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Making story-telling fun – and a special Christmas story

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 19:26:14 +0000

Expert storyteller, Bob Hartman, tells us how to make story telling fun with this special Christmas story.

To make storytelling fun and engaging for toddlers, two of the main elements to include are repetition and participation. Repetition helps them feel comfortable with the story and understand how it works. Participation, particularly when it involves both speaking and doing, invites the children to become a part of the story themselves, makes the story more memorable, and helps them to focus on it.

In ‘The Noisy Stable’, which is from ‘The Lion Storyteller Christmas Book’, there is room for both features. When I tell this story, I begin by teaching the animal actions and sounds. With toddlers, I always make sure that everyone gets to do everything. No splitting up of parts, because someone will inevitably miss out on the part they want!

So, for the cow, we make two horns with our fingers on our heads and we do a big loud MOOOO! For the donkey, we put our hands to our heads for ears and flap them about as we bray HEE-HAW! For the dove, we flap our wings and say COOO! For the lamb, we wag our bottoms and go BAAA! For the spider, we wiggle our fingers and go SCRICKETY-SCRACK!

Then, when I tell the story and say a line about an animal, at the end of that line I lead everyone in the actions and the sounds for that animal (making sure that I’m enjoying doing it too!) I leave the baby as a surprise – WAAA-WAAAA – and sometimes, after I have WAAA-WAAAAed, I ask the children to join me in doing it again.

This story also makes a very nice presentation piece for a Carol Service or a Nativity event for parents and friends. There are lots of opportunities for dressing up here – and what toddler doesn’t like to dress up like an animal? And the best thing is that it doesn’t matter how many cows or doves or sheep or whatever you have – it all adds to the fun.

If you use it the story in this way, I would definitely teach the actions and sounds to the parents as well and encourage them to join in. So here’s the story!

The Noisy Stable

It was nothing special. Just an ordinary stable. Filled with ordinary stable sounds: the deep “moo” of a big black cow; the noisy “hee-haw” of a little brown donkey; the “coo” of a dove; the “baa” of a lamb; and the “scrickety-scrack” of a spider, skittering along the wall.

But then there came another sound. An out-of-the ordinary sound. A sound that had never been heard in this stable before – the sharp “waa-waa!” of a new born baby.

It was Mary’s baby, of course. The baby the angel Gabriel had promised her. But there was nothing ordinary about him. For he was Jesus, God’s own special Son.

The cow went “moo”. The donkey brayed “hee-haw”. The dove called “coo”, the lamb cried “baa”, and the spider skittered, “scrickety-scrack”, back into his web.

It was just an ordinary stable. With ordinary stable sounds… And one extraordinary baby boy!

‘The Noisy Stable’ is taken from ‘The Lion Storyteller Christmas Book’ by Bob Hartman.

Happy Christmas? Helping your families celebrate together

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 19:14:51 +0000

For many parents – perhaps most! – Christmas is a considerably busy time of year. Some of the parents in your group will be surprised that the festive season has come again so quickly. Others will be reeling from their already busy lifestyle and may be dreading the added pressure of the season. This is a time when toddler group leaders can be a great source of support to their mums and dads, especially by making sure that the true meaning of Christmas is not lost in all the hustle and bustle.

When parents are giving their little ones new experiences around Christmas, it can be difficult to avoid the commercialism and simply find time to spend together as a family. During the run up to Christmas, why not take the opportunity to discuss this issue with your group and talk about the things they find challenging? You could also ask them to share positive experiences and ideas of how to celebrate Christmas with their families.

The following ideas would be great to share with your group as they can create new family traditions and lots of memories for parents and children. You may like to copy these ideas onto the back of the Smalltalk Christmas issue, so your families can get the benefit of both.

Making Christmas cards as a family is a simple way to get everyone involved. You could cut up pictures from last year’s Christmas cards to make lovely collages. Simple designs can be made with Christmas stickers outlined with a black felt tip pen.
Spend a weekend afternoon watching a Christmas film together. You could even have mince pies, popcorn and juice.
Tree decorations made from salt dough are easy to make and look very effective too. The ingredients are 250g plain flour, 150g salt and 150ml water. Mix them together and make different shapes with the dough e.g. stars, Christmas trees, stockings and baubles. Don’t forget to put a hole through the top to hang the decoration. Bake for 2 hours on gas mark 1-2 or 140-150°. Once cold, decorate with paints and glitter.
Bake some mince pies for your neighbours. Children love to do things for other people.
Choose that perfect Christmas tree together.
Read the traditional Christmas story using puppets or a nativity scene.
Attend a carol or nativity service together.
Visit a Winter Wonderland or other winter activity if there is one in your area.
Take the opportunity to visit family members – especially those you may not have seen for a while.
And FINALLY – create times on Christmas day to play games, eat and laugh together.

Help your parents become more confident in their parenting skills

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 18:57:18 +0000

Have you thought about running a parenting course for the mums and dads in your toddler group?

We all know that raising children is a physical and emotional rollercoaster and it seems that parents today are under more pressure than ever before. Running a parenting course is a great way for you to make a real difference to the lives of children and parents. It will help them understand and apply parenting principles and provide an opportunity for families to support and encourage each other.

Care for the Family’s Time Out for Parents - The Early Years course is aimed at parents of children aged 0 – 5 and is therefore ideal for the families you are serving. You could run the course with parents in your toddler group, and perhaps take the opportunity to invite other parents from your community.

The course runs over six sessions and covers:

What being a parent’s really like!
Children’s needs
Play and listening
Parenting styles and boundaries
Safety and discipline
The wider family

This is what two facilitators had to say about the course:

“It really hits the spot for parents in the early years of parenting. The material is jargon free and easy to use for facilitator and parents alike. It covers all the need-to-know topics such as emotional security, play and setting boundaries. Group discussions and home activities ground the ideas in everyday reality and the positive power of building family traditions in the final session is inspirational.”

Pippa, Licensed Facilitator

“Each session gives parents time and space to think about the way they parent, understand their children better, discover ways to improve family relationships and positively influence their children. Parents who have been on the course frequently make comments like these: ‘It’s great to know you’re not on your own,’ and ‘I loved having a place where I talk about my struggles and learn from other parents.’ We’ve found that these sessions are having a very positive impact in our community.”

Julie, Licensed Facilitator

To run Time Out for Parents - The Early Years and other Care for the Family courses you need to become a Licensed Facilitator. Visit http://www.careforthefamily.org.uk/training/ to find out more.

Looking back on the Playtime Conference 2012 – Storytelling

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 15:19:02 +0000

One of the perennial joys of the Playtime conference is the opportunity to hear from so many gifted and diverse speakers, to welcome relevant and helpful exhibitors and to see hundreds of parent and toddler group leaders in one place sharing experiences together.

There’s not space here to mention everything that took place, but here are a few highlights to give you a flavour of the day:

Rob Parsons explained that sharing your story with someone, even in a very simple way, could change their lives.
Mark Chester from Who Let the Dads Out challenged us to get more dads involved in Parent and Toddler groups and told a couple of stories illustrating the importance of fathers leaving clear footprints for their children to follow.
Bob Hartman’s tips on successful storytelling emphasised that it is all about relationship. He effectively illustrated his point by telling stories that had us alternately spellbound and in fits of laughter – with plenty of audience participation!
Alison Dayer looked at using music in story and gave some very practical pointers to help make music time fun and effective, while Claire Wells, with the aid of a table full of fascinating props, shared tips on creating simple crafts and left us with many new ideas.
Three Care for the Family team members gave talks with Tim Reynolds bringing a change of pace as he explained how we can use Facebook to tell our group’s story, connect with members and make the group known in the local community. Ann Bowers shared stories of how parenting courses have affected lives and Helen Lock rounded off the day with an inspiring message: ‘Our stories have only just begun’.

As well as the main speakers, there was an exhibition of helpful material and resources that included representatives from Wise Owl Toys, Scripture Union, BRF, Pupfish and One Way UK. We also launched Playtime’s Ready Steady Go initiative and – the icing on the cake – held the much-awaited competition for Best Toddler Team Song. Two groups and three brave individuals performed live, battling it out for the top prize. The clear winner performed a song called ‘Bananas’ with tremendous enthusiasm and abandon! This was clearly a highlight for the audience, judging by the number of Facebook comments we received. Thanks to everyone who took part.

If you were with us at the conference, we hope you found it an encouraging and inspiring time. If you were not able to attend – well, you did miss out on a great day, but don’t worry, there’s always next year!

The Playtime Team

Help your toddler group parents stick together

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 08:25:02 +0000

For the past 18 months Care for the Family has been piloting an exciting new venture called ‘Let’s Stick Together’ – a short workshop for new parents. In just one hour it teaches three key principles that help keep the relationship between mum and dad strong: Good habits to practice, bad habits to avoid, and how to keep Dad involved.

We received funding earlier from the Department for Education to roll out sessions to post-natal clinics in three test areas: South West (centred around Bristol), West Midlands (centred around Birmingham) and East (centred around Bedfordshire). But we’re delighted that we can now expand this offer into other Early Years settings – including Parent and Toddler groups!

We’re looking for groups in the test areas who would like to host a session. It is free of charge and delivered by trained Care for the Family volunteers, and your parents will get a goodie bag to take away with them.

If there is no trained volunteer in your area, then you might like to consider training to deliver Let’s Stick Together yourself. To book a session or find out more, please contact Una.Hilder@cff.org.uk or visit www.letssticktogether.co.uk

We’re excited that we can now offer your group the chance to host, free of charge, this popular and successful workshop for new parents that teaches, in just one hour, three key principles to keep the relationship between mum and dad strong. Do find out more.

Putting families before fears

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 08:15:21 +0000

Little Lambs parent and toddler group has been run by the Beacon Community Church in Burntwood, Staffordshire for over ten years. It has changed venues three times, had a change of name and has had four leaders. I joined when the group was being run by a caretaker-leader after the longest serving leader had left. I was nervous, lacking in confidence, and fearful of failure.

My first decision was to keep everything running exactly as it was and to nod and smile at everyone in a desperate attempt to keep the parents happy and to keep numbers up. In the first session I led I forgot to do song-time as I was focused on packing away. Sadly, a little girl was upset and her grandmother stopped coming. I beat myself up about this and it made me dig my heels in even more about keeping things exactly the same as they’d always been. But some parents still left and my fears grew.

When I’d joined the group, I’d been given a folder that contained an advert for Care for the Family’s Playtime conference in Birmingham. I’d booked up in advance to go with a team member and now the day was upon me. The first speaker was Richard Hardy and I felt he was aiming his talk directly at me. He spoke of the time when he had taken over the leadership of a group and how he’d felt scared and under scrutiny. As I listened, my fears, worries, anxieties and hurts suddenly melted away and I could have run onto the platform to tell my story alongside him. I realised that my fears and worries had stopped me from planning and developing things that would really benefit the group – it’s parents, carers, children and all the families represented.

There was another difficult time when our venue became unsuitable and I looked at relocating to the church’s newly acquired and refurbished youth centre. We met with resounding opposition both within and without the playgroup. We moved temporarily in the hope that once the parents and carers had got the feel of the centre and the park facilities, the computer room, and modern, well equipped kitchen, they would accept the change. It was so upsetting that some of them left.

But three years later, we are still here – and are now running sessions on two days a week as our Monday group was oversubscribed! We have baby showers, a keep-fit class with crèche facilities and we lend toys and equipment out for toddler parties that are booked at the same venue. We also organise a yearly day trip out, as well as termly visits to a local play-centre and a sumptuous three-course family Christmas meal.

One commitment we have made as a team is to attend the Playtime Conference together. Last year’s conference had a profound effect on us:

“I found it inspiring, realizing our problems are not unique to us … very helpful teaching.” - Jill

“It was inspiring and we gained some valuable information and some good contacts to help us in our desire to do child minding.” - Nicky and Chris G.

We are now running deeper, going wider and looking further to help our families, our local community and our own volunteers.

Avril Hammond

Playtime at Toddler Group - choosing the right toys

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 05:55:27 +0000

I've always enjoyed playing with children and watching them at play – from babysitting as a teenager and my time as an infant teacher, through to being a mum and working with pre-schoolers in various settings. Now I love watching the children's delight in our shop as they play with our toys.

In order to grow and develop, as well as needing food, clothes, love, adequate sleep, fresh air, exercise, conversation, interaction with others and stimulation, a child also needs to be able to play. In fact, play is vital if they are to reach their full potential; it is a child’s way of learning about and exploring our world. By providing play opportunities and giving children objects to explore, we help them develop math and languages skills, physical strength, dexterity, imagination, and curiosity about our world.

Providing suitable toys for a toddler group

A good toddler group will provide a range of different toys for babies and toddlers to play with in a safe environment. It is therefore essential that the toys are robust, well-maintained, easily accessible and have a clear purpose.

Suitable equipment:

Floor toys for babies
Pull-along and push-along toys for toddlers
Simple construction toys (with pieces large enough not to be swallowed)
Large-piece puzzles
Pretend play (small world) e.g. farm, garage and road mat
Dressing up clothes
Ride-on toys
A slide
A play tunnel
Play dough

Many groups arrange some of these toys on tables or mats to help define the play areas and prevent pieces of puzzle getting lost, play dough from spreading everywhere etc.

Toy safety

All toys purchased for the group should be from a reputable supplier and have a 'CE' mark to show that the toy has been tested and reaches an approved safety standard. Remember that the toy needs to be strong as it will be played with by many children in a busy setting.

Second-hand donated toys need to be carefully vetted. Look out especially for long strings or cords (strangling hazards), rough edges, splinters, buttons, beads or ribbons that could be snapped or bitten off and swallowed (choking hazards), and moving parts that could trap or pinch small fingers. Rocking items are great fun, but always place them on a good mat so that it will cushion small fingers from being crushed by the rocker.

When purchasing a new toy or accepting a used one, think carefully about how it will fit in your setting. If it is a large item, have you got the room for it? Will you be able to store it? How heavy is it? Can you move it safely? Is it stable? If it is a small item, or has lots of small pieces, is it a choking hazard? Will the pieces easily get lost?

All toys given to babies need to be cleaned regularly. Soft toys that can go in the washing machine are great! Some plastic toys can be put in the dishwasher. You will need some volunteers to take them home and return them clean from time to time. Others toys can be wiped over with an anti-bacterial cleanser.

Finally, be vigilant! As you set out and put away toys, make a habit of checking for signs of wear and tear.

A good source of information on toy safety is www.safekids.co.uk

If you are interested in learning more about play try reading 'Play with a Purpose for Under-Sevens' by E.M. Matterson. It was written in the 1960s but has been updated and is an excellent resource for anyone working with this age group.

Heather Stewart

Heather and Mark Stewart of Wise Owl Toys have ventured into an exciting partnership with Care for the Family. You can read their story here. There are discounts available to both you as a group leader and to your families, so don’t miss out on this great opportunity. They will also be joining us at the Playtime conference this year and will have many toys for you to see, touch, play with and buy.

Enjoy browsing the website at www.wiseowltoys.co.uk

Tiddlywinks Parent and Toddler Group - working in a multi-racial and multi-faith area

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 10:32:49 +0000

Tiddlywinks is run by Ashurst Drive Baptist church, Gants Hill, on the edge of East London. We have a very varied ethnic population around us and the make-up of our group reflects this. Those who come along include mums and dads and grandmothers and granddads from Eastern Europe, Asia and African countries, as well as from the UK.

Our weekly attendance is between 35-45 children, though in practice we are in touch with twice as many families at any one time. People hear about the group by contacting our local council, through word of mouth, and we are also registered on Netmums (where we have been given a very good review). Some of the families are second-generation immigrants, others have come as a result of arranged marriages, and some have arrived in the UK recently to take up study or employment.

One of the reasons for the group’s popularity is that we have a structured afternoon with different activities, refreshments and singing time. Many of the parents are lonely, have no family living in the UK and have few, if any, friends, so we make sure that we place a high emphasis on welcoming these families. Everyone is greeted personally at the door and we are fortunate to have a number of helpers who will chat to people. Our opening song is ‘Welcome, everybody, it’s good to see you here.’ In addition to the needs common in all Parent and Toddler groups, our parents are sometimes in difficult family situations – for example, they may be living with in-laws or new to the country with no friends – and so they welcome practical information. We are aware that to some we may be seen as substitute mothers and grandmothers. From time to time we have parents who cannot speak English and if we cannot find an interpreter we resort to sign language! A problem sometimes is when a group speaks to one another in their own language as this excludes others.

As a group our aim is to accept all who attend, regardless of their faith or background, but we make it clear that the group is part of the Church. At any one time we have Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews and those with a Communist upbringing. Following a terrorist attack in London many Muslims were feeling threatened and under suspicion, but they found acceptance and a non-judgemental attitude in the group. In order to accommodate people’s religious dietary requirements at the Christmas party we invite parents to sign up to a list of food that they will bring. This results in a variety of ethnic dishes.

The craft table is a focal point for the adults and is often a place of conversation discussing differing practices in regard to fasting (Muslims and Hindus) and also the meaning of Christian festivals. Whilst we do not ‘push’ our Christian faith on our families, at Christmas we take the opportunity to tell the Christmas story using puppets during singing time. We also give all the children a Christian book and the parents a small gift. And at Easter we link the craft activity to the Easter story and have a model of an Easter Garden which tends to open up conversations. As a group we sponsor a child through Compassion, an international Christian child advocacy ministry. This has made an impact on the parents, speaking louder than words.

It is a privilege to belong to such a mixed Parent and Toddler group. Small children are no respecter of colour or race and it has been good to see friendships developed between different nationalities. Generally parents have been open to learning about the Christian faith and we have been impressed by the sincerity of their own faith. Bridges are being built in the community as we are getting to know our neighbours and they, in turn, are meeting Christians for the first time.

Supporting parents of additional needs children

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 10:18:32 +0000

In my work at Care for the Family I have the opportunity to speak with many parents of additional needs children. Although, sadly, they are sometimes not well supported, I hear some lovely stories of those who are helped and encouraged by others in their community.

Becoming a parent is a life-changing event for all of us. But whereas most new parents will naturally meet other parents where they can get mutual support (in parent and toddler group, for example), it is much harder for parents of children with additional needs to connect with other parents in a similar situation. This can very often lead to feelings of isolation and being misunderstood.

As a parent and toddler group leader your encouragement and support will be a real lifeline for parents of an additional needs child. Here are some simple tips that will help you and your team to support them:

Parents quickly become the experts on their own child, so a good starting point is to ask them for their ideas about how you can best support them.
Speak to the additional needs child as you would to any child, and talk to their siblings too.
Ask new parents to tell you about their child and actively listen to what they say.
If you want to ask further questions, why not ask about what the child enjoys. Use words like ‘issues’ or ‘difficulties’ rather than the question a friend of mine was once asked: ‘What is wrong with your child?’
Ask whether there is anything you can do to make their and their child’s time in your group more enjoyable. An uninterrupted cup of tea might just make a mum’s day!
Be affirming of their parenting skills and priorities.
Other parents in your group may be anxious about the unpredictable behaviour of some additional needs children. Lead by example in the way you interact with their child. .
Make your toddler group a place where all parents feel supported as they help their children to play and enjoy the company of other children.

Maggie Stapleton and I coordinate Care for the Family’s Additional Needs project which provides befriending support for parents caring for a child with additional needs. We each have a child with additional needs and understand the challenges that parents are facing.

Parents may find it helpful to be able to talk openly with one of our trained befrienders who are in similar parenting situations to them, and they may also find encouragement by signing up to receive our email newsletters.

If you feel this service would be of value to you or someone you know please don’t hesitate to contact us. We can provide you with leaflets to give to parents and would encourage you to make people aware of this project.

Beth Mellor, Parent Support Additional Needs Coordinator

To find out more about the Additional Needs project visit www.careforthefamily.org.uk/additionalneeds, call us on 029 2081 0800 or email mail@cff.org.uk

Read our latest newsletter at www.careforthefamily.org.uk/additionalneeds/newsletter

Fruit cups

website@engagetoday.org.uk (Andy Hurley) — Mon, 14 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000

This recipe can get quite messy, but it’s a great way for toddlers to learn how to hold a knife and slice up some fruit.

You will need:

Bright stickers, feathers, lollipop sticks or scrunched up tissue paper
A selection of fruit
Plastic cups
Plastic knives
Plastic forks
Sticky labels

How to make fruit cups:

Ask the children to decorate the outside of the plastic cup by gluing on feathers or scrunched up tissue paper, or placing some bright stickers on it.
Allow the child to choose which selection of fruit they would like in their fruit cup.
With the knife, cut the fruit up into bite-size pieces. Be aware that some children may need to be helped to hold the knife.
Put the sliced fruit into the plastic cup.
Write the child’s name on a sticky label - some children may be able to do this for themselves.
Attach the plastic fork to the side of the cup with the sticky name label so that it is ready to use when the children eat the fruit later.

If the fruit cup is taken home by the children (though we’d be surprised if it lasts until then!) why not suggest to their parent or carer that they add some squirty cream and some sprinkles to make it an even more colourful fantastic tasty snack.

Do remember to CHECK FOR ALLERGIES before you start and provide hand washing facilities too.