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Seeing their own reflection in a mirror is magical and wonderous for babies. Do they recognise themselves? The awe and wonder of what else is reflected in the mirror, perhaps a parent, a favourite toy and their surroundings. Taking mirrors outdoors adds another dimension such as the trees, flora and fauna, the sky and clouds are also all reflected magically in the mirror. Babies will gaze for a long time into a mirror tray for example - trying to touch what they can see.

5 reasons why mirror play is important for babies:

1. Helping to develop visual senses

2. Encouraging gross motor movement - inspiring babies to reach and touch

Add some nature to a mirror tray, or droplets of water. This encourages sensory exploration, inviting them to reach out and touch the mirror and the items. Why not put on some music and have a little dance with your baby in front of the mirror. This is a fun way to encourage movement and coordination.

3. Developing a sense of self

Babies will start...

“Drizzle happiness wherever you go.”  A.D. Posey

Drizzle, damp and dreary weather may not have you excited for getting out into the outdoors with your children! In this blog post I want to share a few ideas of how you can turn the situation around and find joy on these types of days!

There is no such thing as bad weather only unsuitable clothing!

Embrace the rain! Dress for it - don the rainsuits and wellies, grab your brollies and go for a walk in the rain, splashing in the puddles as you go.

Walking under trees in the rain you can listen to the rain hitting the leaves above you. Look at the clouds, what colour are they? What can you smell? 

Embrace the rain and play with your water wall - these are easy to make with old guttering and a wooden pallet. Perhaps re create the nursery rhyme Ice Wincy Spider.

You don't have to be out for long.

When you get back from your adventures outside here are some cosy and warm ideas to enjoy:

1. Discuss why it rains and weather in gene...

I love maps and have got quite a collection now at home! As a child my grandparents would also have their maps and travel guides out and I used to be fascinated in looking at them. I would love going on long car journeys and following our route on the AA road map (before the time of Sat navs) and they would always give me such a sense of excitement. These days I love using maps for planning road trips around new places or finding a new Wainwright to walk in the Lake District.

Maps are a great way of creating that sense of Wanderlust in young children and there are many ways we can support this in our homes and learning environment. Perhaps having a world map on the wall with places pinned off that have been visited by someone we know, when visiting a local park with children encourage them to use a map to discover where they would like to go, a collection of maps in a basket in a book corner along with some travel guides and postcards, a globe to explore and lastly going on an adven...

Easter in Scandinavia is a big celebration involving get togethers and marking the start of Spring. Enjoying family time and feasts. With the warmer weather it's also a good time to take a sunrise hike up a mountain and enjoy the fantastic views. 

The egg is a symbol of Easter in Norway and the traditional decorated chicken eggs have now been replaced with those filled with sweet treats. A big Easter Sunday breakfast is usually followed by an egg hunt outside. 

I managed to pick up these beautiful Scandinavian metal painted eggs by Maileg. I love that these are re-fillable and also add a whimsical storytelling twist for the celebration. They can be filled with sweet treats for a fun easter egg hunt. 

We also like to set up Easter Egg hunts with less sugary treats inside too! I thought you might like to see my list of ideas for the Wanderlust Child;

19 non-sugar ideas for filling an Easter Egg:

• Rubber Stampers
• Stickers
• Magnifying Glass
• Finger Paints
• Shells
• Rocks
• Little no
...

When I was a new parent I had many lovely members ask about the resources and play ideas I have found most useful in my journey with my baby. In this blog post I share the start of my journey and some of the recommendations I have. None of the products shared are advertisements and I'm not linked to any of the brands in any way.

Tummy time roll

Mirrors

Black and white burp cloths

 

An early years environment for this age range is very different from what is offered for 3 and 4 year olds. 

We need to question ourselves... What do we want our open-ended learning environment to look like for our under 2's? 

Do our children need the latest messy play activity to compete with social media? 

OR 

Do we need to provide a calm, enabling, cosy, and homely provision for our littlest of people, filled with warm and welcoming practitioners, who have the time to meet their needs and be there for them and their families.

 Within our baby room provision, we demonstrate the introduction of recycled materials, authentic resources and how we step away from purchasing items from ‘catalogues’ and one-purpose Early Years age and stage equipment. 

We have set up cosy spaces with books, puppets, soft furnishings and fairy lights, for the children to explore within a safe and secure, calm environment.

We also allow children to use large scale items and smaller loose parts, ...

Fluffy Ducks Childcare : Our Hygee Journey

My name is Rhonda and I am a registered childminder based in Lancashire. I have been registered 21 years and have achieved Ofsted outstanding in my last two inspections. Whilst achieving this grading came with happiness for all my hard work, it unfortunately came with consequences. Pressure to maintain this, to be more like a nursery. To spend every minute of the day focusing on “What can we do now”, endless paperwork and planning. Expectations that I had created for myself. Gradually over the last 2years this has taken away my passion for my job, it has left me feeling my home is not my home, undervalued for what I do and dreading each day as it came.

Last year I found the Hygee accreditation through Facebook. The more I looked into this, the more I felt I needed to change, even if that meant changing how I work, the look of a nursery setting, losing my grading on my next inspection. I needed my business to become an extension of my ho...

Hygge Case Study by Natalie Carrigher

I began my Hygge in the Early Years Journey in January 2020 after 15 years in Early years, and 8 years in the same school (through special measures to good) I felt lost.  I was at a stage in my career where I needed ‘something’ but I had no idea what!  I still loved  working in Early years but felt my CPD had severely lacked in the past few years.   Through teaching in my mixed Reception/ Year One class I felt lost between knowing in my heart what the children needed and pressures from SLT (OFSTED/school improvement support/LEA) to deliver the National curriculum.  My practice had become segmented between the two curriculums, where I felt divided in  both my time and being able to provide a challenging learning environment for all children in my class.   I spent hours during evenings and weekends planning for both curriculums in great detail and  resourcing sessions. I would have all these great ideas to engage the children and develop a love of l...

By Louise Fleetwood Childminding

As a Childminder of eight years each Ofsted inspection brought new pressures to work harder, strive for better and produce even more paperwork to 'prove' how you were meeting every childs needs. I was spending my evenings and weekends writing up, documenting and preparing resources and had very little work life balance, or even enjoyment for the job anymore.

When Covid hit I knew I needed a new direction, focus and a renewed sense of worth. Through embarking on my Hygge journey I have brought the outdoors in, loose  parts and uninterrupted opportunity form the best parts of our play and outdoor picnics and adventures are a daily must. Over the past year I have noticed how physically capable my children have become, far more resilient and loads healthier than I have ever looked after. Each and every one of the children I care for now has a desire to get outside each and every day. Parents have thanked me for surrounding their children in nature and h...