Children in Yellow Room at St Werburgh’s Park Nursery School have been enjoying a rich exploration of the natural world this month through the core book Nature Trail by Benjamin Zephaniah, sparking thoughtful conversations and curiosity about the living things they share their environment with.
Inspired by the book, children have been heading into the garden on bug hunts, carefully searching for mini beasts and learning how to name and identify what they find. They have been talking about different habitats and what insects need to survive, developing their understanding of the world around them whilst building new vocabulary through shared discussion.
Back indoors and outside, children have been busy creating new homes for the bugs they discovered. Using scissors to snip legs for paper caterpillars supported the development of fine motor skills and hand strength, whilst using tweezers to rescue bugs from a spider’s web made using tape on the sand table encouraged concentration, coordination and careful control.
These playful, hands-on experiences support children’s confidence, problem-solving and independence whilst nurturing respect for living things and the environment through meaningful exploration and creative play.