Tarnitots Childminding

06/10/2026

05/10/2026

I’ve been absolutely LOVING receiving messages like this from past mindees who have moved on to their next settings.

Knowing that something I taught them when they were with me is still being remembered, used and shared with their new friends makes my heart so happy ❤️

It’s so easy to think that childminding is just about looking after little ones while parents are at work, but it’s so much more than that.

We help little people grow, learn, gain confidence, become independent and develop those all important skills they need for their next big step.

From learning to share, communicate and listen, to putting on their own coats, using scissors, making friends, exploring their imagination and even making binoculars 😂

Those everyday little moments are helping to build the foundations for when they move on to nursery, preschool and eventually school.

And when I get a message telling me they’re using something they learnt with me to help other children WOW. 🥹❤️

That’s the bit you don’t always see.
The little lessons, the confidence, the memories and the skills stay with them long after they leave your setting.

And that’s why I absolutely LOVE what I do.

Childminders really do help shape little people for the next chapter of their journey. 🌈✨

24/09/2026

🎶 IT MIGHT LOOK LIKE JUST MUSIC BUT IT’S SO MUCH MORE

Every week we head off to Lindy Lou’s music class and the excitement from the children is just the best 🥰

They sing, dance, play instruments, copy actions, make friends and have a good old giggle but underneath all that fun, there’s so much learning happening.

Through our music sessions, the children are developing
🎵 Speech & language listening, singing, learning new words and joining in with familiar songs.
🥁 Physical skills dancing, clapping, shaking instruments and developing coordination and rhythm.
💗 Confidence & social skills joining in with a group, taking turns, sharing and building confidence.
🧠 Attention & memory remembering actions, recognising familiar songs and anticipating what comes next.
🎨 Creativity & expression exploring sounds, movement and expressing themselves in their own way.

And it fits so beautifully alongside the EYFS, because learning at this age doesn't have to mean sitting at a table with worksheets.

Sometimes learning looks like dancing around a room with a tambourine.
Sometimes it sounds like 10 little voices singing at completely different speeds.🤣
And sometimes it’s simply a child who was too shy to join in one week, suddenly standing up and joining everyone the next. 🥹💕
That’s the magic of play based learning.

As a childminder, I love being able to give the children these experiences opportunities to explore, learn, socialise, build confidence and most importantly, have fun.

And judging by the excitement when I say Are you ready for music class?
I think they approve 😂🎶💕

20/09/2026

THE BEHIND THE SCENES OF A CHILDMINDER

Sunday = selfcare, rest and recharging.

Well kind of.

When you’re a childminder and you’re also building your own little business, there’s actually SO much that happens behind the scenes that nobody really sees.

The children might not be here on a Sunday, but my brain certainly doesn’t seem to know that!

With a new season comes new topics, themes, activities and ideas to plan.

But there’s also the less exciting (but VERY important) stuff

📚 Keeping up with CPD (continued professional development)
🩹 Checking first aid kits are fully stocked and everything is still in date
📋 Making sure paperwork and records are up to date
💷 Keeping accounts and funding information in check
📆 Planning ahead for the weeks to come
🧠 Trying to remember EVERYTHING that needs doing.

And I’ve realised that if I keep all of this floating around in my head, I’m going to need a filing cabinet for my brain.

So I’ve invested in a planner.

One place to keep my planning, ideas, reminders, CPD, business bits and all those little jobs that pop into my head at random times of the day.

Now I just need to remember to keep the planner somewhere I actually remember to look at it every day.

Because apparently being organised requires you to remember where you put the thing that is supposed to help you be organised.

But, the behind the scenes work is such a big part of running a childminding business.

It might not always be the pretty, fun side that gets photographed, but it’s what helps me provide a safe, engaging and well planned environment for the little ones in my care.

Now where did I put that planner? 👀😂

09/09/2026

We’ve had a lovely couple of weeks since being back after the summer it’s been so nice seeing all the children again and getting back into our usual busy days!

We’ve already been keeping ourselves busy with our farm visits,lots of park play and getting stuck into our new Autumn activities.

This week we also tried out a new messy play and sensory group, which the children absolutely loved!

It’s been so lovely watching them get stuck back into everything and seeing how excited they are to explore, play and try new things.

For our little ones under 2, all of these experiences are such an important part of their learning. At this age, they learn so much through exploring, playing and experiencing things for themselves.

Whether they’re climbing and balancing at the park, exploring different textures at messy play, meeting the animals at the farm or picking up leaves and noticing all the changes Autumn brings, they’re developing their physical skills, communication, confidence and understanding of the world around them.

And of course, they’re having lots of fun while they do it 🥰

I love being able to follow their interests and give them lots of opportunities to explore things at their own pace.

Here’s to lots more Autumn adventures, messy hands and happy little faces over the next few weeks 🍂🤎

19/08/2026

Having a break to spend time with my own family for a while. Back week beginning 1st September I will respond to any questions or messages then. Hope you enjoy your own time with your little ones. 😊

17/08/2026

Keeping cool during our 5th heatwave.

It’s officially another scorcher, so we’ve been finding lots of fun ways to keep cool while still learning through play 💦

Last week we made our very own frozen animal blocks and the children absolutely LOVED it.

They spent hours investigating how they could free the animals, using different tools and experimenting with different ways to melt and break through the ice.
And of course, there was lots of communication and language happening along the way.
We made animal noises, named the animals, copied words and talked about what was happening as the ice slowly melted.

What looked like a simple bit of icy fun was actually packed full of learning problem solving, curiosity, fine motor skills, communication, vocabulary, turn taking and lots of independent thinking.

Most importantly they were having SO much fun.
Who knew keeping cool could create hours of learning and entertainment.

17/08/2026

🌞🌑 Exploring the Solar Eclipse Through Creativity.

Last week we were getting creative while learning all about the solar eclipse 🌞🌑

The children had so much fun mixing sand with paint to create their own textured artwork. They loved feeling the different textures, experimenting with mark making and seeing what happened when they mixed the materials together.

But it wasn’t just about creating something beautiful there was so much learning happening along the way

🗣️ Communication & Language copying and repeating new words as we painted and talked about the sun, moon and eclipse.
🎶 Literacy singing songs with the sun in them, learning new words and developing listening and speaking skills.
🔢 Maths talking about shapes, sizes, counting and comparing as we created our eclipse pictures.
🌱 Understanding the World exploring the idea of the sun, moon and what happens during an eclipse.
🎨 Expressive Arts & Design experimenting with colour, texture and different ways of making marks.

The best kind of learning is when the children don’t even realise they’re learning.
Lots of messy hands, happy faces, singing, talking and creative little minds at work