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The Fairytale Mum

Children's Author & Parent Blogger

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Recent Posts

  • Chapter 9: Keep Up or Give Up
  • #imamumand Motherhood Stole my Identity (almost)
  • Chapter 8: I don’t like Sharing
  • Bad Behaviour: Is it Time Up for Time-Out?
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🌟 T E S T S & W E L L B E I N G 🌟... . I wonder if it's a coincidence that the KS2 SATs tests for 10 and 11 year olds has fallen on the same week at #mentalhealthawarenessweek . When we talk about mental health, so often we refer to adults - it's much rarer that we consider that of our children. I should state that I'm not against SATs or tests of any kind for most of our children - I've spent a decade in the classroom and spent much of my time prepping children for tests in both key stages. Assessment is important. But I do think we've reached a point where perhaps they're not in the best interests for all of our children. Perhaps you're reading this thinking - well, my child sat the SATs this week and they were fine. Or perhaps you had a child who came home in tears this week. Either way, I hope you'll agree that the tests do put pressure on young minds and whilst some young minds can cope, others will certainly need a bit of extra tlc. So... At the end of SATs week and the #mentalhealthawarenessweek2019 , I urge you to check-in a little more than usual with your children in these 3 ways... 1. Cuddle them once more - It's the first sense we acquire and a language in its own right, touch, has a calming effect and brings with it many other benefits too. 2. Play with them a little longer - Wouldn't we all be happier if we played a little more? Children need play, especially during periods of stress. Through play we can strengthen our connections with our children and that won't hurt anyone. 3. Spend longer outdoors together - Walk, chat, play, lie in the sun and stare at the clouds together or jump about splashing in puddles together. It doesn't matter what you do, time spent in the fresh air is both invigorating and motivating - which is great for our mental health. Cuddles, play and time outdoors - 3 little ways to check-in on your children's wellbeing. Good for this week and every week after that. #mentalhealthmatters . . . . . #bebodykind #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthweek #wellbeing #ks2 #ks1 #year6 #year6teacher #sats #educationmatters #primaryteaching #primaryteachers #primaryeducation #selfcaresurvivalkit #selfcarematters #playtherapy Today I mostly basked in the sunshine, read some fab new writing and ate avocados. Fancy.☺️📝🥑 . . . . . #shortestcaptioniveeverwritten #betyoudidntexpectthat #awriterslife #authorssupportingauthors #critiquegroup #scbwi #authorsofinsta #authorsofig #picturebook #picturebookauthor #childrensbookauthor #childrenspicturebook #childrensbookstagram #writingcommunityofinstagram #writersofinstagram #writersofinsta #writersofig #discoverunder2k #discoverunder1k #mumlifebalance #womensupportingwomen #joyfulmamas #lovebooks📚 ✈️ T R A V E L - B U G ✈️... . All my recent chat about boats and islands has got me thinking about holidays. It's only a few weeks now until we disappear for a bit of sun worshipping, so it's probably about time I checked the boys had enough t-shirts, shorts and sunhats to last - both seem to have had dramatic growth spurts overnight! Thanks to my husband, I was bitten by the travel-bug in my early twenties. We're lucky that we experienced many travelling adventures together. Life was so easy then - we literally could travel wherever the tide took us without a second thought... But with children in tow... Woah! Different story. I know there are a great many travel bloggers and nomadic families who seem to wander the earth effortlessly. We are not one of those. I need control. I need a plan. I need time to prepare. So, for any other parents with slight OCD tendencies and flutterings of anxiety around travelling with children, I thought I'd share a blog post with you that I wrote some time ago when Hugh was teeny-tiny. Whilst I can't guarantee you two weeks of non-stop sunshine, I can promise that your journey might run a little smoother if you follow these 12 little hints... https://thefairytalemum.com/2018/04/20/12-hints-to-stress-free-plane-travel-with-young-children/ And if you can think of any other tips for a happy holiday with small children, please share them in the comments below... This parent, for one, would love to know!🙋✈️😎💖 . . . . . #travelwithchildren #toddlertravel #toddlertravels #travelwithkids #nomadicfamily #travelbloggerlife #travelblogging #familytravelblog #travelblogs #travelbloggervibes #familytravels #familyholidays #flyingwithkids #parentinghacks #parenthacks #discoverunder2k #discoverunder1k #mumlifebalance #mumbloggers #snaphappybritmums #mamacameraclub #ourwhimsicaldays #coolmumclub #mumsnetparents ⛵ M E S S I N G A B O U T I N B O A T S ⛵... . Aside from attending a beautiful christening earlier we've had a lazy hazy weekend. Yesterday, we went for a late afternoon stroll and it was lovely to see so many people enjoying the canal near where we live. I have to apologise for today's video because it was a bit of a rush job, but I wanted to pop a video up to follow on from my post about 'Grandad's Island' by @benjidavies . It really is a lovely story and this week we decided to use the idea of a boat journey to inspire our #picbookplay activity. On my IGTV you'll notice that we've created a number matching activity - with the children attempting to blow their numbered sailboat (shown by dots) towards its matching island (shown numerically). The activity is very versatile though - instead of matching numbers, children could be challenged to find pairs of rhyming words, matching colours, calculations with the same solution and much much more. I will pop all of the details - the equipment you will need, instructions how to make the boats, ways to vary or extend the activity, etc - on my website #linkinbio👆 . Please remember to like or comment - we really appreciate it and let us know if you join in with the activity or read the book by using the #picbookplay . We hope you've all had a lovely relaxing weekend too. It seems the sun has returned again🤞😎 and long may it last! . . . . . #picbookplay #earlychildhoodeducator #preschoolteacher #preschoolactivities #earlymathskills #earlyliteracy #chatplayread #eyfsideas #preschoolideas #toddleractivity #earlyeducation #toddlerapproved #homeschoolroom #homeschoolmum #homeschoolcommunity #eyfsteacher #waterplay #picturebook #picturebookactivities #discoverunder2k #discoverunder1k #snaphappybritmums #coolmumclub #mamacameraclub
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