Sam Goldsworthy: Mud Play!

Mud play is enjoyed daily over here at Sam Goldsworthy Childminding. It is either explored at our local forest school, at the woods or in our setting garden. We feel it helps to connect the children to nature where they are enjoying the calmness of being outdoors and also builds up their childhood memories as well as being great for their immune system being out in mud and dirt!

We have a mud kitchen that was purpose built between our trees in the garden.  We have added many items such as weighing scales, cake tins, bun cases, saucepans and spoons as well as a range of natural items including shells, stones with different vegetables painted on them, pine cones and sticks.

We have noticed that this type of outdoor play encourages lots of learning opportunities to the children. These include rich language opportunities learning new words such as sticks, pine cones, berries etc - the children are communicating, negotiating, problem solving and listening to each other. It also incorporates maths language such as small, large, heavy, light, more as well as  physical maths play including measuring, counting, capacity, quantity and size ordering. There is also an element of science involved as the children explore the texture of the mud experimenting with water to make it become runny or letting it dry out to become more mouldable as well as imaginative play too.

Mud is such as sensory experience for all ages especially the young children who love to use their fingers to make marks and squidge the mud in the hands and even their toes - we often encourage the young ones to go barefoot for the full sensory experience.  Muddy puddles encourage splashing also filling and emptying of containers too. The older children have their own specific goals such as making cakes, building a road etc.

Mud is very open ended it can be anything - it does not show any mistakes which is great for children who are afraid of getting things wrong or if they have low self confidence. Mud can be anything a child wishes it to be and can be adjusted to all developmental levels so it does not matter about the age of the child - even Sam and Immy love the mud!

We always give the children outdoor waterproofs and wellie boots to explore the mud with so they do not have to worry about getting mucky and their favourite pretty dress getting dirty - we encourage the children to dress themselves ready to play. Our children will often comment after they have finished playing ‘Who got the muddiest today’?

A few of our mud play ideas are -

Painting with mud - using hands, fingers, sticks, brushes, ferns etc

Making mud pies and cakes to an outdoor tea party

Creating animal homes such a hibernation house for a hedgehog

Throwing the mud to make marks which strengthens gross motor skills

Adding the childs interests such as dinosaurs, digger’s, fairies to their mud play to increase their concentration

Please tag us - @samgoldsworthychildminding in your mud play we would love to see your ideas and adventures