Nursery World - Learning & Development: Cold Climates

Children at a primary school in rural Derbyshire have been making
the most of the weather to explore the properties of snow and ice.
Marianne Sargent paid them a visit.

Last month, Chinley Primary School in Derbyshire was nestled under a blanket of thick snow. During the snowfalls, Reception teacher Vicki Cawthorn had observed the children throwing and building with fresh snow, and stamping on and kicking frozen and compacted snow. So she decided to set up an afternoon of adult- and child-led investigations into the properties of ice - and I tagged along.

She began by producing three pieces of ice and explaining to the children that they would be carrying out a test to find out where in the setting the ice would melt the quickest.

After some discussion it was decided that one piece of ice should be put outside in the snow, another next to a radiator and another elsewhere in the classroom. The children were then invited to record their votes as to which piece of ice they thought would melt first.

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