Educator Invitations and Provocations Community Spotlight – Bee Week, National Reconciliation Week, Pirates and More.

 I've always found it inspirational to take a peek at other educator invitations and provocations for early learning.

Sometimes we just need a little help to think outside the box and use the materials and spaces we already have available in different ways to engage and connect with young children.

Some elements will work for the resources, environments and children you currently work with...and some won't. But it's always interesting to take a look through a different lens at how others approach early learning experiences, activities and environment setups.

My advice to educators though is always 'keep it simple' and REALISTIC.  

And that's why I'm so thankful to have a group filled with thousands of diverse, creative and generous people - all with an interest in early childhood and early learning.

With that in mind I'm so pleased to introduce you to our new monthly series...

Community Spotlight -  Playful Ideas FROM Educators FOR Educators

Each month I'll be selecting some of the most engaging ideas from our Empowered Educator Facebook Group and sharing them with you. 

I will feature amazing activities and ideas from REAL educators participating in our group and social communities...so let's get started and take a look at Community Spotlight #1....

World Bee Day Setups and Invitations to Play

Last month we celebrated World Bee Day. World Bee Day celebrates our hard-working little pollinators and it was lovely to see many Empowered Ed members making bees the focus of the week.

Along with the invitations and provocations, educators actively encouraged bees to their own gardens too. You can see their work below: 

Anju from Sai Family Daycare shared this BEE-utiful idea ...

Anushka from Om Family Day Care shared this colourful bee themed provocation with us. 

Debbie shared that they celebrated World Bee Day by creating awareness of the plight of our Bee population and their value to the environment.

The parents participated by planting a flower in a recycled pot and taking it home to their garden

If you want to encourage bees and other living creatures to your garden this post I shared recently has lots of child friendly ideas. 

National Reconciliation Week Activities

National Reconciliation Week was a topic of discussion in our groups last week and Reconciliation Australia’s theme for 2021, More than a word. Reconciliation takes action urges the reconciliation movement towards braver and more impactful action. The Reconciliation Australia website has some resources that are worth checking out. 

Below you can see some of the ways our Empowered Ed members focused on National Reconciliation Week. 

The images below were shared by Anju from Sai Family Day Care

Vicki from Little Nature's Family Day Care shared how they focused on National Reconciliation week.  

Invitations and Provocations 

I love taking a peek into our member's environments and I know you'll love seeing what they've been up to as well. Check out some of these fun ideas below. 

Abigail from Learning Through Play Family Day Care showed us how the children were having fun with the tuff tray. You can find more community tuff tray ideas HERE.

Anju didn't let the fact that we don't get snow stop her from setting up a snow sensory bin - shaving cream was a fun alternative. 

Cindy from Cindy's Family Day Care had children asking for a pirate theme and she certainly delivered one! How much fun does this look! I'm sure a lot of imaginative play took place there. See some more fun ways to encourage dramatic play HERE.

Everyone LOVED this idea from Desi from Little Mini Lighthouse Family Day Care - she used old frames and added them to her sensory invitations - what a great idea!

Try an op shop or garage sale to get your own frames or ask parents for donations.  

Desi also explored Norway  and the Northern lights. The children had lots of fun making different coloured lights on the blinds.

The children also enjoyed exploring the doll and different pictures like the colourful houses in Norway. What a beautiful idea! 

Another popular idea was this upcycled art activity from Desi - painting on old records. Just make sure you're not painting over a valued classic! 

Rachael had a mini beast focus and made this engaging mini beast small world. The children then chose a mini beast to paint. 

Rebecca set up some sensory and messy fun with chia slime. You can find a chia slime recipe HERE or see some of my favorite child safe slime recipes HERE.

We always love upcycling boxes and items from the junk box and this car wash small world from Vicki looks like fun! See more upcycled cardboard box ideas HERE.

Tammy also upcycled some cardboard (and added some bubble wrap too) for a fun and messy painting experience.