February 2022 Parenta Magazine

Issue 87
FEBRUARY 2022
FREE
Industry
Experts
Children’s Mental
Health Awareness
Week
Loving early years music:
How music impacts
early relationships
Teaching children
to value things
that matter
+ lots more
Write for us for a
chance to win
£50
page 8
“Wake up and smell the roses”
Although this phrase is not usually meant literally, allowing time in our busy day to attend to sensation - pausing to
‘feel’: to look, to touch, and to smell, will benefit our mental health.
The sensory adventures of the children in your care can be as good for you as they are for them.
UNDERSTANDING BIPOLAR • GROWTH MINDSET • LIVING WITH COVID IN 2022

hello
welcome to our family
Hello and welcome to the February edition of the Parenta magazine!
In January, we reached a milestone: the second anniversary of COVID-19 arriving on UK shores. Who could
have predicted that we would still be conforming to pandemic restrictions, two years down the line? It is well
documented that this virus has had a negative effect on the mental health of so many people, and as adults, we
have the ‘luxury’ of being able to express our feelings.
But what about the children in our care? How have they fared over the past two years? Children’s Mental Health
Awareness Week is this month and runs from 7th – 13th February. It not only aims to raise awareness of mental
health issues amongst children, but also offers invaluable advice and information regarding some of the work that can be done in this
important area to help all children develop positive attitudes towards their mental health, and that of others too. Turn to page 30 for some
advice and practical tips on how to get involved in your setting.
We welcome early years industry expert, Mona Sakr, to the Parenta magazine family this month! She starts her ‘leadership’ series with
a very topical subject – staff absences due to COVID-19 – and the significant challenge that brings with the day-to-day running of the
setting.
As always, the magazine is packed with a huge array of early years advice and guidance 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:
Gina Bale continues her series to encourage not only the children, but all of us, to keep moving in 2022, Stacey Kelly helps us to teach
children the value of things; Frances Turnbull explores how music impacts early relationships, Sonia Mainstone-Cotton looks at how we
can help children and ourselves understand more about bipolar; and Joanna Grace asks us to “wake up and smell the roses”!
Please feel free to share the magazine with friends, parents and colleagues – they can sign up to receive their own copy here!
Allan
FEBRUARY 2022 ISSUE 87
JUNE 2020 ISSUE 67
IN THIS EDITION
IN THIS EDITION
Regulars
8 Write for us for the chance to win £50!
22 Rainbow packed lunch idea
23 Sign language ‘I love you’ card
News
4 Childcare news and views
6 Short stories
35 Congratulations to our Parenta
learners!
Advice
10 Living with COVID in 2022
14 National Apprenticeship Week
26 Growth mindset and the theories of Carol
Dweck : Part 1
30 Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week
38 Screen and technology addiction
Industry Experts
Helping children understand bipolar 24
Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week 30
Living with
COVID in 2022
10
There is no doubt that the
world we knew in December
2019, bears very little
resemblance to the one we
find ourselves in February
2022.
Wake up and
smell the roses
12
The call to “wake up
and smell the roses” is a
comment on someone’s self
awareness, a call to action.
Childhood can be 16
stressful - for all concerned
Stress and anxiety can affect us all,
even children too. The first step is
learning how to guide them!
12 Egg-cellent advice: wake up and smell the
roses
16 Childhood can be stressful - for all
concerned
20 Teaching children to value things that
matter
24 Helping children understand bipolar
28 5 ideas to get your children moving in 2022
32 What does leadership look like when ...
staff absence is high?
Leadership when staff absence is high 32
Screen and technology addiction 38

Childcare news
and views
The “exceptional circumstance” of
COVID-19 allows early years settings to
relax ratios
The DfE has confirmed that all early years
settings can relax their ratios - in line with
the EYFS – should they struggle with staff
absences, which have risen due to rising
cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.
The EYFS framework already has in place
a contingency for settings to temporarily
relax ratios in exceptional circumstances,
but this is the first instance that the
Government has openly stated that it
considers the current COVID situation to be
an ‘exceptional circumstance’.
In its ‘Covid-19 and the EYFS and staffto-child
ratios update’, the DfE states, “It
remains a priority to continue providing
face to face education and childcare,
but we know that COVID-19 continues to
put early years settings under significant
pressure, particularly in relation to
workforce absence.
“Government considers Covid-19 to be
an exceptional circumstance in which the
staff-to-child ratios set out in the EYFS can
temporarily be changed if necessary, for
example to respond to COVID-related
workforce absences. This relates to
paragraph 3.31 in the EYFS.
“In some cases, providers may choose to
respond to staff and child absences by
temporarily mixing age groups of children
who would otherwise be educated or cared
for separately. Ratios should be guided by
all relevant requirements and by the needs
of individual children within the group.
For the purposes of meeting EYFS ratio
and qualification requirements, all staff
educating or caring for a mixed age group
of children can be considered “available
to work directly with” all the children who
have been grouped together.
“We will update guidance to reflect this
soon. In all circumstances, settings remain
responsible for maintaining the quality of
care, safety and security of children.”
Read the full story on parenta.com here.
Ofsted cancels ‘intrusive’ guidance
requesting updates on childcare
workers’ health
Ofsted has cancelled its guidance which
required that childcare providers reveal
health conditions, such as cancer, diabetes
and mental health issues, amongst their
staff and any ‘significant’ events in their
private lives. This follows a backlash from
early years professionals, national trade
organisations and industry experts.
In Ofsted guidance, published on 12th
January, childcare providers were told they
must inform the education watchdog if staff
are diagnosed with new health conditions
or changes to their mental health, such as
depression.
The controversial guidance sparked
outrage amongst early years professionals
who called it “intrusive“ and “offensive”,
resulting in Ofsted removing the guidance
less than 24 hours later to review it.
Examples of ‘significant events’ in nursery
workers’, childminders’ and nannies’
private lives - as well as changes to
health - were stated in the guidance, and
‘significant events’ that had to be reported
included anything that happens while a
childcare worker is off-duty that triggers
increased anxiety, hardship or emotional
problems including a bereavement, illness
or injury.
It also includes any incidents of domestic
abuse or an incident where a child may
have been at risk of harm, e.g. if a staff
member is not working but involved in a
car crash and police are investigating a
possible offence.
Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Early Years
Alliance, said: “The scope – and potential
intrusiveness – of this new guidance, which
details the kinds of health conditions that
might fall into this category, is extremely
concerning”. Referring to the pandemic’s
impact on workers’ mental health, Mr
Leitch said: “The idea that the impact that
this may have had on their mental health
is now something that they would need
to report to Ofsted is both offensive and
completely counter-productive.”
Purnima Tanuku said: “When nurseries
are recruiting, they ensure that people
working with children are suitable and
fit to practice and this is dealt with by
responsible employers on a daily basis.
However, this process, brought in without
consultation, risks being unworkable for
both providers and Ofsted. We have had
an urgent meeting with Ofsted about the
guidance document where we shared the
concerns of the sector. We welcome that
this guidance has been taken down while it
is thoroughly reviewed. We understand that
it will be made clearer that the guidance
will only apply to the registered person
whose suitability is checked by Ofsted at
registration.”
When the guidance was removed on 13
January, June O’ Sullivan tweeted: “Well
done to #earlyyears for putting a coherent
objection together. This is why we need to
pull together and become strong voice for
children and staff.”
Read the full story, as reported by
daynurseries.co.uk here: https://www.
daynurseries.co.uk/news/article.cfm/
id/1663323/Ofsted
COVID virus turning children into fussy
eaters: University of Anglia
A growing number of children are turning
into ‘fussy eaters’ after they have caught
COVID, according to Fifth Sense, the charity
for people with smell and taste disorders.
Smell experts from the University of East
Anglia have joined forces with the charity
and want to raise awareness that some
children - after contracting COVID - may
be suffering parosmia, a symptom where
people experience strange and often
unpleasant smell distortions.
For example, instead of smelling a lemon,
people with parosmia may smell rotting
cabbage, or chocolate may smell like
petrol.
Prof Carl Philpott from UEA’s Norwich
Medical School said: ”Parosmia is
thought to be a product of having less
smell receptors working which leads to
only being able to pick up some of the
components of a smell mixture.
We know that an estimated 250,000
adults in the UK have suffered parosmia
as a result of having COVID. But in the
last few months, particularly since COVID
started sweeping through classrooms last
September, we’ve become more and more
aware that it’s affecting children too.”
He has found that in many cases the
condition is putting children off their food,
and many may be finding it difficult to eat
at all.
He continued: “It’s something that until now
hasn’t really been recognised by medical
professionals, who just think the kids are
being difficult eaters without realising the
underlying problem. For some children, and
particularly those who already had issues
with food, or with other conditions such
as autism, it can be really difficult. I expect
there are a lot of parents at their wits’ end
and really worried.”
The guidance aims to make parents and
health professionals, as well as schools
and nurseries, aware that children should
be listened to and believed. Parents can
help by keeping a diary to make a note
of foods that are safe and those that are
triggers.
The full research can be found here:
https://www.fifthsense.org.uk/covid-19-
research-studies/ and the story in full can
be read here.
4 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 5

A round up of some news
stories that have caught
our eye over the month
Story source and image
credits to:
Daily Echo
Nursery World
Day Nurseries
NDNA
Daily Record
Eastleigh nursery holds open day
to show off refurbishment
Hopscotch Day Nursery invited families
to view their brand-new facilities after
spending over £100,000 on the project.
NHS Food Scanner app helps
families make healthier choices
In a bid to tackle childhood obesity,
the app enables families to scan item
barcodes and suggests healthier
alternatives.
George Perkins Day Nursery is
bought by Kids Planet Nursery
chain
This Birmingham nursery becomes the
95th setting to be owned by the Kids
Planet nursery chain…and they still plan
to expand.
Kids teach Children’s
Commissioner the right way to
play
Nursery children teach the Commissioner
the best ways to play and learn about
nature and the environment, from their
fully outdoors nursery setting.
Number of COVID cases in
early years settings more than
doubles
The latest figures show a significant rise
in the number of early years settings
reporting COVID cases.
Three-year-olds have a wider
vocabulary if they are read to as
babies
A study revealed nine-month-olds
whose families read to them, showed
better vocabulary skills by the age of
three.
Nursery Children donate 300
trees as gift to nature
Boys & Girls Nursery helped
make Christmas special for all
Care Inspectorate report notes
‘happy’ and ‘settled’ kids at
Ayrshire nursery
Sunflower Day Nursery finds a
mural on their wall
Click here to send in
your stories to
hello@parenta.com
Butterfly Patch has donated one tree for
each child at its six nurseries, as part of
The Eden Project in Madagascar.
Families and team members from the
nursery donated an incredible number
of gifts to women and children in need of
the local refuge service.
Burns Bairns Under 5’s Group has been
praised by the Care Inspectorate who
“observed happy and relaxed children
who were having fun”.
A Banksy-style mural mysteriously
appeared on this nursery building’s wall
overnight.
6 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 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/
Congratulations
to our guest author competition winner, Joanna Grace!
NEW BOOK RELEASE!
Supporting children with social,
emotional and mental health needs in
the Early Years
Congratulations to our guest author competition
winner, Joanna Grace! Jo’s series called “Egg-cellent
advice” follows the adventures of her youngest son,
affectionately (and alternatively!) known as Egg and
looks at ways in which we can help the children
in our care with sensory needs. Her work focuses
on people with profound disabilities and sensory
differences but all her practical advice and ideas in
her articles will apply to all practitioners too. Well
done, Jo!
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
www.soniamainstone-cotton.com
8 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 9

Living with COVID in 2022
There is no doubt that the world we
knew in December 2019, bears very little
resemblance to the one we find ourselves
in in February 2022. The first confirmed
case of coronavirus came into the UK on
23rd January 2020, and we have been
fighting it on several fronts ever since.
The goalposts have shifted more than
once, as a number of new variants took
hold. At the time of writing, daily cases of
the Omicron variant are approximately
140,000 having topped 200,000 in early
January, and the UK was the first European
country to surpass 150,000 deaths. But
there have been other impacts. Our
children’s education has suffered as
schools and nurseries closed, exams were
cancelled, and many had to resort to online
lessons in less-than-ideal home-learning
circumstances. And then there are the (as
yet unquantified) issues related to mental
health and the impact on our children’s
social and emotional well-being.
However, it is not all ‘doom and gloom’. As
we move forward into 2022, we do so from
a very different place to the start of 2021.
In December 2020, Margaret Keenan,
a nonagenarian grandmother received
the first dose of a UK-approved vaccine,
and this gave us hope. Vaccines have
cut the risk of severe illness and death by
over 85% and some are nearer 95%. The
booster programme in the UK was rolled
out at unprecedented speed in reaction to
Omicron, and whilst infection rates have
risen sharply, we can take some comfort in
the fact that death rates have not followed,
as they did at the start of the pandemic.
However, this is not the time to let our
guards down or become complacent. The
infection is still out there and there are
people who will die if they contract it. But at
some point, as many of our politicians have
suggested – we will have to learn to live
with the virus. So, what should we all be
doing to help our minimise risk and what
should we be doing in our settings to help?
There are several things we have now
which we didn’t have at the start of the
pandemic, such as:
• More information and data on the
virus, how it spreads, what works and
what doesn’t
• New treatments and drugs to combat
severe disease
• Experience of dealing with coronavirus
in the community and in hospitals
• Experience of how lockdowns,
restrictions, and social distancing work
• Track and trace
• Lateral flow and PCR tests
• Short-, mid- and long-term plans,
responsive to the current situation
• Better herd immunity
• A proven and effective vaccine
programme
• Protocols and procedures on how to
deal with cases and outbreaks
Prevention is better than cure
You should already have written risk
assessments for dealing with COVIDrelated
infections, but you need to update
these regularly in response to changes in
data and the law. Recently, for example,
the isolation period for fully vaccinated
people reduced from 10 days to 7 days, but
this was under the proviso that the person
could show 2 negative lateral flow tests on
day 6 and 7, taken 24 hours apart. This, no
doubt, will change again the future.
It is also important to remember that the
devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales
and Northern Ireland have independent
responsibility for healthcare and education
in their countries, so different rules apply
in each nation. Settings should keep
abreast of any changes in the law and be
prepared to react quickly. Therefore, check
your policies, procedures and protocols
to make sure they are in line with your
own government’s current guidelines and
update them if necessary. Make sure too,
that you have communicated these well
to your staff, trainees and parents too
remembering any translations needed for
EAL children/parents.
How to reduce the spread of
disease
Whilst we know there are now more
positives, we also need to combat real
issues like ‘pandemic fatigue’ or ‘vaccine
complacency’, which can have a negative
effect. This could be ‘forgetting’ to wipe
down surfaces as often as we might or
being less vigilant with our hand washing.
Below are some ways to reduce the spread
of infection, and the HSE have a full list on
their website:
• Increase cleaning especially after
changes of room or venue
• Use antiviral products instead of
antibacterial ones
• Spread hand-sanitisers around the
venue and ensure they are fully
stocked
• Remove high risk items such as
cushions and soft toys, or increase
washing, or implement a quarantine
system
• Increase the availability of hand
washing stations and improve the
effectiveness of hand washing through
supervision
• Think about allocating areas to
different groups to minimise contact
• Social distancing – although not
required by law, limiting contacts
and seeing fewer people will have
the effect of reducing the spread of
disease
• Consider the use of masks, visors,
and other PPE which may be relevant
to your setting, the needs of your
children/staff and current regulations
• Limit visitors
• Implement regular testing
• Increasing ventilation by opening
windows and doors
• Consider bringing a change of clothes
Vaccination
The availability of a vaccine transformed
the pandemic and has undoubtedly saved
lives. Almost all of the people who are
hospitalised or have severe disease in
recent weeks are either unvaccinated or not
fully vaccinated. In the light of this evidence,
vaccination is currently recommended for
all people in the UK over the age of 12. Two
doses are recommended for children aged
12-15 years, and 3 doses for all those over
16. The recommendations have changed
over time as more data has become
available. Other countries are vaccinating
children as young as 3. Find the most upto-date
UK recommendations on the NHS
website, here.
Responding to an infection
If your setting experiences some cases,
it is important that you have up-to-date
policies and protocols that reflect current
guidelines. We have already mentioned
changes to the self-isolation period from 10
to 7 days, with conditions, but this may still
leave your setting short of staff if you have
an outbreak. You should make sure you
have:
• A protocol for dealing with staff
infections and any infections in
children and/or their immediate family
or close contacts
• Contingency plans for low staff levels
– consider recruiting temporary staff
or re-employing retired staff for cover
if needed
• A protocol for a temporary closure
of the setting including how this
will affect parents, how they will be
informed, any notice needed, and
any adjustments to finances that may
result
References
NHS coronavirus website
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-
021-03686-x
https://www.reuters.com/business/
healthcare-pharmaceuticals/
countries-vaccinating-children-againstcovid-19-2021-06-29/
https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj.o5
10 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 11

Egg-cellent advice:
WAKE UP AND SMELL THE ROSES
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
This is article 4 out of a series of 10! To view the others click here.
We are often on the hunt for new and
novel resources to delight and engage the
children in our care, we can forget that the
everyday is full of wonder for them. We
think we need more money for resources,
we need the next new shiny thing. But
actually, to reveal the wonder all around us,
all you need is time and the willingness to
explore. Slow down, keep quiet, and follow
their wonder, go with them on their sensory
adventures.
The call to “wake up and smell the roses” is
a comment on someone’s self awareness,
a call to action. It is not meant literally,
but if we took it literally (as my mind is
prone to do) it might mean that instead of
walking out of our house in the morning
and passing by the sensory experiences in
our gardens (if we are fortunate enough to
have them), we might stop to take them in.
Stopping to attend to sensation, pausing
to feel, to look, to touch, to smell, is good
for our mental health, it grounds us in
the present moment, brings us out of our
heads, away from our worries, and into our
bodies.
The sensory adventures of the children in
your care can be as good for you as they
are for them.
You might brush against this stuff without
even noticing. You probably know all too
well what it smells like from playing in the
garden or the park as a child.
I’ve never felt it before.
I’ve never smelt it before.
I need support to have access to it.
I need time to be taken for me to share
these experiences too.
Natural experiences hold particular value
to the senses. We are wired as creatures
of nature, we have only lived in concrete
boxes for the last 30 seconds of our
development as a species. Our sensory
systems are wired for the experiences
nature has to offer us.
Connecting with natural experiences helps
us to feel at home at a sensory level.
Feeling at home at a sensory level helps us
to feel safe.
When we feel safe we will open up to
engaging, learning and connecting.
There is so much to be gained from taking
a moment to stop and help someone to
sense nature.
(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/
JoannaGraceTheSensoryProjects
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
www.Linkedin/In/
JoannaGraceTheSensoryProjects
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
12 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 13

National
Apprenticeship Week
This month sees the return of National
Apprenticeship Week (NAW), and this year
will be the 15th week-long celebration of
everything to do with apprenticeships. The
week runs from the 7th – 13th February
and is a great way to bring together
businesses and apprentices across the
UK to showcase how apprenticeships can
transform lives, help businesses recruit
and train the staff they need, and have a
positive impact on the wider community.
In 2019/20, there were 719,000 people
participating in an apprenticeship in
England, with 322,500 apprenticeship
starts and 146,900 apprenticeship
achievements.
There has been an 18% decline in the 2nd
quarter of 2020/21 due to the impact that
the pandemic has had on businesses
and the government are keen to see
the number of apprenticeships being
undertaken rise again, especially since
there has been a disproportionate negative
impact on those starting apprenticeships
who are aged under 19, and on those on
intermediate level schemes.
The theme of NAW for the 2022 week is
“build the future” to reflect not only how
apprenticeships can help people develop
their own knowledge and skills to build a
rewarding career, but also to emphasise
how apprenticeships can build a ‘futureready’
workforce that has the skills that
businesses need. There has been much
made in recent years about the skills gap
that businesses are finding with some
graduates – that they may have academic
degrees or Level 6 and 7 qualifications, but
they do not have the skills and knowledge
needed in today’s workplaces.
According to the London Councils’ website,
despite the rising population, there are
skills gaps in many industries. They report
that:
“Many employers are facing skills gaps.
28,300 London employers report that not
all their employees have the right skills for
the job. Almost a quarter (23 per cent) of
all vacancies in London are due to a lack of
applicants with the right skills, while almost
half of firms (42 per cent) are not confident
they will be able to recruit people with the
higher-level skills their organisation needs
over the next five years.”
What are apprenticeships?
An apprenticeship is a real job where
the apprentice works, earns money
and is an employee of a company with
a contract of employment and holiday
leave. During the apprenticeship, the
apprentice is given training (usually by a
relevant external agency working with the
employer) of at least 20% of their working
week to complete their studies, leading
to a nationally recognised qualification.
Apprentices can be school leavers,
university students or people who just
want to upskill or change their career, and
employers can offer apprenticeships to
existing or new employees.
Apprenticeships are usually a 30-hour
week contract and run for a minimum of
one year to four years, although some
extended apprenticeships for part-time
workers can take up to 6 years. They are
available in over 1,500 job roles including
childcare, project managers, social care,
retail, and advanced engineering and
construction. The Level 2 apprenticeship is
the ‘intermediate level’, which is equivalent
to GCSEs but there are also Level 3
apprenticeships equivalent to A’ Levels, and
they go up to Levels 6 and 7, which are
equivalent to a degree. As an employer,
you can get funding from the government
to help pay for apprenticeship training.
Parenta has helped many childcare
businesses recruit and train a new
generation of professional childcare
practitioners at entry level and they go
up to management levels, so if you are
thinking about recruiting an apprentice
and would like some help, or just some
more information, check out our website at:
https://www.parenta.com/looking-for-anapprenticeship/
The benefits
There are many benefits to both
apprentices and employers which include:
As an apprentice
• You get a real job and ‘earn while you
learn’
• No fees to pay off such as tuition fees
or student loans
• You can start aged 16 or over
As an employer
• Employers can adapt their training to
meet the needs of their business
• You gain a motivated workforce that is
eager to learn
• You can expand and up skill an
existing workforce
• Depending on the size of your
business, you can get financial help
to pay for the apprentice. This can be
95% or even 100% if recruiting younger
people under 19.
According to the government website,
86% of employers said that apprentices
helped them develop skills relevant to
their organisation; 78% said apprentices
helped them improve productivity and 74%
said apprentices helped them improve the
quality of their product or service. So there
really are many positives benefits for both
sides.
Apprenticeships working with
children
There are many apprenticeships available
working with children. Subject to the normal
checks on people working with children,
you could be an apprentice teacher,
teaching assistant or early years educator,
helping children get the most out of their
education in a school or nursery setting.
There are also specialised apprenticeships
available for working with children with
SEND or challenging behaviours so these
might be something that your more
experienced staff might be interested in.
How to support NAW 2022
Even if you are not ready to recruit an
apprentice, you can still join in with
National Apprenticeship Week and spread
the word about the good things that can be
achieved. The government have produced
a comprehensive tool kit which you can
download here. It includes ideas and
information about supporting the week
as well as logos and social media assets
ready to use to help promote it. There is
a section for people to browse currently
available apprenticeships, an events
listing of over 1200 virtual and in-person
events across the country, as well as many
real life stories and testimonials of how
apprenticeships have worked for many
people of different ages and starting points.
There are ideas from graduation
ceremonies to thank you days and on
Sunday 13th, you can join in with ‘Selfie
Sunday’.
There is also an Apprenticeship
Ambassador Network (AAN). Ambassadors
are volunteers who “champion
apprenticeships to raise awareness and
increase engagement to meet the needs of
employers, communities, and individuals
across the country.” There are 9 regional
AANs who are organising local activities
for NAW 22 so why not contact your
local network by emailing AAN.CHAIR@
education.gov.uk to find out more?
For more information, see:
https://www.apprenticeships.gov.uk/
influencers/naw-2022#
Apprentices in England
Apprentices in Scotland
Apprentices in Northern Ireland
Apprentices in Wales
National Careers Service
Which? guide to higher and degree
apprenticeships
14 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 15

Childhood can be stressful - for all
concerned!
Stress and anxiety are a part of every life – sorry, but there it is. While we may want to alleviate excessive
stress and find ways of managing it, you will never eradicate it completely. And with the roller coaster of
events of the last few years, this is having an impact on us all. Affecting the decisions we make and the
ways in which we behave.
And this is as true for your children as it is for you. Unable to understand, or to have any real control
over the events going on around them, this is affecting children in ways we may not have experienced
previously. Even before they are born.
It used to be thought that during pregnancy
an unborn child was somewhat of a
passive bystander, protected from negative
influences of the physical and emotional
environment by the placenta. However,
recent studies show this is not in fact the
case. The mother’s emotions and stress
levels are influencing the development of
their unborn child in ways that can have
long lasting effects. Preparing them for
a very different world to the one they are
about to experience.
This does not mean that every child
born from a stressful pregnancy will
automatically have problems. Within
a nurturing environment, a child has
enormous potential to change. But to do
so, they need your understanding; of their
development, of what their behaviours
may be telling you and the support you can
offer.
When we experience stress, cortisol, the
stress hormone, is released into the blood
stream as the body readies its reaction to
the perceived threat. Provided this is a rare
occurrence, this is a process children need
to experience, with few ill effects. However,
when repeatedly exposed to feeling
stressed, a child’s cortisol responses adapt.
Equipping them to manage in a stressful
and potentially hostile world, it affects the
way they manage stress and anxiety.
If born into a hostile world, where a
heightened fear and readiness to react
with alert aggression is needed, these
adaptations could be lifesaving. However,
if instead, they have been born into a more
typical life, where they are required to
concentrate and pay attention with more
stable emotions, they are going to struggle.
These children are often found to react with
heightened emotions. They may be quick
to cry, to appear helpless or to react with
anger. This level of focus and excess energy
is exhausting. It can limit a child’s ability to
concentrate and maintain attention and
may affect their behaviours in ways similar
to, and often confused with, the signs of
Conduct Disorder (CD) and Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Every child needs a safe environment in
which to grow; physically, emotionally and
socially as they gain a sense of who they
are. They need opportunities to explore
their own choices and to learn from their
decisions – and mistakes – within an
environment of calm understanding.
As children grow and mature, they may
behave differently than expected, or how
other children are behaving. Their interests
may differ from what was planned, or they
may take longer to master something that
others find easy. But these differences need
accepting and respecting.
Children respond best when they
have opportunities to experience their
natural reactions and learn to manage
their emotions. They will look to you for
guidance, but an overbearing ‘helicopter’
style of support will take away a child’s
ability to cope with change or adversity
when you are not there to take control.
So, what can you do to
guide them?
The first thing to remember within any
stressful situation, or when demands
become overwhelming, is that children
are children. They have immature social
skills, unmanaged physical responses, a
developing unfinished brain and confusion
about their needs and wants. Their
brain continually floods their body with
chemicals causing them to act in ways
that we may often read as quite irrational
and chaotic. And all of this must be
experienced and understood.
Working with young children can also
seem to come with enormous demands,
adding to your own stress. With information
coming at you from every angle, with
enormous potential for misinterpretation.
Try to keep a balanced perspective as you
re-examine and simplify the demands you
place on your day. Prioritise your actions
and concentrate only on what is important.
As you look to support your children, take
the time to get to know them. Watch their
behaviours and tendencies, the ways they
like to do things, to interact and engage
with their world. As you begin to really see
them, and their developments day by day,
you can observe their actions and hear
their words on a different level, free of the
expectations of what they “should” be
doing or saying.
Children live in the moment so do not
expect their actions or decisions to be
based on any consideration of the future.
Mistakes and accidents are normal,
and far more frequent when a child
feels pressured, rushed or managing
unexpected change.
As well as this, every child is their own
person, full of emotions, motivations and
liable to get things wrong. They are not
programmable machines, even when you
did “Exactly what the book said!” And I am
sorry to tell you – they will look to test your
boundaries too. But avoid inadvertently
pressuring them as they explore, grow
and develop. Instead, reassure them with
quiet voices and gentle tones that they are
valued and safe.
Children take all of childhood to grow.
Brains are developing, bodies are growing,
and the world can be a stressful place that
children are only beginning to navigate
their way around. So, guide them through
this tremendous period of rapid growth and
development. Nurture their well-being – as
well as your own. And most importantly,
enjoy them in the here and now, rather
than stressing about the future, or events
that are out of your control.
Embed your supportive practice with the
new Nurturing Childhoods Accreditation,
underpinned by the DfE professional
standards. Offering you CPD tailored to
the needs of your setting, and the children
and families you work with. Complete
with materials, guidance and resources
available for your parents. Join me as
we surround children with a unified
understanding of who they are and what
they need, and really begin developing the
potential of all children in their early years.
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
16 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 17

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0800 002 9242 hello@parenta.com

Teaching children to
value things that matter
Avoid material rewards and
consequences
It can be very easy to fall into the trap of
rewarding children with material items and
to also remove these items because of poor
behaviour.
When I think back to when I was younger,
there was so much less available to us. As
children, we’d choose playing out for hours
over watching TV (because let’s face it, the
4 channels that we had on offer weren’t
very enticing!). We’d make toys out of sticks,
and we’d love nothing more than spending
time with our family as we all sat together
at the table feasting on a traditional Sunday
Roast. Fast forward to today and the world
has changed immensely. In lots of ways, it’s
amazing and has created so many more
opportunities for our children, but I can’t
help but feel that the simplicity of life and
the contentment that comes with that may
be getting lost along the way.
When I cast my mind back 20 years, I
remember walking to a phone box at
the end of the street to ring my friends.
Nobody had a mobile and you had to wait
until someone was actually in their house
before you could contact them on their
landline telephone. We never thought twice
about it and it was the norm that people
weren’t always available to us 24 hours per
day. Looking back, it was a good lesson
in patience and delayed gratification.
However, now we can contact anybody we
want at any time of the day and there is
nothing we can’t access or buy with just the
touch of a button. In fact, most of us are so
attached to our phones and devices that
we go into absolute meltdown if we forget
them. It’s like we’ve left a part of ourselves
behind!
There are so many advantages to the
world as it is today and in many ways
our children are lucky to be born at this
time because the world is so much more
accessible. However, I also feel that due
to social media, advances in technology
and the ability to get anything on your
doorstep 24 hours after you have bought
it through your mobile phone, we run the
risk of our children always getting instant
gratification and of them trying to live up
to a false sense of reality/perfection that
doesn’t exist. I think now more than ever
we need to find ways to teach children how
to value time and attributes over material
things and we also need to find ways to
appreciate the simple things in life.
Here are 5 ways that I feel we can do this:
Practice gratitude
Toys, gadgets and devices are getting
bigger and better every year. They are
great and provide so much entertainment.
However, with all of us waiting for the
next big thing to launch, we run the risk of
always wanting more, rather than taking
the time to appreciate what we already
have.
By taking 5 minutes per day to practice
gratitude with our children it will ground
them and guide them to appreciate the
smaller things in life and to realise that they
already have a lot to be grateful for. Use
this framework to give thanks for all the
simple things in life (for example our eyes,
ears and legs, the clothes on our back, our
family and friends) and watch the smiles
appear on everyone’s faces as they start to
feel a sense of contentment:
‘Thank you for ________ because_______’
Practice generosity
Take time each week to do something nice
for someone else. However, try to focus on
giving time and effort over buying material
things.
Maybe bake buns for your neighbour, draw
a picture for a friend or help someone in
some way. By doing this, children will see
how nice it is to think of others and to give
back.
Spending quality time
together
Put time aside each week to spend time
together. Turn off the TV, put your phones
away and remove any devices.
Be totally present in each other’s company,
play games, interact, talk and just have fun.
Sometimes we get so busy doing different
things and getting lost in technology that
we forget how nice it is to just be together
with no distractions.
However, the message that this gives on a
deeper level isn’t necessarily one that will
benefit them long term. By doing this, we
place more value on ‘things’ and makes
these items more prevalent in their life. It
also teaches children to need or want a
reward for good behaviour, rather than
having an intrinsic desire to do the right
thing.
Spend time in nature
Technology lures children away from the
great outdoors and often they would rather
play games on their tablets, rather than
playing out. There are so many health
benefits mentally and physically to being
outside and surrounded by nature and it’s
important for us to encourage children to
connect with the elements.
Go on a scavenger hunt, walk around the
woods on an imaginary bear hunt, have a
picnic or simply go for a walk and take time
to explore. The more that children love the
great outdoors, the more healthy they will
be and the more likely they are to have a
connection to our planet and be custodians
of it in the future.
At the end of the day, the world is forever
changing and moving forward.
Our children are going to face different
challenges to us and on the flip side, they
are going to experience way more things in
their lifetime than us too.
As wonderful as these technological
advances are in the world, they can take
us further away from our core values and
connection. It is therefore imperative
that we instil practices in our children that
will guide them to stay grounded and to
appreciate the small things in life as well
as enjoying all of the wonders that the
modern world has to offer.
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
story-time 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/
20 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 21

Rainbow
packed lunch idea!
Sign Language
‘I love you’ card
You will need:
You will need:
• Lunch box
• Heart shaped cookie
cutter
• Yellow pepper
• Carrots
• Strawberries
• Kiwi
• Blueberries
• Bread
• Butter
• Cheese
• Cheese slices
• Healthy snack bar
(we used Nakd
blueberry muffin)
• Thick paper for the card (we have used white, but you can
use any colour you like)
• 2 colourful pieces of paper (we used red and pink)
• Glue
• Child friendly scissors
• Pencil
Instructions:
1. Pick up the thick pieces of paper and fold in half.
Instructions:
1. Wash your fruit and vegetables and cut them up to
your liking
2. Arrange your fruit and vegetables in the lunch box
starting from the lightest to the darkest
3. Use the cookie cutter to cut out a heart shape in your
bread and cheese
4. Butter the bread and arrange a sandwich
2. Now take one of the colourful pieces of paper to create
a hand print. Put your hand on the paper and using the
pencil trace your hand print and then cut it out. Put it
away for later.
3. Next, we create the heart. Use the remaining piece of
paper, fold it in half and cut out a half-heart shape.
4. Bring your thick piece of paper back to the table. First,
glue your heart shape to your hand print cut-out and then
glue the 3rd and 4th finger on top of the heart.
5. Secondly, glue the hand print onto the card.
6. You are done!
5. Cut up your healthy snack bar or leave it whole
6. You are finished!
You can let the little ones
help with cutting up the
ingredients using childfriendly
implements. It’s a
fantastic way to not only
practice their fine motor
skills but to encourage
them to eat their fruit and
veg too!
We hope our childen will
love it as much as we did!
22 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 23

Helping children
understand bipolar
This may seem a strange article to be
reading for an early years publication, but
as professionals, at some point in your
career, it is very likely that you will work
with families where an adult has bipolar
disorder. Around one in fifty people in the
UK have bipolar. According to Bipolar UK,
bipolar is one of the UK’s most common
long-term conditions, with almost as
many people living with bipolar as cancer
(2.4%), it is more than twice as common as
dementia (0.8%), epilepsy (0.8%), autism
(0.8%), rheumatoid arthritis (0.7%) and
learning disabilities (0.5%).
Bipolar is a severe mental health condition,
often distinguished by significant mood
swings from manic highs to severe lows.
For many people with bipolar, they can
manage their condition with medication.
However, when they are having a low or
high episode this does have an impact
on the individual and the whole family.
Sometimes highs can involve people
spending lots of money, going on sudden
unplanned trips, talking lots, not being
able to sleep. Sometimes lows can involve
not being able to get up, unable to work,
unable to cook, clean, shop or look after
another and not wanting to see anyone.
I believe we need to understand bipolar,
what it is and how this can impact a family.
Because of the numbers, we will either
know or have known people with bipolar,
and although mental health is more freely
talked about now, in my experience there
can still be a stigma over a condition
like bipolar or other serious mental
health conditions. It is important that as
professionals we are informed, so that
we can offer support, understanding and
signpost to the families we work with.
Why do we need to tell our
children about bipolar?
At this point I will declare why I think this
is so important, my mum has bipolar. I
am now almost 50, when I was a child, it
was called manic depression, and it was
not talked about. Everyone knew my mum
was ill, they couldn’t hide from it as she
regularly had long stays in hospital, but no
one really talked about it. When I had my
own children, I wanted them to know about
Granny, to understand why sometimes she
was very happy and bought lots of strange
presents and other times she was very
sad and couldn’t leave the house. I didn’t
want my children to be scared about it, but
I wanted them to understand this was an
illness, and what this illness looked like. I
felt it was important to explain and name
the illness to my children.
Children are amazing at knowing when
something is different. Adults often falsely
believe that children have no idea about
things, but they know. Children are not
able to name what is happening but they
know when something is wrong, when
something is changing. The problem is if
we don’t inform children, they will create
their own story of what is happening,
and the story can be worse than what is
actually happening. It is so much better if a
trusted adult can inform a child about what
is going on.
So what can we do?
Firstly, we can find out about bipolar. At the
end of this article are some useful websites
where you can get further information. If
we have a basic understanding this will
help us to be more informed and hopefully
more compassionate.
If someone in a family you are working
with has bipolar, talk to the family about it,
ask them how their health is currently and
whether there are things you need to know
as a setting about what would help them.
If you notice a family are showing signs of
increased stress, don’t be afraid to check in
with them, ask if they are ok, is their health
OK? You may need to signpost or refer
them to additional services, it is useful for
you to have a list of these e.g. health visitor,
GP, early help services.
Have resources to share with the child,
check with the parents first about this, but
have these resources in the setting that you
can share with the child and maybe share
with the family. A list of resources is at the
end.
Recognise that if a parent is having a
bipolar episode this will have an impact
on the child. They may struggle with
transitions, especially the arrival or leaving.
They may be needing more adult attention,
they may be sad or anxious or generally
struggling with or coping with the everyday
life in your setting. Expect the child’s wellbeing
to be lower, they are likely to be have
higher social, emotional and mental health
needs at this time. They need trusted adults
around them in the setting who are calm,
regulated and able to offer the child
a safe, loving, calm space to be
themselves.
Key points
If you are unfamiliar with bipolar, take
a look at some of the links and become
informed.
Don’t be afraid to talk to a family about
bipolar, and ask if there are ways your
setting can support them and their child.
Have resources about bipolar to share with
families.
Resources:
Websites to look at
Mind https://www.mind.org.uk
Bipolar UK https://www.bipolaruk.org
Young minds https://youngminds.org.uk
Heads together https://www.
headstogether.org.uk
Sonia Mainstone-Cotton
Sonia Mainstone-Cotton is a freelance
nurture consultant, she has worked in
early years for 30 years. Sonia currently
works in a specialist team in Bath
supporting 3- and 4-year-olds who have
social, emotional and mental health
needs. Sonia also trains staff across the
country she specialises in supporting
children and staffs emotional wellbeing.
Sonia has written 8 books including:
Supporting children with social, emotional
and mental health needs in the early years
published by Routledge, Supporting young
children through change and everyday
transitions, Promoting Emotional Wellbeing
in Early Years Staff and Promoting
Young Children’s Emotional Health and
Wellbeing. Sonia is also the series advisor
for Little Minds Matter series of books
promoting social and emotional wellbeing
in the early years with Routledge.
Get in contact with Sonia via the below:
Website- http://soniamainstone-cotton.
com
email - sonia.main@icloud.com
instagram - @mainstonecotton
“Mummy’s Got Bipolar” by Sonia Mainstone-Cotton. Published by Jonson - picture book aimed at 3-7-year-olds
“Can I tell you about Bipolar” by Sonia Mainstone-Cotton. Published by Jessica Kingely - publisher’s book aimed
at 7-11-year-olds
“The Illustrated Mum” by Jacqueline Wilson - mum in the story has bipolar- aimed at 7- 11-year-olds
“The Wise Mouse” by Virginia Ironside. Published by Young Minds - mum in the story has a mental illness -
aimed at 7- 11-year-olds
“Mummy’s got bipolar” animation - available on YouTube
24 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 25

Growth mindset and the
theories of Carol Dweck: part 1
Carol Dweck may be a name that you have heard in recent years due to her prominent work on what she
termed “growth and fixed mindsets”. But do you understand what she meant by those terms and what her
work has to do with early years? In this short series of two articles, we will look at her research, theories and
conclusions and see what relevance it has to looking after and educating young children.
Who is Carol Dweck?
Carol Dweck is a psychologist, born on
October 17th, 1946, in New York. She
graduated from Barnard College in 1967,
later completing a Ph.D. at Yale University
in 1972. She has worked at the Universities
of Columbia, Illinois and Harvard and is
now the Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor
of Psychology at Stanford University. Dweck
is considered a pioneering figure in the
study of human motivation and is best
known for her research work on implicit
theories of intelligence, and how people’s
mindsets can influence their motivation and
success.
She came to prominence in 2006 after the
publication of her book, “Mindset: The New
Psychology of Success”. According to her
theories, individuals can be placed on a
scale according to their views about where
ability comes from, and she coined the
terms ‘fixed mindset’ and ‘growth mindset’.
Fixed mindset
When people have a fixed mindset about
something, they tend to believe that their
success is based on their innate ability – i.e.
abilities they were born with/without and
they view these as fixed traits. This type of
thinking can be limiting, because people
tend to believe that once they have reached
their perceived potential, then they cannot
get better. Therefore, they have a ‘fixed’
view of what is possible for them. These
people may say things like “He can play
the piano because he has a talent, but I
don’t” or “I can do my times tables easily,
but I can’t do Pythagoras.” They often view
failing as something terrible which defines
the limit of their intelligence or abilities,
so they often have a strong fear or failing
which stops them from trying.
Growth mindset
People who have a growth mindset, think
that they can influence their success. They
tend to believe that success comes from
putting in effort, trying out and learning
new things, and practicing until you
master the task. These people believe that
progress can be achieved by improving a
little bit at a time and tend to view failure
as a stepping stone on the way to success,
seeing the learning opportunities in these
experiences, so are more likely to continue
when things don’t go as planned.
In different research over many years of
study, Dweck has shown that having a
growth mindset can improve outcomes in
different ages of students and improve their
motivation to study or achieve. 1
Other researchers have since used growth
mindset intervention to show other
positive effects including improved grades
among lower-achieving students, and
increased overall enrolment to advanced
mathematics courses in a nationally
representative sample of students in
secondary education in the United States. 2
Praising intelligence rather than
effort
Another aspect that Dweck has warned
about is the effect of praise and how it
affects motivation. She argues that praising
intellect over effort can put children into
a fixed mindset and result in them not
wanting to be challenged for fear of
making a mistake and looking stupid.
This has had important repercussions in
our education system and has added to
the debate about the power and effect of
praising students, and how this should be
done by teacher, parents and caregivers.
Dweck says: “Praising children’s
intelligence harms motivation and it
harms performance.” 3 She advises, “If
parents want to give their children a gift,
the best thing they can do is to teach their
children to love challenges, be intrigued
by mistakes, enjoy effort, and keep on
learning.
That way, their children don’t have to
be slaves of praise. They will have a
lifelong way to build and repair their own
confidence.” We will discuss this aspect of
her work more in part 2.
Brain plasticity
In recent years, research into the plasticity
of the brain has given more weight to
Dweck’s theories as researchers have
found that the brain can continue to
change and make neural connections even
in adulthood. It was previously thought
that our brains stopped changing and
developing once we became an adult, but
this has been refuted in recent years. New
research suggests that through experience
and with practice, neural networks grow
new connections, strengthen existing
ones, and build insulation (myelin) around
connections that speeds up impulse
transmissions. 4 Dweck argues that growth
mindsets can be fostered and developed
and that educating people about mindsets
can effect positive change.
As her research became more well known,
other researchers were also noticing how
teacher practice had a big impact on the
mindset of their students, the importance
of teachers giving feedback, and the best
and most effective feedback that they could
give. Educationalists began to understand
that teachers, parents and caregivers
could either encourage children to accept
challenges and overcome obstacles
leading to increased achievements and
better outcomes, or their feedback could be
less constructive, less specific, often giving
children a chance to accept their perceived
limitations and to stop trying to strive for
improvement. 5
In recent years, Dweck has also been
researching the effect of community
mindset on pupil outcomes and
achievement and has some preliminary
results suggesting that having a growth
mindset that is rooted in the community,
can help students overcome some
traditional barriers to learning such as
poverty and disadvantage. Although
this research is ongoing, preliminary
results suggest that “students’ mindsets
may temper or exacerbate the effects of
economic disadvantage on a systemic
level”. 6
There have been criticisms that some of
Dweck’s research is difficult to reproduce,
but most researchers in the area have
agreed that mindsets can change
outcomes and her theories and ideas
have been instrumental in changing the
way we think about how children perceive
themselves, and what we, as practitioners,
can do to set them on a learning path to
greater success. In the next article, we
will look at what these theories mean in
practice and how we can develop a growth
mindset in the children in our settings.
References
1. List of Carol Dweck research whilst at
Stanford
2. https://www.nature.com/articles/
s41586-019-1466-y
3. “The words that could unlock your child”,
BBC News
4. https://www.simplypsychology.org/
brain-plasticity.html#modern
6. 2016 research https://doi.org/10.1073/
PNAS.1608207113
Further information
5. https://educationendowmentfoundation.
org.uk/education-evidence/guidancereports/feedback
https://hbr.org/2016/01/what-having-agrowth-mindset-actually-means
https://www.psychologicalscience.org/
observer/dweck-growth-mindsets
https://www.mindsetworks.com/science/
26 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 27

5 ideas to get your
children moving in 2022
2022 is the year to get your children moving as movement literally grows their brains.
But before we start, here is a little reminder
of the guidelines published by the UK
Chief Medical Officer in September 2019
Under-5s
Infants (less than 1 year):
• Infants should be physically active
several times every day in a variety of
ways, including interactive floor-based
activity, e.g., crawling
• For infants not yet mobile, this includes
at least 30 minutes of tummy time
spread throughout the day while
awake (and other movements such as
reaching and grasping, pushing, and
pulling themselves independently, or
rolling over); more is better
NB: Tummy time may be unfamiliar to
babies at first, but can be increased
gradually, starting from a minute or two
at a time, as the baby becomes used to it.
Babies should not sleep on their tummies.
Toddlers (1-2 years):
• Toddlers should spend at least 180
minutes (3 hours) per day in a variety
of physical activities at any intensity,
including active and outdoor play,
spread throughout the day; more is
better
Pre-schoolers (3-4 years):
• Pre-schoolers should spend at least
180 minutes (3 hours) per day in a
variety of physical activities spread
throughout the day, including active
and outdoor play. More is better; the
180 minutes should include at least
60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous
intensity physical activity
UK Chief Medical Officers’ Physical
Activity Guidelines Published 7
September 2019
Add a morning warm-up and end of the
day cool-down to your daily routine
Simple effective warm-up
A simple 5-minute warm-up will raise the
heart rate and get the blood flowing so you
are ready for the day ahead.
To make this fun, why not work together
creating the warm-up with the children.
This will give them ownership of the activity.
Your warm-up sequence should be very
simple, only consisting of jumps, runs
on the spot and claps. Once they have
mastered the sequence you can develop
it further and extend the warm-up time as
they progress. Don’t forget this is also good
for adults!
Cool-down and stretch
Put on some relaxing music and practice
your yoga poses together followed by a
well-deserved nap, as you close your eyes,
listening to the calming music.
Get outside and go on a bear hunt
Get outside and go on a bear hunt! Take
the children out in the garden or the park
for an hour (if not too cold) and see how
many bears, birds, squirrels, and rabbits
you can find. Why not join in with the RSPB’s
Big Schools Bird Watch?
For extra movement and exercise, get the
children to stomp like bears or even jump
in puddles like a baby bear. You can also fly
like birds and run with the squirrels hunting
for nuts.
On your return from the park or garden why
not make a den? A den is a perfect place to
have a teddy bear’s picnic and the children
can take turns pouring the drinks and
getting the snacks.
Get out the trusty parachute
There are so many different games you can
play with a parachute, and it always brings
so much excitement to the room.
To get you started here are a couple of
activities that will get the arms moving and
raise those heart rates.
When everyone is holding the parachute,
place items (soft teddys etc.) in the centre.
The game is to see how many you can
shake or throw off.
Put one ball (soft) in the centre of the
parachute. Call out the name of one of the
children - everyone must try to get the ball
to roll towards that child.
A little bit of imagination
makes a giant jellyfish
Create a jellyfish from a large hula hoop
covered in dangly ribbons, wool or string.
Whoever holds the hula hoop is the jellyfish.
Pop on some fun music, Disney’s “Under
the sea” would be perfect, and then stop
the music and freeze as the jellyfish swims
around between the children. If anyone
moves, they join the jellyfish (making him
bigger and bigger as he swims between
the children when the music stops again.
There are so many different sea animals to
meet under the sea to get them moving.
Create an obstacle course together
Get the children to help you create an
obstacle course indoors or outdoors using
any resources you have available.
If you create an indoor obstacle course,
you could make it even more exciting by
pretending to go through the Amazon.
You can take them to so many different
places with an obstacle course ranging
from the North Pole to the Amazon – it just
needs a little imagination. The added touch
of your amazing imagination and creativity
will make it more inviting and so much fun
for the children and means they will want
to join in again and again.
Don’t forget to look after yourself
For good physical and mental health, adults
should aim to be physically active every
day. Any activity is better than none, and
more is better still.
Each week, adults should accumulate
at least 150 minutes (2 1/2 hours) of
moderate-intensity activity (such as brisk
walking or cycling); or 75 minutes of
vigorous-intensity activity (such as running);
or even shorter durations of very vigorousintensity
activity (such as sprinting or stair
climbing); or a combination of moderate,
vigorous, and very vigorous-intensity
activity.
UK Chief Medical Officers’ Physical
Activity Guidelines Published 7
September 2019
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’.
References
UK Chief Medical Officers’ Physical Activity
Guidelines Published 7 September 2019
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.
uk/government/uploads/system/
uploads/attachment_data/file/832868/
uk-chief-medical-officers-physical-activityguidelines.pdf
28 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 29

Children’s Mental
Health Awareness
Week
Children’s Mental Health Week is taking
place in the week of the 7th – 13th
February 2022 and is a time to not only
raise awareness of mental health issues
amongst children, but to also offer advice
and information and showcase some of
the work that can be done in this area to
help all children develop positive attitudes
towards their mental health, and that of
others too. This year’s theme is “Growing
Together”, and the aim is to encourage
children (and adults) to consider how they
have grown, and how they can help others
to grow.
According to the CMHW website, “Growing
Together” is about growing emotionally
and finding ways to help each other grow.
Challenges and setbacks can help us to
grow and adapt and trying new things
can help us to move beyond our comfort
zone into a new realm of possibility and
potential. However, emotional growth is
often a gradual process that happens over
time, and sometimes we might feel a bit
stuck.”
The pandemic has had a negative effect
on the mental health of many people, and
two years after the virus first arrived on UK
shores, we may have developed strategies,
vaccines and treatments to tackle the virus,
but we are still many years away from
seeing the full impact of lockdowns, school
closures and changes to our everyday
patterns of behaviour. It is more important
than ever that we face up to the challenges
that have been created in our population’s
mental health, and absolutely vital that we
find solutions to deal with the burgeoning
mental health issues in our children.
A 2021 report on the “Mental Health of
Children and Young People in England” has
highlighted some of the main problems
facing young people today reporting
that since 2017, rates of probable mental
disorders have increased in children aged
6 to 16 years from 1 in 9 (11.6%) to 1 in 6
(17.4%). In 17- to 19-year-olds, it increased
from 1 in 10 (10.1%) to 1 in 6 (17.4%).
This means that in most classes of 30
students in mainstream schools, there are
at least 5 students who are facing mental
health challenges.
Nearly 40% of children aged between 6
and 16 reported a deterioration in their
mental health since 2017, and this figure
rose to over half (52.5%) of those aged 17
to 23 years. The report also highlighted
an increase in possible eating problems
and sleeping disorders as well. Clearly,
the romantic, fictional notion of a carefree,
stress-free childhood is not the reality that
many of our children are living.
What is Children’s Mental Health
Awareness Week?
In 2015, the charity, Place2Be, launched the
first ever Children’s Mental Health Week
to “shine a spotlight on the importance
of children and young people’s mental
health.” Place2Be offers a variety of different
mental health and counselling services to
meet schools’ needs, including in-school
support, expert training and resources, and
has over 25 years experience in helping
young people.
2022 will be the 8th year of the week-long
event and Place2Be are hoping that more
people than ever will join in and spread
the word. They are calling on everyone,
whether they are a parent/carer, childcare
professional, teacher, nursery practitioner,
youth worker, or just someone who is
passionate about children and young
people, to sign up and do their bit. And
they’ve made it easy to do as well. You
can sign up for more information on the
CMHW website, where you can find a lot of
free resources, lesson plans, social media
banners and suggested posts for the week.
The resources are designed to be used by
schools, online lessons, home-schooling or
independent learning and can be adapted
to help children and young people explore
the theme of “Growing Together”.
How to get involved
There are many ways to get involved in this
year’s event including:
• Adding your name and ideas to the UK
CMHW map by filling in a short online
form
• Posting your stories and images on
your social media pages using the
hashtag #ChildrensMentalHealthWeek.
You can also download a free social
media guide which includes template
posts, downloadable images, inspiring
idea
• Run a fund-raising event to raise
money
• Hold a “Dress to Express Day” in your
setting and encourage everyone to
wear whatever they want to express
themselves – you can run it as a mufti
day if you have a uniform or just ask
people to donate £1 to the cause and
dress up!
• Hold a ‘fun’ day to lighten the load and
bring a bit of fun and sunshine back
into everyone’s lives. You could dress in
bright colours or decorate your setting
with things that make you and your
children smile, play games, have a
party or hold a laughter session
• Get out into nature and go for a walk.
This is an inexpensive and simple
way to help children reconnect to their
natural surroundings and exercise is a
well-known tonic to help combat stress
and mental health issues because it
stimulates the release of dopamine
and serotonin in the brain, which can
improve mood
The NHS have published advice on how to
improve mental well-being and suggest
5 easy ways which have been proven to
help, especially with mild to moderate
depression. These are:
1. Connect with other people
2. Be physically active
3. Learn new skills
4. Give to others
5. Pay attention to the present moment
(mindfulness)
You can find simple examples of how to do
these 5 things on the website here, where
you will find some simple suggestions of
things to do and things to avoid.
Remember that children can often find
expressing their emotions difficult and they
may be unable to express how they really
feel, especially younger children.
Often, when children are stressed or
anxious and unable to properly express
themselves verbally, they may present
with challenging behaviours, so always
be patient and remember that behaviour
is the child’s way of communicating that
something is wrong.
Let us know what you are doing to get
involved in the Children’s Mental Health
Awareness Week by sending us your
stories and pictures to hello@parenta.com.
References and more information:
Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week
Mental Health of Children and Young
People in England, 2021 Wave 2 follow up
to the 2017 survey
NHS – Exercise and depression
NHS – 5 steps to mental well-being
30 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 31

What does leadership
look like when … staff
With COVID at record levels across early
years (EY) settings, rates of staff absence
are through the roof. For leaders, this
represents a significant challenge that
can consume the day to day business of
leading the setting. Many leaders will share
the experience of Sarah Hinkin, manager
of the nursery at Oxford Brookes University
when she says:
“Staff absence is the single most stressful
aspect of my job. I have no control over
being able to guarantee staff attendance
and it has a huge impact on the quality
of our provision. When absences are
high for prolonged periods, it takes over
everything as it becomes my main priority
and challenge. Other important but not
essential work has to take a back seat”.
EY leaders need a clear approach for
dealing with the challenge of staff absence
at the moment.
Learning from across the EY sector, I outline
here three principles of leadership in the
context of high staff absence:
• Know, as a setting, what is nonnegotiable
• Role model a positive approach
• Flip the script and look for development
opportunities
absence is high?
Know, as a setting, what is
non-negotiable
When staff absence is high, everyone
is forced to prioritise. But doing this
well depends on a clear and common
understanding of what the priorities are.
Leaders have an essential role to play
in supporting teams to understand and
commit to the non-negotiable elements
of early years practice. As Polly Crowther,
head of EY provision at Cobham Primary
School and Evidence Leader at the East
London Research School, explains:
“Educators want to do everything even
when it really isn’t possible. If everyone
understands what is non-negotiable
in a setting, it helps to prioritise. Do we
need safeguarding, nurture and play?
Absolutely. Can we say the same of our
Tapestry observations? Probably not, but
every context is different. It is very hard for
educators and carers to say ‘this is good
enough’, but sometimes it has to be and it
is easier if people talk openly about that.”
David Wright, owner of Paint Pots Nursery,
also reflects on this when he says: “We
must always consider the needs of children
first –
their safety, safeguarding and wellbeing.
We have to prioritise maintaining consistent
safe spaces for children, so that they are
shielded from the world of anxiety and
uncertainty”.
What is non-negotiable in a setting will
depend on EY national frameworks
but it will also be about the particular
pedagogical values and approach of the
team.
Through leaders, these priorities come to
life both in relatively peaceful times and
times of crisis. Leaders at the moment will
want to find opportunities, working with
their teams, to identify the core priorities in
what is happening. 10 minutes at the start
of a team meeting might focus on ‘what is
non-negotiable for us right now?’ and use
this as the basis for current prioritisation.
Role model a positive
approach
There are no two ways about it: dealing
with staff absence is extremely difficult.
Even in the face of this difficulty though,
leaders have to make sure they are role
modelling the positive and dynamic
approach that they would like their staff to
take. As Sarah Hinkin explains:
“I need to be careful to not portray my own
worries or stress levels. I have to role model
the attitude that although this might be
a challenging period, we will get through
this together. It can be tough to maintain
this approach when sometimes your own
resilience might be dwindling, but it is key.”
Leaders’ role modelling is at the core of
any organisational culture. In his seminal
work, “Organisational Culture and
Leadership”, Edgar Schein explains that role
modelling is the main way that leaders can
communicate the values of an organisation
to staff and particularly to newcomers. At
a time when staff absence is high, there
will be many new or cover staff who are
encountering the organisation for the first
time. They will be looking at and learning
from the behaviour of the leaders they see
and this will be far more important to their
learning than any explicit verbal messages
they receive. Hearing ‘we’re in this together’
is nowhere near as powerful as seeing
a leader covering on the floor when it is
required, or bolstering staff morale through
positive and empathetic conversations
during the day.
Flip the script and look for
development opportunities
No matter how difficult the context,
leaders celebrate the good things that are
happening in an organisation. Jacqueline
Lamb, CEO of Indigo Childcare in Glasgow,
explains the importance of celebrating
quality no matter what:
“As a leadership team, we’ve emphasised
praising and celebrating the people that
are in. we have to acknowledge that they
are stepping up and acknowledge that
things are tough at the moment. We’ve
arranged for team lunches to be delivered
or, when we can, let people get away a bit
early.
We’ve focused on publicly sharing
achievements of the team because often
they are so busy getting on with the job,
there isn’t the chance to realise their
achievements and progress. It’s up to us as
leaders to make sure that we carry this on,
even in difficult times.”
Lamb goes onto explain that because
staff are having to step up and step in as
a result of staff absence, there might even
be new opportunities for professional and
leadership development. For example,
someone might provide cover as a room
leader that demonstrates their potential
for this and other leadership roles in the
future. In her guide “Leading for Change
in Early Care and Education”, US Professor
Anne Douglass explains the need for a
leadership development ecosystem in EY.
This means that we need to pay more
attention to cultivating leadership among
EY teams and seeing the opportunities
for leadership development even in less
than perfect times. At the moment, leaders
need to turn towards the opportunities for
coaching and mentoring staff within the
organisation so that they can confidently
assume new responsibilities and open up
new leadership pathways.
References
Douglass, A. L. (2017) Leading for Change
in Early Care and Education: Cultivating
Leadership from Within. New York, NY:
Teachers College Press.
Schein, E. H. (2017) Organizational Culture
and Leadership. 5th Edition. Hoboken, NJ:
Wiley.
Mona Sakr
Dr Mona Sakr is a Senior Lecturer in
Education and Early Childhood. As a
researcher in Early Years (EY) provision,
she has published extensively on
creative, digital and playful pedagogies
including the books “Digital Play in
Early Childhood: What’s the Problem?”
(Sage) and “Creativity and Making in
Early Childhood: Challenging Practitioner
Perspectives” (Bloomsbury).
Mona’s current research is an
exploration of pedagogical,
organisational and community
leadership in EY and how leadership can
be more effectively developed across
EY. Current funded research includes a
Nuffield Foundation project looking at
online leadership development across
the EY sector, a BELMAS project looking
at leadership in the baby room of
nurseries and a BERA project examining
ethnicity in the early years workforce.
Forthcoming books (include an
introduction to social leadership in early
childhood education and care (written
with June O’Sullivan, CEO of London Early
Years Foundation), and an edited volume
on EY pedagogical leadership around
the globe.
Email: m.sakr@mdx.ac.uk
Twitter: @DrMonaSakr
32 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 33

Testimonials
Congratulations
to all our Parenta learners!
Software
“We have used Parenta platform for a number of years. They have always
provided ongoing support and any questions regarding how to use the
services have been responded very quickly.”
Amin Harish, Active kids Nursery
‘’You are the one organisation I don’t mind contacting. You always respond
really quickly. Quite often I will call you so I can speak to one of your excellent
people. I get helpful and relevant advice at all times. Brilliant, Thank you ‘’
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Training
“Thank you so much. And thank you for today, you have been a breath of fresh
air from Parenta! Please pass on my compliments to your supervisor as you
have been very helpful!“
Megan Greenhalf, MonkeyMoos
Congratulations to all these Parenta learners who completed their apprenticeship
in December 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!
MAIN STORIES
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!
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PENDING
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.
Recruitment
“I am emailing to share some
feedback regarding my
interactions with Clare Bedford.
Clare has been a massive
support through the process
of signing up two apprentices
at my nursery site, she has
been prompt in her responses
and has gone the extra mile to
get me the answers I need so
wanted to share this with you
as she is a great asset to your
company. Have a lovely week.”
Joelle Bergin
Manager, Each Peach Childcare.
December’s wall of
fame!
A. Srom
C. Burvil
C. Rushbrook
T. Santana Vila
Nova Pereira
O. Guyatt
34 February 2022 | parenta.com parenta.com | February 2022 35

Loving early
years music:
how music impacts
early relationships
Daisy Daisy
Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do
I’m half crazy, oh for the love of you
It won’t be a stylish marriage
I can’t afford a carriage
But you’ll look sweet upon a seat
Of a bicycle made for two
This well-known ditty has a lovely bright
tone colour. From the falling musical
phrasing to rhyming couplets, this song is
full of visual imagery that could be used
and explored in many creative forms.
Baby Shafto
Baby Shark
Baby shark, du du du du du-du
Baby shark, du du du du du-du
Baby shark, du du du du du-du
Baby shark
Mummy shark, du du du du du-du
Mummy shark, du du du du du-du
Mummy shark, du du du du du-du
Mummy shark
Daddy shark, du du du du du-du
Daddy shark, du du du du du-du
Daddy shark, du du du du du-du
Daddy shark
February is the month of love, so this
month, we’re talking about music and
relationships. Many songs are written
on the topic of love, especially within
adult contemporary music. Is it because
love, like music, is a universal way of
communication? We may never know,
but music certainly has a way of evoking
memories of time spent with important
people in our lives.
Children are no different. Experience has
shown and studies have proven that
babies can remember songs that they
have heard throughout mum’s pregnancy.
Some children will even get upset at certain
songs that they remember from infanthood,
perhaps missing the special time they
had as a baby. Music can clearly evoke
memories in a subconscious way that we
may not even recognise.
In a Finnish study, Ruokonen et al (2021)
explored creative experiences in early years
settings in Finland. She and her colleagues
found that in a study of over 900 toddlers,
creative activities helped children to think
more creatively, express more emotion and
play, as well as develop cultural identity.
Music sessions included activities that
were spontaneous as well as pre-planned,
involving a wide selection of settings, both
private and state, within early childhood.
Analysing the sessions, music was found
to have a positive influence on social skills
in early years and improved emotional
development in primary years. This
suggested that sessions that focussed
on music specifically led to increased
self-regulation, needing less adult-based
interruption. Music also appeared to be
linked to empathy, movement, and the
development of complex locomotor skills.
Levels of delivery varied and depended on
the interest and skill level/expertise of the
teacher/responsible adult. Adults seemed
more involved with their children in musicbased
sessions, developing the children’s
emotional listening behaviour.
The musical activities used involved volume,
duration, tone colour, pitch and form
and these worked together in all creative
activities. The songs below (available on
the Musicaliti YouTube channel) show how
these concepts can be used in everyday
singing sessions.
Love Somebody
Love somebody, yes I do
Love somebody, yes I do
Love somebody, yes I do
Love somebody, but I won’t say who
Love somebody, yes I do
Love somebody, yes I do
Love somebody, yes I do
Love somebody, and it’s you, you, you
This song is perfect for exploring volume
because of the way the phrases are set
out. “Love somebody” could be sung loudly,
while the “yes, I do” can be sung softer,
as if it’s a bit of a secret. Being able to
manage volume in a playful way involves
a number of skills: apart from hearing and
responding, the way you sing quietly and
loudly involves breathing and projecting
differently. While the technical control could
be challenging and even unpleasant,
in a context like this song, it becomes a
fun game which happens to also teach
valuable vocal control techniques.
Mummy Loves
Mummy loves and daddy loves
And everybody loves little baby
Grandma loves and grandad loves
And everybody loves little baby
This Russian lullaby is great for exploring
duration. All the important people
have their titles elongated – the words
“mummy”, “daddy”, “grandma” and
“grandad” are sung for longer. Use this
song while rocking restless ones at nap
time, during co-operative games swinging
a toy in a blanket, or even modelling
care and empathy getting little ones to
cuddle dolls or teddies. And personalise if
appropriate – perhaps children have uncles
and aunts rather than grandparents.
Bobby Shafto’s gone to sea
Silver buckles on his knee
He’ll come back and marry me
Bonny Bobby Shafto
This traditional Scottish song is set in a
lovely pitch for young children. Notes are
nearby each other, which is important
while children’s vocal chords are only just
developing. In addition, the gaps between
the notes are not too big, causing them to
strain.
These are important aspects to songs
where children are taught to join in, as
bigger notation jumps (e.g. “Humpty
Dumpty”, “Somewhere Over The Rainbow”,
even “Happy Birthday!”) require experience
and accuracy that not all children learn at
home.
This approach allows children, and all
people, to be successful in singing.
This new “classic” has a simple form that is
common in folk music – repetition. Children
thrive on repetition, and the family aspect
gives young children something that they
can easily relate to: the special people in
their lives.
Although the strophic (non-varied) form
does not change, the beauty of this type of
music is that it can be easily personalised
and children can use their own experiences
– hence the additional verses of “let’s go
hunt”, “run away”, “safe at last” and “it’s
the end”.
We may never know whether music
originated as an expression of
relationships, or whether it began as a
language and developed into a way to
express emotions in relationships.
We do know that music brings people
together, backed by the Finnish research,
where classes with more music
resulted in happier children that were
more accommodating, adaptive and
harmonious. And after all, isn’t this what
we want for our children?
Reference:
Ruokonen, I., Tervaniemi, M., & Reunamo,
J. (2021). The significance of music in early
childhood education and care of toddlers in
Finland: An extensive observational study.
Music Education Research, 23(5), 634–646.
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.
www.musicaliti.co.uk
36 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 37

Screen and technology
There was a time, when parents would
metaphorically tear their hair out at
the amount of time their children spent
watching TV. Nowadays, you often hear
the plea, “Why don’t you put your phone
down and watch something interesting
on TV instead!” Every generation has
its own nemesis when it comes to how
children spend their time, and this current
generation is no different. But perhaps the
issues faced by the current generation are
slightly more complex than their parents
faced. After all, the risks associated with
watching too much children’s TV pale
into insignificance compared to the risks
children face when using the internet, yet
there is also much to gain by using the
internet if used in the right way. We have
created a double-edged sword. We give
our children phones because we fear for
their safety and then we fear for their safety
because we’ve given them phones.
But it’s not just teenagers and phones
which are problematic; some children in
primary school now have mobiles and
addiction
many more have electronic devices as
learning aids and entertainments.
But how long on a device is long enough?
And when does their use of technology
become a screen addiction which they
need help with?
Smart phone addiction is now a recognised
health condition and children as young
as 13 are being admitted to ‘smart phone
rehab’ and 47% of parents think their
children spend too much time in front of
screens.
The facts
According to recent research:
• 53% of children aged 3-4 go online for
nearly 8 hours a week
•
94% of children aged 8-11 go online for
nearly 13.5 hours a week
• 99% of children aged 12-15 go online
for nearly 21 hours a week
It’s not just the time that children spend
online that is the problem however, as
there are many reasons that children use
the internet or screen-based devices, many
of which can be beneficial or educational.
The problem is that children can become
addicted to their devices and this
addiction can then cause health and other
behavioural and social problems. A study
from the University of Michigan found that
the bigger issue “is whether screen use
causes problems in other areas of life or
has become an all-consuming activity,”
If this happens, it’s considered screen
addiction.
Many apps and games are cleverly
designed to hold our attention and use
‘psychological tricks’ to keep us using
them. These include things like scoring
and league systems, ‘streaks’ or reward
programmes, time-limited rewards, and
notifications that play on people’s ‘fear of
missing out’ (FOMO).
Problems caused by screen and
technology addiction
Research has also identified that screen
and technology addiction can result in:
• Sleep deprivation – 70% of children
asked said they had missed out on
sleep due to their online habits, and
60% said they had neglected school
work. Sleep deprivation in children
can cause increased hyperactivity and
other behavioural problems, as well
as damaging physical and mental
development. Poor sleep habits from
an early age can lead to long term
sleep problems
• Obesity – there is a connection
between how much TV and video a
child watches, and the risk of being
overweight
• Behavioural problems and in some
cases, a desensitisation to violence
• Reduced interest in things that do
not include their device such as
homework, exercise or home activities
• Changes in academic performance
– children with TVs or screens in their
bedrooms tend to perform worse on
tests than those who do not
• Increased risk of cyber bullying and
exposure to inappropriate content and
behaviour
• Reduced time for active and creative
play
Signs that children are becoming
addicted to screens
There are several signs to look out for
which can indicate that children (even preschoolers)
are becoming addicted to their
devices: These include:
• An inability to control their usage or
accept screen time limits
• A preoccupation in everything screenbased
• Regular arguments about devices
• Inability to put devices down at
mealtimes or in social situations
• Anxiety when not using a device
• Neglecting personal hygiene
• A lack of interest in other things or
withdrawal from other activities which
they used to enjoy
• Lying about screen usage or being
deceptive
• Devices used as mood enhancers
It is obviously not within the remit of a
nursery setting to restrict a child’s use of
a screen-based device when they are
at home, and many parents do limit the
amount of time that their children use
devices. However, many children are often
more familiar with hacks and ways to get
around these controls than their parents,
even at a young age, so vigilance is key.
In your setting, you should be aware of
some of the signs of screen addiction, even
in younger children and you could consider
running an information session for your
parents and older children to inform them
of some of the issues and dangers.
Top tips for overcoming screen
addiction
• Use screen time limits and discuss and
agree these with the child – remember
that children often need devices for
homework (older children) and many
children have been used to using
devices more often for school work
during the pandemic, so separate out
times for homework and other uses
• Remove devices from bedrooms at
night and set regular bedtimes to
encourage good sleep patterns
• Set a good example by limiting your
own screen use. You can set whole
family/household rules that adults
should abide by too
• Ensure that there are plenty of other
activities to do such as reading, going
to the park, talking, cooking, playing
with friends, swimming etc., and
remember that children love it when
adults join in their activities and spend
quality time with them
• Encourage mobile-free times and/or
days, such as mobile-free mealtimes
or ‘phone-free Sundays’. You can
then do other things as a family. In a
nursery setting, you could limit the use
of screens on certain days or say in
the morning/afternoons to set a good
example
• Check your child’s device regularly
to see what they are using it for and
educate them in age-appropriate
ways about issues to do with online
safety
If you are concerned about a child’s
potential screen addiction, then you
should speak to your DSL who can arrange
to speak with their parents. If you are
seriously concerned about your own child,
then you should contact your GP to seek
professional help. The NHS recently opened
a National Centre for Gaming Disorders to
help young people with gaming disorders.
References and more
information
• https://www.norfolk.police.uk/sites/
norfolk/files/screen-addiction.pdf
• https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.
org/hometown-health/speaking-ofhealth/children-and-screen-time
• https://www.sleepfoundation.org/
teens-and-sleep/screen-time-andinsomnia-for-teens
• https://www.nightingalehospital.
co.uk/technology-addiction/
• https://thesleepcharity.org.uk/
• https://www.cnwl.nhs.uk/services/
mental-health-services/addictionsand-substance-misuse/nationalcentre-behavioural-addictions/
National-Centre-for-Gaming-Disorders
38 February 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | February 2022 39

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