We explore the Eco Garden all year round.

Now the warmer weather is here we have found many creatures at forest school. Lots of the children can sustain their interest in this for long periods of time. They find the minibeasts fascinating.

Adults scaffold and add to children’s play by describing the creatures names and their features. Children noticed how some spiders moved quickly and others more slowly. The children sang Incy Wincy spider and the adults introduced them to more rhymes and songs about the creatures they found such as Wiggly Woo and The Ants Go Marching. This helped the children to remember the names of the creepy crawlies.

Some children showed the school value of bravery by holding a spider.

As part of our learning about living things we met Gary, the Giant African snail.

We observed and touched Gary. It evoked lots of conversation about his shell and his foot. We learnt that Gary has tentacles and uses them to feel, helping him to move. We fed Gary and ensured he had water to drink.

“His shell is hard and that bit soft.”

“Sticky!”

“The shell is swirly, around.”

“He’s eating lettuce.”

“Where’s his mouth?”

“He’s moving . . . slowly.”