by New Beginnings Day Nurseries
•
28 Sept, 2020
The days are getting colder and nights are drawing in a sure sign that Autumn is creeping up on us. This time of year is a perfect opportunity to get outside with your little ones and explore the vivid colours and exciting changes going on in nature. It also gives you the chance to gather an interesting, varied collection of goodies to bring home. Conkers and chestnuts, with or without their cases Twigs Fallen leaves-different sizes, shapes, colours and textures Sycamore seeds Pine cones Once you've gathered your collection from the park, walking home from nursery or a weekend trip to the forest there are a variety of activities which these items can be used for-leaf printing, conker caterpillars, counting and sorting games. However these items can also be a great source of inspiration for free play and allowing your child to use their imagination to direct their play allowing creativity and lead to an open-ended exploration. All you need to do as parents/carers is facilitate these activities. Sensory play can be another great experience for your child using these items with some extra items such as paints, cups, glue, saucepans, if your child is very young they may need extra support to start off. Autumnal small world using your collection of autumn objects as a imaginative small world combining pine cones, twigs, leaves and other items with familiar toys children will create a whole new setting for example the pine cone could be a house, a car, a dog. If you don't have access to a park or unable to get outside you can still enjoy Autumn themed activities with your child using a few autumn coloured paints, tissue paper, and glue. Let your child create what they see using these resources, a beautiful abstract autumn picture. A few ideas to keep the little ones occupied while making use of resources within our outdoor environments.