I’m a big believer in the importance a very long summer holiday. Like many of the most academically successful countries in the world, we take an extended 10-week break. Learning never stops, it just takes a different form. This post looks at some of the benefits – I’m sure you’ll be able to relate! … More The Benefits of the Long Summer Holiday
With the onset of the sun, our lives have been consumed with all things cricket related. During the many hours spent watching Bean10 play, I’ve had plenty of opportunity to observe and reflect on the huge benefits to be gained from being part of any team sport.
“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” Phil Jackson
… More The Benefits of Children Playing Team Sport
Passion is like the heart that focuses us on our goal. Resilience is like the blood that keeps the heart pumping. Together they make grit and after years of research Angela Lee Duckworth has proved that people with more grit are much more likely to succeed in their life goals and be happier too. Who wouldn’t want that for their children? This post looks at the resilience element, highlighting ways you can help your child learn this key skill. … More Teaching Your Child to be Resilient
As psychologist Claudia Hammond says, “The more we move away from our regular routine, and the more conscious we are of what we’re doing, the more slowly time seems to pass.”
So, to live in the moment, we need to actively engage the underused conscious parts of our mind – those needed for learning new skills and trying new activities or novel experiences.
This blog post (co-written by Bean11 and me) shows how we incorporated a series of microadventures into our Devon holiday to do just that. … More Microadventures in Devon
The Beans are currently obsessed with anything spy related. So, when a friend laid out his idea for a secret spy mission which would see the children navigating themselves across the countryside on foot and by kayak, solving puzzles and collecting important documents on route, I knew this would be right up their street! This post documents their first two missions, along with plans for future assignments. Super simple to set up, hopefully it will inspire you to plan one of your own for some summer spying fun! … More Secret Spy Missions
This week, instead of an adventure holiday in the Lakes which we’d had to cancel, we decided to set ourselves the crazy challenge of completing an endurance week from home… With four days of demanding physical challenges and one day of mental/practical tasks, this week has pushed us all out of our comfort zone both physically and mentally. It’s been fun and tough at the same time, and the kids have been brave, overcoming pain, motivation issues and exhaustion to complete their ambitions. In the process, I’ve watched as their mindsets have strengthened and their self-confidence and self-esteem have bloomed. Read on to find out what we got up to. (Please note that I spent some time ordering the posts into categories, so now you should be able to find a post more easily by clicking on the menu at the top of the site). … More Our Endurance Week from Home
The final instalment in a series of posts about using the lockdown opportunity to slow down and patiently show our little ones how to complete vital life skills.
Today we review some of the crucial, but less tangible or concrete skills, such as the ability to direct their own learning; manage their time well; effectively communicate; think critically and solve problems; and help others and the environment. … More Teaching Them Life Skills During Lockdown – Part 4
The third installment in a series of posts about using the lockdown opportunity to slow down and patiently show our little ones how to complete vital life skills.
Today’s offering is about encouraging your children to take more accountability in helping care for their home, garden and possessions, combined with ideas for involving them in planning your free time together. … More Teaching Them Life Skills During Lockdown – Part 3 (Home Care & Leisure Time)
The second installment in a series of posts about using the lockdown opportunity to slow down and patiently show our little ones how to complete vital life skills. Today’s offering is about the three Fs: Food, Fire and Finances! … More Teaching Them Life Skills During Lockdown – Part 2 (Food, Fire & Finances)
I am most definitely guilty of doing too much for my little Beans, tasks they most certainly could do for themselves – like cooking, washing or slapping on their sunscreen. It comes from a place of love, but am I really doing them any favours by removing these mundane tasks from their plates?
This is the first in a series of posts about using the lockdown opportunity to slow down and patiently show our little ones how to complete vital life skills – today’s offering is about helping them manage their physical and mental health.
… More Teaching Them Life Skills During Lockdown – Part 1 (Physical & Mental Health)
Five escape the classroom 