With so many different aspects to explore it is so much fun and a really busy time for us, one activity i had planned for this week was creating/ building a ladybird house sent to me from Suttons Seeds to be able to put outside in our outdoor area, hopefully to attract and give shelter to some ladybirds.
This kind of activity is always a huge hit with the kids as it is something different and new and they love learning new things. As we had been doing some craft work last week making ladybirds it all fitted in and followed on nicely. The house comes with a 16 page project book which we explored at registration time as an introduction to the activity, some natural materials to provide insulation and shelter inside the hollow of the house and a magnifying glass to explore when the bugs move in. It was quite exciting for the children to place it outside and a job to stop them wanting to keep checking on it every 5 mins. We are hoping we may find some other species of insects that too take home in the house which we can explore.
Teaching children why we need to help and encourage growth of insects, trees, plants and wildlife is an important part of helping them grow, it teaches them we need to live alongside them and not be afraid, how we benefit from them, the benefit of nurturing, growth and life cycles. Seeing the children get something out of doing an activity and show an interest is really rewarding and makes the effort of preparing and researching more than worth it.
