May 2023 Parenta magazine

Issue 102
MAY 2023
FREE
Industry
Experts
Top tips for the terrific
twos - Tip nine: “No!”
7 daily affirmations to
create a fulfilled life
Blooming music! Songs
about flowers in the
early years
+ lots more
EYFS activities
inside!
This month…
Expressive
Arts and
Design
The importance of the first
1000 days
Just how critical is formative nutrition in the early years?
It’s not just the amount of food - but very much about the food!
MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH • SUN AWARENESS • ALLERGY AWARENESS

10
28
14 18
Hello
Welcome to our family
Welcome to the May issue of Parenta magazine!
It’s May at last! As we near the end of what feels for some, like an extremely long winter, we can now start to enjoy the
longer days, the rise in temperatures (hopefully!) and the colourful flowers and trees as they blossom and bloom. This is such
a wonderful time of year for so many, although those who suffer from allergies will tell you this is not the best time of year at
all and for young children, it can be particularly difficult. Turn to page 32 for some insightful advice and guidance on allergies
- and don’t forget to download our free allergy placements for your setting!
We welcome new guest author, health and nutrition specialist Louise Mercieca – she helps us discover “the importance of the
first 1000 days”. It’s a packed edition as usual, with articles from Jo Grace, Stacey Kelly, Frances Turnbull, Kathryn Peckham
and Gina Bale – and everything you read in the magazine is written to help 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 copy at
www.parenta.com/magazine.
Allan
Regulars
8 Write for us
34 EYFS Activities: Expressive Arts and Design
News
4 Childcare News
6 Small Stories
39 Congratulations to our Parenta Learners
Advice
24
14 Sun Awareness Week: protecting children in our
UK climate
20 Mental Health Awareness Week
24 Preparing for an Ofsted visit
28 New and newly-qualified managers - how can we
support them?
32 Allergy Awareness
Industry Experts
10 Top tips for the terrific twos - Tip nine: “no!”
12 The importance of the first 1000 days
18 7 daily affirmations to create a fulfilled life
22 Blooming music! Songs about flowers in the
early years
26 How to nurture the deepest levels of learning
and understanding
36 Creative role play and relationships
36
2 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 3

Government should fund minimum
levels of childcare: survey results
More than 80% of people believe that
the Government should fund minimum
levels of early years provision.
The Fairness Foundation survey, which
received 2,052 responses, asked
whether respondents, in principle,
think it is the role of the Government
to provide the funding to ensure that
everyone can access a minimum level
of provision in seven areas: social care,
early years education and care, public
transport, social or rented housing
provision, lifelong learning, a minimum
income and income protection.
When asked to prioritise the seven
areas, assuming that only half of the
necessary funding to support all seven
was available, the highest-ranked
areas were social care and early years.
84% of those that took part in the
survey agreed the Government should,
in principle, fund minimum levels of
provision for early years.
Will Snell, Chief Executive of the
Fairness Foundation, said: ‘We found
very high levels of support for an
interventionist state that invests more
in its citizens so that they in turn can
contribute more to our society and
economy. This support is held across
people of different generations,
regions, genders, ethnicities, and
levels of income, with surprisingly
small differences between supporters
of the main political parties.
Childcare news
and views
“The polling showed that belief in a
small state is now a minority sport in
the UK. People know that the social
contract - the unwritten expectation
that we contribute to society, and
society will support us in return - is
under severe strain in the UK. It’s no
longer safe to expect that a hard day’s
work will be rewarded with a decent
wage and being able to afford basic
necessities such as housing, food
and energy. And the outlook is even
worse if you can’t work and depend on
benefits.
In principle, people want Government
to invest and regulate so that everyone
can access minimum levels of provision
in a range of areas, from the early
years to social care, from social or
rented housing to public transport. We
need to reimagine the social contract
for the 21st century.”
Read the full story, on the Nursery
World website, here.
Food insecurity on the increase for
those with preschool children
More than a quarter of households
that include children under fouryears-old
experienced food insecurity
in January 2023, according to new
findings from the Food Foundation. This
compares to just 15% of households
without children.
Government statistics also show that
uptake of its joint venture with the
NHS, Healthy Start scheme is just 64%
- lower than its current target of 75%.
This is also well behind an equivalent
scheme in Scotland, called Best Start
Foods, which had 88% uptake in 2021-
22.
The Food Foundation has called on
the Government to invest £5 million
in marketing spend to increase
awareness of the scheme and improve
uptake. It has also called for eligibility
for the scheme to be extended to
include all families on Universal Credit.
Anna Taylor, Executive Director of The
Food Foundation, said: “Debilitating
food price rises are making it incredibly
challenging for low-income young
families to afford a healthy diet. This
is extremely concerning given how
important good nutrition is for young
children’s growth and development.
“Healthy Start is a highly-targeted
scheme that should be helping
families most in need, but pitifully
low uptake levels mean there are
families all over the country who
are missing out on this statutory
scheme. Much more needs to be
done by Government to make sure
uptake improves – implementing
the recommendations set out in the
National Food Strategy is a good place
to start.”
Commenting, Neil Leitch, CEO of
the Alliance, said: “It is extremely
concerning that more than a quarter
of households with children under the
age of four are facing food insecurity.
“Every child, regardless of their
circumstances, should be able to
access affordable, healthy meals – and
yet, we know that the cost-of-living
crisis is heaping unbearable pressure
on families and that, as a result, more
and more young children are coming
into early years settings hungry.
“While providers are doing all they can
to provide well-balanced, affordable
meals and snacks, rising costs are
making this a near-impossible task.
We urge the Government, therefore, to
commit to providing specific funding for
the delivery of healthy, nutritious food in
early years settings as well as ensuring
that early years funding actually covers
the cost of delivering quality care and
education more broadly.
It is often argued that no child should
be expected to attend school hungry
and yet, as this research shows,
children in the early years are more
likely to experience food insecurity
than their older peers. As such, if the
Government is serious about tackling
food insecurity among children, funding
for healthy meals in early years settings
must be made an urgent priority.”
Early years sector “forgotten” in
new inspection changes
Amanda Spielman, Ofsted’s chief
inspector, has been accused of
“forgetting the early years sector” when
she failed to specifically mention it in
her statement promising changes to
the inspection process. This statement
was brought about following the
debate around the purpose and
effectiveness of the inspectorate after
headteacher, Ruth Perry, took her own
life when her school was downgraded
towards the end of last year.
The statement mentions changes
to the complaints process, a focus
on safeguarding and reiterates
that someone else can sit in on
a judgement decision with a
headteacher/teacher during an
inspection, but early years was not
specifically mentioned.
With reference to the complaints
process, NDNA says the appeals
process for early years inspections
isn’t fit for purpose. Purnima Tanuku
OBE, Chief Executive of National Day
Nurseries Association (NDNA) said:
“We have been saying that Ofsted’s
complaint process is not fit for purpose
and in need of review for a number
of years. Too often, providers who
want to challenge factual inaccuracies
or complain about the conduct of
inspectors find the process is too long
or do not trust they will get a thorough
or fair hearing.
Inspection and regulation is a vital
activity to ensure the highest quality
of provision is maintained and that
children’s well-being and safety is
maintained. However, Ofsted as
the regulator, has to be constructive
and supportive to everyone to be
able to perform that role. A fair and
transparent complaints process is a
vital part of this and this must come out
of this review process.”
The full story, as reported by Nursery
World can be read here.
4 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 5

A round-up of some news stories that
have caught our eye over the month
Source and image credits to:
EY Alliance, Early Years Educator, Nursery World,
The Guardian., BBC Early Years News,
Children & Young People Now.
New resource to support mental
health in the early years
UNICEF UK and the University of
Cambridge have launched a new
resource to support the mental health of
babies and young children.
Parents in UK face tougher
struggle to afford childcare than
parents abroad – survey
1/4 of UK parents have been forced to
leave their job due to the ‘rocketing cost
of childcare’, according to a worldwide
survey by ‘Theirworld’.
Happy Days Nurseries & Pre-
Schools grows to 20 settings
Happy Days Nurseries & Pre-Schools is
expanding with the opening of two new
purpose-built sites this year.
Clinically vulnerable children
under five to be offered COVID-19
vaccine
The Joint Committee on Vaccination &
Immunisation (JCVI) has advised that
clinically vulnerable children should be
offered a COVID-19 vaccine.
Fears children are missing out on
Healthy Start scheme
The Food Foundation is calling for the
Government to improve uptake of the
Healthy Start scheme, which has fallen
short of the NHS target set for March
2023.
Fears nursery recruitment
incentives are fuelling ‘job
hopping’
Nurseries are reportedly seeing an
increase in practitioners ‘job hopping’
fuelled by new-starter incentives amid
the continuing recruitment crisis.
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NDNA signs up to commercial
partnership with nursery
resources supplier Hope
The National Day Nurseries Association
has linked up with educational resources
supplier Hope, which is part of Findel.
Carly Budd: Strategies for
increasing the amount of
tummy time in your setting
The specialist paediatric occupational
therapist says that tummy time enables
us to interact with babies in a
different way
Parents in Duns take over
nursery after closure
announced
Parents in a Borders town are now
running the local nursery after managers
announced it was to close.
Liverpool nursery workers who
lost jobs after striking call for
solidarity in sector
A group of early years workers who lost
their jobs without warning days after a
one-day strike have called on others in
the sector to “stand up and be counted”.
Childcare reforms to be
scrutinised by experts
Experts will discuss with MPs the
effectiveness of childcare reforms
announced as part of the most recent
budget, including a controversial change
to staff:child ratios.
6 May 2023 | parenta.com parenta.com | May 2023 7

Write for us!
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Congratulations
to our guest author competition winner, Joanna Grace!
Congratulations to Joanna Grace, our guest
author of the month! Her article, “Top tips for the
terrific twos – Tip seven: overwhelm” explores the
meltdowns, the tantrums and the overwhelmed
small person letting it all out at full volume! Well
done, Joanna!
A massive thank you to all of our guest authors for
writing for us. You can find all of the past articles
from our guest authors on our website:
www.parenta.com/parentablog/guest-authors
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8 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 9

Top tips for the terrific twos -
Tip nine: “No!”
My second son recently turned two. Friends have commented that my first son skipped the terrible twos. They presume my professional
skill set will get us through them again. I don’t fancy my chances. This series of articles presents ten tips for negotiating this time with
small ones. Know that with every strike of the keys, I remind myself that advice is easy to give and hard to follow. I will be attempting to
practice what I preach this coming year: wish me luck!
Joanna Grace
Joanna Grace is an international Sensory
Engagement and Inclusion Specialist,
trainer, author, TEDx speaker and founder
of The Sensory Projects.
‘No’ is the favourite word of many a twoyear-old.
My own two-year-old must utter
it at least 60 times a day. He is also very
interested in counting, “Ready? 1…2….5!”
He’ll shout to his brother. Or counting the
stairs “1…2…4…6..7….. …..10!” He gets
his numbers muddled and he also gets
his use of the word ‘no’ muddled. But the
people around him react very differently
to the two. The numbers muddle usually
generates smiles, his brother especially
finds it funny. But when he uses no” when
he actually means “yes” he is more likely
to get a retort, to get sour looks.
At the moment he is saying “no” in
response to questions. Not because he
doesn’t want to do things. Not because he
“wants his own way,” but just because he
has understood that when someone asks
you something you are supposed to reply
and “no” is the reply that springs to his
mind first, he knows “yes” too but doesn’t
tend to think of this one first. I wonder
if that’s because saying “yes” is a less
memorable event in his mind. Saying “no”
certainly gets a bigger response.
I am used to working with people who
do not use language, so I am used to
listening to communication across a bigger
spectrum. I find I get less annoyed by his
“no”s than other people around him and
I think this is the difference. I’ve said “Let’s
go and get lunch” he has said “no” but has
begun walking towards the kitchen, so I
read it as a “yes”.
Sometimes “no” is a holding pattern whilst
he thinks. In his life, things happen to him
a lot. He has picked up from things he is
doing. Activities he is busy with get packed
away. Adults make demands of him all
the time and make sudden changes to his
world (he doesn’t live with a particularly
unreasonable set of adults, we are doing
things like changing his nappy, or getting
his brother to school). In the word “no” he
has found, potentially, a way to fend us off,
to pause us before we interrupt what he is
doing.
I want his “no”s to work. Just like I want
his “stop”s to work. His brother has been
briefed that in any tickle fight if he says
“stop” it is hands off immediately. It is a
rule we all follow. These are, after all, his
words for consent. I want him to know
these words are powerful, these words
work, so that if ever – God forbid – there
were a time when he was with an adult
and his “no” or “stop” didn’t work, he
would know it was wrong and shout all
the louder. I do not want him to be used to
his voice being ignored.
But…I also do not want to get myself into
the stand-off, where I’m saying “yes” and
he’s saying “no”. Prevention is always
better than cure, and the way to prevent
these stand-offs is to use a mixture of
Align-Attune-Invite (article 2) and directed
agency. By this I mean you give a direction,
and they get to use their agency in
receiving the direction. And all of that is
just a fancy way of saying give them a
choice.
We are outside playing football, it is time
to go in and get a drink. I’m aligned,
because I’m in the game of football, I am
attuned, I pick a lull in the match to create
my invitation, and my invitation is going to
involve a choice that gives him agency, so:
“I’m thirsty. I wonder what drinks we have
inside. Would you like water, or would you
like milk?”
“Milk!”
“Let’s go and get some milk”.
Another one that works particularly well
on our two-year-old is a request for his
great knowledge. He has recently figured
out where things are about the house, and
he is so pleased with his knowing that he
hasn’t realised we all know it too. So,
we are playing Lego in the living room but
it is time to get dressed for bed. This time
my invitation might be: “We need pyjamas,
where are the pyjamas?” (With the “where”
phrased as if I am a baffled adult, which
I frequently am so this takes little acting,
rather than a “where” that would form part
of a test”). This is followed by the choice
“Which pyjamas would you like to wear?”
Be warned though, these do not work if
they are your second strategy. If you’ve
said: “It’s time to get our pyjamas on now”
and been told “no”, cracking out: “Which
pyjamas would you like?” isn’t going to
work. You have to be aligned and attuned
and then send that invite out with the
choice very carefully.
I’ve begun to believe it is more likely to
work if I do not move first, but I couldn’t
yet tell you whether this is true or just
superstition on my part. But, for example,
with the leaving the football game to get
milk, I’ll wait for him to be the first person
to take a step towards the kitchen, then I
follow behind. I am happy for him to feel
in control of his life, it is his life after all. For
now, I do a little directing from behind the
scenes but in the blink of an eye he will
be out there without me and I want him
to be confident making in his choices and
setting his boundaries.
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”, “Sharing Sensory
Stories and Conversations with People with
Dementia” and “The Subtle Spectrum”.
Plus three inclusive sensory story children’s
books: “Spike and Mole”, “Voyage to
Arghan” and “Ernest and I” which all sell
globally 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 is a big fan of social media and is
always happy to connect with people via
Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Website:
thesensoryprojects.co.uk
10 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 11

The importance of the
first 1000 days
There’s significant research to indicate that
the first 1000 days (conception to age 2) is
a critically-important phase, indeed many
claim that this time period is where the
foundations of a child’s development lie.
This phase is the perfect chance to build a
healthier future. There are many influences
at this time that impact the child’s future
health but one of utmost importance and
close to my heart, is that of formative
nutrition. Just how important is food during
those 1000 days? It’s not just the amount of
food but very much about the type of food.
We often refer to ‘building blocks’ in
nutrition and we can certainly use that
term in relation to the first 1000 days, good
nutrition during this time is the foundation
for early cognitive abilities, motor skills and
emotional development. This is all largely
due to the incredibly impressive rapid
growth and development of the human
brain!
Brain development
During pregnancy, the brain grows at an
astonishing speed! From around the fifth
week of pregnancy, neurons begin to form
and multiply – these grow at a staggering
250,000 neurons per minute by the middle
of the second trimester. Consider the
brain an extremely complicated central
computer that’s growing and developing
at a truly astonishing pace!
A lot of the energy going to build the
baby’s brain needs to come from fats, in
fact, 40% of our brains are made up of
EFAs (Essential Fatty Acids). The mother
needs to ensure that she has enough for
her and the baby as the baby will ‘pinch’
what it needs – this can often leave mum
feeling depleted or suffering from ‘baby
brain’.
Once the child is born and then growing
and developing at a rapid pace, EFA
deficiencies can present in the day-to-day
functioning of a child, such as how well
can they grasp new things. Consider a
child has to learn everything, absolutely
everything! They need their frontal
lobe to be rich in EFAs particularly DHA
(docosahexaenoic acid) to enable them to
be able to problem solve, concentrate and
focus.
“When a baby’s development falls behind
the norm during the first year of life for
instance, it is much more likely that they
will fall even further behind in subsequent
years than catch up with those who have
had a better start.”
Barnardo’s quote from the House of
Commons Health and Social Care
Committee – First 1000 days of life
13th report of session 2017-19
There are many elements to nutrition for
brain development – Fats such as the EFAs
(arachidonic acid (AA), docosahexaenoic
acid (DHA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA),
and dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA)
are key as is alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) or
omega-3 and phosphollipids) are key as
is ALA (alpha-linolenic acid) or omega-3
and phospholipids. As with many other
elements of nutrition, it is often the
vitamins and minerals present or lacking
in the diet that tell the bigger picture. Many
nutrients are involved in maintaining and
developing our brain development, these
include zinc, Iodine, vitamin C, B vitamins,
vitamin D and magnesium.
Top brain foods

Sun Awareness Week:
protecting children in
Sun Awareness Week is an annual event
that takes place in the UK every May,
this year from 1st to 7th. Its aim is to
improve understanding of the dangers
of overexposure to the sun and the
importance of sun safety.
During the week, various organisations,
including the British Association of
Dermatologists and the Met Office, work
together to educate the public about the
risks of skin cancer and other sun-related
health issues.
This year’s focus is on the need for sun
protection in the UK climate, aiming
to tackle misconceptions that sun
protection is rarely needed in the UK.
This theme is particularly significant in
the early years, as young children are
especially vulnerable to the harmful effects
of the sun and it’s never too early to start
making them aware of such an important
topic.
Here are some key points to think about –
most will seem obvious, but it could be a
good idea to have these written down for
all to see as a reminder:

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7 daily affirmations to
create a fulfilled life
Affirmations are statements or phrases that
we repeat frequently to ourselves to create
a more positive mindset, and therefore a
more fulfilled life. Our mind is a powerful
tool that is programmed by repetition. The
words that are said to us (by ourselves
or others) are powerful and can become
the inner voice and beliefs that then guide
our actions and decisions. By saying
daily affirmations, we can encourage our
thoughts to be more positive and therefore
more conducive to successful outcomes.
What we believe becomes our own truth.
As Theodore Roosevelt once said, “Believe
you can and you’re halfway there”. It is,
therefore, crucial that we teach children
to become the master of their own minds
and positive affirmations are a great tool to
get them into the habit of speaking kindly
to themselves. How many of us say things
to ourselves that we wouldn’t dream of
saying to someone else? Words hurt, even
when they are in our own heads. Positive
affirmations force us to extend the same
kindness and positivity to ourselves as
we do to others and remind us of our
brilliance.
Here are 7 affirmations that I believe will
help children (and adults) to have selfbelief
and step into being their best and
most authentic selves:
1
I am safe and loved
Many of us worry about all sorts of
different things. We anticipate what is
going to happen in the future, and this
can lead to negative feelings. Most of
what we worry about never happens but
knowing this does not stop our brains from
overthinking and sometimes leading us
down a negative path. When you’re feeling
like this, the embrace of someone we love
can make all the difference because it
makes us feel safe and loved. These two
emotions are powerful and can make all
the difference to how we feel. By repeating
this affirmation every day, we can train
our brain to exist in this state, which will
therefore help us to be calmer and more
settled.
2
I am perfectly imperfect
In the words of Winston Churchill:
“Perfectionism is the enemy of progress”.
Mistakes are a part of learning something
new and when they are used as a tool for
growth, they are imperative to progress.
Our brilliance lives outside of our comfort
zone and to reach it, we must do things
we’ve never done, which puts us at risk
of failure. Nobody is perfect and we are
all learning as we go. By repeating this
affirmation, we give ourselves permission
to be imperfect, which opens the door to
life’s lessons and welcomes failure as a
tool for growth.
3
I talk about my feelings
Self-regulation and self-awareness are
so important in life because they give us
the ability to manage our own behaviour
and reactions. Talking about our feelings
allows us to identify our emotions and
therefore gives us more opportunity to
regulate them. It also gives us an outlet
and prevents things from getting bottled
up. By saying this affirmation, we remind
ourselves to be more open with our
thoughts, feelings and emotions, which
will, in turn, help us to process them.
4
I ask for help when I need it
Suffering in silence and feeling that we
must do everything on our own can be
damaging to our mental health. We
all have different life experiences and
skills therefore other people in our lives
will often be able to shine a different
perspective on things that are causing us
difficulty. By asking for help, it often dilutes
our problems and leads to a quicker
solution. Saying this affirmation will remind
children that they have a support network
and make them feel more secure.
5
I am good enough
We all shine in our own way and it’s
important to focus on what we can do,
rather than what we can’t. In today’s social
media driven society, we live in a world
where everyone compares themselves
and strives for a ‘filtered’ and unrealistic
version of perfection. By believing we are
good enough just as we are, we can play
to our strengths and keep our self-worth
intact. This affirmation will ground children
and encourage them to identify and value
their strengths and attributes.
6
I keep trying and learn
from mistakes
In the words of Jim Watkins: “A river cuts
through rock, not because of its power,
but because of its persistence.” Talent
or skill is nothing without the ability to
persist. The road to success will be full of
harsh lessons and blocks, so our ability to
keep going and not quit will be the key to
reaching our potential. Seeing mistakes as
an opportunity to learn and grow will keep
our self-esteem intact at challenging times
and will therefore give us the resilience
we need to jump the hurdles presented
on our journey to success. By saying
this affirmation, children will alter their
perception of failure and start using it as a
springboard to propel themselves forward
in life.
7
Politeness, patience,
honesty, positivity,
and kindness are my
superpowers
These five attributes are so simple, yet
they hold more power than we could
ever imagine. If we see these as our
superpowers and use them daily, we will
have a happier and smoother road in life.
This affirmation teaches children that we
are all silent superheroes donning powers
that are disguised as simple and positive
attributes.
These seven affirmations repeated daily
with children will instil messages that can
subconsciously alter their views of the
world. As Henry Ford once said, “Whether
you think you can or think you can’t, you’re
right”. The narrative that we create for
ourselves, and our lives will become our
truth, therefore it is important that we
take control and create a positive internal
dialogue that is conducive to the life we
want to live. Saying daily affirmations with
children won’t magically create a perfect
life for them. However, it will remind them
of their brilliance, get them into the habit
of positive self-talk and will instil beliefs
that will support them on their journey to
success.
(These are also 7/12 of the messages
in the Early Years Story Box rhyming
storybooks that are designed to nurture
well-being and happiness in children).
Stacey Kelly
Stacey Kelly is a former French and
Spanish teacher, a parent to 2 beautiful
babies and the founder of Early Years
Story Box. After becoming a mum, Stacey
left her teaching career and started
writing and illustrating storybooks to help
support her children through different
transitional stages like leaving nursery
and starting school. Seeing the positive
impact of her books on her children’s
emotional well-being led to Early Years
Story Box being born. Stacey has now
created 35 storybooks, all inspired by her
own children, to help teach different life
lessons and to prepare children for their
next steps. She has an exclusive collection
for childcare settings that are gifted on
special occasions like first/last days,
birthdays, Christmas and/or Easter and
has recently launched a new collection
for parents too. Her mission is to support
as many children as she can through
storytime and to give childcare settings an
affordable and special gifting solution that
truly makes a difference.
Email: stacey@earlyyearsstorybox.com or
Telephone: 07765785595
Website: www.earlyyearsstorybox.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
earlyyearsstorybox
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/
eystorybox
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/
earlyyearsstorybox
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/
stacey-kelly-a84534b2/
18 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 19

Mental Health
Awareness Week
Everyone knows that health is important,
because without good health, our lives
can be compromised, but our mental
health is equally as important, because
our mental health can have a huge impact
on our physical health. However, many
of us dismiss our mental health, putting
it on the backburner whilst we try to
battle through life, without realising the
true problems that this can lead to later
on. Better awareness of mental health
is needed so that we can all start taking
small and simple steps early on to improve
our own, and other’s mental health, and to
address problems before they become too
challenging.
In the US, Mental Health Awareness Month
runs each year during May, and in the UK,
Mental Health Awareness Week runs in
the same month. In 2023, the UK week
runs from 15th to 21st May, focusing on
the theme of ‘anxiety’. This year’s theme
has been chosen because anxiety is a
normal emotion that we all feel from time
to time. However, anxiety is also one of
the most common mental health problems
and a quarter of adults report that anxiety
impacts negatively on their life by stopping
them doing things they want to do some
of the time.
The anxiety ‘time bomb’
A survey of 3000 adults aged 18 and
over, conducted in November 2022 by the
Mental Health Foundation found that the
UK population is experiencing widespread
levels of “stress, anxiety and hopelessness
in response to financial concerns”.
The data reported that 29% of adults
experienced stress, 34% experienced
anxiety and 10% said they felt hopeless
because of financial worries during
the previous month. And the situation
does not look like it’s improving anytime
soon. In fact, the Foundation warned
the Government of a significant rise in
mental health problems in future months
if adequate support was not forthcoming.
Anxiety can lead to people being unable
to face everyday situations. They may fear
going out, or crowded places, become
intolerant of too much noise or develop
phobias, and if not tackled early, chronic
anxiety can lead to more serious or longlasting
effects.
Effects of anxiety on the
body

Blooming music! Songs
about flowers in the
early years
Spring is a lovely time to celebrate new
life in nature! It is no wonder that so many
religions and cultures have traditions that
honour this natural display of hope and
promise in the world. We end this article
with 5 children’s songs about flowers, with
links to YouTube, as well as suggestions
of games to play. But let’s start by looking
at the research on nature-based early
learning, and how settings can develop
this more.
Researchers in Scotland (Zucca et al.,
2023) looked at different countries’
approaches at outdoor learning. From
Norway to USA and Australia, settings
were considered and analysed as a
complex system with multiple factors. They
found that when early years educators
consider using outdoor learnings spaces,
these factors impacted its success:
1. Affordability of outdoor ELC
2. Children’s play and learning
experiences outdoors
3. Collaborating to agreed vision
4. Educator/child relationship
5. Formal capacity building and release
6. Informal capacity building and release
7. Parental choice
8. Parental ‘outdoorsiness’
9. Practice of nature-based ELC 1
10. Practice of nature-based ELC 2
11. Risks and benefits; and
12. Weather
From there, researchers identified the
following 6 factors that, with the right
investment, could improve nature-based
outdoor play and learning:
1. Use of outdoor space: Thinking
about or finding examples of best
practice on practical items like the
inclusion of trees (upright and fallen),
shrubbery, flowers, grasses, mixed
terrain, water availability, and risk
exposure.
2. Culture of being outdoors: Specific
and/or increased training and
practical experience to improve staff
confidence in developing a culture
focused on outdoor play.
3. ELC culture of outdoor play:
Improving or identifying high quality
educational training, whilst allowing
for the unpredictability of weather.
4. Perceived child safety and
enjoyment: Appropriate and
accessible outdoor equipment should
be made available as items that keep
children safe and also allowing for
sufficient exposure to risk.
5. Educator confidence: Formal
recognition of training would allow
educators to be more confident in
delivery, developing knowledge
and motivation through training
opportunities, immersion, and
feedback on practice.
6. Educator agency: Building educator
confidence through knowledge and
motivation develops educator agency,
which can be promoted through
cascading learning to others.
With these ideas in mind, here are a few
musical games about flowers that would
be lovely to sing and play outdoors:
Ring a ring a roses
Ring a ring a roses
A pocket full of posies
A-tish-oo, a-tish-oo
We all fall down
Fishes in the water
Fishes in the sea
We all jump up with a
One-two-three
This old traditional has children holding
hands in a circle and walking together,
pretending to sneeze at the lines, “a-tishoo”,
and then falling down. The additional
“fishes in the water” has become a
popular addition to get children back up
and playing the game all over again!
All around the buttercup
All around the buttercup
One, two, three
If you want an awesome friend
Just choose me
This circle song/game can be played in
two ways. The first is the traditional “catch”
game, where children sit in a circle, the
one who is “on” or “it” walks around as the
children sing, and then taps someone on
the last line for a chase.
The other is for slightly older children, with
the children divided into two groups. One
group forms an outer circle and the other
forms the inner circle – and both walk
in opposite directions. Both groups stop
walking on the last line, to face the person
in the opposite circle, so that all have
partners.
Mary, Mary
Mary, Mary quite contrary
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells and cockle shells
And pretty maids all in a row
This little tune has a dark background
based on Mary Tudor, or Bloody Mary,
https://www.rhymes.org.uk/mary_mary_
quite_contrary.htm, but it could be used
for instrument play. The regular beat
could be used for instruments with long
sounds by metal or string instruments like
triangles, cymbals, bells or ukuleles. The
quicker rhythm could be matched by short
sounds by wood or “skin” instruments like
drums, or tapping instruments like claves,
castanets or egg shakers.
Here we go round the
mulberry bush
Here we go round the mulberry bush
The mulberry bush, the mulberry bush
Here we go round the mulberry bush
So early in the morning
This is the way we comb our hair
Comb our hair, comb our hair
This is the way we comb our hair
So early in the morning
This lovely traditional circle song reinforces
self care routines. Children hold hands
and walk in a circle for the first verse and
could stop or change direction for the
action verses. This is a great opportunity
to give all children a turn at contributing to
the song by thinking of something to add:
brush teeth, wash face, put on shoes etc.
Daisy, Daisy
Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do
I’m half crazy, all for the love of you
It won’t be a stylish marriage
I can’t afford a carriage
But you’ll look sweet upon the seat
Of a bicycle made for two
This old song makes a lovely lullaby for
a wind-down routine. With larger adultto-child
ratios, little ones could take turns
being rocked in a banket hammock held
by the adults. With larger children, two
children may like to rock a toy in a blanket
hammock, or children may rock toys or
dolls in their arms individually.
Hoping that these musical flower
suggestions will inspire more outdoor play
in your setting!
References
Zucca, C., McCrorie, P., Johnstone, A.,
Chambers, S., Chng, N. R., Traynor, O.,
& Martin, A. (2023). “Outdoor naturebased
play in early learning and childcare
centres: Identifying the determinants
of implementation using causal loop
diagrams and social network analysis.”
Health & Place, 79, 102995. https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2022.102955
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 well-being 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
22 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 23

Ofsted visits are part of a necessary
inspection programme for all nurseries,
schools and childminders in England.
Other parts of the UK are inspected as
well, but by other inspection bodies.
Nursery managers and school leaders
often dread the visits however, with proper
planning, these can be opportunities to
show off just how good your early years
provision is.
The key here is planning and preparation.
Most Ofsted visits are conducted with a
minimum of 24 hours’ notice, although
there are times when Ofsted can legally
turn up for an emergency inspection
if they have received information that
suggests that the setting is either not safe
for children, or is not fulfilling its legal and
statutory duties.
The “Early years inspection handbook for
Ofsted-registered provision” sets out how
Ofsted will inspect Ofsted-registered early
years providers and as such, is the first
port of call for all nurseries in England who
want to prepare well for their Ofsted visit.
In addition, settings should look at and
be familiar with the following which are
particularly relevant to safeguarding:
⚙ “Inspecting safeguarding in early
years, education and skills settings’”
⚙ ‘Working together to safeguard
children’
Overview of the visit
In line with the Education Inspection
Framework, His Majesty’s Inspectors
(HMIs) are tasked with making judgements
about the following areas of a provision:
⚙ Overall effectiveness – this is a
combination of the following 4 areas:
Preparing for
an
Ofsted visit
to be made, write a development plan so
that you can evidence your leadership and
planned actions to Ofsted.
Prepare relevant
documents to
demonstrate your
leadership and
management
o
o
o
o
The quality of education
Behaviour and attitudes
Personal development
Leadership and management
Whilst there is some ongoing debate over
the merits of the judgements, currently
these areas can be judged as being:
⚙ Outstanding
⚙ Good
⚙ Requires improvement
⚙ Inadequate
To best prepare for an Ofsted visit,
consider the following areas:
Check your website
The inspector will need to prepare for their
visit by gaining a broad overview of the
setting, its context and history and the first
stop for inspectors is usually the setting’s
website. It is crucial that this is up-to-date
and displays the legal and minimum
information needed. Other evidence
is gathered through observations and
discussions on the day with members of
staff, parents and children.
Use the inspection
handbook and prepare
your staff
Audit your setting using the “Early Years
Inspection Handbook” and make sure that
your staff understand how this is used
before, during and after a visit. Go through
the 4 areas of assessment and see how
your setting measures up. If changes need
During a visit, you will need to show
the inspector various documents and
these need to be up-to-date and easily
available. This avoids stress and panicking
when you get the Ofsted call. The
handbook lists the following documents
that inspectors may ask to see:
⚙ Paediatric first-aid certificates
⚙ Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
records and any other recruitment
documents summarising the checks
on, and the vetting and employment
arrangements of, all staff working at
the setting
⚙ List of current staff and their
qualifications
⚙ Register/list showing the date of
birth of all children on roll and routine
staffing arrangements
⚙ List of children present at the setting
during the inspection (if not shown on
the register)
⚙ All logs that record accidents,
exclusions, children taken off roll and
incidents of poor behaviour
⚙ All logs of incidents of discrimination,
including racist incidents
⚙ Complaints log and/or evidence of
any complaints and their resolutions
⚙ Safeguarding and child protection
policies
⚙ Fire-safety arrangements and other
statutory policies relating to health
and safety
⚙ List of any referrals made to the local
authority designated person for
safeguarding, with brief details of the
resolutions
⚙ Details of all children who are an
open case to social care/children’s
services and for whom there is a
multi-agency plan
In addition, the inspector may want to
see the policies and procedures of your
setting, especially those relating to all
aspects of safeguarding, anti-bullying,
curriculum and governance. Make sure
that your policies reflect the EYFS and are
using the key terms from this document.
For example, you should use the term “key
person” rather than “key worker”.
Check your culture is
embedded and reflected
in your environment
Everything about your environment and
culture should show how effective your
setting is in meeting the requirements
of the EYFS as well as being a safe
environment for the staff and children.
Make sure your reception, outdoor spaces,
training rooms, activity areas, and even
your offices consistently demonstrate
what is important to your setting and the
excellent experience that children, parents
and other visitors get, and how your
culture is embedded. Remove out-of-date
notices, have examples of the children’s
work, and ensure that health and safety
requirements are being followed. Central
to the environment and culture is about
how you engage with other stakeholders
such as parents, carers and outside
agencies, so consider how you can
demonstrate your involvement with these
stakeholders too.
Embed your quality of
education and reflective
practice
This is not something that you can ‘magic
up’ on the day of an Ofsted visit. It really is
about how your setting functions day-today
and how your ideas are embedded
throughout the setting. However, you
can prepare to demonstrate this in a
number of ways, for example, through
your curriculum designs and provision,
meeting records, training records, CPD
activities, records of child progress, and an
understanding of the developmental stage
of the child.
A key thing to embed and practice with
staff are the 3 “Is” of:
⚙ Intent – what do you want to achieve?
⚙ Implementation – how do you set
about doing it?
⚙ Impact – what impact do your actions
have on the children?
Practice this by asking staff regularly to talk
about:
⚙ What they are doing well
⚙ How they are meeting the needs of
the children
⚙ Areas of development they have
identified and the solutions they came
up with
⚙ What impact they have on the
education and lives of the children
they care for
Ensure all your
safeguarding practices
are robust
Safeguarding is a huge area of concern for
Ofsted so you need to make sure all your
records are up-to-date, all your statutory
training is done and that your DSL and
staff can answer questions about your
practice and actions taken. Ensure that you
have read and understood the “Inspecting
Safeguarding in Early Years” guidance
which sets out what inspectors will look
for. It’s important to be able to answer
questions on the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic too, so remember to consider
this.
And finally, remember not to panic. See an
Ofsted visit as a chance to demonstrate
your outstanding practice, and plan to do
just that.
More information
⚙ https://blossomeducational.com/
blog/how-to-take-your-nurseryfrom-requires-improvements-tooutstanding/
⚙ https://www.teachearlyyears.
com/nursery-management/view/
preparing-for-ofsted1
⚙ https://www.gov.uk/government/
publications/early-years-inspectionhandbook-eif/early-years-inspectionhandbook-for-ofsted-registeredprovision-for-september-2022
24 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 25

How to nurture the deepest
levels of learning and
The processes of learning are complex,
interwoven and continual, and begin
before a child is even born. As every child
revisits ideas and skills, they will adapt and
perfect their understanding as their minds
and bodies grow, establishing dispositions
for, and attitudes towards, all their future
learning. Fuelled through every experience
and supported through every sense, this
is far more complex and important than
simply bestowing information.
Learning of any meaningful kind is about
more than discrete facts that simply need
to be learnt, it is about ideas and concepts
that need to be understood, ready to be
used and adapted in other situations. And,
understanding
if you want a child to have the ability to
think for themselves and the motivations
and inclinations to do so, it is also about a
frame of mind.
Unlike surface knowledge, any meaningful
understanding of something requires
opportunities to structure patterns within
it, appreciate its underlying concepts and
how it relates to other experiences. Take
for example, an understanding of how
weight works; how something can be
heavier or lighter than something else and
the meaning this might give us about what
is inside.
When a child plays in the water, they are
experiencing how a jug of water weighs
less as it empties, something they feel
throughout their whole body. When they
then apply this developing idea to a bucket
of sand or a bag of feathers, they are
learning to apply new concepts to existing
situations. And when they then explore
these ideas even further, transporting
and pouring from different vessels
perhaps, they are making connections
in their learning, playing with new ideas
as they develop a deeper awareness.
These skills that support visualisation and
reflection will, in time, allow them to know
things without needing to experience it,
techniques they will be relying on in the
school classroom.
The most important thing you can
do to encourage and promote highly
successful educational outcomes is to
help children see the wonder of learning,
its opportunities to discover and learn
things about the world and themselves.
Offer children first-hand, spontaneous
experiences throughout the day, from the
first “hello” in the morning to writing their
masterpiece in the afternoon. Consider
how you can maximise the potential
of every experience, no matter how
mundane it may seem to you, or how
often it has been repeated. Think about
how it can be experienced through all their
senses, even something as familiar as a
well-loved story can come to life when you
think of the sensory learning you can add
to it.
Children have no hesitancy in freely
initiating or valuing the learning potential
of play. But while it is infinitely rewarding,
it can also be easily distracted from by
screens or by being overly-directed. When
you offer children open-ended, natural
resources within spaces where they
feel a sense of ownership, their natural
explorations will see them encouraged
into new areas of knowledge and
challenge. They will be quick to utilise
objects freely within their play, provided
they are unconstrained by predetermined
objectives or expected actions.
When playing with real objects and
materials, children make links and
connections in their thinking with what is
familiar, encouraging a greater level of
purposeful vocabulary. Exploring cause
and effect with water, sand or mud play
allows them to establish relationships
between actions and consequences.
When they can experiment and try and
take risks where there is no wrong answer,
they are establishing their resilience,
persistence and curiosity within safe
boundaries. Opportunities to reflect on
their ideas, to think, consider, ponder and
come back to as they need, allows them to
experiment with ideas before committing
them as fact, all the while allowing
misconceptions to become evident while
you tactfully guide.
And remember, children are not driven by
long term goals. With a limit to how much
information they can keep in their mind,
they need freedom to respond to whatever
is driving them in the moment, and the
time to allow their ideas to germinate.
Interruptions can derail these powerful
learning experiences, so keep time
restrictions to a minimum as you take care
not to invade their experiences.
Children also need to experience their
own success, to build secure confidence
in their abilities as they develop the
strength to meet and succeed in future
challenges. You can promote this learning
by offering appropriate challenges and
risk with engaging resources and sufficient
time for them to get stuck in. If difficulties
arise, let them see how they can resolve
things themselves as they make choices
and experience how perseverance and
thinking is rewarded. Allow them the time
and space for free movement and quiet
reflection as they revisit concepts and
embed their developing expertise. Be on
hand to promote their inquiries but avoid
being too quick to intervene and consider
limiting activities that tend to demand their
attention as you let them experience their
natural learning instincts.
When given opportunities to use and
combine their newly acquired skills and
abilities, children learn how to continuously
perfect them, to arrive at answers that are
meaningful to them and to understand
what new abilities they need to explore
next. But so much more than this, they
are learning about their own abilities as a
learner, something that they will take with
them into every new experience going
forward. So, enjoy experiential learning
with your children and harness this
powerful learning medium and the deeper
understanding offered through it, before
the demands of more formal classrooms
replace early years environments more
naturally drenched in play.
I hope you enjoyed this first article from
The Learning Child, in the coming months
we will look specifically at nurturing all
these wonderful practices with babies,
toddlers and young children. And in the
meantime, bring focus back to nurturing
all of children’s growth and development
with a Nurturing Childhoods Accreditation.
Whether you are looking for a settingwide
approach to reflective practice
and active CPD or a more personalised
approach with the Nurturing Childhoods
Practitioner Accreditation, gain recognition
for the nurturing practice you deliver.
Through 12 online sessions throughout the
year, join me and hundreds of nurturing
practitioners as together we 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 on-line
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.
26 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 27

New and newly-qualified
managers - how can we
support them?
How do the best managers get to be the
best managers? What is it that they do that
makes them the best? Were they born that
way, or did they learn through trial and
error? And how can we emulate this if we
have only just qualified as a manager?
The truth is, that barring the occasional
child genius, most of us are not born an
expert at anything, apart from crying,
pooping and sleeping perhaps! But over
the course of our childhood, adolescence,
and adult life, we LEARN. It’s what we
humans do – and we do it well. As we
grow up, we learn how to master things
step by step (literally sometimes) and
eventually we can walk, run, and do
somersaults!
Being a new manager is much the same
– there’s a learning curve that all of us go
on and gaining a managerial qualification
is usually just the start of the journey, not
the end. In this article, we will look at what
we can do as existing managers, to help
our newly-qualified managers to make
the most of their new qualifications, for the
benefit of themselves and our settings.
Lead by example
It might sound simple, but one of the
best ways to help others is to lead by
example and to model the behaviours and
aptitudes we are looking for. This might be
by being open and approachable, or by
developing more executive skills like event
planning and/or risk management. By
demonstrating attitudes and behaviours
we would like to see, we signal subconsciously
and consciously to our newlyqualified
staff that these are behaviours to
aspire to.
Communicate well
Good communication is essential for a
manager as it can mean the difference
between co-operation and conflict,
effective team building and isolation, and
success and failure. Communicating well
with newly-qualified managers means:

To celebrate British Tomato Fortnight and National Vegetarian Week, we
have two delicious recipes for you to try with the little ones!
Vegetarian
Puff pastry pizzas
bolognese
What do you need?
• 320g sheet readyrolled
light puff
pastry
• 6 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tbsp tomato ketchup
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 75g mozzarella or
cheddar
• sweetcorn, olives,
peppers, red onion,
cherry tomatoes,
spinach, basil
What do you need?
• 2 tbsp cooking oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, very finely chopped
• 2 celery sticks, very finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 350g frozen vegetarian mince
• 1 bay leaf
• 500ml passata
• 1 vegetable stock cube
• 100ml milk (you can use
alternative milk)
• small bunch of basil, chopped
• 600g cooked spaghetti/
pasta (about 250g dried) – try
wholemeal for a healthier option
Instructions
1. Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/
gas mark 6.
2. Unroll the pastry, cut it into six
squares and arrange over two
baking trays lined with baking
parchment.
3. Use a cutlery knife to score a 1cm
border around the edge of each
pastry square.
4. Bake for 15 mins, until puffed up but
not cooked through.
5. While the pastry cooks, make the
sauce and prepare your toppings.
6. Mix together the tomato purée,
tomato ketchup, oregano and 1 tbsp
water.
7. Grate the cheese and chop any veg
or herbs you want to put on top into
small pieces. Set aside.
8. Remove the pastry from the oven
and squash down the middles with
the back of a spoon.
9. Divide the sauce between the pastry
squares and spread it out to the
puffed-up edges.
10. Encourage your children to sprinkle
with the cheese, then add the
colourful toppings.
11. Bake for another 5-8 mins and
serve!
Instructions
1. Heat the oil in a saucepan and
gently fry the onion, carrots and
celery until the onion is starting to
soften.
2. Stir in the garlic and the vegetarian
mince (there’s no need to defrost it)
and fry for a couple of minutes.
3. Add the bay leaf, passata,
vegetable stock cube and 200ml
water, then bring everything to the
boil.
This recipe can be found on the BBC Good Food website here.
4. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30
mins or until all the pieces of veg
are tender and disappearing into
the tomato sauce.
5. Add the milk, then cover with a
lid and cook for 10 mins. Season
to taste and stir until the sauce
thickens slightly.
6. Stir the basil into the sauce and then
serve.
This recipe can be found on the BBC Good Food website here.

Allergy Awareness
It’s May! Hooray! As we emerge from what
might seem to some like the longest winter
ever, lots of us welcome May as the month
when the days get noticeably longer, the
temperature starts to rise appreciably and
the flowers and trees spring back into
glorious life.
And therein lies the problem for many!
The very feature of nature that keeps the
world renewing and regenerating itself, is
for some, the start of a miserable period of
debilitating symptoms that sees them shut
themselves up behind closed doors as
allergy season hits!
May is Allergy Awareness Month in the US,
and Allergy Awareness Week in the UK is
the last week of April. Although anyone
who suffers from seasonal allergies will
tell you that they don’t need a calendar to
remind them when their allergy season
starts, as they can feel it all around them.
With one in four people in the UK affected,
what do we need to know as early years
practitioners, and is there anything we can
do to help?
What are allergies?
According to Allergy UK, an allergy is:
“the response of the body’s immune
system to normally harmless substances,
such as pollens, foods, and house dust
mite.”
In most people, these substances,
called ‘allergens’ pose no problem at
all. However, in people whose immune
systems identify them as a potential
‘threat’, the presence of these allergens
triggers an immune response which can
range from relatively minor localised
itching or sneezing to a life-threatening,
full-body response such as anaphylaxis.
Of course, it is not just in May when people
suffer from allergies although May can
trigger a high incidence of hay fever due to
higher pollen counts in this month. There
are other allergies that we need to be
aware of too, including asthma, food and
pet allergies that people suffer from all
year round.
What causes allergies?
Since everyone is different, there is no one
‘thing’ that causes allergies in everyone
because it is down to the response of
the individual person’s immune system
as to whether the substance is identified
as a potential threat. However, there are
some common allergens which have
been shown to cause an allergic reaction
in large numbers of people. The most
common allergens are:
◊
◊
◊
◊
◊
Pollen from trees and grasses
Proteins secreted from house dust
mites
Foods such as peanuts, some grains,
tree nuts, eggs and milk amongst
others
Pet hairs from dogs and cats, horses
or other furry animals
Mould
◊
◊
Insect stings such as wasp and bee
stings
Some medicines
Who is affected?
The European Academy for Allergy and
Clinical Immunology (EAACI) reports
that allergy is the most common chronic
disease in Europe and that up to 20% of
patients with allergies struggle daily with
the fear of a possible asthma attack,
anaphylactic shock, or even death from an
allergic reaction (EAACI, 2016). In the UK,
some reports suggest a staggering 44% of
British adults now suffer from at least one
allergy with the number of sufferers rising
each year. Of those affected, almost half
(48%) have more than one allergy – that is
around 10 million people.
Symptoms of an
allergic reaction
Symptoms can vary between individuals
but can include:
◊
A runny nose or sneezing
◊
◊
◊
◊
◊
◊
Pain or tenderness around your
cheeks, eyes or forehead
Coughing, wheezing or
breathlessness
Itchy skin or a raised rash (hives)
Diarrhoea
Feeling or being sick
Swollen eyes, lips, mouth or throat
Allergies in children
The Allergy UK website reports that 40%
of UK children have been diagnosed with
an allergy, with food allergy, eczema,
asthma, and hay fever being the most
common. As well as the symptoms listed
above, children can suffer with additional
problems caused by allergies which can
affect not only their health, but their wellbeing,
education and social interactions
as well. Early years practitioners need
to understand these additional needs
which may not be as obvious as someone
sneezing or itching, but include:
◊
◊
◊
◊
◊
Anxiety around a potential allergic
reaction
Fear of using adrenaline autoinjectors/needles
Negative relationships with food
including food aversions and refusal
Sleep deprivation due to allergy
symptoms, affecting mood and
concentration
Visible symptoms such as eczema
and hives causing low self-esteem
◊
◊
◊
Isolation around social events such
as birthday parties and eating out at
restaurants
The potential for bullying due to
allergies
Concerns from parents about
protecting their children against
allergen triggers and serious allergic
reactions
Treatments for
allergies
Depending on the severity and type of
allergy, there are a number of different
treatments including:
◊
◊
◊
◊
◊
Avoidance of the allergen – e.g.
staying away from animals, rigorous
cleaning routines
Over-the-counter medicines for
mild allergic reactions such as
antihistamines and skin creams
GP-prescribed medicines such as
steroid tablets and steroid creams
Emergency medicines called
adrenaline auto-injectors, such as an
EpiPen, for severe allergic reactions
Desensitisation (immunotherapy)
for severe allergic reactions – this
involves carefully exposing a person
to the allergen over time try to reduce
the severity of the reaction and
should only be done by a medical
professional
Allergy management
in your setting
All practitioners should have up-to-date
First-Aid training and you should ensure
that you have robust protocols and policies
for First-Aid and the administration of
medications. Check also that you:
◊
◊
Keep accurate and up-to-date records
of all children and staff who suffer
from allergies including emergency
contact numbers, GP names and
addresses
Keep all emergency medicines in
a locked place with the name and
photograph of the child clearly visible.
◊
◊
◊
Medications should be in the original
box with clear instructions on how to
give the medication easily visible
Have well-trained staff who are
available all day, every day to deliver
First-Aid and medications
Reduce the chance of sufferers
coming into contact with allergens
such as seating hay fever sufferers
away from open windows and be
aware of the daily pollen count
Ensure all staff are aware of children
with food allergies and have
dedicated place settings or place
mats for these children to minimise
the risk of errors
REMEMBER – CALL 999 IMMEDIATELY IF
YOU OR A CHILD IN YOUR CARE:
◊
◊
◊
◊
◊
Get a skin rash that may include itchy,
red, swollen, blistered or peeling skin
Start wheezing
Get tightness in the chest or throat
Have trouble breathing or talking
Has swelling around the mouth, face,
lips, tongue or throat
These symptoms could mean the person
is having a serious allergic reaction
(anaphylaxis) and may need immediate
treatment in hospital.
We have created some allergy
placemat templates for you -
download them here!
Allergy UK have a Helpline on 01322
619898 and can give advice on the nearest
local NHS allergy clinic or consultant.
References and more
information
◊
◊
◊
◊
https://www.allergyuk.org/
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/
allergies
https://aafa.org/get-involved/
asthma-and-allergy-awarenessmonth/
European Academy for Allergy and
Clinical Immunology (EAACI)
32 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 33

EYFS activities:
Expressive Arts
and Design
Getting messy with paint!
It’s likely that most of the children in your setting love messy playtime. Whether it’s face-painting,
hand printing, playing creatively with food or making masterpieces with clay, they are usually in their
element when they’re making a mess of one form or another!
This simple but fun activity gives the children a
fantastic chance to practice their mark-making,
such a crucial early start to writing.
1. Gather a variety of brushes such as
scrubbing brushes, nail brushes,
hairbrushes and paint brushes.
2. Fill several trays with coloured paint. Let the
children independently dip their brushes
into the paint and make marks.
3. Discuss with the children as they are
painting, the marks they are making.
4. Remember to ask open-ended questions
so you can extend the children’s learning
through effective questioning.
5. This activity also helps develop motor skills!
More on this activity and others can be found
here.
Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud
Child-led play is a style of play whereby
children are given the freedom to choose what
they play with; as well as how and when they
do so. This is important for children’s learning
and development because children explore
and learn from their own thoughts and ideas
through the freedom and creativity that childinitiated
play enables.
Our handy guide, The Importance of Child-Led
Learning can be downloaded here.
This fun, child-led activity encourages
exploration and experimentation.
1. Encourage the children to collect their own
mud and mix it with water a little bit at a
time, until it’s the right consistency to paint
with.
2. Give them a selection of paintbrushes (as
per the previous activity) and watch them
create their painted pictures on some
(thick) paper.
3. During and after the process, talk to the
children about their creations.
Decoupage
Decoupage – the craft which uses paper to
uniquely decorate a variety of things, is not
just for grown-ups! Children love to stick bits of
paper on to things and this encourages them
to express their creativity and develop their
artistic skills, helping with not only their selfexpression
but their motor skills too.
1. Each child will need a small cardboard box
to decorate.
2. You will need some PVA glue, and a range
of fabrics such as tissue paper, felt, cloth,
wrapping paper etc. all cut into small
pieces.
3. Help the children spread the glue onto the
back of their chosen pieces of fabric and
place it onto their object.
4. Layer more fabric pieces in the same way,
allowing the children to decorate with as
many pieces as they would like to.
5. If necessary, you can trim the edges of the
fabric once the glue has dried.
4. You can also mix into your mud paint grass,
petals, leaves etc., and really encourage
the children to experiment with making
their own ‘homemade paint’.
Top tip: Add a squirt of washing up liquid to the
mud paint as this gives it a more spreadable
consistency.
More on this activity and others can be found
here.
6. Stand back and watch the children admire
their handy work!
More on this activity and others can be found
here.
34 May 2023 | parenta.com

Creative role play and
relationships
and feel our own emotions to be able to develop empathy and compassion which is vital
for friendship.
Movement and role-play are integral to your little ones’ development as they create
opportunities for them to work in a group by sharing and taking turns. Role-play also
encourages teamwork which helps them to build positive relationships with their peers.
When they are spending time creating or engaging in messy play, they are building
relationships and developing agency.
Importantly, role-play scenarios also help children identify the important people in their
lives.
Pedagogy of Friendship
Carter and Nutbrown, in their research in 2016, asked what friendship meant to a group
of 5- to 7-year-olds and how in turn, teachers can apply the features of the Pedagogy of
Friendship in their school.
i. Building practitioner/teacher knowledge so that specific rules, routines, concerns and
practices within children’s peer culture are made apparent, spending time observing
and listening to friendship experience;
ii.
iii.
Valuing and appreciating children’s friendship because of its significance to children
and how this may impact on children’s social and emotional development and
ultimately their cognitive development;
Recognition of children’s agency in friendship, where children are provided with
opportunities for time and space to establish and nurture their friendships without
adult intervention wherever this is safe to do so.
The problems faced by
children when developing
relationships
The environment…
The opportunities for children to participate
in spontaneous play outside in their
neighbourhoods have diminished. This
situation makes early years settings so
important in helping children develop and
nurture friendships for well-being.
Adults…
It is important for practitioners to look at
their role as Sigrid Brogaard-Clausen and
Sue Robson created a questionnaire for
155 parents/carers and 285 practitioners in
England. The data they received, showed
that the prioritisation of friendships
between young children was low. This
suggests that adults and children have
different priorities and raised questions
about how friendships are viewed by
adults.
Question… What is your ‘Pedagogy of
Friendship’ in your setting?
Why is role-play important
in helping your little ones
build relationships and
develop friendships?
Introducing role-play and movement is a
wonderful way of helping them to express
and understand emotions. We all want our
little ones to feel compassion, empathy
and belonging and be able to express
their own emotions and strengthen their
personal agency.
Why not try out my ‘emotion dino’ role-play activity with your little ones?
Just think of all the opportunities to help develop their speech, language and
communication skills which are essential for building relationships.
The target of this role-play activity: to understand, name
and show different emotions.
Preparation: print out the coloured dinosaurs and cut out and stick them on cards for
your little ones to use.
Instructions
Hold up the red dinosaur, and tell the
children that red is for showing anger. Ask
the child: “Can you show me angry?” (Make
angry faces, clench your fists and stomp
around the room).
Hold up the green dinosaur, and tell
the children that green is for showing
happiness. Ask the child: “Can you show
me happy?” (Make smiley faces, hop, skip
and twirl around the room).
Hold up the blue dinosaur, and tell the
children that blue is for showing sadness.
Ask the child: “Can you show me sad?” (Put
your head down, with a sad face, and walk
slowly around the room).
References:
Sigrid Brogaard-Clausen & Sue Robson (2019) “Friendships for well-being?: parents’
and practitioners’ positioning of young children’s friendships in the evaluation of wellbeing
factors”. International Journal of Early Years Education, 27:4, 345-359, DOI:
10.1080/09669760.2019.1629881
Carter, C. and Nutbrown, C. (2016)” A Pedagogy of Friendship: young children’s friendships
and how schools can support them”. International Journal of Early Years Education. pp.
1-19. ISSN 0966-9760
Gina Bale
Gina’s background was originally
ballet, but she has spent the last 27
years teaching movement and dance
in mainstream, early years and SEND
settings as well as dance schools.
Whilst teaching, Gina found the time to
create the ‘Hi-5’ dance programme to
run alongside the Australian Children’s
TV series and the Angelina Ballerina
Dance Academy for Hit Entertainment.
Her proudest achievement to date is her
baby Littlemagictrain. She created this
specifically to help children learn through
make-believe, music and movement.
One of the highlights has been seeing
Littlemagictrain delivered by Butlin’s
famous Redcoats with the gorgeous
‘Bonnie Bear’ on the Skyline stage.
Gina has qualifications of teaching
movement and dance from the Royal
Ballet School, Trinity College and Royal
Academy of Dance.
Email: gina@littlemagictrain.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/
gina-bale/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
Littlemagictrain
As movement is the universal language
of expression, this makes role-play the
perfect way of introducing those feelings
and emotions. We need to understand
36 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 37

Testimonials
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easy to do.’
Congratulations
to all our Parenta learners!
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Treehouse Nursery
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have such a good team.”
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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 Early Years Lead Practitioner – that’s a huge achievement in
the current climate.
All your hard work has paid off – well done from all of us here at Parenta Training!
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Our Level 3 success rate overall is almost 10% higher than the national average.
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38 May 2023 | parenta.com
parenta.com | May 2023 39

Four Software Solutions…
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Was £99 a month now from only £35 + VAT a month!
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EYFS Tracker
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