Enabling Environments: Let's explore ... The King of Tiny Things

It is always a delight to find a storybook that offers practitioners the opportunity to explore a wide range of exciting play-based opportunities. The King of Tiny Things by Jeanne Willis and Gwen Millward (Puffin Books) is a charming book that is perfect for stimulating activities both indoors and outside.

It is a wonderful story for all children, exploring not only aspects of the outdoor environment, but also providing a purposeful context in which to discuss excitement, adventure, fear, compassion and relief. Stories such as this support young children in acquiring a vocabulary with which to discuss their own emotions, as well as being able to demonstrate understanding of and empathy with, the characters in the book.

The King of Tiny Things tells the story of two little girls who go off to spend some time with their Nan and Grandad in the summer holidays. (Interestingly, the grandparents are illustrated as being relatively young looking, which rings very true these days!) Grandad has a tent in his shed and offers the girls the opportunity to camp out in the garden. However, when the girls shine the torch on the sides of the tent, they see a myriad of shadows of creepy crawlies and feel quite afraid.

Reassurance appears in the form of the King of Tiny Things - a boy no bigger than a beetle. This small pixie-like figure cares for creepy crawlies. His role includes oiling slugs who have lost their slime and repairing daddy longlegs who have lost a limb. He befriends the girls, showing them all that is positive about minibeasts, and invites them to become creepy-crawly queens, after they save his life. The final page of the book is a certificate awarded to those who attain the title of 'Chief Assistant to the King of Tiny Things'.

The story contains a raft of beautiful language, such as 'Weevils with copper wings. Chubby grubs. Badger cubs. Baby bats in furry hats.' The illustrations are gorgeous, with much detail.

This book would support children's existing interest in and fascination for minibeasts while at the same time recognising that some of them may have reservations about such animals, but explaining the importance of such creatures to great effect. It is also a celebration of night time, offering those children who have misgivings about the dark a chance to see its positive aspects.

Practitioners sensitive to the needs of young children will read this book many times, in both large and small groups, so that children can spend time poring over the tiny details in the pictures and following the patterns of minibeasts that fly through the pages. Children should be encouraged to join in with the refrain that is sung by the King of Tiny Things, exhorting the girls to 'Follow Me! Follow Me! Follow Me!'

Ensure that there is ample time for children to discuss their own attitudes and dispositions towards bugs of all kinds.

OUTDOOR LEARNING - THE BUG HUNT

• Organise a bug hunt with the children. This may be carried out in small groups over a period of time, or, with appropriate adult support, as a large group. Of course, this will depend on your access to outdoors.
• Plan the bug hunt carefully so that all adults involved are aware of how best to support the children, and the kinds of conversations that should be taking place. Make sure that you have plenty of clipboards and magnifying glasses. Talk to the children about the correct way to treat living things, and emphasise gentleness and respect.
• Think about the kinds of places that minibeasts might be found and also of how to approach such places with care, so that the minibeasts are not scared away.
• Talk about the minibeasts in situ - the kind of places that they like to live in, the way they move (which can be fascinating for many children). Encourage them to ask questions and write some of these down, so that the answers can be researched at a later date.
• Think about what is the same about some of the minibeasts and what is different.
• If you have a tree available either in the setting or nearby, then place a white sheet under it and gently shake a branch or two, so that children can see the minibeasts that inhabit the tree. Talk about how many minibeasts the children can see. Did they expect to see that amount?
• Take photographs of the minibeast hunt so that children can revisit the experience and discuss it among themselves as well as with adults.
• Use the experience to create a book that will be written with the children.
• Take 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' as a model, and transform it into 'We're Going on a Bug Hunt!'
• Write the verses with the children using their experiences outside as inspiration for the writing. Think about where they went, what they saw and the noises that they heard. (These can, of course, be invented or exaggerated!)
• Word process the text and combine it with photographs and children's pictures to make the final book, which can then be kept in the book corner.

Learning opportunities

C&L Extending vocabulary
C&L Asking questions
C&L Using the language of story in play and in learning
M Counting a variety of objects
M Using language to sort and classify

SMALL-WORLD PLAY

Set up a minibeast small world in the outdoor area. Involve the children in creating it, using their ideas about what the minibeasts would enjoy. Use as many natural materials as possible. Incorporate logs, pine cones and sterilised compost so that the minibeasts can have as natural an environment as possible.

Make sure that there are places for minbeasts to hide under, and places for them to travel through. This will ensure a wide range of cross-curricular opportunities, particularly in Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy. Add either a mirror or a shallow dish full of water as well and make time to observe and listen to the children as they play.

Adult role

• Ensure that there is a rich selection of minibeasts in the small world. There needs to be different amounts of the varying species, to encourage counting and sorting.
• Scribe children's stories for them. Publish selected stories by word processing them and adding illustrations by the children.
• Add a notebook and pencils for children to mark-make, draw and write in response to what they discover in the small world.
• Download images of a variety of minibeasts from the internet. Laminate them and use them in conjunction with the small world.
• Turn a boy small-world figure into the King of Tiny Things by adding a small set of wings, and add him to the miniature scenario.
• Chat with the children about what they see.

Learning opportunities

PSED Continuing to be excited, motivated and interested to learn
C&L Using the language of story and readily turning to it in their play and
their learning
L Using writing for a variety of purposes
M Using the language of maths for problem solving
M Identifying pattern

ROLE PLAY

Teach the children to build dens. A simple way to do this is to join three garden canes together in a triangle shape, joining the canes with masking tape. Add three more canes, one from each of the points at the base, and bind them together at the top. You now have a structure over which material or sheets can be attached, using clothes pegs for simplicity. Add torches to the dens, so that children can explore shadows and light.

Adult role

• Model den-building. Support children with the parts of the process that they find most tricky. Demonstrate effective ways to tear the masking tape, for example.
• Value the children's play, talking through their ideas with them.
• Take photographs of the den building process, to display indoors.
• Ensure that light fabrics are available for this den building so that children can see shadows on the walls, just like the girls in the story.
• Make sure that some copies of The King of Tiny Things are readily available so that children can read them in the dens.

Learning opportunities

C&L Asking questions
C&L Negotiating and taking turns in a group
M Problem solving
C&L Participating in role-play activities
UW Building and constructing with a varied range of materials
UW Handling a range of tools and equipment confidently

OUTDOOR MARK-MAKING

One of the jobs of the King of Tiny Things is to re-oil the slugs! Why not provide some slug slime outdoors for the children to make marks with? Simply mix some water with food colouring and lots and lots of glitter. Provide an assortment of brushes, so that children can experiment with large scale mark-making outdoors.

Adult role

• Model playful mark-making, so that children understand that they can explore and experiment with making marks.
• Be aware of the different learning opportunities that such an apparently simple activity can offer. For instance, think about the impact of sunshine and rain: what happens when the sun dries up the marks? Will the rain wash the children's patterns away?
• Talk to the children about how far their trails go. Where do they think the slugs have been? Where are they going to?
• Ensure that this temporary mark making is valued as much as that made with paper and pencils.
• Make a note of the children who particularly enjoy this kind of opportunity so that it can be repeated in the future.

INDOORS - MAKING MINIBEAST MUSIC

• Provide a range of untuned percussion instruments so that the children can compose minibeast music.
• Help them explore the instruments to discover noises to represent scurrying beetles, spinning spiders and slinky worms.
• Respect the children's decisions about choice of instruments, and make sure they don't feel constrained by your expectations.
• Create musical patterns with the sounds that the children create.
• Some children may wish to record the music that they have made. Play the music to the group. Talk with the children about the sounds that they can hear.

Learning opportunities

M Identifying and creating patterns
UW Responding in a variety of ways so what they see, hear, think and feel

GRAPHICS AREA

Make sure that children have access to ready-made tiny books, either folded from A4 paper or stapled together. Provide gel pens to add a touch of magic. In addition, you will need to ensure that there is a plentiful supply of certificates, just waiting to be awarded to Chief Assistants to the King of Tiny Things!

Adult role

Value the children's mark-making and ensure that they are able to share their emergent mark-making with others. Provide a place for them to display their certificates and a little basket in which they can store their tiny books.

RESOURCES BOX

If you intend to use this book as a stimulus for a range of activities with the children, gather together some simple resources. These should include:

• torches (for exploring light, dark and shadow)
• small-world minibeasts - as many as possible!
• a small figure to represent the King of Tiny Things
• den-building equipment, so that children can create their own tentlike structures in your outdoor environment. Garden canes, dust sheets and masking tape can easily be used to create a simple den
• magnifying glasses for examining tiny things
• boxes for collecting and sorting (like egg boxes)

Good buys

• Shadow sheet: A strong, durable mat that enables children and practitioners to explore shadows together. Available from www.mindstetchers.co.uk, £20, plus VAT
• A minibeast alphabet is available on M is for Me!, www.yellow-door.net
• A wide range of minibeast puppets is available from www.puppetsbypost.co.uk
• www.buglife.org.uk - home of the Invertebrate Conservation Trust, with lots of information for those who wish to develop their background knowledge. Includes a downloadable minibeast spotters' sheet for use with the children
• www.field-studies-council.org - The Field Studies Council publishes a handy range of identification guides, which can help practitioners name an array of minibeasts

BOOK BOX

Put together a collection of minibeast themed stories, songs and poems. Make these available both indoors and outside. Make sure that you read the books out loud to the children, taking note of the ones that they enjoy the most, so that you may obtain multiple copies of the most favourites.

Obtain puppets and props to enhance the storytelling experience. Many children enjoy reading books independently with the aid of the puppets, which boost confidence and encourage reading with expression.

The Bad Tempered Ladybird by Eric Carle (Puffin Books) - A story that is sure to engage the children. A rather unfriendly ladybird stomps around, trying to pick a fight with a number of animals. String repetition will have the children joining in with enthusiasm.

Aaaarrgghh. Spider! by Lydia Monks (Egmont Books) - Explores similar issues to those in The King of Tiny Things, such as how fear can be turned to admiration and fascination. The illustrations are full of good humour and the story helps children see things from a different point of view.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle (Puffin Books) - This classic picture book needs no introduction from me, and it would be essential in any creepy crawly collection.

Creepy Crawly Calypso by Tony Langham and Debbie Harter (Barefoot Books) - A great book for linking singing and dancing with a minibeast theme. It also introduces some rich vocabulary in a very accessible way.

Centipede's 100 Shoes by Tony Ross (Andersen Press) - This is a great story about a young centipede who needs new shoes. Many children will identify with the characters in the book, while enjoying the opportunity that this story offers to engage with very large numbers.

Amazing Anthony Ant by Graham and Lorna Philpott (Orion Children's Books) - This book offers singing, counting, playing I-spy, enjoying the detail in the pictures and exploring the underground world of the ants.

There was an old lady who swallowed a fly (Child's Play) - The classic nursery rhyme told in novelty picture book format, with holes big enough for children to poke their fingers through.

Hey, Little Ant by Phillip and Hannah Hoose (Tricycle Press) - This is a conversation between an ant and a child who is about to step on him! The ending of the book is left open, leaving plenty of opportunity for discussion.