Kathy’s Centre Update.

Alistair Bryce-CleggUncategorized2 Comments

When Act4Africa got in touch a couple of years ago to ask if I’d like to support them in setting up a brand new Kindergarten in Uganda I jumped at the chance. One of the founder members of the organisation (Kathy Smedley) had been a teacher in a local Primary School here in Cheshire and the charity are based 10 minutes from home so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to be involved in something different, interesting and challenging. Of course I had no idea quite how challenging it would be! The Act4Africa Story The charity was set up almost 20 years ago aiming to do something positive by harnessing the talents and capabilities of the local African communities. The … Read More

Autumn Exploratory Jelly…

Alistair Bryce-CleggCreativity, Malleable Materials, Messy Play, Texture Kitchen12 Comments

It is time to get your Autumn Jelly ingredients ready! I first posted this idea last year and it was really popular, so I thought I would post it again. If you make some Autumn Jelly, don’t forget to share the results. This is a really simple activity that gives you lots of opportunities to explore many aspects of the EYFS. If you involve the children from the very beginning then not only will they be able to talk about and name the resources that they have collected, they will also be able to explore how the gelatine changes the water from a liquid to a solid. You can talk about how the mixture goes from hot to cold and what … Read More

A Learning Journey Approach to Display.

abc doesEnvironment, Nurseries15 Comments

This week I am revisiting a blog post from way back in 2013 that focussed on a method of taking children’s learning journeys into display. It was a really popular post and since then I have seen the display replicated in many different ways on my travels all over the world. Thanks to Ladybrook Primary  for being the initial inspiration! At Ladybrook they had a version of this in both Nursery and Reception This is Reception. A large display board has been divided up so that each child gets a large(ish) square. The whole thing was really well thought out from the backing paper to the mounts that the photographs were on. The display starts with a photo of the … Read More

Self Service Dough Area!

Alistair Bryce-CleggBoys Learning, Child Initiated Learning, Continuous Provision, Creativity, Dough Gym, Environment57 Comments

Every Tuesday on my Instagram account (abcdoes) I invite an Early Years Practitioner or setting to take over my page for #TakeOverTuesday. I have had takeovers from all over the World that have shown a huge range of Early Years provision. Pop over any Tuesday and have a look for a bit of interest and inspiration! This week on #TakeOverTuesday, it was the turn of  Laura and her team from Yarm School in the North East of England. As part of her takeover she posted some photos of their self service dough station, which she had made after reading one of my blog post. Her takeover photos got a lot of likes and interest, so I thought I would share … Read More