Hello Spring!

Hello Spring

As I walked to work this morning I could smell spring in the air; it was the most wonderful experience, especially considering the wet and stormy weather we have had to endure since the start of the year. For me personally, having a toddler and a teenager, Spring means we can get out and about more as a family. Don’t get me wrong, we are not a fair weather family, but it’s just so much more enjoyable when the sun starts to shine and you can hear the birds in the trees and witness nature coming to life around you, which is so valuable for children of all ages to experience. 

Celebrating springtime doesn’t need to involve parting with any money. Like most seasons / events it has been commercialised, but I thought it would be useful to share some ideas that myself and the other ‘Little Acorners’ like to do with our families, as we start to say goodbye to winter: 

1. Scavenger hunts: These can be found in many forms online or you can make your own. Just grab a piece of plain paper list / draw some items that you may see at this time of year ‘Baby lambs, flowers, birds’ (you can make it as simple or as intricate as you wish depending on the age / ability of your child) and then attach it to a clipboard or similar, remember to take a pencil and head out on a walk and task your child/ren with finding and ticking off as many of the items as possible. 

2. Farm visits: There are many farms that are open to the public in our local area. Some you do have to pay for however, Trevaskis Farm is very local to us and they have pigs, sheep and horses that you can take your children to visit. And if you’re lucky enough, there may be piglets! 

3. National Trust: We are well aware that this does involve parting with money BUT many people do have membership cards, especially as it saves a hefty amount on parking at beaches during the summer months. There are several National Trust estates that are worth a visit at this time of year as they start to provide more activities for children. Personal favourites from staff at Little Acorns include Godolphin and Trelissick, which are not too far away and provide enjoyable walks and exploring for the whole family. 

4. Beach visits: We are so lucky to be surrounded with so many beautiful beaches. Springtime is the perfect time to visit the beach as the weather (hopefully) is improved but the beaches are still relatively quiet in comparison to the summer months. There are so many things that your little ones can do during a beach visit; scavenger hunts, beach combing for treasures, collecting beautiful shells, building sandcastles, exploring rockpools. 

5. Pond dipping: Pond dipping is a wonderful opportunity to discover a secret world of creatures. Pond dipping can be done with small nets or better still, jars. At this time of year, with permission from the landowner where the pond is situated, you could collect frogspawn so that the child/ren could observe the frog tadpoles hatching firsthand; there are many guides available online on how to care for tadpoles, I found www.rainydaymum.co.uk particularly useful. 

6. Planting: Spring is the time of year to start planting seeds and bulbs. Currently at Little Acorns, the children have been busy planting flower bulbs, tomatoes and cucumbers. Most supermarkets stock packs of seeds for under £1 and it is a brilliant way for children to interact with nature and observe growth. 

We hope you have enjoyed reading our different ideas and we would love to see photographs of your various springtime exploits. Please share them to our Facebook page or to Class Dojo with the hashtag #hellospring.