Kim's Childminding Services - Portchester

We had a busy half term week keeping cool in the heatwave with the paddling pool and water table 🌞💦 We finished the week with a big splash at Hilsea Splash Park! Everyone was so excited to get the train there and the bus home — such a fun little adventure for us all 🚆🚌
Next up… the Summer holidays already 🫣 How has this year gone so quickly?!

🚌✨ Last week we had a wonderful trip to Fareham! ✨🚌
The children were so excited to travel on the bus and behaved beautifully throughout the journey. They confidently said hello to the bus driver, waved 👋 to passengers and loved singing songs together — especially The Wheels on the Bus 🎶

At the library, the children enjoyed exploring books 📚, completing puzzles 🧩 and taking part in mark making activities ✏️. After lots of fun, we enjoyed a picnic lunch together before catching the bus home.
It was a fantastic day full of learning, confidence building and lovely memories with friends ❤️

“Little Gardeners at Work 🌱”

The children have been busy little gardeners planting their very own sunflower seeds in small pots! 🪴 From the very beginning, they have loved caring for their plants — gently watering them each week and checking closely for any tiny changes. 💧☀️
We’ve had lots of lovely conversations about what plants and flowers need to grow big and strong, learning that they need sunlight, warmth and water to thrive 🌱🌞. The children also compared this to what we need to grow healthy and strong too — good food, sleep, exercise, love and care ❤️

As our sunflowers grew taller and taller, it was time to move them into bigger pots! The children were so excited to see how much they had changed. We had great fun measuring the tallest and smallest plants, comparing sizes and watching each sunflower grow in its own unique way 📏🌻

This activity has been a wonderful hands-on way to explore nature, responsibility, growth and early maths skills — and most importantly, the children have absolutely loved every minute of it! 😊✨

📚🔺⭕ Shape Hunting Adventures! ⭕🔺📚

We enjoyed a lovely walk to the library, continuing our minibeast and rabbit theme with lots of beautiful books and story time fun 🐞🐇📖

On our journey, the children became little shape detectives! We spotted triangles, circles and even heart shapes all around us — in buildings, road signs and even in our lunch! 🍞🧀🚦🏠
From triangle sandwiches and circular crackers to roof tops, traffic signs and windows, the children loved identifying shapes in the world around them while counting how many we could find along the way 👀🔢

These everyday experiences support so many areas of Early Years learning including: ✨ Shape recognition and early maths skills
✨ Number recognition and counting
✨ Language development through discussion and observation
✨ Understanding the world by exploring our local environment
✨ Physical development through walking and road safety awareness
✨ Encouraging curiosity, confidence and independent thinking
Learning through play and real-life experiences is always the best kind of learning 💛

A lovely day of learning and exploration in the woods 🌿✨
The children enjoyed collecting pinecones, counting as we gathered them, and spotting birds and butterflies along the way. We developed our physical skills by balancing on logs and stepping across stones, building confidence with every step.
We explored different leaves—talking about their shapes, colours, and textures 🍃—and sang our favourite nursery rhymes as we walked 🎶

We used our pinecones for a creative activity, decorating them using a range of materials. This encouraged imaginative thinking, fine motor skills, and self-expression.

This experiences supported all areas of the EYFS:
• Communication and Language – conversations, new vocabulary, singing rhymes
• Physical Development – balancing, walking, fine motor skills during decorating
• Personal, Social and Emotional Development – confidence, turn-taking, shared experiences
• Literacy – listening to rhymes, mark-making during creative play
• Mathematics – counting pinecones, comparing sizes and quantities
• Understanding the World – exploring nature, observing wildlife and seasonal changes
• Expressive Arts and Design – decorating pinecones and creative exploration
A wonderful mix of outdoor adventure and creative learning 💚

We had such a lovely day at Hill Head Beach! 🌊☀️
To celebrate Earth Day, the children enjoyed exploring the natural environment—building and decorating sandcastles, discovering different textures, and hunting for beautiful shells and stones.
We got creative with shadow drawings in the sunshine and had lots of imaginative play—dinosaurs, volcanoes, and even mermaid tails! 🦖🧜‍♀️
We finished our day with a picnic and a relaxing seaside walk. A perfect day full of smiles, creativity, and fresh sea air! 💛

A busy start to April, with a fun-filled Easter holidays. We enjoyed lots of outings, including trips to local playgrounds, parks, and the castle. We also had a lovely visit to the farm and spent time exploring the nearby horse fields and library.