June 2022 Parenta magazine

Issue 91 

JUNE 2022 

FREE 

Industry 

Experts 

Nurturing children - 

birth to 5 

View from the door 

- designing learning 

environments from 

children’s viewpoints 

What does leadership 

look like… first thing in 

the morning? 

+ lots more 

Write for us for a 

chance to win 

£50 

Jump to page 8 

“How stories heal us” 

Storytelling stems from one of our strongest human desires, to connect with those around us. Let children know that they 

are an essential part of a story greater than their own. 

NATIONAL INSECT WEEK• QUEEN’S PLATINUM JUBILEE • LEARNING DISABILITY WEEK

hello 

welcome to our family 

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

There are lots of reasons to celebrate this month. We welcome the Summer Solstice and the longest day of the 

year on the 21st, it’s World Oceans Day on the 8th, (don’t forget to check out our fabulous paper plate jelly fish 

craft on page 35) and of course it’s the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee! Turn to page 30 to find out what’s in store for 

the national celebrations. How will you be celebrating it in your setting? Send us your Jubilee pictures here and 

we will share them on our social media pages for all to enjoy! 

It’s also National Insect week this month. What better time to teach the children about our nation’s creepy 

crawlies – get up close to some fun facts about insects that you might not know and discover how you can get involved in your setting. 

If you’ve been following our industry experts’ series of articles, you won’t be disappointed this month. Helen Lumgair continues with hers 

and discusses ‘How stories heal us’, Joanna Grace shows us that ‘less is more’ in part 8 of ‘Egg-cellent advice’ and Mona Sakr asks us 

“What does leadership look like first thing in the morning”. Frances Turnbull and Sandra Duncan begin a new series each, revealing some 

interesting findings from recent research about early years music education training, and discussing designing learning environments 

from children’s viewpoints respectively. Finally, don’t miss Kathryn Peckham’s report on the recent Birth to Five Spring Festival where she 

delivered an inspirational talk. 

As always, everything you read in the magazine is all written to help you with the efficient running of your setting and to promote the 

health, happiness and well-being of the children in your care. 

Please feel free to share the magazine with friends, parents and colleagues – they can sign up to receive their own copy here and don’t 

forget to send us your Jubilee photos! 

Allan 

JUNE 2022 ISSUE 91 

IN THIS EDITION 

Regulars 

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

34 Sheep cupcakes 

35 Celebrate World Oceans Day 

News 

4 Childcare news and views 

6 Small stories 

39 Congratulations to our Parenta 

learners! 

Advice 

20 National Insect Week 

22 Encouraging male apprentices into early 

years 

24 International Day of the African Child 

28 Child Safety Week 

30 Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee 

32 Learning Disability Week 

National Insect Week 20 

International Day of the African Child 24 

How stories 

heal us 

10 

Storytelling stems from one of 

our strongest human desires, 

that is the desire to connect 

with those around us... 

Egg-cellent 

advice: 

less is more 

Take a look at how playing 

with one toy at a time can 

actually make children 

appreciate them more... 

12 


look like... first thing in 

the morning? 

18 

Take a look at what leaders in early years 

education can do to help the day run 

smoothly... 

Industry Experts 

10 How stories heal us 

12 Egg-cellent advice: less is more 

14 Early years music education training: do 

we need it? Part 1 

18 What does leadership look like… first 

thing in the morning? 

26 Nurturing children - birth to 5 

36 View from the door - designing learning 

environments from children’s viewpoints 

Child Safety Week 28 

Learning Disability Week 32

DfE releases results of wave 

4 of research with childcare 

providers in relation to coronavirus 

(COVID-19) 

The Department for Education has 

released the results of the latest wave 

of a series of rapid surveys which have 

been specifically designed to capture 

evidence throughout the coronavirus 

pandemic. This survey, the 4th 

(November/December 2021), was put 

in place to provide a representative, 

stand-alone snapshot of all early years 

providers operating in England, in 

2021. 

At wave 4, only providers who were 

open at the time of the survey or were 

temporarily closed but had been open 

in the past 30 days were eligible to 

take part, however, during waves 1 

(July 2020), 2 (September/October 

2020) and 3 (November/December 

2020), all providers that were open 

in March 2020 (that is before the 

COVID-19 pandemic) were eligible to 

take part even if they had since closed. 

A summary of the key findings: 

Staff leaving and reasons: Groupbased 

providers (GBP) reported a 

higher average number of staff leaving 

their setting since the start of the 

pandemic compared to school-based 

providers SBPs and on average, GBPs 

reported an average staff turnover rate 

of 28%, compared with 11% for SBPs. 

Providers who had staff who left the 

setting since COVID-19 were asked to 

select the reasons why staff left their 

setting for employment elsewhere. 

Childcare news 

and views 

For SBPs, the three most common 

reasons why staff left their setting 

for employment elsewhere were: for 

career progression, a better work-life 

balance/less stressful job, and better 

and more suitable working hours. For 

the GBPs, the three most common 

reasons were for better pay, better 

and more suitable working hours and 

again, a better work-life balance/less 

stressful job. 

Vacancies: At the time of the survey, 

GBPs were carrying an average of one 

staff vacancy whereas SBPs had no 

vacancies. The majority of SBPs and 

GBPs said their current staff are equally 

as experienced as the staff working 

in their setting before COVID-19, and 

the majority of both SBPs and GBPs 

said their current staff are equally as 

qualified. However, around a third of 

GBPs said their current staff are less 

experienced and less qualified. 

You can read the full results of Wave 4, 

together with the other Waves, on the 

official government website here. 

LEYF encourages more male 

practitioners into the sector 

To help address the early years 

industry staffing crisis, London Early 

Years Foundation (LEYF) will this 

summer, be encouraging more men 

to work in the sector. As a social 

enterprise, LEYF is run not only as 

a profitable business but with a 

mission to create long-term social 

change. In the last few years, through 

her own personal experience and 

determination, June O’Sullivan has set 

out to show (and succeeded) that it 

was possible to run very good-quality 

nurseries in areas of deprivation so 

that no family would go without highquality 

childcare. 

“We know early years education is 

really good for children,” she says. 

“It’s particularly good in lowerincome 

families, but I found those 

families were least likely to get decent 

nurseries and there was no model 

for finding good nurseries that are 

sustainable.” 

Good nurseries in poorer 

neighbourhoods are often reliant on 

grants and funding to stay afloat, which 

puts them at the whims of politicians 

and changing childcare policies. “I 

thought, there must be a way to run 

community nurseries where everyone 

can attend but to develop a fee 

structure to make them independent. 

So that’s how this came about.” 

Mark Deyzel, the nursery manager at 

LEYF’s Warwick Community Nursery in 

West London, says he loves working 

with groups where the demographics 

are mixed. “For me it’s the perfect 

model, because children don’t see class 

they just see a peer. It’s lovely to see 

parents interacting who might not cross 

paths outside of the nursery.” 

Regarding the drive to encourage male 

practitioners into the sector, “Children 

need to know from a young age that 

men and women exist in all areas of 

life,” Deyzel says. “If we are teaching 

them from a young age that it is a 

female job to look after children, then 

we are teaching them inequality.” LEYF 

is calling for the nursery sector to recruit 

ambassadors and role models to visit 

schools, colleges and career fairs, as 

well as forming an advisory group to 

meet twice a year to monitor progress. 

You can read the full story, as reported 

in the Independent newspaper, here. 

Government confirms plans to relax 

early years ratios 

Children and families minister, Will 

Quince, has confirmed that the 

government is considering increasing 

the number of two-year-olds per adult 

in nurseries and pre-schools in England 

from four to five. 

Writing on Twitter, he said that “This 

proposal is about giving providers 

greater flexibility. Some were pushing 

me to go further on ratio reform but I’ve 

been clear from the start that I would 

not compromise on safety or quality. 

This consultation is just the start of the 

journey. We have some of the best 

early years provision in the world, and 

I’ll continue exploring how we can 

be ambitious for working parents - 

improving flexibility and reducing the 

cost of childcare.” 

Neil Leitch, Chief Executive of the 

Alliance, commented: “The government 

knows full well that the sector is 

opposed to this ludicrous, pointless and 

potentially dangerous policy - so why 

it is wasting time asking a question it 

already knows the answer to? 

“How often have we heard ministers 

talk about the importance of quality 

early education? How often have they 

stressed how vital it is to close the gap 

between poorer children and their 

wealthier peers which already exists 

by the time they reach primary school? 

Today’s announcement has shown 

all that up for what it really is: hollow, 

empty rhetoric. 

“We have a sector on its knees, with 

underpaid, overworked early years 

professionals doing their best to care 

for and educate children who, after 

spending most if not all of their lives 

under pandemic restrictions, need 

more individual care and education 

than ever before. The ignorance and 

short-sightedness that would lead 

anyone to suggest relaxing ratios as 

a solution to the problems our sector 

faces is frankly mind-boggling. 

“We know that the vast majority of 

providers won’t change how they 

operate, regardless of any rule 

changes, so this policy won’t even 

deliver the savings to parents ministers 

are claiming it will. But even a tiny 

minority of providers who feel they 

have no choice but to relax ratios 

could put the safety and well-being 

of young children at those settings at 

unacceptable risk. 

“There was a time when the 

government told us that every child 

mattered. I can’t help but wonder when 

that stopped being true.” 

Purnima Tanuku OBE, Chief Executive 

of National Day Nurseries Association 

said: “This is another announcement 

from the Prime Minister about cutting 

costs by tinkering with ratios. As the 

Children’s Minister has acknowledged, 

this isn’t a magic wand. 

“This cannot be something that is 

just done to the sector. Any plans to 

alter childcare ratios must be done in 

consultation with early years providers, 

experts and practitioners. 

“The Minister has reassured the public 

that he will work with the sector and 

won’t do anything to jeopardise quality 

or children’s safety and we want to 

see that commitment honoured. Our 

childcare providers are very well placed 

to know how best to educate and care 

for their children. 

“Additionally, any plans to extend the 

funded childcare system must also be 

consulted on. The current system is 

pushing early years settings into debt 

and forcing higher costs onto parents. 

The Government must fix chronic 

underfunding first before expanding 

any childcare offers.” 

The full story, as reported by 

NurseryWorld can be found here. 

4 June 2022 | parenta.com 

parenta.com | June 2022 5

A round-up of some news stories that 

have caught our eye over the month 

Source and image credits to: 

BBC News, Day Nurseries, Nursery World, 

Daily Record, EY Alliance, 

Difficult to fill early years 

vacancies says nursery group 

Nursery offers refugee families 

free childcare 

Nursery group launches 

£1.5m charity bond to buy less 

‘attractive’ nurseries 

Growing number of families 

skipping meals as cost of living 

crisis ‘bites’ deeper 

Nurseries invited to hold a Play 

Date to raise money for seriously 

ill children 

Woman reveals trick that puts 

baby to sleep in seconds and says 

it “works every time” 

The manager of a group of nurseries 

said it had been “incredibly difficult” to 

recruit qualified early years staff. 

A nursery in Cardiff is offering free 

childcare places to the children of 

refugees and asylum seekers. 

The London Early Years Foundation plans 

to offer 10,000 children across Greater 

London access to affordable early years 

education. 

There has been a 50 percent rise in the 

proportion of households cutting back 

on food or missing meals altogether in 

just three months. 

Early years settings and schools are being 

invited to host a play date during July to 

raise money to support ill children being 

treated at Great Ormond Street. 

A woman has shown a hold that may 

help get babies to sleep and claims that 

it works every time. 

Click here to send in 

your stories to 

hello@parenta.com 

Rewards encourage toddlers to 

try vegetables 

Toddlers are more likely to eat vegetables 

if they are rewarded for trying them, 

according to new research presented at 

the European Congress on Obesity. 

Alliance launches second 

National Week of Play 

The Alliance has announced that it will 

host its second National Week of Play, 

focused on eco-sustainability, from 13 to 

19 June 2022. 

Welcome Nurseries forced to 

close setting after failing to pay 

rent on time 

Welcome Nurseries has apologised 

to parents and staff of its Birkenshaw 

setting which has closed without notice 

due to a ‘serious’ admin error. 



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monthly magazine. 

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the month! Her article “What does leadership look 

like when … professional development budgets are 

limited?” looks into how high quality professional 

development experiences are essential for 

improving practice in the early years. Well done 

Mona! 

A massive thank you to all of our guest authors for 

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How stories heal us 

Writer Joan Didion said “We tell ourselves 

stories in order to live” (Wikipedia, 2020). 

We also seek out the narratives of others 

in order to live more fully with both the 

taking in, and the expression of stories, 

facilitating healing and leading to a 

greater sense of well-being. 

Storytelling stems from one of our 

strongest human desires, that is the desire 

to connect with those around us. This 

connection is essential for our wellness. 

Albert Bandura maintains “identity, selfefficacy 

and self-regulatory systems are all 

developed by interacting with others” (1999 

in Apsche & Blossom, 2013). 

As we share our stories, communicating 

our inner world and unique perspectives, 

we establish a sense of belonging and the 

understanding that we are not alone in 

what we experience but that our thoughts, 

feelings, and struggles resonate with 

those around us. 

The simple answering of the question, 

“You too?” on witnessing the reactions and 

identification of others as we communicate 

our stories and the resulting relief from any 

sense of isolation can, in itself, be healing. 

The taking in of the ideas of others and 

the finding of oneself in their ideas and 

explanations – in their very words – excites 

a feeling of ‘me too’. 

Another facet of belonging which the 

story process supports, is the idea that 

we are somehow tethered to each other 

and written into a collective story: that 

each person is a part of a greater whole. 

This sense of fellowship acts as a buffer 

against mental and physical illness. 

Research shows that childhood loneliness 

may be a potential risk factor for anxiety 

and depression (Xerxa et al, 2021), may 

affect self-esteem, and poses a risk to 

overall health. Increased levels of cortisol 

produced when experiencing loneliness is 

linked to impaired cognitive performance, 

a compromised immune system, 

inflammation, and other medical issues 

(Cleveland Clinic, 2018). 

Psychoanalyst, Ronald Fairbairn, an 

inspiration to John Bowlby, and who 

played a key role in the development 

of attachment theory, focused on “the 

centrality of relationships in the psyche” 

(Institute of Psychoanalysis, undated). 

Our stories are formed through and with 

others, with the quality of our lives not 

determined only by our individual stories, 

but also by the collective stories in which 

we are involved, contribute to, and learn 

from. 

As agents of healing, our role as parents 

and practitioners is to ensure that every 

child’s story is told. The educator and 

writer, Bell Hooks said, “any radical 

pedagogy must insist that everyone’s 

presence is acknowledged” and that this 

must be demonstrated in practice through 

a genuine valuing of individuals and 

“an ongoing recognition that everyone 

influences the classroom dynamic, that 

everyone contributes” (Hooks, 1994). Vivian 

Gussin Paley said that story is a “shared 

process…the social art of language” 

(Paley 1991, p.23 in Lumgair 2021, p.147). 

Stories provides children not only with the 

ability to use their voices but to make their 

own story choices. Describing examples of 

play during the pandemic, UCL’s Prof John 

Potter, explained that what was seen was 

“’a strong desire from children to control 

their own spaces, with a huge amount of 

den-building. Perhaps this is unexpected 

when children were already being kept 

inside in limited spaces, but a den under 

a blanket or a dining table can give a 

greater feeling of security and power over 

their own environment” (Thorpe, 2022). 

Children need to have power over their 

stories and their play. Relaying what 

experiences, events and emotions look 

like and feel like to them allows for 

understanding and insight and leads to 

increased personal agency. 

Stories hold potential for 

healing in other ways.

Egg-cellent 

advice: 

less is more 

I do not know how he came to acquire the nickname 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 

Joanna Grace 

Joanna Grace is an international 

Sensory Engagement and Inclusion 

Specialist, trainer, author, TEDx speaker 

and founder of The Sensory Projects. 

This is article 8 out of a series of 10! To view the others click here. 

I got the gadget featured in Egg’s photo 

second hand from Facebook marketplace. 

I picked it up late at night having got 

lost several times along the way (I live in 

rural Cornwall, I drive a tiny car, but these 

people lived at the end of a network of 

roads so tiny that I could pick flowers from 

the hedgerows out of my windows on both 

sides). 

A man opened the front door and 

regarded me quizzically, (they had 

probably given up on me arriving) and 

then his expression changed as he 

realised what I was there for. “Ah, you’ve 

come for the circle of neglect! I can’t wait 

to get rid of this thing.” 

His wife’s eyes shot daggers across the 

room at him. I was paying, she did not 

want to lose the sale. He recanted. “Ah, 

no, it’s been very good, it’s just” – he 

nodded in the direction of pictures of his 

children on the kitchen wall – “they’ve all 

grown out of it.” And then, to his wife’s 

despair he added “it just takes up so much 

bloody space and makes so much noise!” I 

laughed and agreed. 

I had borrowed one similar from the Toy 

Library when my first son was young and, 

although it filled our tiny living room, we 

had both loved it. Him for all the things it 

offered to explore, and me for the chance 

to drink my coffee without risk of spilling it 

on him. 

The man and I somehow managed to 

get it into my little car and I drove home, 

getting lost several more times along the 

way. A trip that the sat nav said should 

take 10 minutes ended up as over an hour. 

*Note this post mentions people becoming 

overwhelmed by sensory experiences, if 

you are struggling with behaviour in your 

setting and think it might have a sensory 

cause, consider studying “Exploring the 

Impact of the Senses on Behaviour” with 

The Sensory Projects online college www. 

TheSensoryProjects.co.uk/online-college 

My Mummy bought me a new toy, there 

was so much to do. When I bounced it 

made lots of noise, lights flashed and 

music played. It was very, very exciting, but 

also quite overwhelming. 

Then Mummy found a way of popping off 

all the gadgets, she has replaced them 

with cardboard trays. Up high where the 

dangly toys used to be, she has strung up 

a piece of string. 

Now I get different things to play with at 

different times. I can concentrate on them 

because there are not lots of other things 

crying out for my attention. Sometimes 

they are toys dangling from the string 

and I have to reach up to explore them, 

sometimes they are toys in the trays and I 

reach out to explore them. 

We do still have all the original toys, but 

Mummy puts them out one at a time so I 

can appreciate them fully when I play with 

them. 

(These words first appeared on Jo’s 

Facebook profile you are welcome to 

send her a friend request to watch out 

for more insight www.Facebook.com/ 

JoannaGraceTSP) 

Joanna provides online and in person 

training relating to sensory engagement 

and sensory differences, look up www. 

TheSensoryProjects.co.uk/online-college 

for more information. 

To view a list of her books visit www. 

TheSensoryProjects.co.uk/books. 

Follow Jo on social media to pick 

up new sensory insights, you’ll find 

her at: Twitter, www.Facebook.com/ 

JoannaGraceTSP and www.Linkedin/In/ 

JoannaGraceTheSensoryProjects. 

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” which 

was foreworded by Chris Packham. 

Joanna followed with her own book 

“The Subtle Spectrum” which explores 

the landscape of post diagnosis adult 

identified autism. 

Joanna is a big fan of social media and 

is always happy to connect with people 

via Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. 



Early years music 

education training: do we 

Ask a teenager what they do in their spare 

time, and they will often say, “listen to 

music”. Ask an adult what they do to relax, 

and they will often say, “listen to music”. 

Music is so pervasive that it is hard to think 

of any situation where you would not come 

across it. 

From shops to operating theatres, offices 

to warehouses, businesses use music all 

the time to help with staff motivation and 

promote concentration. 

At home, parents use music to calm 

babies. Football and other sports use 

music to unite crowds and fans. And in 

the health system, music has even been 

shown to reduce patient anxiety before 

operations and other challenging medical 

procedures. So, with so much music 

around, do teachers really need to learn 

how to teach music? Can’t they just sing 

to children? Do we really need to invest 

need it? Part 1 

time and money for specialist training 

into music instruction for early years 

educators? Research says we do. 

An international study by Bautista et al 

(2022) identified that music education 

helps to pass on cultural heritage, 

enhances learning skills and develops 

a number of personal socioemotional 

skills – check the study for all of the areas 

included. For this reason, many countries 

have included daily music in their national 

curricula, with the intention of it being used 

for more than the minimum standards that 

some settings use it for. 

Educators often use music to teach 

aspects of other subjects or life skills, e.g. 

ABC-song, 1-2-3-4-5 once I caught a fish 

alive etc. The other way music is often 

used is in classroom management, e.g. 

introducing routines, used as between- 

activity fillers, and as activity transitions. 

While these activities are a start, and 

they are valid examples of using music 

holistically, the study found that pre-school 

educators rarely knew the basic aspects of 

music education, like rhythm, pitch, timbre, 

and composition – nor did they know how 

to specifically teach them as skills. 

Below is a list of sample songs that 

can be used to develop musical skills in 

the early years, with more information 

on developing the basic skills in music 

education, based on the free mini e-book 

“Come And Sing 1 (Turnbull, 2015)” 

- https://books.apple.com/gb/book/ 

musicaliti/id1057514353. This includes 

music notation, an audio recording of each 

song, a game suggestion, and begins with 

an introduction to musical concepts, and 

an introduction to learning the ukulele for 

group singing. 

The book “Learning with Music 

(Turnbull, 2017)” - https://www. 

routledge.com/Learning-with-Music- 

Games-and-Activities-for-the-Early-Years/ 

Turnbull/p/book/9781138192591 - includes 

substantially more detail on different 

approaches to music education, how 

they fit with current pedagogy, curriculum 

development, and sample lesson plans for 

the different pre-school age groups (from 

birth) using 90 different pre-school songs. 

Level 1: Cobbler Cobbler 

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe 

Get it done by half past two 

Half past two is much too late 

Get it done by half past eight 

This song introduces historical language 

(cobbler/shoe repair) and uses two pitches 

(tune) and two rhythms (beat). This makes 

it easier to find the high note (so*) and the 

low note (mi*); the steady beat (crotchet/ 

quarter note) and the note twice as fast 

(quaver/eighth note). This dichotomy is a 

particularly successful way to introduce 

music for both children and adults, 

because it is easy to understand, easy to 

copy, and easy to sing successfully. 

Level 2: Pease Porridge 

Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold 

Pease porridge in the pot, nine days old 

Some like it hot, some like it cold 

Some like it in the pot, nine days old 

Also called Pease Pudding, this is a 

savoury dish of stewed peas in the tin 

can aisle in your local supermarket, and 

can be mixed with bacon for flavour, then 

spread on bread, hot or cold (I’m not sure 

whether it still tastes good nine days old, 

or whether that is how long it took the 

peas to stew!). Musically, it introduces a 

third pitch (do*) to the previous notes, mi* 

and so*, and a third rhythm: the steady 

beat (crotchet/quarter note), twice as fast 

(quaver/eighth note) and twice as slow 

(minim/half note). We use these pitches 

because they are far enough apart for the 

brain to identify them as different, yet close 

enough that the undeveloped vocal cords/ 

folds of the growing child can reach them 

without strain or damage. 

Level 3: Let Us Chase The 

Squirrel 

Let us chase the squirrel 

Up the hickory, down the hickory 

Let us chase the squirrel 

Up the hickory tree 

The American hickory tree usually 

produces pecan nuts, and musically, this 

song introduces a fourth pitch (re*) to do*, 

mi* and so*, from low to high, and the 

same three rhythms as before, the steady 

beat (crotchet/quarter note), twice as fast 

(quaver/eighth note) and twice as slow 

(minim/half note). By introducing music 

notes gradually, both children and adults 

are more likely to sing in tune and more 

accurately. Using games allows children to 

match the tune/pitch subconsciously and 

learn the knowledge consciously as they 

get older. 

The authors of the study end their 

article with a warning that as we come 

out of lockdown, we run the danger 

of focusing on literacy and numeracy 

to the exclusion of the arts, as people 

become concerned about educational 

delays caused by lockdown. By reducing 

music in the development and growth of 

children, we run the risk of affecting their 

socio-emotional development and selfregulation. 

Next month, we will look at the 

way new pitches and rhythms are added, 

along with potential ways forward for early 

years music education. 

* Kodály pitch: do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti. 

(Rhythms in British and American terms.) 

References: 

Bautista, A., Yeung, J., Mclaren, M. L., & 

Ilari, B. (2022). Music in early childhood 

teacher education: Raising awareness of a 

worrisome reality and proposing strategies 

to move forward. Arts Education Policy 

Review, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1080/10632 

913.2022.2043969 

Turnbull, F. (2015). Come and Sing 1 (1st 

ed.). Musicaliti Publishers. 

Turnbull, F. (2017). Learning with Music: 

Games and Activities for the Early Years (1 

edition). Routledge. 

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 



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look like… first thing in 

the morning? 

What’s a great start to the day? Across 

sectors, leaders agree that the things you 

do first in the morning make a difference 

to how the rest of the day pans out. In this 

article, we take a look at what leaders in 

early years education can do to help the 

day run smoothly. We look at four common 

goals that leaders use to set up mornings 

that make a difference: 

• Finding centre 

• Plan with joy 

• Prepare for calm transitions 

Reconnecting with Centre 

A huge part of leadership is being a 

port in the storm and role modelling the 

culture we want to create. As Jacqueline 

Lamb, CEO of Indigo Childcare Group in 

Glasgow explains, everyone else looks to 

you for guidance about the culture of the 

organisation – particularly when the going 

gets tough: “It’s vital that staff see the 

leader as a positive person still willing to 

smile and laugh.” 

The capacity to remain optimistic and clear 

in your vision for early years education 

depends on your own sense of stability 

and purpose. Feeling rushed or worried 

can get in the way of that sense of 

purpose and it can rub off on everyone 

around you. This means that one of the 

most important steps a leader can take in 

the morning is to reconnect with their own 

emotional centre and the values they want 

to bring to their setting. 

Reconnecting with your centre looks 

different to everyone. Here are a few ways 

that leaders do it in the morning before 

starting work: 

• Brewing a coffee and taking a 

few minutes to drink it in silence 

• Going for a run 

• Enjoying the walk to work 

• Reading a novel on the bus 

• Listening to an audio book in the 

car 

• Cuddling with your children 

before getting them out the door 

What activities enable you 

to reconnect with centre? 

Leaders also need to reconnect with 

the values that they really believe in for 

early years education. We can use the 

environments we work in to help us to 

remember to do this. It might be the 

posters that we put up in the setting for 

example, which remind us of the key 

values we want to bring to working with 

children (these might be joy, play, calm, 

health or so on). If you’re in a pop-up 

setting, you might need to be more 

creative with these reminders – maybe 

it’s the colour of clothes you wear to work 

and what you associate with those colours 

(e.g. yellow for joy), or perhaps you keep 

a postcard or photo in your bag to remind 

you of what this day is really about. 

Plan with joy 

Leadership is about planning, but it’s 

also about finding the opportunities to be 

creative and flexible in your plans so that 

you can really embrace the joy of early 

years education. 

Mel Knight, a baby room leader at Ripe 

Nursery School in Sussex, describes how 

the baby room team come together and 

plan the following week together: 

“Everyone chips in with what activities 

or toys they would like out for their key 

children. Doing it together is so important 

because everyone is aware of all the 

children’s needs, likes and dislikes. So it 

can’t be something that I’m doing alone. It 

needs to be collaborative”. 

Mel also points out the importance of 

being flexible with plans and keeping a 

sense of space in the moments that allow 

practitioners to seize the moment: 

“We are very much in the moment, for 

example if we have planned a morning 

outside then the weather changes, we 

adapt it so we can bring the outside in”. 

Having the time and space for this creative 

and flexible planning depends on creating 

routines for doing this before children 

arrive. But it also very much depends on 

the relationships a leader cultivates among 

the team. Everyone needs to know that 

their ideas are welcome and that planning 

is a collaborative joyful activity rather than 

a checklist that one or two people have 

responsibility for. Setting up this culture 

depends on interactions throughout every 

single day. 

Think about opportunities to remind 

everyone to contribute ideas to planning. 

You might notice that someone on the 

team takes particular joy in an activity 

during the week. You might mention to 

them that you’d love to see some more 

planning ideas following on from this 

activity. You might encourage staff teams 

to connect ideas in more informal ways, 

for example, using Pinterest together. In 

professional development conversations, 

make a point of discussing what ideas 

and how many individual team members 

contribute to the collaborative planning. 

You can set goals around this to help 

some members of the team speak up 

more often, but try to keep it feeling fun, 

relaxed and open. Joyful planning and 

in the moment planning depend on 

relaxed engagement in a no-pressure 

atmosphere. 

Prepare for transitions 

We all know that when we’ve prepared 

the transitions during the day, things 

run more smoothly. Leaders know that 

these transitions aren’t just details but the 

features of the day that really make the 

difference. They set the tone for the day. 

Think about trying to maintain a calm 

environment when things are busy and 

children’s needs are coming at you think 

and fast. We all need as much to be in 

place as possible to support us in these 

moments. 

Mel, speaking as a baby room leader, 

describes how she pays careful attention 

in the morning to these details: 

“Everyday I familiarise myself with the 

register, this can change daily especially 

with children off sick or making up 

sessions, put out their named baskets for 

their lunches and make sure their slippers 

are waiting for them by the door! We are 

a pop-up nursery so I check that the sleep 

room is ready for their individual nap 

times.” 

The particular transitions will depend on 

the features of your own room or setting. 

It’s a great idea to regularly reflect on the 

details that seem to make the difference in 

how transitions feel for everyone. Maybe 

there are things you could do at the 

start of the day that would really help, or 

maybe there are things that you’re doing 

currently that actually don’t make much of 

a difference to the children’s well-being or 

learning. Leadership is about reflecting on 

what to do more of and what to do less of. 

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 



National Insect Week 

National Insect Week 

Can you hear the buzz of excitement for 

this week? Stick around, there are some 

un-bee-lievable ideas! 

Sorry – we just had to get a few bug puns 

into this article as we are really excited to 

be covering a relatively new awareness 

week, at least for us, which is National 

Insect Week. It is organised by the Royal 

Entomological Society and supported by 

a large number of partner organisations 

with interests in different areas of science, 

natural history and the conservation of 

insects. 

There are more than one million different 

species of insect that have been identified 

and described to date. Insects are the 

most abundant group of animals in the 

world and live in almost every habitat on 

the planet. They have lived on the planet 

for more than 350 million years, that’s over 

one thousand times longer than humans 

and longer than dinosaurs and flowering 

plants. 

The important role of insects 

Insects have been responsible for much 

of the evolution on the planet and have 

helped us in numerous ways. Including the 

following: 

is an essential process if flowers and 

vegetables are to reproduce. Insects 

are responsible for pollinating around 

80% of UK plants and this includes a 

large number of crops which we use 

for food. Pollination is the how many 

flowering plants reproduce. The pollen 

from the male part of the plant (called 

the anther) needs to get to the female 

part of the plant (called the stigma). 

Without insects, it would be difficult 

to for many plants to complete this 

process and therefore produce seeds, 

flowers and fruit. 

2. A source of food – a much as we 

need them to help us eat, insects 

are also the main source of food for 

many birds, fish and other mammals 

such as hedgehogs and have a 

huge role in maintaining ecosystems 

and food chains around the world. 

Many people also consider insects 

as human food as well, with over 2 

billion people eating some kind of 

insect in their diet because they are 

full of protein, vitamins and minerals. 

Much Asian food contains insects 

such as cicadas, cockroaches and 

crickets which are often deep fried 

or roasted, and served with a sticky 

or sweet sauce. In some countries, 

insects are being considered as 

a serious solution in tackling food 

crises and the environmental impact 

of farming. And let’s not forget, that 

the cast of “I’m a celebrity get me 

out of here” get to taste a few insect 

delicacies every year too! 

3. Nature’s recyclers – insects are the 

perfect natural waste disposal team 

as they break down and decompose 

organic matter. This means they turn 

dead animals and waste into healthy, 

fertile soil, recycling the nutrients to 

feed the next generation of plants and 

animals. Without insects, it’s hard to 

conceive what would happen to all 

the animal waste and dead animals. 

We’d all be looking at huge piles of 

‘poop’! 

4. Barometers for change – insect 

populations can tell us a lot about 

how we are looking after the 

environment and are good indicators 

of environmental changes. They can 

highlight areas where pollution is 

rising and where things are out of 

balance, helping us humans see 

when we need to make changes or 

act more decisively. 

5. In medicine – chemicals extracted 

from insects have been used for 

medicinal purposes for thousands 

of years and the process is called 

entomotherapy. Insects such as 

surgical maggots have been used to 

help clean wounds of infection; bee 

venom therapy can help with arthritis 

and gout; and in some cultures, ants 

have been used as sutures to hold 

wounds together whilst they healed. 

This week aims to encourage people of 

all ages to learn more about the insects 

that surround them. It only runs every 2 

years and in 2022, the dates are the 20th 

to the 26th June. The Insect Week website 

has lots of information about our insect 

friends and other invertebrates for people 

of all ages. They also run events related to 

insects and increasing knowledge about 

them. 

How to get involved in your 

setting 

1. Organise a bug hunt or minibeast 

hunt in your own backyard 

or community space. Look out for 

things like worms, ants, earwigs and 

beetles. You can join in the Great 

Bug Hunt which is an initiative to 

encourage primary school children 

(although others can join in) to get 

involved in an outdoor classroom and 

find, draw and identify these mini 

creatures 

2. Start a bug club to teach the children 

about some of the most common 

insects – see the official website to 

learn about the 12 different types 

of insects. You’ll find everything you 

need to join in with the events and 

competitions during Insect Week and 

lots of learning resources here 

3. Raise awareness of these tiny miracle 

workers by adding an image or logo 

to your social media sites 

4. Run a beetle drive to raise money for 

yourself or another local group 

5. Build a bug hotel to help our insect 

friends – you can find some details of 

how to do this here 

6. Learn about the lifecycle of a butterfly 

– you can buy butterfly life cycle kits 

online which the children will love 

Fun facts about insects you 

might not know

Encouraging male 

apprentices into early 

years 

If you have been reading this magazine 

for a while now, you will know that we 

occasionally revisit the problem of the 

gender imbalance in the early years 

workforce. Change is slow in this area 

but it is happening. The Education 

Policy Institute (EPI), supported by the 

Nuffield Foundation have been researching 

and reporting on the demographics, 

characteristics, qualifications and 

effectiveness of the early years workforce 

in recent years. They have published their 

findings to help inform government policy 

and provide recommendations for 

providing a high quality workforce, which 

the government recognises is critical in 

supporting children’s outcomes in life. You 

can download their latest report here. 

The report found that there were a number 

of key issues facing the workforce 

including: 

» A large proportion of childcare 

workers are struggling financially, with 

low pay of £8.20 in 2018 – around 40 

percent less than the average female 

worker, having experienced a pay cut 

in real terms in recent years 

» The sector faces recruitment 

problems in the short and long-term 

with providers frequently reporting 

difficulties in hiring staff, particularly 

well qualified staff that have full an 

‘Early Years Educator’ status (Level 3 

qualification) 

» The sector is ageing and faces an 

uncertain future (In 2018, around 

90,000 workers were aged 55 or 

above and 37,000 (5.1%) were EU 

nationals working in childcare in 

England 

» The workforce has low qualifications, 

which could affect the quality of 

childcare provision 

» The workforce remains predominantly 

female 

One point for celebration was that the 

number of male workers in the childcare 

sector has increased. When we last 

reported on this issue, research showed 

that the percentage of the early years 

work force who were male was only 3%, 

but this has now increased to 7.4%, 

although this still remains very low. This 

is only half the rate of other femaledominated 

professions, such as 

hairdressers and beauticians (13.7%) and 

with nursery and primary teachers (15.8%). 

Within this figure, just 1.8 per cent of 

nursery nurses and assistants, and 4 per 

cent of childminders, are male. So it is 

clear that there is still a problem with 

the gender make-up of the early years 

workforce, meaning that many settings 

(despite a desire to have them) do not 

have any male practitioners at all and 

children are entirely educated and looked 

after by females in these foundational 

years. As with any institution of power, 

be it an early years setting or local, 

national or international government, 

problems can develop where certain 

sectors or society are not adequately 

represented. 

Benefits of men in 

early years 

» Creating positive male role models 

for all children but especially to those 

who may not have a positive male 

figure in their life 

» It can help children who may have 

had only negative experiences of 

men build positive and safe, nurturing 

relationships with men 

» It can contribute to a more holistic 

environment which is more 

representative of society as a whole 

» Having a male perspective within 

a setting can challenge gender 

stereotypes about the roles of men 

and women in society 

» Provide a positive attitude to learning 

in young boys to help reduce the 

attainment gap often seen in later 

years 

» Men often bring a different dynamic 

to childcare and play which works to 

provide a more holistic experience for 

children overall 

» Having male early years practitioners 

may help fathers feel more 

comfortable in attending these 

environments 

» Present a positive message to 

society of the role of men in childcare 

generally 

Barriers to entry 

for male early 

years practitioners 

The problem of recruiting more males 

into the early years workforce has been 

reported by the EPI in their latest report 

such as the low pay, the qualifications, and 

the status that early years workers are 

sometimes perceived to have in society. 

Despite inroads into society’s perception 

of who should provide childcare, and more 

men staying at home to look after their 

own children, we are not seeing this 

attitude cross over into the early years 

workforce. The fact that the industry is 

dominated by women is also a barrier to 

entry for some men who may feel a lack of 

confidence in these situations. 

How to improve the 

gender balance in 

your setting 

The first thing to do if you want to attract 

more males into early years is to make 

a commitment in your setting to positively 

and actively recruit more men. This 

includes getting a buy-in from your 

management team and tackling any 

prejudices or unconscious biases that may 

exist in your setting first. 

The organisation MITEY (males in the early 

years) has published a practical guide 

for early years employers on how to attract 

more men into their settings and 

encourages settings to sign up to the 

MITEY Charter. You can download the 

guide free from their website (see link 

below). 

Some ideas for recruiting more males and 

apprentices include: 

» Setting a recruitment goal to recruit 

more men 

» Hold open days targeted at male 

recruits 

» Work with colleges, schools and local 

job centres in your recruitment 

» Visit local school and college career 

fairs 

» Use images and posters of male 

practitioners around your settings 

» Always talk professionally about the 

early years to raise the profile of the 

profession 

» Promote any vacancies via fathers 

who use your setting along with other 

male network opportunities, as well 

as mothers 

» Replace “feminised” job titles such as 

“nursery nurse” with more genderneutral 

terms such as “early years 

practitioner” 

» Talk about and promote the 

qualifications that early years 

professionals can achieve, including 

up to degree and post-degree level 

» Look at local pay rates and offer rates 

that are as competitive as possible 

» Aim for diversity and inclusion at all 

times 

» Include images of men and male 

case studies in job advertisements, 

to support the assumption that male 

applicants are welcome 

» Promote early years and other caring 

jobs to boys of all ages within your 

setting 

» Support any male employers you do 

have and foster links with local male 

networks 

Apprenticeships are a good way to 

encourage young people into work and 

more and more school leavers are now 

looking to improve their career chances 

and gain qualifications via this route. 

Parenta work nationally to recruit suitable 

apprentices to study for Level 3 childcare 

qualifications and you can contact the 

training arm on trainingadvisor@parenta. 

com for more information about our 

training and recruitment procedures. 

Further information 

» Men in the Early Years (MITEY) 

» The MITEY guide to recruiting men into 

early years education, Davies, J. (2019) 

London: Fatherhood Institute 

» Fatherhood Institute 

» Men in Childcare (Scotland) 

» Gender Action 

» Lifting Limits 

References 

https://epi.org.uk/publications-and 

research/the-early-years-workforce-inengland/ 



International 

Day of the 

African Child 

The last few years have been difficult for 

early years providers and in education 

generally. The pandemic closed schools, 

settings battled with staff shortages, and 

our entire education system moved online 

as millions sat at home with their parents/ 

carers working through videos and 

worksheets on their laptops and electronic 

devices. It was tough! 

But before we launch into a tirade of how 

terrible and difficult it was for us, spare a 

thought for the millions of children who 

experienced the pandemic in Africa, or 

in any other developing country for that 

matter. Yes, their schools were closed too, 

but many did not have a school to go to 

in the first place. Yes, there were fewer 

staff, but with an unequal availability of 

vaccines and healthcare, many more staff 

were lost in these countries. And whilst 

we were bemoaning having to watch an 

online video on basic counting, spare a 

thought for those who could only dream of 

owning any type of online device, let alone 

dreaming of having any electricity to run it 

from! 

Let’s look at some hard 

facts 

In Africa, poverty is seen in its most 

extreme form. Millions of people’s lives are 

reduced to survival mode, as they battle 

each day without the essentials of food, 

water, shelter or sanitation. In sub-Saharan 

Africa, this is the reality for almost half of 

the population. 

According to the Children International 

website: 

 

Half of the African continent’s 

population is made up of children, up 

to 20% of which are disabled and an 

 

 

 

 

increasing number are growing up 

stunted because of the challenges of 

malnutrition 

41% of the population in sub- 

Saharan Africa is living on less than 

$1.90/£1.55 per day 

Sub-Saharan Africa has both the 

highest rates of children living in 

extreme poverty (just under 50%), 

and the largest share of the world’s 

extremely poor children, (just over 

50%) 

An estimated 32.1 million orphans live 

in Africa many orphaned by diseases 

like HIV/AIDS 

Malaria kills 3,000 African children per 

day, that’s one child every 30 seconds 

Clearly, this is not a situation that can 

continue unaddressed and unabated in 

the 21st century. 

International Day of the 

African Child 

In 1991, the Organisation of African Unity 

initiated the first International Day of the 

African Child, set up to honour those 

who participated in the Soweto school 

children’s uprising of 1976. In that year, 

thousands of black schoolchildren took 

to the streets to protest about the inferior 

quality of their education in South Africa 

(which had an apartheid system at the 

time) and a government ruling about the 

language that they were to be taught in. In 

the protests, many children were killed or 

injured by the security forces. 

Whilst these events will never be forgotten, 

over the last 31 years, the aims of the day 

have expanded to raise awareness of the 

current plight of children in African with a 

particular emphasis on their education or 

the lack of it. June 16th is recognised each 

year by governments, NGOs, schools and 

other interested parties around the world 

so that the problems can be highlighted, 

discussed and solutions found. 

Although officially only one day, with so 

much need, there is no shortage of ways 

that you can get involved in your setting 

and we’ve listed a few ways below to give 

you some ideas. 

 

 

 

Create a wall display highlighting 

some of the similarities and 

differences between Africa and the 

UK (this will help fulfil some of the 

Understanding the World curriculum) 

Invite local people of African heritage 

to give a talk to your children and 

share their culture 

Dress up in colourful clothing to 

celebrate the day. Many African 

countries’ traditional clothing 

is brightly coloured and highly 

 

 

 

 

patterned. You could also run some 

art activities to copy some patterns or 

design some costumes 

Read some inspiring stories about 

the lives of African children or African 

beliefs at storytime, such as the 

following best sellers that are suitable 

for younger children: 

“I Am You: A Book about Ubuntu” 

by Refiloe Moahloli. Ubuntu is a 

South African belief that we are all 

connected and one community 

“Emmanuel’s Dream: The True Story of 

Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah” by Laurie 

Ann Thompson (author) and Sean 

Qualls (illustrator). This is based on 

a true story of a disabled child who 

overcame the odds and fulfilled his 

childhood dream 

“The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” 

by William Kamkwamba and Bryan 

Mealer (authors), and Anna Hymas 

(illustrator). This is another true story, 

which has been made into a Netflix 

film, about how a young boy brought 

 

electricity to his village 

Raise some money or donate to an 

African charity to send a little back 

and help where you can – see more 

information below about how you can 

help our own charity, Parenta Trust 

Parenta Trust 

The education situation in Africa and the 

struggles faced by African children to get 

a decent education is close to our heart 

here at Parenta. In 2013, our CEO, Allan 

Presland, set up the Parenta Trust and 

his mission was to educate the youngest, 

most vulnerable children in deprived areas 

across Africa and the world by building 

pre-schools and a child-sponsorship 

programme. 

The aim of the Trust is to support 

disadvantaged children by providing them 

with the opportunity to receive a quality 

pre-school education in a safe and loving 

environment, and we are proud that 

91p in every pound raised by the Trust 

is put towards building pre-schools for 

children in need. All children attending 

a Parenta Trust school benefit from a 

pre-school uniform, a daily hot meal, a 

gift at Christmas, school supplies and the 

knowledge that they can change their lives 

for the better. 

The Parenta Trust has been organising 

fund-raising events ever since and has 

to date opened 5 pre-schools helping 

over 1,000 children get a better start in 

life. Each Parenta Trust pre-school can 

accommodate between 140-250 orphaned 

and underprivileged children. 

Child sponsorship 

You can also sponsor a child through 

Parenta Trust and for as little as £17 per 

month, where you can ensure that children 

get a brighter future and really make a 

difference to the lives of African children. 

Another way to support the charity is to 

make it your charity of choice if you shop 

through Amazon using the Amazon Smile 

initiative. 

Find out more at: https://www. 

parentatrust.com 



Nurturing children - 

birth to 5 

Back in March of this year I had the 

absolute pleasure of speaking at the Birth 

to Five Spring Festival. It was such a great 

privilege to work with such esteemed 

colleagues when writing the Birth to Five 

framework “For you… and with you” 

and this event was a great opportunity 

to come together and share some of the 

research that went into the writing through 

a collection of some fascinating talks and 

presentations. 

You can access my talk in full here, but in 

this month’s article I would like to once 

again raise awareness for something that 

is very close to my heart, as I am sure it is 

to many of you working with families and 

young children. And that is the impact 

that we are all having on children’s lives, 

in the short, medium and long term… 

through every engagement, interaction 

and experience that we share with them. 

And how this is more important than any 

amount of “catch up” or accomplished 

learning goals. 

Through my own research, I have seen first 

hand the impact we have on children’s 

onward trajectories. Rooted, not in their 

ability to pass assessments, but in their 

happiness, their sense of security and the 

dispositions of effective learning that we 

allow to flourish. Beginning in very early 

childhood and lasting a lifetime. 

Working in the early years, we are 

already captivated by the idea that a 

child’s learning is fundamentally enriched 

through their own personal discoveries 

and interests. Not the things we expect 

them to learn. We have all seen the looks 

of determination on a child desperate to 

learn how to walk, the confidence of a 

toddler as they announce again “Me do 

it!” Or the hours a group of pre-schoolers 

can spend problem solving and applying 

the laws of physics to a den in the 

garden. Could you imagine what would 

be possible if all children could retain that 

level of motivation for learning throughout 

their lives? 

And yet many a school child is quick to 

announce that they don’t like school, 

that learning is somehow not for them. 

What is it that seems to dampen so many 

children’s previously deep felt engagement 

within the learning process? 

With many children appearing to 

disengage once they transition to 

the more formal approaches of the 

school classroom, I have been keen to 

understand the intrinsic, as well as the 

external effects on children’s engagements 

as the once holistic experiences of early 

learning become influenced – and 

governed by - school timetables, lesson 

plans and the greater focus on learning 

goals. 

As I have looked to understand the 

potential impact of formal pedagogies 

on young children, I have captured 

how children respond to the learning 

opportunities they are given. And, when 

you consider the diverse abilities of a class 

of unique children, the effect this has on 

what should be wide-ranging potential as 

I look to raise awareness of the immense 

disservice we are doing to our children. 

Using a framework of features of lifelong 

learning developed for a previously 

published book, I looked at how 

dispositional features are nurtured and 

developed within an early years setting 

and then by the same children once 

they had transitioned into their school 

classroom. Capturing a snapshot of 

the styles of teaching and distractions, 

locations and encouragements. The 

discussions that were had, their style of 

involvement, groupings and the choices 

being permitted. And the effects on 

children’s engagements were staggering. 

As opportunities to engage with one 

another declined, so too did their 

imagination. As their permissions to 

become freely involved declined, so too 

did their interest. And as whole group 

teaching became the norm, children 

were seen to effectively disengage. As 

children’s return to school classrooms have 

become intrinsically linked with concerns 

for what they have missed and the catch 

up that needs to occur, we are having an 

unprecedented impact on their well-being. 

Sacrificing children’s interest and aptitudes 

towards learning, along with their deeperrooted 

levels of happiness and security in 

a scramble for discrete factual knowledge. 

When we need to look to far more 

reaching, long-term implications. 

In the short term, as we remove a 

child’s ownership of their learning, they 

engage with it at a far shallower and 

less motivated level. Reason enough to 

consider the impact we are having when 

our approaches, our teaching styles or 

engagements become too concerned with 

the achievements of a predetermined end 

goal. But what is more deeply concerning 

is the long-term impact these effects 

have on a child’s character and their 

approaches to learning. To such an extent 

that when freedoms are again offered, 

opportunities are no longer embraced 

by children who are already displaying 

outward signs of demotivated and 

disengaged learning. No longer appearing 

happy and secure within their abilities, 

they are instead reluctant to spread their 

wings, to see what they can do as they 

continue within the narrow confines they 

have become accustomed to. 

I would suggest that if we are ever to 

develop the potential of all our children 

we need to begin realising the extent of 

these impacts on them. We need to see 

children as the complex individuals they 

are, coming to us with a multitude of 

experiences that are forming their bodies 

and minds, making them the person they 

are and establishing the person they will 

become. They will have ideas, desires 

and opinions of their own. And how we 

respond to these, how we listen to them, 

validate them and give them room to grow 

is determining how they will respond the 

next time. Will they persevere and engage? 

Or be quick to give up? Do they see 

themselves as capable individuals, or not 

suited to the opportunities they are given? 

The idea that core needs must be 

established within a child before we can 

expect them to be in a place to learn is 

nothing new. And far more important 

than distilling their abilities, thoughts and 

potential into 17 predetermined goals. But 

we can’t do this alone – other influential 

adults in their young lives also need to 

know, to understand and be supported 

to nurture The Secure Child and The 

Happy Child as well as The Learning Child. 

Because without this, we will always fall 

short of developing every child’s potential. 

Bring focus back to nurturing all of 

children’s growth and development with 

a Nurturing Childhoods Accreditation. A 

new approach to CPD that is tailored to 

the needs of your setting and the children 

and families you work with. With its 

complete set of materials and guidance, 

it complements the resources available 

for your parents and is underpinned by 

professional standards and industry 

leading research. As together 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. 

For more information and practical 

guidance on developing the features of 

lifelong learning, Kathryn has published 

a book: “Developing School Readiness, 

Creating Lifelong Learners”. 

Get in contact at www.kathrynpeckham. 

co.uk or email info@kathrynpeckham. 

co.uk. 



Child Safety Week 

Factsheet and free resources 

Between the CAPT website and the RoSPA 

website, there are a whole host of free and 

downloadable resources to help get the 

message across including: 

The safety of the children in our care is 

the most important thing that we are 

responsible for as early years practitioners. 

Yes, we are following the EYFS and of 

course we are looking to enrich the lives 

of our children through education and 

experience, but if we don’t look out for 

the safety of the children, then it could 

all be for nothing. Settings are required 

by law to look out for their children, to 

make sure their premises are safe, and to 

ensure that there is adequate supervision 

of children at all times. We are, or should 

be, constantly training and re-training our 

staff to look out for risk and to minimise 

it without interfering with the natural 

development of the child. We are not in 

the business of eliminating risk completely, 

which can put the child at greater risk 

in the future if they cannot recognise or 

identify risks for themselves, but we are in 

the business of preventing accidents. 

Child Safety Week can remind us to 

keep our training up-to-date, review 

safeguarding and accident policies and 

to raise awareness of child safety with 

our parents and carers so that they are 

also informed about the latest child safety 

advice. 

The facts 

Accidents or ‘unintentional injuries’ are one 

of the main causes of premature death 

and illness in children in the UK. In England 

alone, 60 children under the age of 5, die 

each year from injuries they sustain in and 

around the home. These account for 1 in 

12 deaths of children aged 1 – 4. Accidents 

at home among under-fives also result 

in 450,00 visits to A&E departments and 

40,000 emergency hospital admissions in 

England each year, with children from the 

most disadvantaged families being more 

likely to be killed or seriously injured due 

to accidents. Statistically, children from 

the most deprived areas have hospital 

admission rates 45% higher than children 

from the least deprived areas. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, most accidents 

involving young children occur when 

the children are at home and may not 

be under the same amount of scrutiny 

as when they are in your setting. Most 

accidents with children occur between 

late afternoon and early evening, in the 

summer, during school holidays and at 

weekends. The places they happen are 

also important, with the largest number of 

accidents happening in the living/dining 

room but the most serious ones occurring 

in the kitchen or on the stairs. 

Why do accidents happen? 

According to RoSPA (the Royal Society for 

the Prevention of Accidents), and contrary 

to the well-known idiom, “accidents 

DON’T have to happen” but we do need 

to be educated and take action to prevent 

them. Since we know most accidents occur 

when children are at home, we also have 

a responsibility to educate the parents/ 

carers about how to prevent accidents too. 

A number of factors have been identified 

as increasing the risk of accidents, 

including:

Queen Elizabeth II’s 

Platinum Jubilee 

Queen Elizabeth II is the world’s longest 

reigning living monarch, and she has 

ruled for longer than any other monarch 

in British history. Only France’s 17th century 

leader, King Louis XIV (who ascended 

the throne aged 4) and Thailand’s King 

Bhumibol have reigned longer. 

On the 6th February 1952, King George 

VI, died of lung cancer aged 56 and his 

25-year-old daughter, Princess Elizabeth 

became Queen Elizabeth II. She was on 

holiday in Kenya with her husband, the 

late Prince Philip, when she heard the 

news. The trip was cut short and the new 

Queen flew back to Britain to be greeted 

by the then Prime Minister, Winston 

Churchill before returning to Clarence 

House, where the Royal Standard was 

flown for the first time in her reign. On 2nd 

June the following year, (1953) The Queen 

was crowned in an official coronation 

ceremony at Westminster Abbey. 

Fast forward 70 years and on the 6th 

February 2022, Queen Elizabeth officially 

passed the 70-year anniversary of her 

ascension to the throne, so this year 

we are celebrating this remarkable 

achievement and her life of service to the 

country, with her Platinum Jubilee. 

Those of you of a certain age may 

remember the Silver Jubilee in 1977, the 

Golden Jubilee in 2002, and the Diamond 

Jubilee in 2012 celebrating 25, 50 and 60 

years respectively. 

Over the last 70 years, royalists and 

reformists have applauded Her Majesty 

for her sense of duty, her charitable and 

community work, and her devotion to a 

life of service to the people of the UK and 

the Commonwealth. She has seen many 

changes, including 14 Prime Ministers, 

decimalisation, the Falklands War, 

Concorde, 9-11, the moon landings, the 

birth of mobile phones and the internet, 

the London Olympics, the UK joining and 

later leaving the European Union and 

many other memorable events. It has 

been a time of great social change and 

immense technological advancement, 

and Her Majesty has been the figure head 

for the UK and several other countries 

throughout. 

The celebrations 

Although there are celebrations 

throughout the year, a special four-day UK 

bank holiday will officially mark the Jubilee 

from Thursday 2nd to Sunday 5th June. 

Thursday 2nd June – 

Trooping the colour 

The traditional annual Queen’s Birthday 

Parade will be held this Jubilee year 

on Thursday 2nd June 2022 starting at 

11am. The colour will be trooped by the 

1st Battalion, Irish Guards, and more 

than 1200 officers and soldiers from the 

Household Division will put on a display 

of military pageantry on Horse Guards 

Parade, together with hundreds of Army 

musicians and around 240 horses. This 

annual event has marked the official 

birthday of the British Sovereign for over 

260 years. A Royal Gun Salute will also be 

fired in honour of The Queen and following 

the pageantry, the Royal Family will 

appear on Buckingham Palace balcony to 

acknowledge well-wishers and watch an 

impressive fly-past. 

Thursday 2nd June – 

Beacon chain 

Traditionally a way of alerting the kingdom 

of an impending attacks, beacon chains 

have now become a symbol of celebration 

and many royal occasions have been 

marked with the lighting of beacons up 

and down the country. This year, over 

1500 beacons will become a focus for 

celebrations in the UK, Channel Islands, 

Isle of Man and UK Overseas Territories. 

The principal beacon, involving the ‘Tree 

of Trees’ (a 21m high ‘tree’ constructed of 

350 smaller trees), will be lit in a special 

ceremony at Buckingham Palace at 9pm. 

See www.queensjubileebeacons.com for 

more details. 

Friday 3rd June – 

Service of thanksgiving 

This special service giving thanks for The 

Queen’s reign will be held at St Paul’s 

Cathedral in London starting at 11.30am. 

It will involve the ringing ‘Great Paul’, the 

largest church bell in the country which will 

ring between 10.50am and 10.55am. 

Saturday 4th June – The 

Derby at Epsom Downs 

The Queen’s love of horse racing is well 

known and she owns several race horses, 

so it will come as no surprise that one of 

the ways she would like to celebrate her 

Jubilee is to attend the races. The Derby 

is an annual flat race and The Queen 

and other members of the Royal Family 

will attend. In the evening, there will be 

a Platinum Party at Buckingham Palace 

which will air live on the BBC network 

between 8.00pm and 10.30pm and will 

feature a whole host of stars from the 

world of entertainment to bring their own 

special musical tribute to the celebrations. 

Sunday 5th June – the 

Big Jubilee Lunch and 

Pageant 

This is really an occasion that everyone 

can join in, wherever you live in the country 

as the celebrations will range from world 

record attempts for the title of ‘longest 

street party’ to BBQs in people’s back 

gardens and almost every kind of picnic 

and feasting event in between. Over ten 

million people across the UK are expected 

to take part and will be joined by hundreds 

of thousands more from around the globe 

as part of Commonwealth celebrations. 

You can get a free Big Jubilee Lunch pack 

from thebigjubileelunch.com which is 

a community-building initiative run in 

conjunction with The Eden Project. You 

can see where there is a street party near 

you or the pack will help you get your own 

street party started too. 

The final celebration will be the Platinum 

Jubilee Pageant involving the Gold State 

Carriage and a few digitally enhanced 

surprises to boot! According to the 

website, “The Platinum Pageant tells the 

story of The Queen’s 70-year reign and 

our transforming society” and will involve 

“a spectacular unfolding story filled with 

wonder, warmth, wit and wow-factor.” 

Ways to celebrate 

Get involved in your setting in any number 

of ways including: 

Organise a street party or hold a 

party in your setting – download 

the Pageant Pack for ideas and 

inspirations. There’s a big push to 

make events inclusive, sustainable, 

and ecologically friendly, so consider 

this in your planning 

Download the Platinum Jubilee Toolkit 

or other resources from the websites 

at the end of this article and create 

something to celebrate, be it a cake, a 

crown or a colouring corgi! 

Teach the children about some of the 

changes that have taken 

place over the last 70 

years including transport, 

rationing, 

communications, 

money, laws and 

entertainment 

Download a Platinum Jubilee emblem 

to use on your social media – see 

www.royal.uk/resources-platinumjubilee 

‘Plant a tree for the Jubilee’ with The 

Queen’s Green Canopy initiative 

Whatever you do, we’d love to hear your 

stories, so remember to send us your 

pictures and news to hello@parenta.com. 

More information 

https://www.royal.uk/platinumjubilee 

https://www.royal.uk/ 

https://www.edenprojectcommunities. 

com/the-big-jubilee-lunch 

https://www.edenprojectcommunities. 

com/stuff-you-can-do 



Learning Disability Week 

This month sees the return of Learning 

Disability Week, organised by Mencap, 

the national charity with the aim of raising 

awareness of learning disabilities and 

learning difficulties, and supporting those 

who have them, to live meaningful and 

independent lives in the community. 

In the UK, there are approximately 1.5 

million people with a learning disability, of 

which, 351,000 are children aged 0 – 17. A 

learning disability is distinct from learning 

difficulties and MENCAP uses the definition 

of: 

“A learning disability is a reduced 

intellectual ability and difficulty with 

everyday activities – for example 

household tasks, socialising or managing 

money – which affects someone for their 

whole life.” Mencap 

Having a learning disability means 

that people tend to take longer to learn 

everyday things, and may need support 

to develop new skills, understand 

complicated information and interact with 

other people. 

This is different from having learning 

difficulties such as ADHD or dyslexia which, 

although can result in people taking longer 

to learn some things, do not, ultimately 

affect people’s intellect. Many people 

with learning difficulties such as dyslexia, 

ADD or ADHD go on to lead productive 

independent lives, but many people with 

learning disabilities may need a much 

higher level of personal care or support 

for their entire life. But that doesn’t mean 

they can’t be productive, have goals 

and dreams and reach a degree of 

independence, because many of them can 

and do. 

Learning Disability Week 

This is Mencap’s annual campaign, 

running this year from the 20th – 26th 

June and using the hashtag #LDWeek22. 

It’s all about getting people to understand 

more about what life is like for people with 

learning disabilities as there is still a lot 

of stigma and misunderstanding which 

surrounds the topic. The week is aimed at: 

❤ Educating the public and raising 

awareness of learning disabilities 

❤ Smashing stigmas and ending 

discrimination 

❤ Fighting and campaigning for a fair 

society 

It is probably true to say that unless people 

work with, or have friends/family with a 

learning disability, most people do not 

understand what life is like for people who 

do. The theme this year is about “Living 

life with a learning disability” with the aim 

of showing how people are reconnecting 

with friends and communities after the 

pandemic, and highlighting some of the 

issues that many people with learning 

difficulties still face relating to feeling 

isolated, lonely, anxious or having poorer 

mental health. With this aim, Mencap are 

appealing for people to share their stories 

to help inspire and help others. They 

have some truly inspiring Myth Busters’ 

stories already on their website showing 

how people with learning disabilities are 

holding down jobs, breaking boundaries 

and following their dreams. They are using 

the tag line “Listen. Ask. Learn.” 

Communication 

One of the problems that many 

people with learning difficulties face, is 

communicating well with others, so we 

thought that rather than list ways you 

can get involved in the week, we would 

highlight some of the ways that you can 

improve communication with children with 

learning disabilities in your setting instead. 

And even if you don’t, some of these tips 

and ideas will help you communicate 

better with other children who may have 

communication challenges as well. 

Communication is a two-way thing, so in 

order to communicate with others, it’s not 

just about talking, but also about listening, 

asking questions and really hearing what 

the other person is trying to communicate. 

This is the idea behind the “Listen. Ask. 

Learn.” Campaign. 

We all communicate from the moment 

we are born, regardless of the language 

our parents speak and non-verbal ways 

of communicating are our first port of call. 

Our tone of voice, body language, facial 

expression, volume, pace and gestures, 

all contribute to the effectiveness of our 

communication. As early years specialists, 

we understand this because we are often 

dealing with children who do not yet 

have, or who are developing their formal 

language skills. 

So, when communicating with children 

with a learning disability, try to: 

❤ Communicate face-to-face and on a 

one-to-one basis 

❤ Use accessible language 

❤ Avoid jargon or long words that might 

be hard to understand 

❤ Use a variety of different 

communication tools such as images, 

signs and gestures as well as speech 

❤ Follow the lead of the person you’re 

communicating with 

❤ Go at the pace of the other person 

❤ Check you have understood each 

other by repeating things back e.g. 

“You want a drink, is that right?” 

❤ Be prepared to be creative 

❤ Be patient and take your time 

❤ If using text, use a larger font and 

break things into smaller sentences 

or bullet points, but avoid too much 

colour 

❤ If communicating on the phone, slow 

your pace, speak clearly with easy-tounderstand 

language 

❤ Consider using other language 

systems such as Makaton, Signalong 

or Widgit 

Makaton 

Makaton signing is a language system 

that uses signs, symbols and speech, 

giving a person different options when 

communicating. It is unique in this respect 

and supports the development of essential 

communication skills such as attention 

and listening, comprehension, memory, 

recall and organisation of language and 

expression. Makaton can be used with 

a wide range of children including those 

with Down’s Syndrome, autism, cleft lip 

and palate or developmental language 

disorders. If you want to start using 

Makaton in your setting, visit the website 

where you will find lots of tips, ideas and 

training to help get you started. 

Signalong 

Signalong is a key word sign-supported 

communication system based on British 

sign language and is used in spoken word 

order. It uses speech, sign, body language, 

facial expression and voice tone to 

reference the link between sign and word. 

The charity provides training and resources 

to assist those with communication 

difficulties as well as help for people with 

English as an additional language (EAL). 

Talking Mats 

Talking Mats is a social enterprise aimed 

at improving the lives of people with 

communication difficulties by “increasing 

their capacity to communicate effectively 

about things that matter to them”. They 

produce innovative digital communication 

tools based on extensive research and 

designed by Speech and Language 

Therapists. 

Widgit 

Widgit produce software symbols to help 

people communicate with recognisable 

symbols where you can create your own 

resources such as visual timetables, 

communication books and EAL materials. 

It’s a subscription site but accounts start 

at £5 a month for an individual user. The 

also run a website called Symbol World 

that includes nursery rhymes, stories and 

a monthly magazine. 

If you have any questions about learning 

disabilities or need help or support, the 

Mencap helpline is available from 10am to 

3pm, Monday to Friday on 0808 808 1111, 

or you can email helpline@mencap.org.uk. 



Sheep cupcakes 

Celebrate World Oceans Day 

on 8th June with this fabulous Paper Plate Jellyfish craft! 

What do you need? 

• 150g butter, softened 

• 150g caster sugar 

You will need: 

• 3 large eggs 

• 2 tbsp milk 

• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 

• 150g black sugar 

paste 

• 15g white sugar paste 

• 100-120g white mini 

marshmallows 

• Paper plate 

• Tissue paper 

• Coloured string/wool 

• Googly eyes 

• Scissors 

• Hole punch 

• Glue 

• Black marker pen 

• 50g butter, softened 

for frosting 

Instructions: 

• 100g icing sugar for 

frosting 

• A few drops of vanilla 

extract for frosting 

• 12-hole muffin tin 

lined with cupcake 

cases 

You can find the full craft 

instructions on ‘Delicious 

Magazine’ here. 

Instructions 

1. Preheat the oven to 

190°C/170°C fan/gas 5. 

2. Put the butter, sugar, flour, 

eggs, milk and vanilla 

extract in a large mixing 

bowl and beat until light 

and fluffy. 

3. Divide the mixture among 

the cupcake cases in the 

tin and bake for 15-18 

minutes or until the cakes 

have risen. 

4. Remove from the oven and 

transfer to a wire rack to 

cool. 

5. To make the sheep faces, 

break off a small piece of 

black sugar paste (about 

10g), then knead to soften 

and shape into an oval 

and slightly flatten. 

6. Take 2 smaller pieces of 

black sugar paste and 

flatten into little ovals for 

the ears. Press these onto 

either side of the head. 

7. To make the eyes, take 2 

small balls of white sugar 

paste and press them 

onto the head, then make 

2 very tiny balls of black 

sugar paste and press 

onto the eyes. 

8. To make the butter-cream 

frosting, put the butter in a 

large mixing bowl and add 

the icing sugar, vanilla 

extract and 1 tbsp boiling 

water. Beat well until 

smooth, light and fluffy. 

9. Spread butter-cream over 

the top of a cake and stick 

on a head, then press 

white mini marshmallows 

around it, all over the top. 

1. Tear the tissue paper into small 

pieces. 

2. Draw a wavy line at the bottom of the 

paper plate and cut along that line. 

3. Glue the tissue paper pieces on to the 

paper plate. 

4. Use a hole punch to make several 

holes along the wavy bottom line of 

the paper plate. 

5. Cut wool strands of the same length. 

Thread them through the holes at 

the bottom of the paper plate and tie 

them up. 

6. Glue the googly eyes on to the paper 

plate and use a black marker to draw 

a mouth.

View from the door - designing 

learning environments from 

children’s viewpoints 

High-powered binoculars are amazing. 

They let you easily see the details of an 

object from a long distance. Most of us 

think of using a pair of binoculars for 

leisure such as bird or whale watching, 

but these visual instruments are also 

used as tools for safety and precaution 

(i.e., fire lookout or airplane control 

towers). Binoculars are interesting tools 

to use because they give you a different 

perspective of the world, especially 

when wanting to see something from a 

faraway vantage point. But, if you wanted 

to examine an object close up, such as 

a splinter in your finger or tiny insect, you 

would probably switch tools and use a 

magnifying glass. Each of these tools gives 

us a different perspective of the world. The 

same is true for how adults see the world 

around them compared to how young 

children view their environment. 

Young children have a unique viewpoint of 

their worlds, which is greatly determined 

by their height. They are built low to the 

ground so they have a magnifying glass 

or close-up perspective. Conversely, adults 

have a binocular view. Because they are 

taller, they have a wide expanse viewpoint 

and are able to see far away. Let’s take a 

closer look at the difference between an 

adult’s binocular and a child’s magnifying 

glass viewpoint of an early childhood 

environment. 

An adult’s binocular 

viewpoint 

The bottom image was taken from the 

adult’s height. Look closely. What do you 

see? Because of your height, you have 

a birds-eye view of the classroom. With 

binocular vision, you can see the various 

play areas around the playroom as well 

as the learning materials on the shelves. 

It is easy to see up and over to the back 

corners of the room—even to the door that 

opens to the outside world. Take special 

note of the book shelf that is located in the 

foreground of this image and marked by 

the white arrow. 

Now closely examine the top image, which 

was taken at the same spot as the adult’s 

only this time, the picture was taken from 

a child’s height. Notice the difference. What 

does a child see from the magnifying glass 

viewpoint? The child sees the books on the 

bookcase and the baskets on the shelf. 

From this limited vantage point, the child 

A child’s magnifying 

glass viewpoint 

cannot see any other play opportunities - 

just what is directly in front of him. 

Improving children’s 

viewpoints 

The classroom door is one of the most 

significant doors in a child’s life. The early 

childhood classroom entryway is where 

the notion of education and learning 

begins. Attitudes and ideas about school 

are formed by these first experiences 

children have away from their home 

environment. The classroom entryway 

is where motivation, encouragement, 

excitement, curiosity, friendships, and 

positive relationships begin. Because the 

classroom door plays such an important 

role in not only children’s attitudes but the 

process of transitioning from their outside 

world to your world, it is important to 

critically examine their view from the door. 

How can this be done? 

Begin by standing in the middle of the 

entryway door. Take an adult’s widelens 

binocular view. Look straight ahead. 

Look to your left and then to your right. 

Take note of what you see. Now, crouch 

down to the height of the children in your 

classroom and assume a magnifying 

viewpoint. Repeat the process of looking 

straight ahead, to the left and then to 

the right. What are the differences in a 

binocular view compared to a magnifying 

view? Most likely, your viewpoint as a child 

is vastly different than an adult. However, 

the most important question in this 

process is: What exactly do you see at the 

child’s height? 

If you see custodial objects such as 

garbage cans, cubbies, cots, changing 

tables, or brooms and dustpans, it’s 

time to change the view. If you see 

uninteresting objects such as table legs, 

chair legs, and more table legs, it’s time to 

improve children’s view. 

Improving children’s view 

with a curiosity box 

The bottom line is that children need 

a reason to want to come into the 

classroom. When teachers design and 

create enticing views from the entryway 

door, children are eager to enter and 

cross the classroom threshold. One idea 

for improving children’s views is to use a 

curiosity box. 

Children love boxes and they especially 

enjoy lifting lids to find out what is 

beneath. A curiosity box is an invitation 

to come in, open the box, discover its 

Novel Objects for Curiosity Box 

Keys on key ring 

Screw nuts and bolts 

Unique buttons and elastic thread 

Moss on twig and magnifying glasses 

Kaleidoscope 

River rocks and small pieces of 

sandpaper 

contents, and actively engage with what’s 

inside. The goal of the curiosity box is to 

catch children’s attention and interest 

when entering the room. 

Find interesting objects of beauty and 

wonder and place them inside a box. 

A simple cardboard box with flaps for 

closing is just clamouring to be opened. 

The curiosity box doesn’t have to be an 

ordinary cardboard box. It can be a bit 

more intriguing and doesn’t even have 

to be in the shape of a box. It can be a 

unique lidded basket or container. 

The key to curiosity boxes (or baskets) 

is novelty. Objects that are novel to the 

children tend to consistently produce an 

increased interest with young children. 

The experience of holding and feeling a 

door handle, for example is a good lesson 

in novelty. Although most pre-school 

children have touched (and actually used) 

a door handle, few have experienced the 

handle without the actual door attached 

to it. Placing a doorknob or handle in 

the curiosity box for children to explore 

provides them with the opportunity to 

experience something novel. 

Conclusion 

Children are naturally curious and always 

enjoy surprises. Improve children’s view 

from the door by placing a curiosity 

box near the entryway to help children 

easily and effortlessly transition into the 

classroom. 

Seashells with holes & yarn for threading 

Miniature flashlight and pieces of sea 

glass 

Fresh flowers and mortar/pestle for 

pulverizing 

Unique silverware pieces & mirrors 

Pieces of fabric & ribbons 

Small clock with cord cut off 

Sandra Duncan 

Sandra works to assure the miracle 

and magic of childhood through indoor 

and outdoor play space environments 

that are intentionally designed to 

connect young children to their early 

learning environments, communities, 

and neighbourhoods. Dr. Duncan is an 

international consultant, author of seven 

books focused on the environmental 

design of early childhood places, 

designer of two furniture collections 

called Sense of Place and Sense of 

Place for Wee Ones, and Adjunct 

Professor at Nova Southeastern 

University. Sandra has designed and 

taught university courses on built early 

learning environments, collaborating 

with architects, interior designers, 

and educators to create extraordinary 

places and possibilities for children and 

students of all ages. Books and articles 

include: 

1. Inspiring Spaces for Young Children 

2. Rating Observation Scale for 

Inspiring Spaces 

3. Rethinking the Classroom 

Landscape: Creating Environments 

that Connect Young Children, 

Families, and Communities 

4. Through A Child’s Eyes: How 

Classroom Design Inspires Learning 

and Wonder 

5. Bringing the Outside In: Ideas for 

Creating Nature-Based Classroom 

Experiences for Young Children 

6. The Honeycomb Hypothesis: How 

Infants, Toddlers, and Two Year Olds 

Learn Through Nature Play (Available 

Spring, 2022) 

7. Designing Inspiring Environments 

for Infants, Toddlers, and Two Year 

Olds: Lessons from Nature (Available 

2023) 



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Congratulations 

to all our Parenta learners! 

Congratulations to all our Parenta learners who completed their apprenticeship 

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! 

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

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

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

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

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

Charlotte 

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Couldn’t live without you!” 

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June 2022 Parenta magazine

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