Winter

It might be cold outside, but at Nursery we still go outside every day.

Being outside is a great way to learn about the seasons and notice the environment.

Here are some ideas you could try at home. We will be doing lots of these in Nursery too!

• Make simple bird feeders with cheerios and string. Hang them in the garden and watch to see which different birds (or squirrels) come to feed on them. Stringing the cheerios is a great way to develop your child’s fine motor skills!
• Leave water outside. Talk about what might happen to it. If it turns to ice-look at the patterns, smash it, play with it. This is great science!

• Wrap up warm and go on a Winter walk to look for signs of Winter. Notice the trees. Talk about the weather. Talk about what we need to wear warm clothes. (You could take lots of time before hand to practice putting on the clothes-gloves are especially tricky!)

• Put on wellies and splash in muddy puddles. (I have yet to meet a child who doesn’t like to do this, and most children will do this for a long time!)

• Fill a tray with sugar/salt. Make patterns and draw with fingers/brushes/anything! This is great multi-sensory learning. Children learn through using all their senses. Provide spoons and bowls for scooping and filling.

• Freeze little toys and leaves etc in ice overnight. Let your child help you do this and talk about what you think might happen in the freezer. Put some in the fridge-what happens to those? Why? Then give your child tools to free them! Often children want to “bash” the ice. You could also pour over warm water and talk about what is happening. Or put the ice blocks in the bath!

• Buy shaving foam on your next shop and squirt in a tray for your child to play with (some children may need to wear gloves if their skin is a little sensitive). It looks like snow! And is a great sensory resource.

• Make snowmen from cotton wool pads or play dough. Add resources such as sticks and buttons.