Monday 17th February

This week the children continued to develop their friendships with our older friends. The children broke off into smaller groups independently with some choosing to complete jigsaws, others drawing and the other children sharing stories.

Some children enjoyed sharing a story about dinosaurs with a practitioner and two residents. The residents were amazed by the children’s knowledge of dinosaurs as they learned about how small the smallest dinosaur was (about the size of a chicken), what we call a dinosaur who eats meat/plants and how heavy the heaviest dinosaur was. A classic example of children teaching the adults.

Some of the children have enjoyed working with our building resources with one of our residents. They have created a whole host of different structures, using problem solving skills, communication and fine motor skills. One of our residents who is a master paper aeroplane maker, demonstrated his skills to the children and before we knew it we had aeroplanes flying everywhere!

Wednesday 12th February

Today the children enjoyed celebrating Valentines Day with their older friends. We created beautiful heart decorations which we hung from the ceiling, coloured in Valentine's themed sheets and decorated biscuits with icing sugar, chocolate stars and pink sprinkles.

One of the children and their older friend worked really hard and decorated a cake which we shared. It was delicious and definitely the best decorated cake we had ever seen! The children enjoyed marvelling at their friend’s handy work.

As well as celebrating Valentines Day, we have been practising a new song which we hope to perform later in the year so watch this space!

Monday 3rd February

This week the children and their older friends began their Valentines celebrations. We began our day with lots of beautiful drawings and colour by number activities which the grown-ups really do love to engage in. We then moved onto making Valentine cards. We thought about the different colours we associate with St Valentines Day.

In the afternoon, the children and residents supported one another to create beautiful heart pictures. We lay heart stencils onto laminating pouches and filled the hearts with pieces of tissue paper. They were then laminated, cut out and a ribbon placed through to hang them from the windows. They looked beautiful! Everyone was very proud of themselves and so they should be. 

Wednesday 29th January

This week the children were very excited to see their older friends and celebrate Chinese New Year as well as pyjama day. The residents did wonder why the children had their pyjamas on but the children quickly explained it was pyjama day back at nursery. We all got busy colouring lanterns, dragons and even trying our hand at writing ‘Happy New Year’ in Chinese.

Some of the children wanted to decorate the space and began creating multicoloured paper chains. Even some of our older friends helped make decorations with one of our friends making a multicoloured Chinese New Year stick. How very creative! One of the children showed her special dress which she had worn especially for the day. The residents thought it was beautiful!

Monday 20th Jan

This week we continued to create pompoms with the wool and cardboard. The children have been fascinated by how easy it is to produce your own pompom and the residents have thoroughly enjoyed sharing their tips and tricks to make the perfect pompom. Everyone is becoming more and more adventurous and one resident has introduced multicoloured pompoms whilst another has shown the children how to make tassels.

Reading and drawing still remains a huge part of our day and the children often showcase their talents and we even have our own resident artist! The children have made themselves completely at home and feel comfortable within the space, often lounging on chairs whilst chatting to their older friends. The environment the residents have created brings our Childsplay family ethos to life with the care village.

Wednesday 15th January

Today the children enjoyed another visit to one of our favourite places, the care village. The children were eager to get there as we had a special activity we would be attempting that day. The adults had lots of card, wool and scissors in their bags. Yes, you have guessed it, we would be spending the day making pompoms. The children got to work quickly threading their wool through the card. The residents quickly joined in and before we knew it, it was pompoms galore. Some of the residents remembered making pompoms when they were younger and knew all the tricks to get the best out of the wool.

Some of the children continued their interest in board games, matching games and dominoes and the residents were quick to help support them. Our photo wall also proved a highlight this week with one of the residents and children looking at these together and sharing stories of what they have worked on. We had some new residents visit us today and we are very hopeful that they will be there on our next visit.

Monday 6th January

This week we headed back to one of our favourite places, the care village. We were excited to see all our friends and tell them all about what we did over Christmas. They were very excited to see us too and we all chatted about spending time with our families and exchanging gifts. As we engaged in activities with our older friends, we noticed it was beginning to snow again. The children were very excited and immediately ran to the windows to watch the snow come down. Some of the children perched themselves on chairs and peeked over the top to get a different view. We knew we would have to keep a close eye on the weather as the care village is at the very top of a rather steep hill!

 One of the residents showed the children a game someone had given to us as a present. It was draughts. The children took it in turns to move the pieces and learned how to capture each other’s pieces. The children and residents are really enjoying engaging in jigsaws, games and dominoes at the minute. One matching game in particular, was proving to be quite tricky to complete so we decided to change the rules and make up our own. Our older friends decided to turn over four cards instead of two!

This week we introduced the wooden construction blocks and everyone really enjoyed building their own structures. We do need to keep an eye on some of our more competitive residents who try to build bigger and taller than everyone else!

Monday 16th December

Today the children enjoyed their very last visit to the care village of 2024. We had a wonderful time with a Christmas party in the morning where the children enjoyed lots of party games. We played musical bumps, musical statues and some pass the parcel which was a big hit. One of our older friends was particularly good at musical statues and even won a prize!

The children showed off all their best party moves and before we knew it, it was time for a party lunch. We had lots of different party food to eat and share with our older friends. Everyone enjoyed some special Christmas treats before our afternoon began. We shared stories, sang Christmas songs and to end it was hot chocolate all round! What a great end to 2024!

Wednesday 11th December

This week Winton Court was filled with fun and laughter as everyone embraced the Christmas spirit. Everyone chatted happily and the children shared their Christmas lists with their older friends. We began the day with a special treat as the children gave mince pies to the residents!  They were a big hit and heightened the excitement.

Some of the children had brought gifts from home to give to the residents.  They were overwhelmed by thi, and it brought many happy smiles. The tables were filled with Christmas crafts and together the residents and children made some amazing creations. We made Christmas trees and pictures of Santa Claus. Everyone worked together to decorate paper plates and decorate pine cones.

We finished our day with some Christmas dancing and our older friends enjoyed joining in. As this was the last visit before Christmas for this group of children, everyone said a big goodbye to one another and a Merry Christmas.

Monday 2nd December

Today the children thoroughly embraced the Christmas spirit. The Christmas tunes were playing and everyone helped to make decorations which we placed onto the Christmas tree. Once finished we marvelled at how beautiful the decorations looked.

One of our older friends is an amazing artist and loves nothing more than showing off his skills to the children. Today he drew an amazing dinosaur and Christmas tree. The children and residents also enjoyed playing games and jigsaws which was a huge interest today.

One of our residents is amazing at making paper aeroplanes and the children did not let him forget it! The children enjoyed designing their paper and then our special older friend folded the sides to create the plane. We then had aeroplanes flying everywhere! The children giggled with excitement as they attempted to throw their aeroplane the furthest.

Wednesday 27th November

This week the children were in full Christmas swing! They chatted to their friends about what presents they are hoping to receive as well as what they would be doing for Christmas. The children engaged in more singing, stories and drawing (with some children deciding to write their Christmas lists).

Everyone’s drawings seemed to be Christmas related with two special friends drawing a Santa together. Everyone is an artist no matter your age!

As engaged as the children were, there was a sudden commotion outside. The children (and our older friends) raced to the window to see what was happening. It was a very brazen squirrel playing in the garden. Everyone was amazed and watched as the squirrel happily searched for food. He even spotted us at the window and really wasn’t bothered by our presence.

We took some very special wooden people with us and everyone was asked if they could draw themselves. The results were amazing! By the end of the day, we had a whole group of wooden figures adorning the mantlepiece.

After all the fun and games, it was time to head back to nursery but the children didn’t want too! They wanted to stay and play. It won’t be too long before we will be back. Goodbye for now!

Monday 18th November

This week the children visited their friends and as we walked in, we were amazed to see the Christmas decorations were going up. There were beautiful golden stars and throughout the day the staff erected Christmas trees decorated with golden baubles and twinkling lights. It is making us all feel rather Christmassy!

The children enjoyed drawing again today but one of our residents had another suggestion. Why don’t we make paper aeroplanes? Some of the children began decorating the paper whilst our very kind resident turned them into aeroplanes and even constructed lots more for the other children.

We had a plan! We would hold a paper aeroplane race but whose plane would fly the farthest? Only time would tell.

After lunch the race was on. Everyone lined up and one at a time we threw our paper aeroplanes. Some of the residents had clearly been practicing as their planes flew quite far. The children threw their planes and everyone cheered each other on. We had two races and both were won by our residents. The children have planned a rematch for next time. Who will win the next round?

Wednesday 13th November

This week the children have really cemented their friendships with the older friends. We have observed the children’s confidence within the space grow hugely and the children now treat it as an extension of our nursery setting. They know where their equipment is stored and are happy to help themselves as well as gathering resources for their friends. The children are able to identify their friends and have now learned their names. For those children who sat back and initially observed their surroundings, they are now independently seeking out others to engage with. The children have shown us that no matter what age we are, we can all come together to play.

One friendship which has blossomed over the last few months is between one of our three year olds and an 88 year old gentleman. Having the same name and having similar interests and personalities has solidified their friendship which began with a handshake. That is now how they greet each other on every trip. they work together and chat about their lives. They have begun to know each other very well.

Wednesday 31st October

This week at the care village it was all about Halloween. The care village had organised a local group of singers to perform whilst we were there. The children enjoyed listening and clapping along to local Geordie songs.

The afternoon was full of Halloween creativity. The children and residents engaged in colouring in activities, making spiders and reading Halloween stories. A great day was had by all!

Monday 21st October

This week saw the children enjoy spending some quality time with their older friends. We have become very aware of the close relationships which are forming between the residents and the children. The children are finding a ‘special friend’ to work with and they have enjoyed sharing stories about their life with them.

This week we introduced small writing/drawing books for each child and resident. This took the residents back to their childhood as they explained to the children that they were like their school and homework books. The children enjoyed drawing inside their books whilst the adults joined in writing short stories and adding drawings to theirs.

Today the children showed off their creative skills by drawing, painting and making hats. The adults supported the children with their designs and helped to cut and stick, adding wobbly eyes, ribbon, pipes cleaners and different paper shapes. Everyone’s imagination ran wild as the hats became more and more elaborate with extra pieces of card and different shaped card added. It began to get a little competitive between the residents as well. The hats became bigger and better throughout the day.

Wednesday 16th October

Today was our Wednesday groups visit to the care village and as usual the children chatted about their day and who they would be working with. When we arrived, we were surprised that everyone was waiting for us and we had some new residents joining us, who were interested in finding out what we do. We spotted our usual friends and immediately got busy. This week we had some different resources as our group are very creative. The children and residents worked together to produce windmills and decorate fish with ribbons and wobbly eyes. The residents really enjoyed supporting the children as these were both fiddly jobs so both generations had to practice their fine motor skills. The finished results were amazing but it was the working together on these activities which showcased the bonds the children and residents have made.

 The children are now becoming even more familiar with the space and enjoyed choosing their own activities, working together and independently. In the afternoon, we continued our work and before leaving we sang some songs together. One of the residents shared a special song with us too. We are still practicing a rather special song which we hope to showcase to our families later next year.

Monday 7th October

This week we revisited our friends at the care village. We were so happy to see so many of the residents waiting for us and some new faces too! We immediately began to get ready for the day, taking off our shoes, jumpers and coats (it does get very warm in there) and then we selected our resources for the day.

Our resident artist was back ready to show off his skills and support the children’s drawing efforts. He amazes us every week with his talents. This week it was all about Christmas - yes a little early but this is what the children have been chatting about. We had Santas, stars and reindeer.

There was lots of hugs all round this week and we ended our day with lots of singing and action songs. We are practising a special song which we plan on showcasing in the future.

Wednesday 2nd October

This week’s visit to the care home was full of smiles and laughter. This group of children amazed us yet again as they have built up a memory as to where the care village is. They have begun to recognise landmarks on the way and count the speed bumps as we arrive. Before we entered the care village, the children talked about the way we should behave there. Everyone had remembered quiet voices, walking feet and kind hands. As we walked in, it was smiles and waves all round. Everyone greeted us and the children knew exactly what to do. It was shoes, jumpers and coats off and straight to play.

The children selected some books and then chose a special older friend to sit with. Some of the children opted for quiet reading independently which we were not surprised about as it was quiet, warm and comfortable. Other children chose to draw with their friends whilst others chose to play jigsaws and games. Now that we have visited several times we are beginning to observe threads of learning and interests emerging which we hope to turn into a project so watch this space!

Monday 23rd September

The children were very excited to visit their friends at the care village. On our way, the children talked about the route we would take. They knew we went across a bridge and up a bank but this week we identified a new characteristic of our journey - bumps! We counted them as the minibus drove over. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7! Wow, seven bumps and then we arrived.

There was lots of our older friends waiting for us. We waved and said hello as we entered the care village. The children already know the routine so it was shoes and coats off before heading into the big room. The children are quickly learning the grownups names.  Before we knew it, everyone was off getting busy. We are already identifying some shared interests such as animals, space and drawing.

One of the children enjoyed showing his creative skills by drawing lots of shapes whilst some of our older friends drew rockets and crocodiles. We really do have some amazing artists. The children enjoyed experimenting with different drawings resources this week, swapping from felt tip pens to crayons and coloured pencils.

This week we were greeted by some new friends who we enjoyed getting to know. Again, we are beginning to see relationships flourish as the children become even more confident in the space. We were all a little tired at the end of the day and there was definitely some snoozing on the way back to nursery.

Wednesday 18th September

Today we visited the care village with our second group. The children were very excited about visiting and were intrigued about what the ‘care village’ actually is. When we arrived we said our hellos to everyone, introduced ourselves and asked the residents names. We then looked at the resources we have in our cupboard and selected what we wanted to use that day. The children chose threading activities, books, matching dominoes, jigsaws and drawing. We all headed to the big community space where the children chatted with the residents and engaged in activities.

The children and their older friends had a wonderful time getting to know each other. Before we knew it everyone was totally engrossed in their chosen of activity. Our older friends particularly enjoyed sharing books and some of the children enjoyed reading the stories to the adults using the pictures. That is quite a talent! Our visit today was all about making connections with one another and that has definitely happened. We are looking forward to our next visit.