Day Four in Norway
17 Oct, 2014
Thursday 16th October 2014 I have met so many inspiring adults on my journey to and around Trondheim, Norway both Norwegian and Irish. The group I am travelling with are a wealth of information and knowledge in their own right and include academics, childcare committee representatives, early years practitioners, early years trainers, inspectorate and more. The sharing of our reflections have been a learning experience for us as we explore each other's perspectives. We are also a good looking bunch - just take a look at our group photo! Today started with lectures at Queen Maud University College on the subjects of municipality supervision and…
Wednesday 15th October 2014 Today we were warned to wear good walking shoes/ boots as our day begun with a bus journey and 15 minutes walk to Haikasen Nature barnehage (Childcare facility) - a one year old building set in beautiful forest surroundings with a forest school philosophy of valuing nature and being in the outdoors. Facilities for children and staff were impressive with lots of space, shower areas and equipment to protect staff from repetitive injuries. The sun was shining and the sky a clear blue and I felt really fortunate to have such a fantastic learning opportunity. The male principal/ leader discussed his…
Tuesday 14th October 2014 A second day at Queen Maud University College (QMUC) campus today. Something that strikes me is how children are invited and welcomed into this adult setting. Of course it makes sense that people training to become early years teachers need to be around children. Common sense is common in Norway! We had several lectures today including: - Lecture on physically active play in Kindergarten - Lecture on children with special needs in Norwegian day cares - Lecture on mentoring new teachers - a state funded national development programme. There was a lot of information much of which I am still…
Monday 13th October 2014 Our day begun after breakfast at 7am with a walk through Trondheim to Bakklandet Barnehage. A direct translation for barnehage is child garden. Many of us are familiar with the term kindergarten but in Norway barnehage is the term used for any type of childcare for children aged 0 to 6 years. Features of the barnehage we visited included low ratios, small groups, free access for the children between rooms, basic equipment and a large amount of time spent outdoors. The atmosphere was relaxed and unhurried. The teachers referred to as the grown ups participate in children's play rather than…
Sunday 12th October 2014 After a day of travelling our I (Sarah - Manager in Crawford Childcare in Glanmire) have reached my final destination for a study visit - Trondheim in Norway! Norway has a reputation for high quality provision of childcare particularly in the areas of outdoors, men in childcare and inclusion. By accepting the placement I have agreed to share my learning through a number of mediums. Hopefully you will enjoy my updates over the week - I'll be sure to keep you posted ! I have been very fortunate in being one of 25 participants selected from across the country by Early…
Any spare frying pans, old pots or plastic bottles????Here at Crawford Childcare in Glanmire we aim to promote outdoor play. We are very fortunate to have 2 large play areas as well as 2 large grass areas. We are currently looking at adding to one of these grass areas to create a play space and garden using natural materials. Many of you have probably spotted the tyres donated by More Tyres and Alan’s Tyres which we are using to define distinct areas as well as the large tractor tyres we use as sand and mud pits donated by one of families at the creche! This…
Recently Joan Ann from the Road Safety Authority came to visit us at the Crawford Childcare to tell us all about how to be safe on the roads with our children. A lot of people forget about simple things like, does your child know what colour the reverse light on your car? Often children don’t. She advised it might be better to reverse into a space rather than driving into it, something so simple like this can reduce the child fatalities we are having on Irish roads. The Back to School Campaign has returned this year and the RSA are sending out free high visibility…
In the baby room at Crawford Childcare in Glanmire we have noticed that Mother Nature keeps changing her mind regarding the weather. So instead of planning for a sunny or rainy day the babies have decided to prepare for both by making some colourful sun/ rain umbrellas. The umbrellas will be used for some ‘Singing in the rain’ as well as keeping us shaded for when ‘Mr Sun does shine down’. We used paper plates and lollipop sticks to make our multi purpose umbrellas. Ellie and Roisin really enjoyed choosing their rainbow colours for their umbrellas. While we were making our brollies it began to…
Here at Crawford Childcare Creche, Glanmire we use the Montessori method. The Montessori curriculum consists of practical life, sensorial, mathematics, language and culture. Eva walks to the shelf and picks up the tray carefully and walks to the table where she sits down with her work. She begins to polish the little shoe meticulously and intricately. A practical life activity has begun. Neave and Michaela walk to the basket to get their mats, they roll them out carefully on the ground. They decide to work with the brown broad stairs and place them gently on the mat. They build a castle first before identifying the…
The toddlers have decided to take off their shoes and socks and keep them off as they play in the sand and run around our play area. The sun is out and the tractor tyres have plenty of fresh play sand in for digging and exploring. Some of the girls start to make sand cakes and buns, using their spades, buckets and pans. Lucy decides to take off her shoes and socks and begins to run around the playground. I remind her to put them back on. The toddlers know very well that we want them to keep their shoes on. Not only for social…
