Capable Child

On the day that Frozen II was released it seemed appropriate to shun the hype of Hollywood and instead head to The Old Rep in Birmingham for their performance of ‘The Snow Queen’. Although it is only the end of November, we were ready for some early Christmas indulgence. After having a mooch around Birmingham’s Frankfurt Market, including a hot chocolate for Little Lady and a very garlicky lunch, we were in the mood to wander over to the theatre and sit back to enjoy Hans Christian Anderson’s classic story of how two children overcame the evil Snow Queen and her trolls. What better way to get into the season of winter! The Old Rep’s interpretation told the story of two friends, Gerda and Kai, who had been forbidden by their parents from spending time with each other because their families were different to each other. The production explored the theme of ‘otherness’ and how friendship can overcome many of the prejudices that we see in society. The strong moral message was port...

Birmingham’s Symphony Hall is an impressive venue. What better place, therefore, to see and hear the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) perform a special family concert: The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra. When Catherine Arlidge walked onto the stage to present the show, I just knew that we were going to enjoy it. I have been to family concerts hosted by her before and she has a relaxed, fun style that puts everyone at ease. The concert was split into bite sized chunks with children waiting for the pause button visual at the end of musical pieces to shout out “PAUSE" before finding out more about the orchestra and enjoying games with Catherine. The show lasted about an hour and passed quickly- even for my eight month old who was being bounced on my lap. Catherine explained that the orchestra was colour coded for the performance. For instance, all the strings were wearing red. This visual image made it very straightforward for the children in the audi...

One of the things that I find really upsetting as a teacher is children who start school nursery or even Reception with very little speech. Children are often frustrated and can be withdrawn or sometimes aggressive in a bid to make themselves understood.  Children with severe special needs may need some very specific help. However, the majority of children need a language rich environment and this can start from birth. I have been very specific in encouraging the speech development of both of my children.  Babies often try and reach for mouths when they are being held.  They study faces intently and that is part of the learning process. I let my daughter see my face when I’m talking to her. Sometimes we look in the mirror and talk. I make sounds and let her watch and sometimes feel the sound coming out. She finds bbbb very funny. I encourage my baby to make sounds by echoing and mimicking what she says. An ahhhha comes out of her mouth and I say it ba...