Under 5 magazine

BABY AND TODDLER GROUPS

Open the door to sunny spring!

Alliance early years development manager Alison Heseltine shares ideas for getting out and enjoying the sun as it pops out for spring

Alison works as an early years development manager at the Alliance, supporting families and educators.

As springtime approaches, nature is preparing for an explosion of new life filled with an abundance of colours and sounds. Taking your baby and toddler group outdoors at this time of year can be a multi-sensory experience for young children as they explore the world around them, supporting their learning, building self-confidence and boosting wellbeing.

Spring offers the opportunity for a wealth of activities that, with a little planning, you can enjoy with the children and families at your group. Perhaps you're lucky enough to have outdoor space at your regular venue, or maybe you could arrange to meet at a park nearby and explore your local surroundings together?

As the weather warms up and the world bursts into life at our Play and Learn project in Bradford, we’re getting ready for our ‘springtime strolls’. Over the course of a week, we give families the opportunity to visit a local community green space as a group and – with the support of staff and volunteers – discover and learn about spring along the way!

If you’re interested in taking your own session outside, we have a range of activity ideas to share with you, along with some song and story suggestions.

Noticing nature

A treasure hunt with family and friends is a great way to spot the signs and sounds of spring. We use paint card samples to match to, but you might like to look at the free-to-download spotter sheets that The Woodland Trust produce, available at bit.ly/48q8g2n and bit.ly/42NDHm5.

You can also follow the link to our Family Corner page: bit.ly/FC-wildflowers.

Another popular activity with our families is making memory bracelets together, which children can use to collect special items they find along the way, revisiting them to talk about and share their experiences with others.

Spring is also a great time for spotting garden birds at home or in the park. To help families who may be unfamiliar with some of the more common varieties, we use a free spotter guide from CBeebies:
bit.ly/BBC-birdspotting.

We’d love to hear about what you and your group have been doing to celebrate the return of spring! Send your spring activities and pictures with us at:
editor.u5@eyalliance.org.uk

Curious and caring

Children have an innate connection to nature, and caring for the wildlife helps to support them in learning to understand the needs of others.

If you have a suitable area, why not make bird feeders together and see who comes to visit? bit.ly/BBC-birdfeeder.

Exploring and experimenting

The weather in spring is famously unpredictable and gives lots of opportunities for sensory exploration – the feel of raindrops on cheeks or wind blowing through hair.

Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day! – this is a great song to sing with children, as it’s short and easy-to-remember, but it can also be sung in different ways to mimic the rain – loud, quiet, angry, sad etc.

Our Family Corner website has some other ideas for you to try:
bit.ly/FC-wonderful-wind.

Celebrating nature through…

Spring is the time for starting to plant seeds. Some are easier to grow than others and give more reliable results such as sunflowers. These can then either be grown in pots or if families have the space planted at home. They can be cared for and watched as they grow taller and taller.

You can find out more at bit.ly/RHS-sunflowers or the Family Corner website at bit.ly/FC-ready-steady-grow and bit.ly/FC-gardening-ideas.

When you are outside with your families, why not try exploring some transient art activities together using the resources that nature has provided such as leaves, pebbles, sticks and pinecones? Then, when you are finished, return them to where you found them ready for another group to enjoy.

…books:

The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle

That’s not a daffodil by Elizabeth Honey

That’s MY Flower by Alice Hemmings

Tilly plants a tree by William Petty

Hello Spring by Jo Lindley

The Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

…song – I’ll Plant a Little Seed:

(to the tune of I’m a little teapot)

I’ll plant a little seed in the dark, dark ground.

Out comes the yellow sun, big and round.

Down comes the cool rain, soft and slow.

Up comes the little seed, grow, grow, grow!

…spoken rhyme

One little daffodil had nothing much to do, Out popped another one, then there were two. Two little daffodils were smiling at a bee, Out popped another one, then there were three. Three little daffodils were growing by the door, Out popped another one, then there were four. Four little daffodils were glad to be alive, Out popped another one, then there were five. Five little daffodils were wearing golden crowns, They danced in the breeze in green satin gowns

The Alliance Baby and Toddler Toolkit helps group leaders reflect on the service they offer to families, including ways to extend an inclusive and welcoming environment for all alongside building connections to other community resources.

If you would like to know more, please visit: bit.ly/U5Mar-BT-toolkit.