Many childcare centres across the country are now pulling double duty: caring for infants and toddlers during the school day but school-age students before and after school.
Here are 4 great ways to upgrade your childcare space for older students.
As childcare providers you know that safety is paramount. In a centre encouraging self-directed activity and clean up, storage of age and size inappropriate toys and resources is essential in a mixed age environment.
Community Playthings has beautiful wooden storage units for various rooms and purposes.
but can be locked too. Roll out and unlock for when your older charges arrive for independent access to board games, puzzles, as well as delicate arts and crafts materials. Keeps materials tidy and organized while fostering responsibility in your school age students.
Need more storage for creative activities? Supply Unit and Creative Unit store all art essentials in small totes and cups, allowing students to keep materials neatly organized developing independence. These units are mobile with the wheels down but practically immovable with the wheels flipped up.
In a school with iPads and other tablets? Tech Tub2 holds up to 6 devices with protection and security. With a handle on top, you can easily carry around your tablets or store tablets while charging them.
2. Build blocks
It may seem strange to suggest block play for school age children. But pick the right blocks, suggest a few challenges – like make a block roll up hill – and you might be surprised, how engaged your older children can be, unplugged.
Community Playthings Unit Block Setshave a variety of shapes and the proportionality to explore key concepts in physics, math, and art. Since blocks are building tools, they need to be accurately cut, and Community Playthings is meticulous. They measure their blocks to the nearest .02 mm or 1/100th of an inch! While the maple hardwood construction is durable and satisfying to handle.
For more loose part exploration, the Connetix Magnetic Creative Pack and Magnetic Ball Run Pack are perfect resources for an open-ended play. Children can connect various shapes and colours of pieces together to build simple to more complex structures such as castles, rockets, tall walls, ball runs, bridges and towers.
3. Indoor outdoor
Polydron - XL Geo Dome invites children to gross motor activities indoors and out. This set is ideal to activate gross and fine motor skills plus concepts of geometry, construction, and interactive play with this large & chunky 62 piece set.
Look for other full size building options, these encourage socializing through group building. With Outlast blocks, children of all ages can build indoors and out, structures they can climb and jump off of. Add the Outlast Flow Pan and ramps for investigation of the power of water, dams, gravity and the strategizing that are the precursor to coding skills.
While Rigamajig sets, with their pulley’s ropes and gears, prompt older children to experiment with simple machines and life-size engineering. For more sophisticated builds and inspiration, you can find lots of plans and on their website.
Dusy Tools are a great way for young makers to explore woodworking safely. The Dusy-Saw has an easy-to-grip handle and child-safe blade and comes with a specially designed guide that keeps little hands safe. While the Dusy Work Bench provides a stable surface for all kinds of creative projects. You can add Dusy Screwdriver, Drill, Workbox to expand activities indoors and out.
4. Stock up on Arts and Crafts
Quality open-ended resources are far more versatile and age-neutral than ones that focus on an end product. Resources like Crayola Air Hardening Clay, Crayola oil pastels and Chalk Pastels Classpack can inspire student age artists, providing endless possibilities with a wide variety. While the rich hues of Corello tempera are a valued addition for your creative arts atelier. With quality pigments that encourage colour mixing, the creative process is sure to be engaging and satisfying.
