_______________ The 50 Fantastic Ideas series is packed full of fun, original, skills-based activities for Early Years practitioners to use with children aged 0-5. Each activity features step-by-step guidance, a list of resources, and a detailed explanation of the skills children will learn. Creative, simple, and highly effective, this series is a must-have for every Early Years setting. In order to be able to think creatively, children have to be encouraged to use their imaginations and play autonomously. When setting up open-ended learning opportunities that stimulate children to investigate possibilities practitioners need easily accessible, cost effective resources. The rationale behind using cardboard boxes is the simple fact that they are cheap and open-ended, meaning they can be easily sourced and simply transformed by both adults and children. A cardboard box is a resource that when left alone, does nothing in particular but comes to life in the hands of children, requiring them to use their imagination or to build on their past experiences. Boxes as open-ended materials greatly enhance the play experience, as they require children to bring their thoughts into the play experience in a deeper way.

When given soil, clay or mud to play with, most children are instinctively motivated to explore and experiment. Mud, soil and clay are naturally open-ended, stimulating children to investigate possibilities, look for reasons and think of ideas. They are cheap and easy to source or access, simple to transform to suit any age group or activity, can be mixed with other materials, given a rich sensory experience via visual texture, deep colour, rich smell and tactile feel. As with the other 50 fantastic ideas books, this book will feature 50 inventive ideas for busy early years practitioners, advising them in a straightforward way about how to find, present and use easily accessible materials in a range of exciting and unusual ways.

A wealth of great ideas for parents or carers of four and five year olds.

_______________ The 50 Fantastic Ideas series is packed full of fun, original, skills-based activities for Early Years practitioners to use with children aged 0-5. Each activity features step-by-step guidance, a list of resources, and a detailed explanation of the skills children will learn. Creative, simple, and highly effective, this series is a must-have for every Early Years setting. This dip-in-and-out guide will help practitioners to adapt their teaching style to become more inclusive of neurodivergent children, and provide meaningful and innovative ideas that can be embedded into everyday practice. Featuring activities such as mirrored play, meditation, symbol stories and treasure baskets, these ideas are expertly formulated to support and develop children's sensory regulation skills and communication skills, whilst enabling practitioners to understand and engage with non-speaking or pre-verbal children. All forms and templates can be downloaded from the companion website. This book was Highly Commended in the Happy and Healthy category at the Teach Early Years Awards 2023.

Teach children to reduce, reuse, recycle, repair and be respectful with 50 fun activities for encouraging environmental sustainability. From making planters and bird feeders to creating natural paints or even bringing broken crayons back to life, these original ideas encourage children and practitioners to see the potential for creativity and fun using and reusing everyday, easy-to-source items, some of which might have otherwise gone to waste. Enhance children's creativity, cognitive development and motor skills through indoor and outdoor activities that are enjoyable, educational and environmentally friendly. 50 Fantastic Ideas for Sustainability encourages children to be considerate and responsible, paving the way for a positive lifelong attitude towards the environment. June O'Sullivan and Nick Corlett bring their expertise from the London Early Years Foundation to this must-have collection of inspiring, sustainability-focused activities. With over 40 books in the 50 Fantastic Ideas series, there's something for everyone – whether you're a practitioner looking for new ideas or you want to try out a popular well-loved activity with a new twist. Each book offers a wide range of fun and creative activities to carry out with children aged 0–5 years, with lists of resources, step-by-step instructions and information about the benefits for children.

_______________ The 50 Fantastic Ideas series is packed full of fun, original, skills-based activities for Early Years practitioners to use with children aged 0-5. Each activity features step-by-step guidance, a list of resources, and a detailed explanation of the skills children will learn. Creative, simple, and highly effective, this series is a must-have for every Early Years setting. 50 Fantastic Ideas Inspired by Famous Artists uses well-known art as a visual inspiration to develop expressive art and design skills in the Early Years. It is much easier now to access art online and to bring inspirational pieces into a setting without having to buy postcards or visit an art gallery. Drawing on these readily available online sources, Judith Harries presents 50 ideas featuring a range of diverse artists from Lubaina Himid and Friedensreich Hundertwasser to Mary Delany and Picasso, and famous art including pop and street art, sculpture and portraiture. Using art supplies easily found in and outside the classroom such as paints, clay, pipe cleaners and natural resources like leaves and flowers, the interactive activities found in this book are ideal for inspiring creativity and fun at the same time!

The 50 Fantastic Ideas series is packed full of fun, original, skills-based activities for Early Years practitioners to use with children aged 0-5. Each activity features step-by-step guidance, a list of resources, and a detailed explanation of the skills children will learn. Creative, simple, and highly effective, this series is a must-have for every Early Years setting. Circle time stimulates learning in all areas of development – from the improvement of social skills and positive relationships to encouraging children to listen to each other within a caring and respectful environment. Judith Harries brings together creative ideas for circle time where learning can be shared and music and drama can be enjoyed. The book includes circle time activities and games that cover all of the Early Learning Goals through the sharing of thoughts, feelings and experiences. It can also be used across the curriculum, including helping children with literacy and mathematics through phonics and number games. This timeless collection of ideas featuring colourful and fun photography is a fantastic resource with many new activities for circle time, as well as some old favourites.

_______________ The 50 Fantastic Ideas series is packed full of fun, original, skills-based activities for Early Years practitioners to use with children aged 0-5. Each activity features step-by-step guidance, a list of resources, and a detailed explanation of the skills children will learn. Creative, simple, and highly effective, this series is a must-have for every Early Years setting. This book contains simple but creative ideas to help practitioners prompt and aid storytelling for and with the children in their setting. Amongst many popular activities, listening to and telling stories is fundamental to every early years setting. Apart from being fun and exciting, storytelling has many functions in children's development, helping them to make sense of the world and organize events and experience. Children often retell their adventures as stories, from the simple event of having dinner to major happenings such as falling down the stairs! The story organizes events from the past and as they happen, and both the story and its telling convey important information about relationships, thoughts and feelings and the children's personal life in general.

Role-play is a fun and creative way to engage with children in EYFS, and is fundamental in developing children's learning and communication skills. This new addition to the 50 Fantastic series is filled with great ways to make the most of play-based learning in your environment. Each activity is linked to children's interests, and is designed to allow the child to learn, create, communicate, and have fun! Many of the scenarios involve an element of problem solving to encourage team work, and the suggested props and locations are both easily sourced and well-suited to Early Years schools and settings. With a whole host of inspirational ideas with photos to match, this book is the perfect starting point for creating an outstanding role-play environment.

The 50 Fantastic Ideas series is packed full of fun, original, skills-based activities for Early Years practitioners to use with children aged 0-5. Each activity features step-by-step guidance, a list of resources, and a detailed explanation of the skills children will learn. Creative, simple, and highly effective, this series is a must-have for every Early Years setting. Children benefit from the sensitive and supportive engagement of both their parents from the earliest of ages, but involving dads can be challenging. This book is designed to provide simple and accessible activities for practitioners looking to engage dads. Both June and Alice work with dads on a daily basis, helping them to understand their contribution to their children's development and longer term educational success. Realising how they can add to what the mums or other carers do in a different but complementary way, and how simple activities can enrich their children's lives, helps strengthen the bond between father and child. Each simple but effective idea in this book has been developed and written with the intention of promoting child and family well being, helping both children and families grow together.