Exhibitors say they are anticipating a lively show. Early Years Directhas designed its show stand to give visitors plenty of space to studyits competitively priced range of wooden, flatpack furniture at standEY-N47. Solid blocks feature in its current bestsellers and newadditions include the small easel, retailing at 99, that allowstwo children to paint companionably at the same time, and with plenty ofstorage space (www.earlyyearsdirect.com).
Wesco will be showing its Cocoon range of chairs, including the quarter-circle and round pouffes and brightly decorated cushions. Its range of'profession' fabric dolls - astronaut, chef, nurse, fireman, gardenerand mechanic - help children to develop dexterity and learn aboutdifferent types of clothing by dressing the dolls. These and otherproducts including soft storage chests and wooden furniture are at standK34 (www.wesco-group.com).
On stand PZ-F29, Yellow Door is bringing rhymes to life with its ComeAlive Nursery Rhymes pack by Nursery World contributor Helen Bromley,which includes a CD-Rom, an audio CD, games and activities and a set of26 wooden characters. Children can sing along with the animated rhyme,move characters to recreate the actions and experiment with rhymingwords.
Nurseries who want to take groups of children on outdoor trips safelycan see the Walkodile in action at this year's show. Children will bedemonstrating how they can walk comfortably along in a line whileclipped into a lightweight harness. When they arrive at theirdestination they are unclipped from the central spine but continue towear the brightly coloured harnesses so they can easily be identified inlarge open spaces. Walkodile, manufactured by Red Island, has wonnumerous awards, including British Invention of the Year 2007. Find outwhy at stand EY-M46 and at www.walkodile.com.
Sherston Publishing is showcasing two ICT resources using a favouritebear to develop an interest in history and geography. In 'PaddingtonBear: First Steps in History', children can see Paddington's passport,read his diary and investigate the contents of people's suitcases tounderstand the difference between past and present. In its geographycounterpart they can help Paddington locate his missing marmalade pots,write postcards to his aunt Lucy and find out about all the places hehas visited. A single user licence costs 44.95, an unlimitednumber is 224.75. Visit stand IT-V34 (www.sherston.com).
Galt Educational has a huge range of products on offer at stand EY-N18spanning furniture and storage, sand and water play kits, art and craftresources, carpets and room dividers. Special deals are available on itsAquakits water equipment designed for creative play in the FoundationStage. Galt also offers many innovative solutions for accessible bookstorage (www.galt-educational.co.uk).
Don't forget to visit Nursery World on stand EY-N44, where the team lookforward to meeting you and telling you about forthcoming coverage.
The Education Show takes place at NEC Birmingham from 28 February to 1March. It features over 80 professional development seminars andworkshops, and a programme of conferences covers early years and primarystrategy, using ICT to further the curriculum and leadership anddevelopment. First, visit www.education-show.com.
