At music club on Mondays, children learn all about instrumental sounds, rhythm, tempo and pitch in a fun and interactive way. To enhance this learning further, we use Jo Jingles. Music ignites all areas of children’s development and skills for school readiness, including intellectual, social-emotional, motor, language and overall literacy. It helps their body and mind work together. Exposing children to music during early development helps them learn the sounds and meanings of words. Dancing to music helps children build motor skills while allowing them to practice self-expression. For children and adults, music also helps strengthen memory skills. Musical experiences teach children about emotion, language and abstract concepts in a simple manner, all important to help children prepare for school.

Cosmic Yoga is an interactive adventure which builds strength, balance and confidence. Physically, it enhances children’s flexibility, coordination and body awareness. In addition, yoga improves on children’s concentration and brings in a sense of calmness and relaxation.

• Yoga helps different behaviours in children by being aware of their emotions and how to keep themselves calm  

• Yoga helps children manage their anxiety 

• Yoga boosts children's self-esteem 

• Yoga increases children's body awareness and mindfulness 

• Yoga enhances children's concentration and memory 

• Yoga develops children's strength and flexibility 

Every Wednesday, a qualified French teacher takes pre-school children in small groups to teach them French through games, activities and simple worksheets. At Little Owls, we feel that another language can hugely benefit children’s knowledge and understanding of the world, confidence and self-esteem. Importantly, when children learn multiple languages at a young age, they develop a life-long love of communicating with others. When young children learn about the structure of other languages, their ability in English is also enhanced.

Why should learning another language be started at such a young age?

Studies confirm learning additional languages increases critical thinking skills, creativity and flexibility of the mind in young children. Pupils who learn a foreign language outscore their non-foreign language learning peers in verbal and math standardised tests. This indicates that learning an additional language is a cognitive activity, not just a linguistic one.

The rubrics of spoken English are practised and enhanced through songs, stories and nursery rhymes, and modelled and explored as the children enter their make-believe world of role play.

When French lessons are introduced, without even realising they are learning a second language. Using the mediums of music and drama, children can be heard spontaneously singing along to French songs. Simply, the younger the learner, the better they are at mimicking new sounds and adopting pronunciation. The brain is open to new sounds and patterns in preadolescence.

Science club was introduced into Owls that we do every Thursday before STEM was introduced. Children are naturally drawn to science-based activities. Added to the fact that they appeal to their curiosity and desire to make sense of the world, the best early years science activities are often hands-on (and sometimes messy) and produce exciting (and sometimes unexpected) results. 

As you can see from the pictures, all the children are engaged and focused on the activities set and many ask questions as to what will happen next. Science activities are so important from such a young age because children learn best when they interact with materials and observe the results.  In addition to this It helps: 

• Nurture an understanding of cause and effect, trial and error 

• develop an understanding of the world 

• develop analytical and problem-solving skills 

Children engage in playful STEM experiences they hear and use new words and engage with new concepts. This is why science (STEM)  is such an important part of a child’s learning so they can become curious, ask questions about the world around them and learn from hands on experiences.  

By far the most exciting, with access to acres of safe woodlands, every Friday small groups of children experience learning in the outdoors. Activities are designed to develop self-awareness and self-regulation, learning all about the natural changes through first-hand experiences bringing out the young explorer in all our pre-school children. Structured activities are designed to spark children’s investigation, problem-solving and logic skills. They also gain danger awareness and develop more empathy to nature including the creatures that share our world.