Enabling Environments: Collections - Little creatures

Children are often fascinated by the detail and minutiae of life. Small creatures such as spiders, bees, worms, slugs, snails and other common species that children may come across on a daily basis are easy to study and intriguing to young children. Practitioners can support children’s interest in learning about the real world by providing a good selection of plants to encourage life into the garden, by building bug hotels to encourage insects, and by taking them out on local nature walks. Indoors, butterfly gardens, ant farms and a fish tank for children to explore tadpoles are fascinating additions.

CLOSE OBSERVATION

The term ‘minibeast’ is commonly used as an umbrella term to cover all small creatures. However, according to Jenny McAllister MBE, consultant and in-service trainer for Mindstretchers, it’s better to use the terminology ‘insects, invertebrates and the relevant name of the species’ in favour of bugs and minibeasts. After all, she adds, we want to extend children’s vocabulary, and ‘if they know the names of the dinosaurs then they can learn then names of their native insects’.