Messy Play: Easter Themed Shaving Foam & Glitter

Welcome to mess central! This is an activity I have scheduled for Wednesday 25th March 2018, based on the children who are expected to attend my setting. Not all children enjoy messy play but for those who do, this is one to try. As with most of the activities I do with the minded children, it's simple. First of all I wouldn't advise trying this in a room with a carpet. As with all messy play I either do this in my kitchen or the garden.

The first thing you should do is protect the floor with a plastic cloth, then either use a large tray or of tuff spot and squirt a good amount of shaving foam - I always use the sensitive ones. Then, depending on the ages and abilities of the children taking part in this activity, you can add glitter yourself or put some glitter in bowls of shakers and leave the children to explore the tray and add it themselves. 

It's a great sensory activity and there's always lots of communication and language skills being developed as the children play. You don't need to add anything else but you could leave a selection of cups, spoons, different shaped containers, dolls, plastic figures etc. on the tray too.

It's Easter on Sunday so this week I will be setting up this activity and adding those plastic eggs from Poundland (I've also seen them in Sainsbury's) for the children to incorporate into their play. I'm sure it won't be long before they figure out how to open them up and begin filling them with foam and glitter. I'm going to use gold glitter and perhaps add some food colouring into the shaving foam to give them a pastel colour - very seasonal.

Top tip - always have a bowl of warm water, hand wash and towels close by. It makes cleaning the children a lot easier than taking them to a sink.

Follow me on Instagram to see this activity in action...it's scheduled for Wednesday morning.

Exciting stuff.

Thanks for reading.

First published March 2018 @dottyduckschildcare

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New Resources: Grimm's Wooden Toys from Babi Pur

Hello there.

Spring has arrived (even if it's still a little chilly at times!), which means it's time to freshen up with a few new resources. The children in my setting tend to play with the same toys so I thought I would introduce a few new ones from a company based in North Wales called Babi Pur. This company specialises in ethical shopping for kids.  I found this company when I was looking for a small wooden rainbow, which they stock and I was so impressed with the range of wooden toys on offer I placed an order. There are so many beautiful toys on offer, many of which are suitable from birth. I bought the small rainbow and some rainbow mushrooms - not a big order I know but I wanted to see how well these went down in my setting. I was drawn to this brand because I wanted open-ended resources and each child has their own way of playing with these types of toys. 

First of all, the order was dispatched and received quickly. Secondly the quality of these products from Grimms was excellent - well made and suitable for the ages of the children who I provide childcare for. Finally, these toys have been played with non-stop since I received them. The older children like to incorporate them with existing toys such as cars, dolls and other wooden blocks - they have been using the rainbow to make a tunnel across the train tracks and pens for small animals. The younger children have been using them as a stand alone resource - making towers, counting and colour recognition.

So based on usage over the past couple of weeks I decided to take a further look at what was on offer. I asked some of the children who I care for, as well as my own children what they liked and why they liked it. I made it clear I wasn't going to order everything but if we could have one new piece what should we get and how could be use it. I would honestly order everything it means allowed it, these toys are fantastic and I would highly recommend them as gifts for babies and children. The children I look after range from 2 years to 10 years and they all play with these beautiful toys.

I was surprised at how quickly the older children agreed what our next purchase should be. The children wanted to order the Water Wave so that's what I've ordered. This product, as with quite a few in the range, comes in different sizes. I've gone for the larger sized one (priced at £22.94) because I thought it would work better with the other products we had from Grimms, part of me also wishes I'd bought the slightly larger (17cm) rainbow, which was why I decided against the small water wave. Have a look on Babi Pur's website, there are loads of example how this toy can be played with.

The children can't for this product to arrive - they are going to love it! 

Check out my Instagram to see how we use these fantastic resources. I know I will be ordering more from Babi Pur and Grimms in the future.

Thanks for reading!

@dottyduckschildcare

This post was first published in March 2018

For more information about my childminding service please click here.

There are no affiliate links in this post. All opinions are my own. All products have been purchased with my own money. This is not sponsored post or an advertisement.

What is a Discovery Tray?

One of the most used resources at my setting are the Discovery Trays, which I make up for the children to explore. I have a range of resources within my setting, which the children use in their own way to play and learn. Some are purpose bought toys and games whereas others are everyday objects that I use to encourage different skills to aid learning and development. Every child is unique and each has their preferences when it comes to choosing the toys and resources they want to use. However, one resource that all the children enjoy are the Discovery Trays that I put together, but what is a Discovery Tray?

It is very simply a tray (or basket) that contains a few items - not necessarily toys, but items specific to a theme. For example, around the time of Chinese New Year I put together a basket filled with red & yellow coloured blocks, ribbons and toys. Each child approaches these Discovery Trays in different ways. Some will pick out bricks for example and build towers, others will line up or group items of the same colour, some will pour or spoon items into other containers.

These trays are known as open-ended activities because they can be played with in multiple ways - each child will approach them differently. They are ever so easy to put together, you can make one from items you have around them home. I prefer not to put too many items in the tray as I think the child can get distracted and confused with all the different textures, colours, shapes etc. There is no time limit as to how long a child should play or interact with the tray but if you want to fill a gap or 20 minutes they are an excellent resource. 

These are the items I like to include:

Something colourful - plastic blocks such as Duplo/Lego/Mega Blocks, scarves, ribbons, plastic cogs, bit of other toys such as the marble run (as seen in the Chinese New Year basket), small toys e.g. Happy Land figures, cars.

Textures - fabric, cardboard, wooden items such as blocks, smooth wooden shapes e.g. cones, cubes, spheres, metal objects e.g. spoons, egg cups, measuring cups, plastic pots.

Glass beads.

Plastic gems - available from craft suppliers.

Jumbo sequins - available from Baker Ross.

Wooden numbers.

Wooden letters.

Smooth stones.

Seashells.

Natural sponges.

Synthetic sponges / Bath roses (body puffs - available from chemists & supermarkets)

Nail brushes.

Napkin rings.

Curtain rings.

Nail brushes.

Spoons - different sizes & materials.

Small books specific to the theme of the tray e.g. a book on colours.

Interesting & unusual items.

Pieces of fabric e.g. corduroy, net, velvet.

Wooden or plastic 3D shapes.

Small pots with lids.

Pom-poms.

Feathers.

The list goes on. Have a look around Dunelm or Ikea for items. Items that look nice, make a lovely sound or have an interesting feel make good items to put on the tray. It's also nice to have a special tray to put the items on. I bought a shabby-chic style tray from eBay for about £8. It's common sense but never leave a small child unattended with a discovery tray and always check that what you are putting in the tray is safe and suitable for the child you are preparing it for. 

Here are some of the Discovery Trays I've put together recently - none of these items have been bought especially for the trays. I must remember to take photographs of the Discovery Trays I put together in the future. At the time of setting these up I did not think I would be writing any blog posts about my childminding service. 

Chinese New Year

Sharing a Shell

Colours

Number Recognition / Counting

Autumn

I hope you've found this post interesting and perhaps given you some ideas about what to put in a Discovery Tray. Check out my Instagram page to see what we get up to at Dotty Ducks Childcare. Click here for the link. 

Thank you for taking the time to read this post.

@dottyduckschildcare

Published March 2018

Click here for more information about Dotty Ducks Childcare.