Many childminders now link their activities to a theme. The following website has an excellent selection of calendars providing dates and useful background information on National Awareness days/weeks, festivals in the UK, Religious Festivals and the Christian Church along with unusual and strange events in the UK.
Welcome to a page full of fun and ideas to keep the children (and you!) entertained for hours. Arts, crafts and cooking activities are a great way of helping the children to become creative but they also cover lots of other areas of the Foundation Stage curriculum and Birth to three matters framework. For example when using scissors, demonstrate to the children how to carry and pass them safely, sharing them, counting how many pairs there are and discuss why some have different coloured handles (left and right handed pairs).
This is very much your page and we would really like to hear what activities you
do with your minded children so we can share them with other Childminders and parents
visiting the site.
Any activity, craft, cookery recipe etc that is featured on our
website will earn the sender a FREE copy of the BCMA Contact Book.
Your ideas can be emailed to us info@bromleycma.org.uk or posted to
PO BOX 125,
West Wickham Kent BR4 9WU
Please include your contact details so we can let you know if we are going to use your ideas on the site and send your book to you.
Chinese New Year
The Chinese New Year starts in February and 2008 is the year of the rat. It is a great festival to celebrate with children of all ages and to encourage them to learn about another culture.
There are lots of wonderful traditions that the children can learn about and use as a basis for craft ideas. 'Lai see' (little red envelopes) can be made and given, lanterns made and decorated for the festival on the 15th day of the New Year, paper flowers to decorate the home and traditional food made. Ideas for recipes and craft ideas can be found on websites such as
www.dltk-
Information on traditions can be found on www.educ.uvic.ca/faculty/mroth/
438/CHINA/chinese_new_year.html
The theme can be extended to imaginary play with a Chinese Restaurant. Obtain a menu
from you local restaurant or takeaway. Encourage the children to help you make decorations
and their own menus for the table. Provide the children with small bowls and chopsticks.
A small pad of paper and a pen for the 'waiter' and a play telephone and diary for
taking table bookings will encourage writing skills and for younger children mark
making.
You might like to have a chinese food tasting session, with a variety of dishes for the children to try, such as noodles and prawn crackers.
The Year of the Rat
Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve came, and Buddha named a year after each one. He announced that the people born in each animal's year would have some of that animal's personality. People born in the Year of the Rat are noted for their charm and attraction for the opposite sex. They work hard to achieve their goals, acquire possessions, and are likely to be perfectionists. They are basically thrifty with money. Rat people are easily angered and love to gossip. Their ambitions are big, and they are usually very successful.
Chinese New Year
CREATIVE IDEAS -
You can download this colouring picture from
Mr Bonkers’ website at www.mrbonkers.co.uk
