils are white, 41% are Asian and 13% 

are black, compared with 85% of pupils 

with English first language being white, 

4% black and 4% Asian). However, they 

are similar to pupils with English as a first 

language in terms of other characteristics 

with 51% being male, 25% being 

disadvantaged and 13% having a special 

educational need. For children with SEN 

and EAL, it may be more difficult to identify 

EAL status due to other SEN issues. 

Supporting children with EAL can be difficult 

and many early years practitioners can 

struggle to communicate effectively with 

EAL children because of the language 

barrier. However, it is important to realise 

that in the early years, children have a 

very high propensity to learn, so can 

develop quickly with the right support. 

And sometimes it is the inexperience of 

practitioners rather than the language 

barrier which is the biggest problem. So 

how can we best support EAL children? 

Oxfordshire County Council have produced 

an very informative guide on how to do 

this which you can access here and we 

have some best practice ideas below. 

It’s not just about visual aids 

It’s important to understand that it’s not 

just about picking up new vocabulary and 

grammar when learning English. Many 

children may have to learn an entirely new 

set of sounds, new intonation patterns, a 

new alphabet, new social conventions and 

non-verbal signals too. In addition, they 

may feel isolated and anxious going into 

a setting they cannot initially understand. 

Best practice would begin supporting 

these students even before they have 

started attending your setting and may 

include: 

• Application forms which clearly 

identify the first language of the child 

• A home visit (in 2s) to the family to 

assess the level of English of the 

parents as well as the child 

• Ensuring that everyone in the setting 

is using the correct spellings and 

pronunciations of the children’s and 

parent’s names 

• Training for staff on how to best 

support EAL students 

Once children are attending your setting, 

there are a number of strategies that can 

help students to feel welcome, included 

and able to access the curriculum. These 

can include: 

• Using visual aids and signs that the 

child can easily recognise (e.g. toilets/ 

playground) 

• Cutting down language to avoid 

being overwhelmed – this means 

not necessarily using full sentences 

but making sure that the essence of 

the communication is understood 

– remember that words make up 

only 7% of communication so using 

intonation, gestures and facial 

expressions helps 

• Translating ‘survival’ words which are 

given and explained to the child so 

they understand the basics, such as 

where the toilets are, where they eat, 

how to introduce themselves and say 

‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’ and to ask for 

help 

• Other signs and information in their 

own first language. Promoting and 

using their first language as well as 

English will help them feel understood 

and more involved and will reinforce 

the value of different cultures and 

languages 

• Using repetition and speaking slowly 

and clearly 

• Opportunities to speak and practice 

English in small groups 

• Opportunities to read and to be read 

to in English, and at times, in their own 

first language 

• Learning through play where learning 

is natural and achieved through 

osmosis 

The parents of an EAL child can be a great 

resource to help ease the transition into 

nursery, and support them with leaning 

English at home. Ask parents for lists of 

keywords, and exchange translations so 

that the parents can use English word 

labels at home too. 

There are benefits too 

According to research, good development 

of a child’s first language has a positive 

effect on the development of other 

languages and situations where children 

are able to speak additional languages. 

It should also be valued as a positive 

skill. Learning and using more than one 

language creates additional learning 

opportunities for adults too and can often 

bring a rich cultural tradition to the setting 

to help increase understanding and 

tolerance. 

More information 

• https://www2.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/ 

sites/default/files/folders/documents/ 

childreneducationandfamilies/ 

informationforchildcareproviders/ 

Toolkit/eal_guidance.PDF 

• https://assets.publishing.service. 

gov.uk/government/uploads/ 

system/uploads/attachment_data/ 

file/908929/Attainment_of_EAL_pupils. 

pdf 

• https://flashacademy.com/ 

• https://www.earlyyearscareers.com/ 

eyc/latest-news/5-tips-to-supportchildren-with-eal/ 

• https://www.nurseryresources.org/ 

post/EAL-early-years-settings 

• https://www.pacey.org.uk/workingin-childcare/spotlight-on/2-year-olds/ 

english-as-an-additional-language/ 



Sing away the blues: 

The power of music on mental 

health in the early years 

New Year often brings new resolutions as we evaluate what has gone well or could be improved in our 

lives. The day on which travel agents have found that most people look for or book holidays is now 

unofficially called “Blue Monday”, coinciding with the end of festivities, and the return to school and work. 

This year, we also have the impact of COVID-19 restrictions, so instead of singing the blues, we’ll give you 

reasons and ways to sing away the blues, along with a fantastic musical giveaway for your setting! 

Research from Mastnak (2020) identified 

4 phases of impact that natural disasters 

had on children’s mental health. 

• Acute phase: lockdowns/closures 

trigger acute stress or adjustments 

including insomnia, paranoid traits, 

disruptive behaviour, fear and suicide 

• Subacute phase: living an adapted 

lifestyle for a few years led to 

unhealthy habits, ongoing anxiety, 

delusional ideas, post-traumatic 

stress disorder, and regressed 

development, personal growth, and 

cognitive factors (concentration, 

motivation) 

• Post-traumatic phase: +3 years 

after the initial event, resulting in 

self-protective attitudes/personality 

features, post-traumatic stress 

disorder, and depressive/avoidant 

personality traits 

• Effect phase: children may remain 

symptom-free for decades until 

adulthood, where the effects could 

impact the mind and harm quality of 

life 

To counteract these effects, our aim 

is to help children to learn to regulate 

their own emotions and immunological 

health. Medical evidence shows that 

music positively influences the immune 

system, benefiting everybody. Singing 

therapy is already used for respiratory 

issues like asthma and COPD, while music 

therapy develops inner calm, rebalances 

psychosomatic conditions, reduces stress 

and breaks through obsessive compulsive 

disorder structures. Analytic and 

expressive arts transform traumatic events, 

helping both shy and hostile personalities, 

while community music therapy improves 

group immune systems and develops 

mindfulness. 


Practical pointers supporting 

children through traumatic 

events: 

Positive and negative attitudes depend on 

the child’s culture, personality, changes, 

and perceptions of the anticipated future; 

vulnerable children can be supported in 

modifying thinking through reassurance 

and routine. 

Mummy loves and daddy loves 

(Russian lullaby) 

Mummy loves and daddy loves and 

Everybody loves little baby 

Brother loves and sister loves and 

Everybody loves little baby 

With younger infants, two adults hold 

either end of a blanket (like a hammock) 

gently rock the child. Older children can 

use small blankets or scarves to gently 

rock a cuddly toy or doll. 

1 

2 

Children may exhibit new conditions 

including social phobias, self-imposed 

withdrawal, personality disorders, 

emotionally cold, detached, inappropriate 

paranoia of contamination by others. 

Musical games involving nearby, 

appropriate contact help to refocus and 

reprioritise personal safe space. 

Old Brass Wagon 

Circle to the left, old brass wagon 



You’re the one, my darling 

Circle to the right, old brass wagon … 

Everybody down, old brass wagon … 

Everybody in, old brass wagon… 

In a circle, perform the actions – walk to 

the left/right/stand up and crouch down/ 

walk towards the middle and out – and 

for the final line, point across (“you’re the 

one”) and hug yourself (“my darling”). 

3 

Anxiety in children may lead to obsessive 

compulsive behaviours. Familiar songs set 

to easy, relaxing exercises can override 

subconscious self-controlling behaviours. 

Twinkle Twinkle 

Twinkle, twinkle, little star 

How I wonder what you are 

Up above the world so high 

Like a diamond in the sky 

Twinkle, twinkle, little star 

How I wonder what you are 

Lying down in a warm, quiet, darkened 

room, use a torch light to watch its 

movement on the ceiling. Within COVID 

restrictions, consider giving each child a 

turn to use the torch. 

4 

Vulnerable children could see COVID 

regulations as punishment, leading to 

learned helplessness and dependence. 

Songs and games involving daily routines 

can remind and recreate the natural desire 

to achieve activities independently. 

Mulberry Bush 

Here we go round the mulberry bush 

The mulberry bush, the mulberry bush 

Here we go round the mulberry bush 

So early in the morning 

This is the way we brush our teeth … 

This is the way we comb our hair … 

This is the way we put on our clothes … 

This is the way we eat our food … 

Choose actions that children find familiar 

and easy as well as actions that they may 

find challenging. Consider breaking down 

complex actions to allow the routine to 

become familiar e.g. this is the way we pick 

up our fork … this is the way we sit at the 

table … 

5 

Children may witness extreme ideas or 

allow their imagination to exaggerate 

situations. Distinction between reality and 

imagination can be made using songs and 

games that make this clear. 

Grand Old Duke of York 

Oh, the grand old Duke of York 

He had ten thousand men 

He marched them up to the top of the hill 

And he marched them down again 

And when they were up, they were up 

And when they were down, they were 

down 

And when they were only halfway up 

They were neither up nor down 

Marching around the room to the beat, 

pretending to be soldiers, and follow 

the actions, moving up (tip toes), down 

(crouching), and halfway (usual walking 

height). 

Children may display non-psychotic 

paranoia and make assumptions from 

dramatic news headlines which may 

trigger imaginations. Comforting songs 

and routines help to remind children of 

emotional anchors like love and family. 

6 

You Are My Sunshine 

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine 

You make me happy when skies are grey 

You’ll never know dear, how much I love 

you 

Please don’t take my sunshine away 

Rock each child, allowing them to feel your 

heartbeat/vibrations of your singing, or get 

each child to rock a soft toy or doll. 

Research shows the therapeutic and 

health benefits of discovering “beauty” in 

the arts. Music is one of the least invasive 

approaches to improving life. Being aware 

of how it can be used can help us to use it 

more effectively. 

Mastnak, W. (2020). Psychopathological 

problems related to the COVID‐19 pandemic 

and possible prevention with music 

therapy. Acta Paediatrica. https://dx.doi. 

org/10.1111%2Fapa.15346 

Musicaliti’s musical giveaway 

Frances Turnbull 

Musician, researcher and author, 

Frances Turnbull, is a self-taught guitarist 

who has played contemporary and 

community music from the age of 12. She 

delivers music sessions to the early years 

and KS1. Trained in the music education 

techniques of Kodály (specialist singing), 

Dalcroze (specialist movement) and Orff 

(specialist percussion instruments), she 

has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology 

(Open University) and a Master’s degree 

in Education (University of Cambridge). 

She runs a local community choir, the 

Bolton Warblers, and delivers the Sound 

Sense initiative “A choir in every care 

home” within local care and residential 

homes, supporting health and wellbeing 

through her community interest 

company. 

She has represented the early years 

music community at the House of 

Commons, advocating for recognition 

for early years music educators, and her 

table of progressive music skills for under 

7s features in her curriculum books. 

Frances is the author of “Learning with 

Music: Games and activities for the early 

years“, published by Routledge, August 

2017. 

For your chance to win one of 8 musical hampers, including a Musicaliti song 

book, cd, sets of musical instruments and puppets for either under 2s or over 

2s, answer this question and send it to marketing@parenta.com 

Q: What is the name given to the Monday in January when most people book 

holidays? 

Send your name, answer and preference of over 2s or under 2s before Friday 

28th January for the chance to win. 


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5 

Sibling rivalry can often start from the day a new baby is brought home. The older child goes from being 

the centre of attention and the youngest member of the family, to being the older sibling who then has to 

share their parents and the attention that they get from them. Developmentally it can be a lot to handle, and 

behaviour can change dramatically if a child fears that this new baby could replace them in some way. 

Aggressive behaviour can be common, however, regressive behaviour such as bed wetting can also happen. 

This is often a child’s subconscious attempt to re-establish themselves in a dependent role with their parents. 

Either way, a new baby joining the family can have a huge impact and it’s important for us to be aware of this 

so that we can minimise any negative repercussions. 

Take action before the 

baby arrives 

By this I don’t just mean preparing the 

older child for the baby’s arrival. I also 

mean preparing family and friends for the 

moment that they meet the baby too and 

making them aware of how you want it to 

be. 

A big issue can be that the older child feels 

pushed out. Quite often, when people 

visit a newborn, they will fuss around the 

baby and give it their undivided love and 

doting attention. This is completely normal, 

however if we think of this from the older 

child’s perspective it is actually quite tough. 

They have gone from having all of the 

attention on them to then having a little 

person arriving and stealing the limelight. 

When my son was born, I spoke to every 

family member and friend and asked 

them to essentially ignore the baby and 

to go straight to my 2-year-old when they 

came to visit. I wanted her to feel like she 

was still the priority and that she was 

special, so I asked everyone to ask her 

about ‘her new baby’ and to let her show 

them our new arrival. This way she still 

had lots of attention and she also became 

an important role in the baby’s life by 

introducing the people that mattered the 

most to him. If anyone asked what we 

ways to reduce 

sibling rivalry 

Here are 5 ways to reduce sibling rivalry: 

wanted for the baby as a gift, I also asked 

them to buy my little girl a present rather 

than buying one for the baby. This worked 

a treat because she was not only excited 

to have a new baby brother to show off to 

everyone, but she was also getting gifts for 

being a new big sister. 

Give time to both 

children 

As children get older, they often fight 

for attention. By giving each child a 

set amount of undivided time and 

attention each day their need to fight for 

it will reduce. If a child feels seen and 

appreciated, they are less likely to feel 

threatened or insecure. Label the time (for 

example ‘Mummy and Noah time’ and 

explain to the children that this is something 

you will be doing with each of them every 

day. Even if it’s just 10 minutes, they will love 

this focused time with you, and it will make 

them feel special. Make sure there are no 

distractions like phones or TVs and just give 

100% of yourself to them for the set time 

you have agreed. 

Family time 

Having set family time all together is 

important too. Playing games, eating a nice 

meal around the table, going to the park 

and having a picnic are all ways in which 

you can all bond and make memories 

together. Times like this where both children 

get your undivided attention allow them to 

make positive memories together whilst still 

feeling that connection with you and each 

other. 

Don’t compare 

Every child is an individual and has their 

own strengths and weaknesses. When a 

person feels inadequate or insecure, they 

are more likely to overcompensate, fight for 

attention and/or try to prove themselves. 

If each child feels valued and appreciated 

for who they are, they are less likely to pull 

each other down. Quite often, if a person is 

acting negatively towards another person, it 

is linked to an insecurity inside themselves. 

By celebrating each child’s individuality, 

you build their self-esteem and confidence 

and reduce the chance of them craving 

attention and approval. 

Listen 

There are always two sides to a story. When 

siblings are fighting it is important to hear 

both sides. Once the situation has calmed 

down give each child the chance to tell you 

what has happened and then encourage 

each child to see the situation from their 

sibling’s perspective. Ask them questions 

like: 

• When you did that, how do you think 

that made them feel? 

• How did you feel when…? 

• What could you have done differently 

that might have had a better outcome? 

• Can you understand that when you 

did…, your sibling felt…? 

By listening to both sides, you are making 

each child feel valued and heard, but 

you are also encouraging them both to 

empathise and see the bigger picture. 

Quite often it’s the child who reacts and 

lashes out that gets punished. However, 

there is usually a reason for this. By calmly 

talking though the whole situation you can 

unearth some things that need addressing 

and help both siblings to be more aware of 

their actions and reactions. 

At the end of the day, siblings will always 

fight. However, if this is a constant 

occurrence, it’s important to get to the 

bottom of why. Children crave attention, 

acceptance and love. As parents, life is 

fast paced, and we are constantly juggling 

a million things at once. It can be easy to 

go on autopilot dealing with day-to-day 

routines and chores. However, it’s important 

to remember what truly matters and to take 

time to bond with our children individually 

and as a whole family. By doing this, even if 

it’s just 10 minutes per day, the need for our 

children to fight for attention will decrease 

and this will have a ripple effect with how 

they interact and engage with each other. 

Stacey Kelly 

Stacey Kelly is a former French and 

Spanish teacher, a parent to 2 beautiful 

babies and the founder of Early Years 

Story Box. After becoming a mum, Stacey 

left her teaching career and started 

writing and illustrating storybooks to help 

support her children through different 

transitional stages like leaving nursery 

and starting school. Seeing the positive 

impact of her books on her children’s 

emotional well-being led to Early Years 

Story Box being born. Stacey has now 

created 35 storybooks, all inspired by her 

own children, to help teach different life 

lessons and to prepare children for their 

next steps. She has an exclusive collection 

for childcare settings that are gifted on 

special occasions like first/last days, 

birthdays, Christmas and/or Easter and 

has recently launched a new collection 

for parents too. Her mission is to support 

as many children as she can through 

storytime and to give childcare settings 

an affordable and special gifting solution 

that truly makes a difference. 

Email: stacey@earlyyearsstorybox.com or 

Telephone: 07765785595 

Website: www.earlyyearsstorybox.com 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ 

earlyyearsstorybox 

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/ 

eystorybox 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ 

earlyyearsstorybox 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ 

stacey-kelly-a84534b2/ 



Chinese dumplings 

Pinecone bird feeder 

This simple recipe is from BBC Bitesize. You could use this craft to celebrate 

Chinese New Year in your setting with the children. 

If you are planning to take part in The Big Schools Bird Watch, this pinecone birdfeeder 

might be the perfect activity, which has been inspired by the RSPB’s craft. 

You will need: 

For the dough 

• 140g plain flour 

• 125ml water 

For the filling 

• Finely chopped 

vegetables 

• You could include: 

spinach, spring 

onions, mushrooms, 

cabbage, carrots 

• ½ tbsp soy sauce 

• 1 tbsp cold water 

• salt and pepper 

Image source: Preschool Inspirations 

Instructions: 

1. Stir the water into the flour until mixed - add more water if the mixture seems dry. 

2. Knead the dough with your hands and add a little bit of flour if it’s sticky. 

3. Put the dough in a bowl, covered with a clean, damp towel, and let it rest for around 20 minutes. 

4. After resting, tear the dough into sixteen equal-sized pieces and flatten them into round flat pancakes. 

5. Add all of the filling ingredients into a bowl; and mix together. 

6. Place a spoonful of filling into of each pancake and add a little bit of water to the edges of the pancakes. 

7. Fold the dough in half and pinch the edges together with your fingers. 

8. An adult will then need to boil a pan of water, to then add the dumplings and put on the lid. 

9. Boil the dumplings for three to four minutes and then serve. 

10. *Optional* You could add a little dish of soy sauce for dipping, as seen in the image above. 

You will 

need: 

• Dried pine or fir cones 

• Bird seed 

• Raisins 

• Peanuts 

• Grated cheese 

• Suet or lard 

• A mixing bowl 

• Scissors 

• String 

Instructions: 

1. Make your bird mix with the bird seed, raisins and peanuts and grated cheese. 

2. Leave the lard out to warm up to room temperature and then cut into small 

pieces. 

3. Add the lard and the bird mix into the mixing bowl and use your fingertips to 

mix together until the fats hold the ingredients together. 

4. Get all of your cones and loop the string around the top of them so they are 

secure. 

5. Use your hands to pack the bird mixture around the cones. Try to fit as much in 

as possible. 

6. Once you are finished put your cones into the fridge for around an hour to set. 

7. After this, you can hang up your feeders on the trees and watch the birds 

coming to visit for a snack! 



CEO of the London Early Years Foundation (the UK’s largest 

charitable social enterprise) explains WHY the Government 

must bridge the attainment gap for disadvantaged children 

through an urgent reform of 30-hours nursery policy 

When the London Early Years Foundation (LEYF) saw its most vulnerable children arriving at nursery 

hungry, anxious and developmentally-delayed as a result of lockdowns and the impact of living in poverty 

(exacerbated by the pandemic), we set up the Doubling Down programme in October 2020. This coincided 

with our Prime Minister asking leaders to come to Government with ideas to solve problems and improve 

local services using a place-based response. 

Click here to watch June O’Sullivan’s TedX Talk video “How nurseries tackle the injustice of poverty”. 

Our idea was to double the funded hours 

available to children from poor and 

disadvantaged backgrounds by increasing 

the standard funded 15 hours to 30 hours 

and also provide a proper cooked lunch. 

We targeted children returning from the 

pandemic whose development had been 

really set back. We know that high quality 

nursery education can help make a real 

difference to small children and get them 

into a position where they can thrive at 

home and at school. So, it seemed logical 

that we should provide 30 accessible 

hours for them. 

Between October 2020 and July 2021, 

97 children were offered an additional 15 

hours at nursery each week. 

It also seemed a sensible approach 

given the concern that so many children, 

especially those from disadvantaged 

families, were badly affected cognitively 

and socially by the lockdown. 

Organisations such as the Education 

Endowment Foundation appeared to 

confirm our concern. 

Their survey of schools and parents 

completed in May 2020 found that 

children who started school in autumn 

2020 needed more support than in 

previous years. The findings suggest 

that the greatest area of concern 

was communication and language 

development, in which 96% (55 out of 

57) of schools said they were either “very 

concerned” or “quite concerned”. 

Close behind were personal, social and 

emotional development (91%) and literacy 

(89%) – skills which are heavily reliant 

on the development of strong speech, 

language and communication abilities. 

Funded by generous donations from 

Permira Foundation and Barclays 100 x 100 

COVID-19 UK Community Relief Fund (plus 

our own public crowd funding campaign 

which is still on-going), analysis from 

Doubling Down research found: 

• Over 70% of parents and staff 

saw a positive impact on their 

child’s communication skills, social 

development and behaviour 

Percentage of children at expected level of development 

across EYFS areas of Learning & Development 

Physical Development 

Expressive Arts & Design 

Personal Social & 

Emotional Development 

Communication & Language 

Literacy 

Understanding the World 

Mathematics 

0% 

+9 

+7 

+12 

+7 

+3 

+9 

+8 

Pre 

Post 

20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 

• A profound positive impact on the 

mood, sleep, empathy, school 

readiness and nutritious eating 

amongst children 

• A reduction in the amount of screen 

time, especially as many of the 

children had spent months living 

in high rise flats with no access to 

a garden or opportunities to play 

outdoors 

The external evaluation of the ‘Doubling 

Down’ programme conducted by Rocket 

Science (between October 2020 to July 

2021) also highlighted improvement 

across ALL seven areas of EYFS learning 

and development by an average 8%. The 

largest improvement was a +12% increase 

in Communication and Language (from 

57% to 68%), followed by +9% across 

Mathematics (from 52% to 61%) and 

Expressive Arts & Design (from 67% to 

76%). 

Staff noted that by the provision of the 

extra hours at nursery also significantly 

benefitted parents, many of whom were 

caring for children with Special Educational 

Needs and Disabilities (SEND). Staff morale 

also benefited because they felt they had 

more time to support vulnerable children’s 

learning and development effectively. 

This is super important as many staff are 

reeling from the recruitment shortage 

and constructive feedback is the tonic. It’s 

imperative that they feel optimistic and 

confident about the significant part they 

play in making a positive difference to 

each child. 

Disappointingly, it came as no surprise 

that our Childcare Minister was not 

a fan of Doubling Down. He thinks 

30-hours risks children not benefitting 

from the Government’s own policy of 30 

hours. Quoting the SEED Impact Report 

from February 2020, the Minister and 

his advisers seem overly focused on a 

very small negative effect on children’s 

emotional self-regulation among children 

using nursery for more than fifteen hours 

per week between the age of two and the 

start of school. 

The research noted a very small 

unfavourable association between formal 

Early Childhood Education and Care 

(ECEC) use and children’s socioemotional 

outcomes but contrasted with the largely 

positive associations, the impact was 

negligible and the researchers wondered 

whether the reasons for these 

unexpected differences lay in the source 

of the socio-emotional measures. The 

age four socio-emotional measures were 

derived from parent report, whereas the 

later outcomes were derived from teacher 

report. The question will be considered at 

age seven in a later SEED report. 

The Sutton Trust’s recent report. ‘A Fair 

Start – Equalising Access to Early Education’ 

and the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) both 

argue for extending the 15-hours funded 

places to children from disadvantaged 

backgrounds. The estimated cost of 

universalising the 30-hour entitlement 

would raise spending by around £250 

million in 2024–25. Extending the 

entitlement to disadvantaged three-and 

four-year-olds would cost an extra £165 

million a year. This is compared to the 

roughly £735 million that the existing 30- 

hour entitlement will cost. But the benefits 

and the return on the investment would be 

significant. 

Our research provides a strong message 

to both the Government and to global 

investors, and demonstrates that we need 

to think carefully about how we respond 

to the fast-emerging problems we are 

seeing across the country as a result of 

the pandemic. We clearly need to reverse 

the alarming decline in the health, wellbeing 

and education amongst our young 

children. Access to these crucial extra 

Government funded hours is benefitting 

children now and can actually help them 

level up and reduce the attainment gap 

that emerges from 22 months in children 

from disadvantaged backgrounds. Doing 

nothing is simply not an option. 

So, back to Boris and his call for leaders 

to provide examples of good practice 

which we can learn from and drive 

levelling-up and systemic change. Failure 

to close the attainment gap continues to 

have devastating consequences for the 

1.3 million children aged 0-5 who live in 

poverty. Just look at the most recent report 

about disadvantaged white pupils. 

Our Secretary of State for Education, 

Nadhim Zahawi must put his money where 

his mouth is. He is right when he says 

June O’Sullivan 

June O’Sullivan MBE is Chief Executive of 

the London Early Years Foundation (LEYF), 

one of the UK’s largest charitable childcare 

social enterprises which currently runs 39 

nurseries across twelve London boroughs. 

An inspiring speaker, author and regular 

media commentator on early years, social 

business and child poverty, June has 

been instrumental in achieving a major 

strategic, pedagogical and cultural shift 

for the award-winning London Early Years 

Foundation, resulting in an increased 

profile, a new childcare model and a 

stronger social impact over the past ten 

years. 

@juneosullivan 

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn 

“… you don’t tackle inequality and poverty 

unless you tackle education.” 

https://leyf.org.uk/doubling-down/ 



Chinese New Year 

supposed to take a shower on this 

day or get a haircut either since 

using scissors, knives or other 

sharp objects is thought to risk 

bringing in bad luck. 

On the 1st January each year, many cultures celebrate a New Year according to the solar-based Gregorian 

calendar, and this year, most countries will celebrate the birth of 2022 at the stroke of midnight. But did you 

know, that although this is the calendar used in the international standard for representation of dates and 

times, known as ISO 8601, it is only one of many New Year celebrations that people mark over the course of 

a year? You might have read our recent article about Diwali in November which is the New Year celebrations 

for many Hindu, Sikhs and Jains in India. The Bengali people in India celebrate New Year in April, Jewish 

people celebrate Rosh Hashanah in September or October, and many Celts and Pagans celebrate Samhain 

as New Year’s Eve on October 31st, starting their New Year on November 1st. In Islam, they use an calendar 

that is based on the phases of the moon and is shorter than the solar year used in ISO 8601. 

Celebrating in 

your setting 

Chinese New Year can be 

celebrated in different ways and 

we’ve given you a few suggestions 

below to help you make the most 

of this season. It also lasts just 

over 2 weeks so there will be 

plenty of time to try a few of our 

suggestions. 

8. “Happy New Year!” 

One of the most famous and longest New 

Year celebrations is that of the Chinese 

New Year which occurs around January/ 

February each year, and in 2022 will be 

celebrated starting with New Year’s Eve 

on January 31st, followed by New Year’s 

Day on 1st February. The celebration, also 

called the Spring Festival, lasts for 16 days 

ending with the Lantern Festival on the full 

moon on February 15th. It marks the end of 

the coldest part of winter and the start of 

new beginnings. Like Easter, the exact date 

is based on the cycles of the moon and 

begins on a new moon day, usually the 

second new moon after the winter solstice 

(21 st December). 

During Chinese New Year, most Chinese 

people will get 7 days holiday at the start 

of the festivities and many people will 

begin thoroughly cleaning their houses 

before that to sweep out the old year and 

welcome in good luck for the new one. 

Factories are closed and people return 

to their families from the big cities. The 

Chinese zodiac has 12 houses like the 

Western zodiac, but whereas the Western 

Feb 1, 2022 – 

Tiger 

Feb 27, 2026 – 

Horse 

Feb 3, 2030 – 

Dog 

zodiac cycles last approximately one 

month, the Chinese ones last a year and 

are named after animals such as the 

pig, horse and dragon. The New Year 

starting in 2022 will be the year of the 

tiger and people born within that year 

are predicted to be competitive, brave, 

confident and unpredictable. Interestingly, 

when it is your Chinese zodiac birth year, 

(known as benmingnian), it is thought 

that people with that birth sign (i.e. the 

tiger) will have their unluckiest year rather 

than their luckiest one. The signs come 

around every 12 years, so the last 

year of the tiger was 2010. The 

12 signs of the Chinese zodiac 

are shown above with their 

corresponding New Year’s 

Day. 

How is 

Chinese 

New Year 

celebrated? 

Jan 22, 2023 – 

Rabbit 

Feb 6, 2027 – 

Goat 

Jan 23, 2031 – 

Pig 

Around the world, many people 

from China and other Asian countries 

Feb 10, 2024 – 

Dragon 

Jan 26, 2028 – 

Monkey 

Feb 11, 2032 – 

Rat 

Jan 29, 2025 – 

Snake 

Feb 13, 2029 – 

Rooster 

Jan 31, 2033 – 

Ox 

celebrate by gathering with their families, 

eating special foods and setting off 

fireworks although fireworks are banned 

in some places due to concerns about 

air pollution. Many children receive red 

envelopes containing money. Red is a 

colour that symbolises good luck and 

traditionally people prayed to their gods 

or their ancestors. If you’ve seen the film 

“Mulan”, you will know the importance of 

ancestors in looking after the people, even 

after death. In life, people visit their elderly 

relatives and pay their respects by doing 3 

‘kowtows’ to the elders. A kowtow is where 

people kneel on the floor and bow forward, 

putting their head on their hands which are 

on the floor. It is considered the ultimate 

mark of respect. 

Chinese New Year is also traditionally a 

time for fighting off demons and monsters 

such as a demon called Nian, and there 

are many myths and legends about people 

fighting these creatures and overcoming 

them. Red is supposed to be useful in 

fighting demons so many people also hang 

up red decorations such as lanterns, red 

chilli peppers or red paper during this time 

to ward off evil spirits. 

It’s traditional to eat dumplings every 

day, although you can have too much of 

a good thing! And since new clothes are 

also believed to bring good luck, many 

people will add some new red clothes 

to their wardrobes too. At the end of the 

festive season is the Lantern Festival or the 

Yuanxiao Festival, a night of partying and 

freedom. 

As well as trying to attract good luck, many 

Chinese people actively try to avoid bad 

luck by avoiding certain things during the 

New Year period. So people avoid saying 

negative words and don’t demand debt 

repayments. It is also thought to be bad 

luck to break a ceramic object or to clean 

your house on New Year’s Day. You’re not 

1. Make some red paper lanterns and 

decorate your setting 

2. Cut out some silhouettes of the 

different zodiac animals and make 

mobiles or pictures – you can introduce 

some new words by talking about their 

different qualities 

3. Make some Chinese dumplings – 

there is a child-friendly recipe here 

4. Introduce your children to the idea of 

different New Years through reading 

books and stories such as “Maisie’s 

Chinese New Year” by Lucy Cousins 

or tell the children some traditional 

Chinese myths and legends 

5. Make a paper plate Chinese dragon 

6. Run a movement session based on the 

12 zodiac animals getting the children 

to move in different ways 

7. Do some mark-making with a 

traditional New Year greeting 

Whatever you do, remember to send us 

your stories and pictures to hello@parenta. 

com. 

More information: 

• https://chinesenewyear.net/ 

• https://www.eyalliance.org.uk/ 

celebrating-chinese-new-year-ideasand-activities-early-years-settings 

• https://www.seriouseats.com/easykids-dumplings 



Egg-cellent advice: 

Twinkle toes 

If you are supporting people who enjoy the 

sensory world as I do, can you find times 

when they can be out of their socks and 

shoes so that they have four sources of 

information, not just two? 

(These words first appeared on Jo’s 

Facebook profile you are welcome to 

send her a friend request to watch out for 

more insight https://www.facebook.com/ 

JoannaGraceTSP: 

Joanna provides online and in person 

training relating to sensory engagement 

and sensory differences, look up www. 

TheSensoryProjects.co.uk/online-college 

for more information. To view a list of her 

books visit www.TheSensoryProjects.co.uk/ 

books Follow Jo on social media to pick up 

new sensory insights, you’ll find her at: 

@Jo3Grace on Twitter, www.Facebook.com/ 

JoannaGraceTSP and https://uk.linkedin. 

com/in/joannagracethesensoryprojects 

I do not know how he came to acquire the nick-name Egg but ever since he came along that’s what my 

youngest son has been called. I run The Sensory Projects www.TheSensoryProjects.co.uk (which should 

now really be called The Sensory Projects and Sons!) My work focuses on people with profound disabilities 

and sensory differences, but my son’s advice will apply to your work too. 

In this series of articles we are going to share his insights with you, if you are keen for more there is an ever 

growing collection on my Facebook profile: come and make friends. www.Facebook.com/JoannaGraceTSP 

Watching Egg before he could walk it 

was clear that he used his feet to explore 

materials as much as he used his hands. 

Of course this could be a consequence of 

having a sensory engagement specialist 

as a mother, who is prone to wrapping 

jangling belly dancer sarongs around the 

chair legs, but more likely it is simply to do 

This is article 3 out of a series of 10! To view the others click here. 

with the number of nerve endings. 

Our hands are very sensitive, lots of nerve 

endings = lots of sensation = a great tool 

for exploring. Tongues and lips are even 

better, so putting things in your mouth 

is a great way to explore the world. And 

feet! Feet too should join this party, their 

tickliness is a result of their many nerve 

endings, so providing things to explore 

with twinkle toes is a wonderful way to 

invite learning about the world. 

The belly dancer’s sarong was a great 

hit, providing texture to explore, and 

rewarding that exploration with a light 

show and a cacophony of jingles. 

My feet reach out for things just like my 

hands do. 

You may only use your hands to touch and 

explore, but feet seem just as good an 

option to me. 

When I am older more people will expect 

me to wear shoes. And I probably will 

because my feet will, likely, carry me 

around so I will need shoes to keep them 

safe. 

But if wheels carried me around. Or if I was 

inside in a safe space, it would be nice to 

feel with my feet again. 

If I had hands that did not work so well, my 

feet might be all the more important. 

Mummy gets teased for me not wearing 

socks now. Think what you would say to 

her if she encased my hands in leather 

and put hard rubber soles across my 

palms. When I have my socks and shoes 

on, I learn less about the world around 

me. 

Joanna Grace 

Joanna Grace is an international 

Sensory Engagement and Inclusion 

Specialist, trainer, author, TEDx speaker 

and founder of The Sensory Projects. 

Consistently rated as “outstanding” by 

Ofsted, Joanna has taught in 

mainstream and special school settings, 

connecting with pupils of all ages and 

abilities. To inform her work, Joanna 

draws on her own experience from her 

private and professional life as well as 

taking in all the information she can 

from the research archives. Joanna’s 

private life includes family members 

with disabilities and neurodiverse 

conditions and time spent as a 

registered foster carer for children with 

profound disabilities. 

Joanna has published four practitioner 

books: “Multiple Multisensory Rooms: 

Myth Busting the Magic”, “Sensory 

Stories for Children and Teens”, 

“Sensory-Being for Sensory Beings” 

and “Sharing Sensory Stories and 

Conversations with People with 

Dementia”. and two inclusive sensory 

story children’s books: “Voyage to 

Arghan” and “Ernest and I”. There is 

new book coming out soon called ‘”The 

Subtle Spectrum” and her son has 

recently become the UK’s youngest 

published author with his book, “My 

Mummy is Autistic”. 

Joanna is a big fan of social media and 

is always happy to connect with people 

via Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. 

Website: 

thesensoryprojects.co.uk 



Supporting staff and 

Advice, advocacy and mental 

health 

apprentices with SEND 

Last year, we wrote about the different ways you can help children with SEND ranging from dyslexia, 

dyscalculia and autism to those with ADHD, social, emotional and mental health issues (SEMH), through to 

more complex needs such as those with a physical or learning disabilities. Children with SEND grow up to be 

adults with SEND as many of these conditions are lifelong. Adults need to find employment and independence 

(where possible) which means initially getting a job and then being able to operate at work without having 

the security and support that many educational environments offer. This can be problematic. 

According to The Labour Force Survey 

for the six months ending June 2020, 

employment rates in people with SEND 

were: 

• Depression, bad nerves or anxiety: 

54.3% 

• Mental illness or other nervous 

disorder: 33% 

• Severe or specific learning difficulties: 

26.5% 

• Autism: 21.7% 

People with a learning disability have the 

lowest employment rate amongst disabled 

people. Just 5.1% of people with a learning 

disability have a paid job, yet around 80% 

can work. 

For a lot of people with special educational 

needs such as autism, dyslexia and 

dyscalculia, some of the things they 

struggled with a school can become 

a positive attribute in a work situation. 

People with autism and ADHD can thrive 

in environments that suit their particular 

skills such as details and logical planning. 

Dyslexia has held many back at school 

but at work, people are able to focus more 

easily on what they can do well (such as 

caring for others or being creative), and 

work with their SEN, rather than constantly 

having to struggle to fit into educational 

‘norms’. 

The Government is committed to 

supporting people with SEND into 

adulthood and to help them secure jobs 

and thrive independently. It has introduced 

legislation to ensure that employers 

do not discriminate against anyone on 

the grounds of disability and has made 

it compulsory for employers to make 

‘reasonable adjustments’ so that it is 

easier for people with SEND to find work. 

However, there is no doubt that there are 

still many barriers to full employment and 

promoting a culture of inclusion, diversity 

and understanding at work will help your 

setting become part of the solution. 

So how can you support adults or 

employees with SEND in your setting? 

Leadership and management 

How you support your employees or 

apprentices will depend on each person’s 

needs but making a clear commitment to 

support any SEND staff you have is good 

start. It is important that this comes from 

the top and is written into your policies 

and procedures which might mean 

reviewing your policies on disability and 

inclusion, or making budgetary decisions 

and allocating money as necessary for 

any changes or adjustments you need to 

make. 

Communication and 

transparency 

It is vital that you also have good and 

honest lines of communication, and 

this means having a two-way dialogue 

and encouraging a culture of open 

communication and respect. You will 

obviously have to find out what the needs 

of your employees are, be they physical, 

sensory or supporting their mental health, 

so encourage staff to be open and honest. 

It also means being honest about what 

you can and cannot do within the law, 

but you should work towards a win-win 

solution if you can. It can be helpful to 

set up suggestion boxes to encourage 

new ideas and put SEND issues onto your 

weekly meeting agendas. 

Think too about how you issue your 

staff communications – are you 

accommodating all staff if they have 

dyslexia, hearing- or sight-loss or need 

extra time to process information? 

Changes to the environment 

The Equality Act 2010 makes it law for all 

public sector organisations and some 

employers such as shops, local authorities 

and schools to make ‘reasonable 

adjustments’ to remove barriers that some 

people with disabilities face, although it is 

not set out as to what these adjustments 

are and it depends on the size of the 

company, the cost of the changes and 

whether they are practicable to make. 

Employers and employee should decide 

but they can include things like: 

• Changing the physical environment 

such as steps and stairways 

• Providing ramps or wider entrances 

and exits 

• Changing internal doors 

• Making adjustments to lighting and 

ventilation 

• Installing noise reduction panels or 

providing noise reducing headphones 

Remember that small and simple changes 

can make a huge difference to people 

with sensory needs, which can boost your 

productivity, efficiency and staff loyalty. 

Think too about your other staff who may 

not have SEND but who may be aging 

as the age of the general workforce 

increases, who might welcome some 

adjustments to make their life easier. 

Be proactive and become a source of 

advice and information for your staff. 

Promote awareness days/weeks/ 

months within your setting and take 

the opportunity to improve everyone’s 

awareness of SEND to promote inclusion 

and tolerance. You may be lucky enough 

to have an HR department if you work 

in a larger company, but many early 

years settings are small, owner-manager 

organisations where this is unlikely. You 

can still seek advice and information 

and there are many organisations who 

help people with SEND get into work 

such as Remploy, so do some research 

and see how you can help (see below). 

The Government runs an Access to 

Work scheme to help people initially 

apply for and get into self-employment, 

training or start working which you could 

promote at interviews or when thinking 

about CPD for staff. The Government’s 

Disability Confident scheme is designed 

to help employers make the most of the 

opportunities provided by employing 

disabled people. It is voluntary and 

has been developed by employers and 

representatives of disabled people to 

improve their employment prospects. 

Remember too that offering an 

understanding ear can go a very long way 

to make people feel included. 

CPD 

People with SEND also want to progress 

in their careers when they start them, so 

make sure you consider opportunities for 

CPD and career progression in your setting 

for people with SEND (and all staff for that 

matter). Many courses can be done online 

and remotely nowadays, removing a lot of 

barriers for people with SEND. Parenta run 

many CPD elearning courses through their 

training CPD webpage on everything from 

tissue viability to time management. 

More information: 

• Careers Enterprise Company: Working 

with young people with SEND 

• UK Government: Employing disabled 

people and people with health 

conditions 

• Citizens Advice: Duty to make 

reasonable adjustments 

• Disability Confident Employer scheme 

• Remploy 

• Access to work 



2022 New Year’s Resolution: 

Get moving and help grow brains 

We all know about the physical and mental health benefits of exercise, fitness, and movement for adults, 

and we all make those New Year resolutions to hit the road or gym! Well, did you know that it is even 

more important to make movement and physical activity a priority in the early years as this is the most 

important time in our development? 

Felicity Gillespie, Director of Kindred, said: 

A child’s development at 22 months 

serves as a strong predictor of education 

outcomes at age 26. Most of the human 

brain is developed before we can even 

talk and in the first year of life, the brain 

literally doubles in size. The evidence of the 

massive impact our earliest relationships, 

environments and experiences has on our 

future development is incontrovertible. 

Did you know? 

Physical activity grows the brain through 

the Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor 

(BDNF) release which stimulates the 

growth of new neurons. You are literally 

growing the brain through movement and 

physical activity. 

A few ways to spur you on, to keep this 

resolution, as physical activity is really the 

foundation of brain functioning. 

In the past, education has 

compartmentalised learning, at all levels, 

and all the neuroscientific research is 

giving us clearer evidence that everything 

is linked in the learning process. 

The paper “Physical Activity and Cognition: 

Inseparable in the Classroom” by Anya 

Doherty and Anna Fores Miravalles from 

the Faculty of Education, University of 

Barcelona is worth reading. 

We all know how active learning helps 

children improve their well-being, speech, 

language and communication skills, 

personal and social development, and 

their understanding of the world around 

them. But did you know how your actions 

and examples now, will have a long-term 

impact on your little ones in later life? 

By helping them now to create a healthy 

lifestyle will help them make good choices 

later in life. 

The immediate benefits of 

movement and activity 

1. You are helping them grow their brain 

through the BDNF release to stimulate 

the growth of new neurons 

2. You are building myelin on those 

connections of the brain each time 

you repeat a movement. Peek at 

“meeting myelin” from the August 

2021 edition 

3. Exercise and movement can reduce 

the risk of developing major illness in 

later life 

4. Helps children to build stronger bones 

and muscles which improves their 

posture and balance (core) 

Did you know movement 

literally grows the brain? 

? 

If you read “How Lifestyle Factors Affect 

Cognitive and Executive Function and the 

Ability to Learn in Children” it discusses 

lifestyle and its impact on cognitive and 

executive function. In their research on 

movement and physical activity, the 

researchers have seen that there are 

several changes in the volume of brain 

structure and that movement could 

enhance cognition and learning in 

children. 

For example, a difference in the volume of 

the basal ganglia (responsible for motor 

control) and additionally increased volume 

in the hippocampus, the hub of the brain’s 

memory network, has also been related to 

aerobic fitness and movement. The article 

suggests that increased aerobic fitness 

could enhance cognitive development in 

children by changing the volume in regions 

of the brain that are involved in cognitive 

function. 

Movement is also such a benefit in the 

learning process for children with additional 

learning needs and the paper “The effect 

of acute exercise on cognitive performance 

in children with and without ADHD” shows 

that exercise benefits all children. 

Cognitive development: benefits 

of movement and activity 

1. Improved co-ordination 

2. Improved memory and focus 

3. The improved speed with which 

information is processed 

On top of all that, movement and 

physical activity helps with well-being, 

vital for learning, by reducing stress and 

anxiety due to the release of moodboosting 

endorphins, increases children’s 

confidence and self-esteem and gives 

them opportunities to express and process 

emotions. Working and playing together in 

a group increases feelings of connection 

and being needed and wanted. 

A little something to think 

about… 

The neuroselection hypothesis paper 

“Early life cognitive function and health 

behaviours in late childhood: testing the 

neuroselection hypothesis” from the BMJ, 

suggests that higher cognitive skills in early 

life (3-7) is associated with the avoidance 

of hazardous behaviours (smoking and 

alcohol) but also the avoidance of sport and 

exercise. 

The article suggests that children with 

higher levels of cognition, particularly 

those with higher levels of verbal ability, 

need to be encouraged to participate in 

physical activity and movement to help 

them manage their health behaviours in 

the future. 

In a nutshell movement and activity is good 

for everyone, no matter what age they are, 

in so many ways. So, what are you waiting 

for make this part of your resolution for 

2022 and beyond? 

Don’t worry about the weather or rain, 

wrap up well, and have lots of fun moving, 

whether indoors or outside, and actively 

grow brains. 

References 

• (2021). “New Research Highlights 

Importance of Early Years Development 

on Future Well-being”, Department 

of Psychiatry, University of Oxford. 

Available at: https://www.psych. 

ox.ac.uk/news/new-researchhighlights-importance-of-early-yearsdevelopment-on-future-well-being 

• Miravalles. F, Doherty. A (2019). 

“Physical Activity and Cognition: 

Inseparable in the Classroom”, 

Faculty of Education, University of 

Barcelona. Available at: https://www. 

frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/ 

feduc.2019.00105/full 

• Jirout, J. et al. (2019). “How Lifestyle 

Factors Affect Cognitive and Executive 

Function and the Ability to Learn in 

Children”, Nutrients. Available at: 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/ 

articles/PMC6723730/ 

• Pipemeier, AT. Et al (2015). “The 

effect of acute exercise on cognitive 

performance in children with and 

without ADHD”, The journal of 

sport and Health Science; Vol 4, 

issue 1. Available at: https://www. 

sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/ 

S2095254614001264 

Gina Bale 

Gina’s background was originally 

ballet, but she has spent the last 27 

years teaching movement and dance 

in mainstream, early years and SEND 

settings as well as dance schools. 

Whilst teaching, Gina found the time to 

create the ‘Hi-5’ dance programme to 

run alongside the Australian Children’s 

TV series and the Angelina Ballerina 

Dance Academy for Hit Entertainment. 

Her proudest achievement to date is her 

baby Littlemagictrain. She created this 

specifically to help children learn through 

make-believe, music and movement. 

One of the highlights has been seeing 

Littlemagictrain delivered by Butlin’s 

famous Redcoats with the gorgeous 

‘Bonnie Bear’ on the Skyline stage. 

Gina has qualifications of teaching 

movement and dance from the Royal 

Ballet School, Trinity College and Royal 

Academy of Dance. 

Use the code ‘PARENTA’ for a 20% 

discount on Littlemagictrain downloads 

from ‘Special Editions’, ‘Speech and 

Language Activities’, ‘Games’ and 

‘Certificates’. 

• Aggio, D. Smith, L & Hamer, M. (2018). 

“Early life cognitive function and health 

behaviours in late childhood: testing 

and the neuroselection hypothesis”, 

BMJ Journal of Epidemiology & 

Community Health Volume 72, Issue 

1. Available at: https://jech.bmj.com/ 

content/72/1/41.full 



RSPB Big Schools 

Bird Watch 

Winter days can be cold and unforgiving; sometimes there is snow and many of us loathe the additional 

time spent in the morning defrosting our cars so that we can drive to work, if COVID restrictions allow. But 

the vast majority of us move from one heated location to another, with food in our bellies and a hot drink 

to keep out the chill. Now imagine that all you have to keep you warm is a thin set of feathers, your food 

sources are covered in 3 inches of snow (2 inches deeper than the length of your legs) and all available 

water sources are frozen! Such is the plight of many of our birds in winter, where every winter day becomes 

a life and death struggle. 

Luckily, there are many of us who have 

pledged to assist our feathered friends, 

who put out bird food and clean water 

to help the birds keep the worst of the 

weather at bay and give them a fighting 

chance to survive the winter months. In 

return, we are rewarded with the sound 

of birdsong in our gardens, the beauty 

of seeing our garden full of life, and the 

satisfaction of knowing we have done our 

bit to give nature a much needed helping 

hand. 

We have even organised ourselves into 

groups and associations to be better 

able to advocate for our feathered friends 

through lobbying, fund-raising and 

conservation. This is the work of groups 

like the Royal Society for the Protection of 

Birds (RSPB) who have been passionate 

about nature and dedicated to saving it 

since its formation in 1889. 

A brief history of the RSPB 

The RSPB was the brainchild of Emily 

Williamson, who created an all-women 

group called the Society for the Protection 

of Birds in 1889. As the Victorian desire 

for fashionable exotic feathers grew, she 

became frustrated at the lack of progress 

from the all-male British Ornithologists 

Union in failing to protect birds such as 

the little egrets, great crested grebes, and 

birds of paradise who were being driven 

to the edge of extinction. Emily found 

others who shared her passion for birds 

and soon joined forces with Etta Lemon 

and Eliza Phillips and the movement 

grew in popularity, so much so that in 

1904, the society was granted a Royal 

Charter, becoming the RSPB. In 1921, the 

Importation of Plumage (Prohibition) Act 

was passed, and the RSPB had run its first 

successful campaign. They bought their 

first nature reserve in Minsmere in 1947, 

and have gone from strength to strength, 

as today they manage over 200 reserves 

across the UK. 

and counting the numbers of birds they 

see, and reporting this data back to the 

RSPB to help with their data collection and 

conservation efforts. 

What do they do with the data? 

Once the data has been collated, there 

are three categories, red, amber or green, 

that each bird can be placed in, in order 

of conservation importance. The birds 

whose plight is of greatest concern are put 

on the red list, and in 2021, there were 70 

species making up this list. This is nearly 

double the length of the first report in 1996. 

Some of our most popular birds such as 

the swift, house martin and greenfinch are 

now on the list along with cuckoos and 

puffins. The Society reported that birds who 

migrate to Africa for the winter, seem to be 

doing less well and the number of water 

birds who spend the winter in the UK, 

has also declined including the Bewick’s 

Swan, dunlin and the goldeneye. The 

red list species are globally threatened, 

and have experienced at least a 50% 

decline in UK breeding populations 

over the last 25 years. There have been 

success stories however, with the whitetailed 

eagle increasing in numbers and 

moving from the red to the amber list, 

but it is more crucial than ever that we 

begin reassessing our relationship with 

nature and taking part in the Big Garden 

Birdwatch is one thing that everyone can 

do to help. 

It’s easy to take part and the RSPB have 

put a lot of thought into how they can get 

everyone to join in. They have created a 

website full of information sheets, facts 

and resources about how people can 

get involved including some resources 

specifically aimed at early years settings 

that you can access here. You’ll find sheets 

to record your sightings in both English 

and Welsh, and in different number 

formats making them easy to use with 

younger children, as well as lesson plans, 

factsheets, colouring downloads, match 

games, story books and card sets, and a 

whole lot more. You’ll find ways to identify 

different birdsong, bird seed recipes and 

lots of fun crafts related to birds so there 

really is no excuse not to get involved in 

one way or the other. 

The bird watch part itself asks you to 

spend an hour counting the birds you see 

and report back to the RSPB. You need to 

register on their website and will receive a 

specially prepared pack to help everyone 

take part including differentiated resources 

in English and Welsh. If you take part, you 

can achieve a Wild Challenge award to 

display proudly in your setting too. 

Tips to help birds in winter 

1 

Feed the birds with a high energy bird 

seed mix and do this regularly, scattering 

seeds in sheltered places so they can be 

kept dry and accessible. 

2 

Put out fresh water - birds need it to drink 

and to bathe in so remember to refill it 

especially in freezing conditions. 

3 

Put up some bird boxes in your garden 

or outdoor space to encourage feathered 

tenants. 

4 

Remember that not all birds like to feed 

from a bird table – there are many groundfeeding 

birds too such as thrushes and 

blackbirds, so remember to create a 

ground-level feeding station too. 

5 

Clean your feeders regularly. 

More information is available 

at: 

• https://www.rspb.org.uk/ 

• http://ypte.org.uk/ 

• https://sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk/ 

discover/in-your-garden/birds 

• https://www.birdwatchersdigest.com/ 

bwdsite/learn/top10/top-10-ways-tohelp-birds-in-bad-weather.php 

The Big Schools Bird Watch 

Each year, the RSPB organises a 

nationwide bird watch over the course of 

one weekend in January called the Big 

Schools Bird Watch. They use it to estimate 

the number of wild birds in the country 

and to spot changes and trends in their 

numbers. In 2022 the event runs from 

Friday 28th January to Sunday 30 January. 

People from all walks of life up and down 

the country are asked to spend an hour 

in, or looking at, their garden, identifying 



Together we are growing 

children’s brains – 


Your children are living in a three-dimensional world. Full of people, plants, animals… and a whole host of 

things to engage with and make sense of. Wherever you are located, whatever philosophies your setting 

follows, and whatever environments you have available, your children are surrounded by wonder. With 

voices to interpret, social skills to understand, dangers to be aware of and emotions to fathom. 

This is an awful lot of things to learn within 

bodies that are growing and developing 

daily. Changing how they feel, how they 

respond and how they can move. Because 

of this, they are born with a brain that is 

eager to learn and hungry to make sense 

of their world. This powerful motivation to 

learn will see them driven to explore and 

understand their surroundings, even when 

you wish they would not! 

Whether you consider pulling over the 

big pot of paint… again… a desirable 

experience or not, the learning 

opportunities for a child are just too rich to 

resist. A few years later, and they will have 

found other ways testing the boundaries 

of their environment and relationships. It 

is only when their efforts are fruitless or 

met with resistance that they learn not 

to bother, and frustration, boredom and 

difficult behaviours may follow. So, if you 

want to protect your floor, and keep this 

powerful motivation to learn in place, 

understand what is going on and provide 

them with experiences they can explore. 

So what is going on in that developing 

brain and why do our children behave in 

the ways that they do? 

It is amazing to think that as you look into 

the eyes of a new-born that they already 

have most of the 100 billion neurons or 

brain cells that you have contained within 

your adult brain. And yet at birth, a child’s 

brain will have been around a quarter of 

the size of yours. So, what is changing? 

Where is this growth and development 

coming from? 

It is coming from the connections being 

formed between these brain cells – 

somewhere in the region of 1,000 trillion 

connections to wire up an adult brain. 

And these connections are being made 

through every single experience a growing 

child is exposed to – whatever they may 

be. 

Children are born with some primitive 

structures already established in their 

brain. You will have seen this when a baby 

instinctively knows to grasp your finger, to 

turn their head as their cheek is rubbed, 

or the way they will fling out their arms 

and legs when they are startled. These are 

known as the primitive reflexes and are 

hardwired into every new life as a survival 

mechanism. 

Other kinds of knowledge, they must learn 

along the way, such as what happens 

to their toy when they can no longer see 

it, or why their friend is experiencing an 

emotion right now that they are not… their 

friend seems upset, but they are quite 

happy now that they have the red trike! So, 

how does brain development happen and 

what exactly is going on? How do we even 

begin to understand everything we need 

to? And how are these connections being 

made? 

Our mature brains have learnt to translate 

a multitude of sensory information. This 

comes from our eyes, our eardrums and 

our fingertips. Once our brain receives this 

sensory input, it systematically rearranges 

and transforms it, using memories from 

our past experiences to create a complex 

yet coherent interpretation that allows 

us to operate in this complex world. We 

can make out the face of a loved one 

in a crowd, we can make sense of a 

conversation in a noisy environment, and 

we can make decisions and act on them. 

Our brains have become so good at this 

complex process that we take it for granted 

– until something goes wrong. But just like 

many other skills we have learnt along 

the way; this takes lots of opportunities to 

practice. 

During early childhood, their young brain is 

around twice as active as yours, reaching 

a peak at around the age of 3 when they 

are more connected, and more flexible 

than at any other time of their life. From 

this point on, the brain becomes selective 

in the connections it keeps, with those 

connections triggered by the experiences 

they have more often, considered to be 

more important. 

While some of the basic wiring is 

predetermined, for all the rest… they 

are looking to those around them for 

guidance. And every opportunity they can 

find to explore. So how does this learning 

happen? 

At a fundamental level, children are 

basically experiential learners. This means 

that their knowledge and understanding 

of the world comes from every experience 

they have within it – the good ones and 

the bad! And as they strive to make all 

the connections they need, we need to 

remember that this is a learning process, 

and they will make mistakes along the 

way. How these opportunities are offered, 

and the way a child experiences them is 

then making a massive difference within 

this process. And the choices you make are 

essential. 

Everything from how you connect as 

you play, offering them choices as they 

explore their own ideas, or whether group 

times with predetermined expectations 

or planning, can dominate. Whether you 

explore your local environment, talking 

about the sounds and smells all around 

you. Even that time you took your shoes 

and socks off just to feel the wet grass or 

cool paint between your toes. Through 

these experiences you are changing not 

only the hardwiring of their brain, but also 

the ways in which they will react to any 

new experience and the new opportunities 

that come their way. 

They are learning to deal with every new 

situation, informed and enhanced by every 

previous experience they have had of 

something similar. They are learning what 

to expect from the people they meet, and 

the reactions they might expect from their 

own actions. And they are also learning 

about where their efforts and attentions 

are best placed. During these early years 

you are literally growing and shaping 

your children’s brains, defining them as 

a person in ways that will be with them 

for life. So, embrace every opportunity 

with your children as you play, engage 

and experience this amazing world of 

sights, sounds, smells, tastes and textures 

together. 

Understanding children from the Inside 

Out is the first session in the new Nurturing 

Childhoods Accreditation, offering you a 

whole new approach to CPD that is tailored 

to the needs of your setting, and the 

Kathryn Peckham 

As Founder of Nurturing Childhoods, 

Dr Kathryn Peckham is a passionate 

advocate for children’s access to rich and 

meaningful experiences throughout their 

foundational early years. Delivering 

online courses, training and seminars, she 

works with families and settings to identify 

and celebrate the impact of effective 

childhood experiences as preparation for 

all of life’s learning. An active campaigner 

for children, she consults on projects, 

conducts research for government bodies 

and contributes to papers launched in 

parliament. Through her consultancy 

and research she guides local councils, 

practitioners, teachers and parents all 

over the world in enhancing children’s 

experiences through the experiences 

they offer. A highly acclaimed author and 

member of parliamentary groups, Kathryn 

also teaches a Masters at the Centre for 

Research in Early Years. 

Get in contact with Kathryn by emailing 

info@kathrynpeckham.co.uk 

children and families you work with. With 

its complete set of materials and guidance, 

it complements the resources available 

for your parents, and is underpinned by 

professional standards. Check out this 

great new website and together we can 

surround children with this level of unified 

understanding of who they are and what 

they need. And really begin developing the 

potential of all children in their early years. 



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January 2022 Parenta magazine

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