Exploring Seasons Collection

This engaging collection of creative resources will help children explore and understand the changing seasons and weather around us, and why it is important to care for the natural world. The resources enable children to bring their personal sensory experiences and learning from the outdoor world, inside and from their inside play, outdoors. For each season create beautifully detailed scenes in play dough, look closely at the wooden trees to see the changes and which wildlife live in the habitats, match nature stones to the real found items and record the weather outside.

All the resources have been carefully developed to inspire language-rich play, encourage observation and extend vocabulary. A downloadable leaflet includes valuable advice for practitioners and activity ideas for using the resources across early years settings, Reception and Year 1.

The kit includes the following resources which may be used separately or together to extend learning:

• Let’s Roll Seasons – This bumper set contains 24 rollers to take you through the year. The detailed designs will engage children in seasonal curiosity, developing their knowledge and understanding of the natural world, as well as improving their fine motor skills. Simply roll into play dough or clay and stamp to complete each scene. Extra details will be revealed as children press more firmly.

Spring: daffodil & flowers, egg & bird’s nest, blossom & orchard, lamb & sheep, froglet & tadpoles, and duckling & duck.

Summer: sunflower & garden, strawberry & strawberry patch, dandelion & lawn, swallow & rooftops, baby owl & mother owl, and butterfly & flowers.

Autumn: falling leaves & tree, blackberry & bramble, carved face & pumpkin, acorn & squirrel, spider’s web & plants, and apple and apple tree.

Winter: bird & branches, snowflake & snow, holly & winter wreath, face & snowman, reindeer & mountains, and star & fir tree.

Made from a durable stone mix, each seasonal set contains six easy to clean rollers each measuring 72 x 34mm. Age 2+

• Four Seasons Trees Wooden Play Set ¬– These beautifully detailed double-sided trees are a fantastic addition to small world play scenes and storytelling, offering lots to talk about and great flexibility in play. The set includes eight pieces each of which shows a different tree in two seasons, with the complete set showing four trees for each season. Matching base colours for each season help with sorting. The set features the following trees: apple, beech, cherry, Douglas fir, hazel, oak, Scot’s pine, silver birch. Look closely and you find lots of seasonal details including those animals who make their homes or find their food in each habitat: bee, blackbird, butterfly, crossbill, crow, deer, goldcrest, jay, long-eared owl, merlin, mouse, pheasant, rabbit, robin, squirrel, woodpecker. Made from sustainably sourced pine, each tree has a 15mm wide sturdy base making them easy to stand up as scenery props. Trees measure approx. 75–130mm. Age 18m+.

• Let’s Investigate Nature – These highly tactile stones reflect the found treasures children might discover in the natural world. Designed for outdoor learning, investigative play and forest school, the stones are robust for lots of outside adventures! They are durable enough to be used in water, soil, mud and play clay, and are easily cleaned. Wonderfully sensory, the details on the stones can be felt as well as seen. Go on a nature hunt and compare with the real things, make imprints in play dough and take rubbings using wax crayons. The set contains eight stones: acorn, dandelion seedhead, feather, pine cone, snail shell, spider’s web, sycamore leaf and sycamore seeds. Stones measure approx. 85mm. Age 2+.

• Weather Stones – We all like to talk about the weather, and these tactile weather symbols will help with just that! They can be used in so many ways: record the weather, make a forecast, sort by the different conditions, press in playdough or create stories alongside other resources. Made from a unique stone mix, the symbols are robust enough to be used outside whatever the weather! The set includes ten engraved and painted stones representing: dark cloud, light cloud, hail, rain, rainbow, snow, sun, sunny intervals, thunderstorm, and wind. Each stone measures between 40 – 55mm. Age 2+.