A deep interest in vehicles, shared by many children at Tree House Children's Centre in East Kirkby, Lincolnshire, has led to practitioners arranging for a range of transport to drive over to the rural setting.
‘Children often hear tractors pass the nursery and enjoy watching over the fence as the neighbouring farmer works on his tractor, but getting up close and hands-on with these big vehicles enables them to really come alive to the children,’ says nursery manager Andrea Jackson. ‘There is such awe and wonder from something that we may consider very simple, and many of our children aspire to be farmers or digger drivers.’
Funding is tight at the charity-run setting, but practitioners find that many local people are generous with their time. ‘Not many people can say no to children,’ jokes Andrea, who posted a request on social media for local people to visit with their vehicles, resulting in visits from four different trucks and their drivers.
WHAT THEY DID
Modern tractor: ‘We told the children that we had a surprise for them and took them outside to listen for the sound of the tractor,’ says Andrea. ‘They were visibly excited to hear the tractor and realised what was coming even before they saw it.’
The dad who drove the tractor then showed the children the different components. Children were fascinated with the mechanism that enables the tractor to be hitched up to trailers and other machinery at the back for agricultural work.
‘All the children got the opportunity to climb up inside the cab, experience how it felt to be sat so high up and pretend to drive the tractor,’ says Andrea. ‘They stood beside the humongous tyres and compared themselves to them.’
Vintage tractor: A grandparent had taken their vintage tractor to an agricultural show so stopped off at the nursery to show it to the children. ‘Children made comparisons between old and new and passionately asked lots of questions,’ says Andrea.
Lorry: A dad received permission from his employer to visit with the lorry. ‘We were impressed with how the children picked up all the correct terminology. One of the children explained how it was just the unit that came,’ says Andrea.
She notes how children demonstrated confidence in their own abilities when they negotiated the steep steps to climb inside, stating, ‘I can do it myself’, and were proud to sit inside. One child worked out how to honk the horn and then everyone wanted to have a go.
Children noticed the bed in the back of the cab and the dad explained how long-distance lorry drivers need to rest.
Digger: A neighbour called around with their digger. Children were given ample time to explore inside with their friends, recalls Andrea, which inspired role play and comments such as ‘Let's dig up the road, come on…’ as the variety of leavers were pulled, and ‘We need to drive to the builders’ yard now’.
They tested how many children could sit in the bucket – but were disappointed not to be lifted up in it.
EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
- ‘Farming and construction has become a big theme in the children's play,’ says Andrea. They have spent a lot of time in the field with construction toys, engrossed in group play as they work together to desecrate the compost heap and mole hills, use diggers and transport muck with dumper trucks to make hills.
- Loose parts, such as crates, planks and guttering, have been provided. ‘We have resourced to provide a wider range of construction opportunities and challenge the children's critical thinking and problem-solving,’ explains Andrea. ‘The children are deeply engrossed in their projects as they discuss what they need.’
- ‘We have purchased smaller vehicles with the main features of all the scoops, buckets, retractable parts the children have seen,’ says Andrea. ‘These have been a big part of the children's small-world play, when in groups they can often be found talking to each other, lots of all the exact terminology used, about how each of the vehicles work and the jobs they do as they transport various small loose parts around the room.’
- Children enjoy playing with an old boat in their outdoor area which has a steering wheel. Staff have linked this to their vehicle explorations.
- The nursery is sited near to an aviation centre, and staff help children to identify the aeroplanes and helicopters that fly overhead.
- To add to their wide vehicle experiences, when the nursery went on a day trip to the seaside, children requested to ride on an open-top bus.
- Staff have invested in factual construction and vehicle books to share with the children and incorporated them in the nursery's book borrowing bags.
- They are now trying to get an emergency vehicle to visit the nursery to extend children's interests.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
Communication and language: ‘Having hands-on experiences with the range of real vehicles which came to our setting created an abundance of language opportunities; it was lovely to watch and listen as the children were in awe of these amazing vehicles which they were up close and personal to, prompting them to ask a wide variety of questions to our visitors about their vehicles: “What does this button do?”, “What happens if I press this?”, “How fast can the lorry go?” They were listening intently to the answers and then proceeding to ask another question,’ recalls Andrea. ‘The children soon picked up the technical terminology of many components of the vehicles and then told their friends what they were called too.’
Mathematics: ‘Throughout the wide range of experiences – from the real transport visiting to the variety of play opportunities within the setting – there has been lots of mathematical language, from recognising the number of wheels vehicles have to making comparisons to others,’ says Andrea. ‘A big mathematical concept they have learnt is recognising who has the most vehicles and when it is not fair. This soon leads onto the children working out how to resolve this and then sharing the vehicles out so everyone has the same number.’
Personal, social and emotional development: ‘Providing the children with these opportunities has really provided a boost for some of the children within the group who are not as assertive as their peers. It has been wonderful to see them become so engrossed with these experiences – the awe and wonder has provided them with the confidence to join in with all aspects, confidently asking questions when they would usually be very quiet and shy, sometimes even being reluctant to join in,’ explains Andrea. She adds that some children who often played by themselves have bonded over their shared interest in transport and now play together.
Understanding the world: The children have become aware of occupations, especially those that involve vehicles. Andrea says, ‘Throughout various times in the day, especially at mealtimes, the topic of vehicles comes up and the children are always telling each other “When I’m bigger, I’m going to drive a really big, big digger”. This usually prompts each other child around the table to say what they will drive when they are bigger.’
Book corner
The Mighty Mechanics’ Book of Marvellous Vehicles by Emily Kington
Jump aboard with the mighty mechanics for a fascinating look at tractors, emergency vehicles, monster trucks and construction vehicles, starting with the tools you need to fix each one.
Dirt Machines: Heavy-duty Construction Vehicles by M. Kaye David
Dive into the noisy, dirt-filled world of construction vehicles. Rhymes and word play run alongside colourful layouts and dynamic photographs.
My Big Book of Transport by Moira Butterfield and Bryony Clarkson
Hitch a ride in vehicles of every shape and size. This is a vibrant celebration of all things that go, accompanied by bounce-along rhythms and fascinating facts.
Total Tractor! By DK
Let your young tractor-lover get up close to these mighty machines. This tractor book shows all kinds of big and noisy farm vehicles at work with a wide range of tractor attachments, from ploughs to bulldozer blades.
Things That Go by Christiane Engel
Each scene has chunky push, pull and slide mechanisms and vehicles to spot with fun facts about them.
The Digger and the Flower by Joseph Kuefler
When Digger discovers something growing in the rubble, he sets in motion a series of events that will change him, and the city, forever.