Enabling Environments: Equipment - Link to nature
Ruth Thomson
Monday, January 9, 2012
The principles of a leading early years equipment maker are behind bags of natural objects for heuristic play, assembled by school pupils. Ruth Thomson reports.
A novel collection of natural resources for young children is now available from Link2Nature, a company set up by secondary school pupils as part of their entry to Young Enterprise 2012.
The 12 young entrepreneurs are pupils at Beech Grove Academy, which is attended by the children of Kent's two Bruderhof communities, which produce the Community Playthings range of toys and equipment.
For the competition, pupils are challenged to set up a business and sell products or a service for a profit. Drawing on the spirit of heuristic play and the principles of Community Playthings, the pupils have developed a collection of natural products for children aged from three to six. Included in the collection are limpet shells, sheep's wool, pine cones, a bamboo roll, sea pebbles and an assortment of wooden discs, pillars and planks for building.
The collection is available in a cotton bag (£35) or with a bag and basket (£40). The basket can also be bought separately (£9). All prices include packing and postage.
The pupils are also writing and illustrating a children's book about the adventures of a pinecone man who sees the environment around him being destroyed by human activity.
On their website, the pupils, from Years 10, 11 and 12, explain: 'We offer a natural alternative that inspires parents and educators to stimulate the imagination and creativity of children and to meet the early learning goals as set out in the EYFS Early Years Framework.'
The reaction to their collection of resources has been positive, according to the marketing director for the project, Year 11 pupil Ronya Hormann.
'A lot of the nursery teachers love the variety of contents in the bag,' she says.
As for the competition, she adds, 'It's been very interesting learning about the education of young children and the importance of nature to their learning.
I have also gained a lot of business knowledge and I'm really looking forward to the competition.'
Under the rules of the Young Enterprise competition, the Link2Nature products can be sold up until March or until July if the pupils win the award.
MORE INFORMATION
www.Link2nature.co.uk, e-mail: Link2nature@mailstack.com or tel: 01304 843 700
www.young-enterprise.org.uk/programmes
