Where can I get Autumn resources from?

I get asked all the time...'Where do you get your resources from?'

Firstly, many of the resources we use in Early Years can be collected, reclaimed or re-used for free. Some of my favourite natural Autumn loose parts are;

• Leaves from different trees and different colours
• Dried leaves and flower petals
• Leaf skeletons
• Twigs of different lengths and thickness
• Acorns
• Pine cones
• Moss
• Bark
• Tree cookies
• Tree stumps
• Pumpkins and squash
• Conkers

I also like to add items like:

• Wooden buttons
• Grapat loose parts
• Cotton reels
• Coloured sheets of felt
• Empty picture frames
• Glass beads
• Numicon

Placemats, mirrors, lightboxes and tinkertrays are all good to include alongside too.

When it comes to buying resources i have always worked in schools and settings with very little money to spend on resourcing. Any money that we did have would be spent on;

1. High quality staffing

2. Block Play resources

3. Books

4. Small world imaginative play

I feel that when we spend our budget in this way we support open ended and holistic child led learning. We also have the staffing in place to support, challenge and extend the learning. 

Block Play

Block play is one resource that allows all areas of learning to happen and is great for supporting child led play and exploration. I have always invested in buying unit blocks from Community Play Things as i believe these are well made and due to the way they're constructed allow for so many mathematical opportunities. It takes time to develop a block collection and we put a plan together to invest in adding to our blocks each year.

There are so many possibilities for block play (we look at these with Dr Diane Kashin and Cindy Green in our Hygge in the Early Years Accreditation) that to name a few include team work, story telling, using the imagination, comparing and counting, symmetry and problem solving. 

The wonderful thing about block play is that we can combine loose parts and small world play into it as well. 

Books

I try to buy books from independent bookshops and stockists wherever i can. I also think it's important to go and check out new children's books to keep your practice exciting and inspired. If you're local to me in Leeds there are two bookshops i can highly recommend; The Little Bookshop (a dedicated children's only bookshop) and the book shop in Salts Mill at Saltaire World Heritage Site. 

Every so often i like to do an audit of my books to make sure i have different areas of the curriculum covered, check they don't look tatty and to make sure i'm celebrating diversity in my collection. I love having books with no words, information books, poetry, collections of favourite authors and traditional tales. The beautiful nature art books by Naturally Creative Early Years invite children to respond in such a creative way. 

I like to have a cosy reading area as well as dotting books around my areas of provision to support child interest. 

You can find a link to my 50 Great Children's Nature Books Here

Small World Play

My small world resources have been collected over time and some we've bought from shops and others we have managed to pick up on free cycle sites or ebay at a much lower cost. I'm going to share with you some of the brands I enjoy buying (not an ad) and then you can spend time searching for these in sales and discount stores. 

If you haven't worked with me before you might not know that i think we need to get the balance right in creating beautiful play spaces. I like to invest time in setting up enchanting play spaces for children using small world and pay attention to the small details. However, i don't just try to replicate something i've seen online but instead link it to what my children are interested in. I then ask myself what can i do to extend, challenge or support this interest or question? When setting up an invitation to play i like to ask myself- does this look exciting enough that i would wan't to play or work here. 

I discuss child led learning more and setting up provocations to support this in my Hygge in the Early Years Accreditation. 

I like to use wooden small world figures for younger children as these are more robust and can be taken outside. Eric and Albert create beautiful natural small world animals and figures as seen in this photo along with the Grimms fire and Holztiger bear. 

 One of the best purchases i've made are the Papoose felted trees for each season. As these are so open ended i can use these in my nature shelf set ups, block play and every day scenes inside and out. 

I like to set up little nooks of curiosity for children to explore and have a collection of different types of homes and structures. This felted pumpkin home is made by Papoose. 

We Are Little Wonders also have a wonderful natural collection of small world figures that are beautiful and bring enchantment to the play. Along with their small world resources that support mathematical development. 

When we take the time to collect and invest in open ended resources it opens up the play and offers endless learning opportunities!