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Say hello to crisp cool days and autumn enhancements! Have you kitted out your continuous provision with all things autumn or are you in need of some inspiration? Check out these 10 continuous provision ideas for EYFS and KS1! If you're short on time and too busy to create resources for your continuous provision, download your free 8-page autumn roll and cover activity here! English Activities for Autumn Continuous Provision Loose Part Letters Write your focus letters on A4 pieces of card. Grab as many autumn items as you can, such as conkers, pinecones, acorns, leaves and twigs. You can also include other red, yellow, orange and brown loose parts * , for example pom poms and feathers. Children cover the letter with the loose parts, talking about the sound which the letter makes and also the shape of it. Autumn Writing Your class will love these Autumn themed writing mats . They’re great for encouraging children to write simple phrases and sentences. Perfect for guided writing or continuous provision! Whether children are at the emergent writing stage or able to write simple phrases and sentences, these mats are sure to be a hit in your writing area! Just place them inside dry erase sleeve pockets * so that they can be used again and again! Tricky Word Shake and Read Here's a fun one for your phonics continuous provision. Divide the inside of a box up into a grid. Write a tricky word in each space. Shake a pinecone or conker inside the box, open the lid and read the word which it lands on! Children might want to have a go at writing the word too, so leave a whiteboard and pen out with the activity. If you want to reuse your shake and read box, just write your words on paper or card grids. That way, you can alternate which words are inside the box! Conker Sound Buttons This is an autumnal take on the phonics sound buttons activity. Instead of drawing a sound button, place a small conker underneath each sound in the word. Children should press the conkers, say the sounds and then blend them together to read the word! Maths Activities for Autumn Continuous Provision Autumn Addition and Subtraction These autumn-themed addition and subtraction games will be a huge hit with your class! Simply print them out, place inside dry-erase sleeve pockets, grab some playing pieces and go. Children could use conkers and five frames to help them with the calculations. Autumn Number Jigsaws From pumpkins to toadstools, umbrellas to squirrels - your class are bound to love these autumnal picture puzzles ! You'll love them too, as they're differentiated with number puzzles from 1-3 all the way up to 1-20! Even better, they come in black and white as well as colour. Leaf Count and Clip Another quick and simple set up for your maths continuous provision. Collect some autumn leaves and write a number on each one. Children clip the correct number of pegs to each leaf. Alternatively, they could place the correct amount of conkers on the leaves. Autumn Counting Cut and Stick You just need to print and go with this seasonal activity . Children cut and stick the numeral with the corresponding amount of cute autumn pictures. The perfect low-prep activity for your continuous provision! Fine Motor Activities for Autumn Continuous Provision Hedgehogs These cut little hedgehogs are easy to make. Mould some playdough into the shape of a hedgehog and add a button nose and googly eyes. Your class can add matchsticks for the spikes. They then remove the spikes using a peg or tweezers. How's that for an autumn fine-motor workout! Autumn Loose Parts Take your class out on an autumn walk. Talk about the sights and sounds whilst gathering autumn treasures. Add autumn-coloured ribbons, scarves, pom poms, lolly sticks and more. Children can then let their imaginations run wild as they create their own art, practise counting or tell stories using the loose parts . What Next? If you're short on time and too busy to create resources for your continuous provision, download your 8-page autumn roll and cover activity here ! Many of these autumn activities can be bought right here in my shop . From number games to phonics resources, loose parts to books - visit the No Worksheets Allowed Amazon page * now! *As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Do you keep hearing about loose parts play and wondering what on earth it is? Are you curious as to why people are giving their children baskets of 'junk'? Want to find out the method behind the madness? Learn more with this short inspiring read... The Benefits of Loose Parts Play Loose parts (or tinker trays) are ideal for developing children's creativity in the early years (EYFS). Essentially, they are just that - 'loose parts' - a collection of resources or materials with varied properties that can be used in many different ways. The idea of loose parts was introduced by Simon Nicholson in the 1970s. He presented his idea in an article, 'The Theory of Loose Parts, An important principle for design methodology.' Loose parts allow children's imaginations to run wild, with endless opportunities for open-ended play ! Instead of giving a child a toy doll or car, which can be used in a limited number of ways, loose parts are open ended. A cardboard box can be a shelter, a car, a boat and more! Ideally, the child will lead the activity whilst you are on hand to help them to develop their problem solving, counting, fine motor skills and more. Let them explore their own ideas at home, in your setting or outdoors. When children are left to explore, a collection of loose parts might become a face, a dinosaur or a tractor! Loose Parts Resources and Materials To begin with, look around your home or setting, outdoors, in charity shops, online market places, craft shops, home improvement stores and at scrap centres for items which you think might be useful for your collection. Small items can be used anywhere at any time! Large items are ideal resources for large scale tinkering. They may be better used outdoors, or you could set up a corner of your home or setting as a 'deconstructed role play area', where only open-ended loose parts are provided. Here's a useful list of resources which you can gather together. If you are an early years educator, you can ask parents to help you with this task! Feel free to add any more resources that you can think of in the comments section below. Small Items Leaves, twigs, pine cones, conkers, corks, peg dolls, wooden dolly pegs, feathers, shells, flowers, cardboard tubes, wooden curtain rings, cork tiles, natural loofah, buttons, bamboo products, brushes, wooden balls, keys, metal measuring cups, spoons, locks, napkin rings, bangles, paint sample cards, colourful gems, hair curlers, foam shapes, scarves, felt, ribbons, lolly pop sticks, make up brushes, sponges, empty picture frames, plastic tubs, empty jars, funnels, sieves, colanders, tweezers, chopsticks, golf tees, etc. Large Items Plastic guttering, tyres, buckets, pallets, planks, poles, tubing, plastic crates, logs, cardboard boxes, balls, bricks, etc. When you have gathered together your collection, you'll need something to store it in - a box or a lidded tray with compartments is ideal. This will help to keep the items at their best and protect them from the elements if outside. Now everything is ready for your little explorer! Next Steps with Loose Parts Play Over time, you should try to add to your loose parts set. You will start to notice treasures everywhere! Adding to your collection will help to stimulate and engage children in their play and hold their interest. You might want to create themed boxes, which can be rotated throughout the year: Seasonal Colour/Black and White Floating and Sinking Sound Celebrations Light Construction Art and Design Storytelling Small World Maths Playdough Remember to take care when introducing loose parts to little ones. Some smaller items are unsuitable for children under 36 months or older children who put things in their mouths). Adult supervision is always recommended.

With the end of the school year fast approaching, it's a good excuse to break away from the usual routine and to shake things up a bit. After the past year though, no doubt your teacher brain is completely frazzled and you're probably struggling for inspiration. If you're looking for some low-prep ideas, here's a list of 10 fun end-of-school-year activities for you to choose from... 1. End of Year Countdown Blow up balloons and write a number 0-5/10 on each one. Hang the balloons from the board or on a piece of string in your classroom. At the end of each day, choose someone who has behaved amazingly well to pop a balloon! You could even add a slip of paper detailing a surprise for the following day inside each balloon - just roll the paper up and slide it into the balloon before blowing it up. 2. Classroom Camp Out First of all, you need to set up your camp by making tents with the tables, blankets and sheets. If you have any of the small kids pop up tents, they'll be perfect too! You might want to display a campsite scene on your whiteboard. Dim the lights and read books by torchlight. The children could play games or work in their tents. Perhaps you'd like to create a class campfire using sticks and orange/yellow tissue paper, ask everyone to sit around it and then sing songs or learn poems. At the end of the day, the children can pretend to roast marshmallows and drink hot chocolate as a delicious treat! 3. Forest Schools Day Keep your class busy and tire them out with a day in the great outdoors! They could identify wildlife and flowers in the school grounds, do den building, play cooperative games, paint outdoors, build a bug hotel, make flower crowns and much, much more. Go to the Wildlife Trust for additional amazing wild activities ! 4. Film Day Ahh, an old favourite! This one gives you the chance to tackle that store cupboard, label some drawers and back those display boards ready for next year! First of all, ask the children to create a ticket for their trip to the movies. They'll also need to design and make a paper popcorn cone for that all important snack! Next, arrange the chairs in front of your whiteboard and let the film commence! Follow up activities could include creating a poster, doing a character description, writing a new ending or drawing a comic strip of the plot. 5. Book Party Gather together books from different genres and lay them out on the tables at the beginning of the day. Alternatively, ask each child to bring their favourite book to school. Throughout the day, encourage your class to read the books - they might want to use finger torches, read to a teddy or sit under a tree outside to make this extra exciting! The children can also complete various activities to keep them on task. These might include a book review, using a magnifying glass to search through the books for high frequency words, painting a favourite setting, using a dictionary to find the meaning of unknown words, making masks or puppets or designing a bookmark. Here are some great ways to encourage reluctant readers. 6. Memory Books A memory book is a lovely way to look back at the past year, plus it makes a great keepsake. Children fill in details about their favourite lessons, school trips, plans for the summer and more. You could create your own or grab a ready to go memory book for just £1 by clicking on the image below! 7. Talent Show Hold a class talent show! Ask each child to prepare by practising their talent at home (sending a quick note home would be useful here) - ideas include singing, dancing, telling jokes, sharing artwork, showing some karate moves or creating a gymnastics routine. Some children may prefer to work with a partner rather than on their own. Before the show, you could do some opinion writing. Children should describe their special talent and explain why they think that they are good at it. If you're inviting guests, ask the class to make invites, a program and posters ready for the big day. Finally, on the day of the talent show, create a stage area, put out seating for the audience, have microphones at the ready and provide some refreshments! 8. Mini Topic Day Set aside a day where children can research and share information about their hobby or interest. You may need access to the library and learning pads/laptops so that they can do some additional research. Your class could choose how they share the information - they may want to create a leaflet, a book, a presentation or a short film about their hobby. Allow time at the end of the day for children to move around the classroom and look at each other's work. 9. Thank You Notes A nice calming activity next for when the end of school excitement is reaching fever pitch! Think about all of the people that have helped during the school year: crossing lady/man, kitchen staff, teaching assistants, parent helpers, site supervisor, head teacher and many more. Ask each child to choose somebody to write a thank you note or card to. They could draw a picture or make a craft to give them too. 10. Award Ceremony Host an awards ceremony for your class! Ask them to come to school in their party clothes, lay out some red fabric for your red carpet and give out certificates (and trophies) to each child. This is a lovely way to make your pupils feel special and valued. Awards could focus on character traits such as ambition, kindness, courage, creativity, patience, enthusiasm, imagination and perseverance. You could also hand out academic awards such as super speller, marvellous musician, good reader, super scientist, etc. If you are in need of more inspiration, click now for some quick and free activities that don't require much preparation! Don't forget to add your own ideas in the comments section below! Images from Pixabay