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Two year olds Bertie and India are looking at an insect book with their practitioner. They look for insects in the long grass and talk about what they can see and what they know. The practitioner has also put out a plate with some mashed banana to attract insects.

Good for looking at

• Understanding the world
• Language development
• Conversations
• Talking about what they know
• Sustained shared thinking
• Maths
• Forest nursery/kindergarten
• Nature pedagogy

Two year olds Bertie and India are looking at an insect book with their practitioner. They look for insects in the long grass and talk about what they can see and what they know. The practitioner has also put out a plate with some mashed banana to attract insects.

Notice

What do you notice about:

• What cues can you see that show what the children are interested in? (Look out for non-verbal and body language as well as spoken language)
• How are the children learning? Which areas of development, engagement and characteristics of learning can you observe?
• In what ways does the adult support the children’s learning?
• How does the environment support the children’s learning?

Reflect

What are your thoughts about:

• How were the children trying to communicate?
• What and how were they learning?
• The children’s level of involvement in the subject?
• The role of the adult in this interaction – how did she support the children?
• The value of this type of investigation and interaction for the children?

Respond

What would you do to:

• Support the children’s interest in the natural world?
• Respond to the children’s thoughts and ideas? What if you don’t know the answer to their questions?
• Extend their learning – e.g. drawing pictures of what they see, recording their observations, researching, different methods of attracting insects?
• Model investigative behaviours for young children and show how useful they are?

What next:

• Do you need to enable children to spend time in nature to stimulate their curiosity in the natural world?