Blog

Have you ever spent ages setting up a play and they either ignore it, “destroy it” or play for a few moments then walk off? Yes, me too! Imagine being placed in a room with just the books a friend owns, you read a few pages and realise they are not to your taste and so you quickly get bored. Well for a child, that’s likely what they must feel in a room full of adult driven themed set ups for them to explore. Up until about a year ago I was very “theme” driven and planned the themes for every term, and often recycled them the following year.  But do you really know whether those children in your setting will be interested in People Who Help Us for an entire half term in Summer 2?

When children have a fascination, it’s vital we use that as a vessel to fuel their curiosity and motivation to learn through play. How do we know what they are interested in? We watch, observe and respectfully question. Now I’m not saying if a few children pretend to play doctors you completely strip your h...

This week on our Hygge blog we're joining my our members Sarah and Carly. The home based childcare team and recently completed the Hygge in the Early Years Accreditation. 

"My journey on the Hygge Accreditation has been life changing. Yes, I know it sounds corny but honestly it changed every except of my life.

This February I’ve been a childminder for 16 years and the changes and support childminders get has virtually disappeared. Training is now left to us to source as well as the cost. With no support from our local authority we collect a lot of information from support groups like early years teachers, childcare groups and other settings on social media. One night I stumbled upon the Hygge Accreditation and Kimberly and I was hooked.  I soon signed up and honestly, I have never in my life been so enthusiastic to do any kind of training and learning. The Hygge Accreditation is perfectly put together and so easy to understand with a wealth of teachers with knowledge in the early yea...

What is the real point in working harder and living less? Why have all the money but lack in happiness?

Take a step back and consider what means the most to you.

1. Working every hour of the day, chasing the next promotion, having ‘things’ but lacking in moments.

In this weeks blog post hear from my lovely member Karolina on how she felt before she started on the Hygge in the Early Years Accreditation™️ (find out more here!) and how it's changed all aspects of her life for better!

When I started developing my childcare setting I had no knowledge about Early Years at all. I struggled every day by getting stressed and my mind was racing which stopped me from enjoying running the setting, as I was working on my own I didn’t have anyone to speak to reflect on my practice and continuously thought that I am not doing enough. However, I was very passionate about teaching children independence through real life play situations using natural toys and equipment.  I very much struggled to understand how to observe children, plan in accordance of children’s interests and next steps. In general, I needed help with everything.  When I came across Hygge course I knew that this was exactly what I needed to help me reach consistency, harmony and good, stres...

This week we are joined by Hygge in the Early Years Member Amanda Fisher who is sharing with you her journey on approaching Hygge in a Children's Centre. 

I have worked in Children Centres for 9 years, prior to that working within a preschool setting whilst my own children were little, I am currently privileged to manage a Children’s Centre in a deprived area with a wonderful community spirit.

I always strived to create a warm, welcoming and homely environment; indeed it is the one thing the centre is congratulated on frequently by visitors.  I wanted to extend this feeling throughout the centre which is what lead me to explore The Hygge Accreditation, the ethos is one which I feel most relates to what I want to create and offer to families, a sense of warmth, joy and belonging. 

The centre is a hive of activity throughout the week and one of the highlights is the Stay and Play session we offer weekly. We welcome families with children from birth and are privileged to be able to w...

The whole fam under one roof, Christmas bakes in the oven, winter roaring outside the front door: It doesn’t really get much cozier than Christmas.

Christmas…oh that’s right I mentioned the C word and it's only the start of November! I have Michael Buble de-frosting as we speak and in this weeks blog post I’m going to be sharing my first few ideas with you for supporting behaviour over the festive period. 

Over the last few months we’ve been getting ready for our Christmas training events at KSEY Consultancy and I know that so many of you are super organised (a bit like me!) and want to get things ready early. I always used to use my half term week in October to do the majority of my Christmas shopping and start writing my Christmas cards…a job I really do love doing.

As I said we’ve been planning Christmas for a little while now…we worked with our fabulous photographer back in August to get some great Christmas Product snaps, we’ve booked in our Complimentary Christmas Event for Me...

The Art of Letting Go by Cornisheyfsteacher

I was often told that it takes a certain type of person to become a teacher – even more specifically; an early years teacher. Passionate, caring, organised, dedicated, inspired, motivated, resourceful, thoughtful… the list is endless. The responsibility and privilege that comes with the job, having a chance to make a difference and be a part of, arguably, the most important stage of a child’s development, is an honour to say the least. I love my job, I enjoy my job, but I completely understand why it is one of the most challenging professions to be in. The workload, the expectations, the weekends lost to ‘I just need to catch up on…’, the last minute scrutinties, lesson observations, it is never-ending. I am at the start of my career. Now approaching my third year of teaching in a Reception class. I want to share the start of my journey, some of my biggest revelations and the sense I have made of a sector that is continuously evolving.

Reading this from one of my Hygge in the Early Years Accredited students makes me feel so proud of their journey and all they've achieved.

Nurturing, supporting and allowing my students to flourish is what gives me a warm glow and makes me love my job even more!

"Starting my business back in December 2018 I was approached by a local authority officer who was supporting me with my ofsted registration. Sharon asked me “Laura I’ve never seen a provision like this before it’s wonderful what is your inspiration? What approach do you follow?”
I couldn’t reply I didn’t know myself, the only word I could give was “Hygge” but back then I didn’t truly understand the concept of hygge in the early years I just wanted to create an environment that brought the outdoors indoors, that was cosy and calming. A nature led approach that welcomed new children into my provision with a burst of light and opportunity.

It made me reflect and research, I wanted to be able to give my parents and OFSTED the...