When Sid the pet giant African land snail died recently, practitioners at Poppies Pre-school in Laurencekirk, Aberdeenshire used it as a learning opportunity to discuss the natural, often overlooked, stage of life with the children.
‘Death is as much a part of life as being born and growing,’ says senior early years practitioner Karen Clements. ‘Young children are very familiar with the beginning of the lifecycle, but death tends to be a taboo subject and, when it happens – whether that is a pet or a relative dying – adults are naturally really upset and not keen to answer young children's questions.
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