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The days are starting to get longer and brighter and new shoots are poking through the soil. It feels so good that Spring is on it's way!

Now feels like a good time to share some of my favourite spring resources and books (as i get asked this question a lot!) to support your nature based play. All of the resources I share on here are my personal recommendations and are not advertisements.  It is also worth noting that it has taken a few years to collect the bought resources I show in the photos and nature based play can be done so effectively without any of these too! Just get outside and use the nature around you like we did when creating our Very Hungry Caterpillars out of twigs and leaves. 

I often get asked on my training around nature based play if this is something that can be done if you're in an urban area and the answer is yes! We can do nature study by opening up the curtains and watching the birds from our window, setting up a provocation on...

28th February 2021

Are you ready for Intern1ational Hygge Day? 

Around the world Early Educators will be taking inspiration on Hygge and doing lots of cosy activities for themselves and children and sharing them using my #hyggeintheearlyyears

Why not have a coffee and cake break in the afternoon, wear your comfy clothes to work or have a family story time event?

Why not create your own hygge shadow puppets and tell a story or set up a cosy mountain small world scene!

If you're look for some ideas or inspiration then why not download my free guide here

I don't know about you but I just love the snow! Waking up and seeing the snow flakes falling brings so much excitement. I also love the softness that we experience when it snows and the way everywhere seems to quiet. Taking a walk and hearing the crunch underfoot, perhaps hearing the tweet of the birds in a nearby tree and noticing the snow sitting carefully on the branches. 

I have been very fortunate to go on some wonderful adventures to Northern Finland and Canada and even as an adult the snow has truly fascinated me. Like the way it sticks to the trees in the -10 temperatures! I loved how in Finland the streets were given a cosy glow in the middle of winter with candles dotted in the snow lighting the way.  So when it was snowing here in Bradford today I just couldn't wait to bring in some of that joy of snow into our day. 

In today's blog I wanted to share three ways you can embrace some open ended snow play this winter. 

Set up a snow kitchen

Here...

Here are some of my followers favourite ways to make Christmas time more magical for the children.

'Add fairy lights everywhere' Mrspodmed

'Create an activity advent calendar' s28xoxo

'Make cranberry sauce with the children and give them a jar to take home and share on Christmas Day' Acorn_Class

'Have a North Pole tea party with twinkling lights' Dawnwebster29

'Dress up and sing Christmas songs together' Seafoam_green

'We have a nativity advent and each day we add to a wooden nativity scene' katmurphy81

'Sprinkle the children with magic dust from Santa as they leave school for the holiday' amberlou_d

'Family walks in the woods' nerdishmum

'We have a Christmas story that we read a chapter a day of and do an activity related to it' Littleonesatplay

'The children help to decorate the tree' Sarahs_littlestars

'We have a Christmas movie night with the projector and snacks' Laura_diamond_childminder

For more Christmas Child Led Ideas check out my training here.

Hygge feels different for everyone and I wanted to share with you what it feels and looks like for me by telling you about our very Hygge Sunday. 

We began our morning by having a slow breakfast together as a family where we lit the candles and talked about what we all wanted to do on such a cold foggy day. Despite the weather we decided to get wrapped up and embrace the great outdoors. We headed out for an autumn walk through the woods and to a nearby dam. 

Danes enjoy spending time connected to nature and away from electronic devices. Being outside allows you to live in the moment and notice what’s around you which is really important for your mental health. It’s also a wonderfully sensory experience too. 

As we walked along we took in the smell of the trees, the oozing of the mud on our boots and the sound of the birds in the trees. We also loved collecting up many natural treasures like; pine cones, leaves and stones. We used our rustic...

I don’t know about you but I used to over plan my days and schedule too much into them. Having an over flowing to do list. I would find myself rushing from one thing to the next, never having time to eat properly and by the end of the day was exhausted and usually hadn’t got the tasks done that I needed to do. As I mentioned a few days ago the Danes are brilliant at planning their time in an efficient way- working less but in a more focussed way.

Inside the accreditation I talk about the importance of goal setting and aligning these to our overall vision.

1. Each week think about what the top three tasks you must get done each week are. Write these down and put a number next to them for priority and identify why these are the needle movers.
2. Each day look at your top three priorities and break down 3 smaller activities that you must do to moving you closer to that goal.
3. Each week review your week- have you met your goal? What’s gone well? What do you...

3 Ways to Bring Hygge to your learning environment

Hygge is often miss understood and people believe that they can buy that hygge look by just changing the environment. Instead hygge is an investment into yourself and the journey of embracing it should be taken slowly. There is so much to hygge from slowing down, discovering what lights you up (and the children you work with) and bringing more balance to your day.

1. Hygge lighting is about creating a warm atmosphere. Open up your blinds and let the natural light flood in. Turn off the harsh strip lights and instead go for table amps, twinkly lights and LED Candles. Add a beautiful glow to your room by draping twinkly lights around suspended branches, the edges of your display board or filling empty jars with them.

2. Adding nature into your environment brings in calmness and also removes the toxins from the air. Yucca's and Spider Plants are safe for young children. You could also incorporate this natural background into small...

Hygge is more than a cosy room full of candles, company and good food. Hygge is a philosophy; a way of life that has helped Danes understand the importance of simplicity, time to unwind and slowing down the pace of life.

For my when I discovered hygge considering moments for cosiness, warmth and nature were my first steps.  

Warmth - add soft throws of different textures, in warm shades for the winter. Consider using rugs, layering your bedspread with fluffiness and sheepskin, swapping over cushion cover and curtains at this time of the year. Think about your bathroom too and how you might add soft fluffy towels. When Daisy Chain Nursery started studying on the accreditation they immediately began work on their indoor environment; creating nooks, cosy spaces and adding more warmth. Immediately they noticed a change in the behaviour of the 2 year old children and also the children who have special educational needs. 

Lighting:  Soft lighting with lamps rather than one...

Avoid Burnout with Hygge

As I spoke about in yesterday’s video hygge is all about pausing and taking the time to savour the simple moments in life. For Danes this way of living is the secret to having a good quality of life.

Here in the U. K  11.7 million. working days are lost to stress, depression or anxiety. Working in education is tough and I know myself I have suffered from exhaustion and burnout. In fact it was during these hardest times that I discovered hygge while travelling around Scandinavia. I noticed that the pace of life was so much slower (yet everything was still achieved..if not even better)

Here are some ways to avoid burnout; 

1. As we spoke about yesterday Hygge is being able to let yourself actually enjoy life, Living for each day and not just saving all of your best moments in life for the future. Don’t put your happiness on hold thinking when the pandemic is over I will be happy, when it’s the weekend I will light my favourite...