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CookieCutter
06-10-2014, 06:54 AM
I know that Ofsted expect us to take the children outside every day, and I pretty much do, because I love to be outdoors. However, the weather is dreadful this morning and not meant to get any better. I live in a flat and don't have a garden, so I don't have any way of exposing the children to the outdoors apart from going out the front door and walking to somewhere safe to play. The area I live in is lovely and we have beautiful fields and a nice little park about a minutes walk (okay, 10 minutes if I don't take the push chair because los stop and look at/touch everything!) away and we go exploring all the time. On a day like today, though, if it were just me and my own daughter, I certainly wouldn't be taking her outside in the nasty weather. Which makes me wonder if I should be taking everyone outside just to tick something off the Ofsted list. I have more than enough imagination/creativity/resources to keep us all busy and engaged for the whole morning, then it's nap time after lunch.

I'm still relatively new to childminding, so this may seem a silly thing to ask, but what do you all do? There doesn't seem to be much room for common sense in some of these rules, but perhaps this is because I'm still new and afraid of doing the wrong thing.

redtiger21
06-10-2014, 07:02 AM
I agree, would parents be taking them out in this? Probably not. However, they don't have to comply with ofsted, so you can at least offer the children the option of outdoor play, and if they decline they decline. At nurseries and pre schools they aren't forced outside, they just have access. By offering kiddies the choice, you are providing access :) p.s. hopefully for your sake they'll turn down your kind offer! X

bunyip
06-10-2014, 08:20 AM
In a word: 'Welly Walks' (oh, OK, so that's 2 words, but you get my point.) :rolleyes:

I'm always griping about State interference and dictating to CMs and parents about how to bring up children (ie. let them have a childhood and stop treating them as mere raw material and trainee units of economic production and consumption.) However, for once, I believe the State has got this requirement right (though maybe not for the right reasons.)

"There is no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing." (Alfred Wainwright)

Mind you, I encounter a lot of unsuitable clothing, largely because parents would rather stick their 3yo in front of CBeebies or Grand Theft Auto than let them enjoy the gentle kiss of raindrops.

Things I get sick and tired of saying to mums:-

It's rain; it is not nuclear fall-out.
No, sequinned fashion-boots for your 2yo are not the same thing as wellies.
I don't care how cute Hello Kitty may look, that isn't even showerproof.
Don't worry, you can shift that with a damp cloth.
No, your child is not water-soluble.


etc. etc. etc.

:mad:

mama2three
06-10-2014, 08:34 AM
Now although I completely agree with Bunyip I must admit on the school run this morning it felt less like the gentle kiss of raindrops and more like wet bb pellets! I wrapped up all the littlies , they were snug , I did my best with the schoolies but most will have to sit in damp clothes most of the school day - then grabbed the first coat I saw for me in my rush out of the door! Now home , changed , and choosing alternative clothing for when we head off to feed the ducks shortly!

kellib
06-10-2014, 08:47 AM
It's freezing here today and the rain feels like ice! We've been out to school and will be going out to nursery again later so that's our days outings sorted ;)

The two LO's I have today have already said they don't want to go out again this morning which I'm happy to go along with!

CookieCutter
06-10-2014, 09:13 AM
There is unfortunately a big difference between the gentle kiss of rain and what is going on outside my home right now. I'm all for wellie walks, but the wellies are likely to fill up from the amount/force of the rain today, and it's not really let up for any length of time. It's also quite chilly, blowy, and thunder-y. I'm no wuss when it comes to some gentle rain, or getting a bit muddy! :)

There is also the fact that, while I have appropriate outdoor clothing for myself and my daughter, mindee has turned up with only her everyday shoes, no socks (I have learned my lesson about using my daughter's clothing on mindee, if I forget to take it off before she goes home, I never see it again! Also, they're not really the same size.), and a fashionable rather than functional rain jacket which fits poorly as mindee has outgrown it.

I don't do any school or nursery runs, and i don't drive, so going outside today will literally be just for the sake of going outside. Snack is nearly finished, so I will bundle us all up and we'll head out for what will likely be about 30 seconds before mindee starts crying, as she is prone to do when her head gets wet.

Mouse
06-10-2014, 09:24 AM
I only have pre-schoolers and don't do any school or nursery runs, so there is no need to go out if the weather's very bad. But there aren't many days when we don't go out at all. If the back garden is too muddy I shut the drive gates and we play on the front drive instead. We get some really good puddles out there, so as long as the children have wellies and waterproofs on, they're fine. If we don't play out, we will at least go on a walk to the shops or the library. Over the years I've found parents are more accepting of their children going for a walk in the rain than they are of their children playing in the rain.

To be honest, I'm more likely to limit their time outside in the summer, when it's very hot, than I am in the winter. On very hot days I'll bring the children indoors during the afternoon when I can see them overheating.

Mouse
06-10-2014, 09:30 AM
There is unfortunately a big difference between the gentle kiss of rain and what is going on outside my home right now. I'm all for wellie walks, but the wellies are likely to fill up from the amount/force of the rain today, and it's not really let up for any length of time. It's also quite chilly, blowy, and thunder-y. I'm no wuss when it comes to some gentle rain, or getting a bit muddy! :)

There is also the fact that, while I have appropriate outdoor clothing for myself and my daughter, mindee has turned up with only her everyday shoes, no socks (I have learned my lesson about using my daughter's clothing on mindee, if I forget to take it off before she goes home, I never see it again! Also, they're not really the same size.), and a fashionable rather than functional rain jacket which fits poorly as mindee has outgrown it.

I don't do any school or nursery runs, and i don't drive, so going outside today will literally be just for the sake of going outside. Snack is nearly finished, so I will bundle us all up and we'll head out for what will likely be about 30 seconds before mindee starts crying, as she is prone to do when her head gets wet.

If it's only for one child and it's going to be more hassle that it's worth, I wouldn't worry about it for today. Sometimes a snuggly day indoors is nice :)

I'm lucky that most of my families are very outdoorsy, so the children are used to being out in all weathers and always come fully equipped with wellies & waterproofs. I keep spares for those that turn up in suede fashion boots and fur jackets!

bunyip
06-10-2014, 09:41 AM
I feel the same as Mouse. I'm constantly baffled by parents, schools, etc. who think rain is to be avoided and sun to be soaked up. Hiroshima, Chernobyl and Three Mile Island notwithstanding, the incidence of rain-related skin cancers is remarkably low. If only the same could be said for the summer sun. Yet there they all are, slapping on a quick splash of sun cream and shoving the tinies out to cook in the midday heat. I wonder how many have bothered to read the bottle, which points out that suncream never offers full protection, and practically no protection whatsoever between 11am - 3pm. :eek:

I've found a simple solution to those lo's who don't arrive with suitable clothing (alongside telling the parents to get it sorted.) I have 2 sets of spares:

Pink and flowery = for the boys.
Camo-pattern = for the girls.


I stick lots of photos in diaries of them so dressed, which tends to drive home the point. A couple of days of the lo's nagging "bunyip makes me wear pink" and the 'suitable clothing' will appear, like Mr Benn's shopkeeper, as if by magic.

:D

mama2three
06-10-2014, 09:59 AM
Last time I mentioned on here that my spare clothes were allocated to children in exactly the same way Bunyip I got lots of comments about how I was humiliating my poor mindees !!

bunyip
06-10-2014, 10:28 AM
Last time I mentioned on here that my spare clothes were allocated to children in exactly the same way Bunyip I got lots of comments about how I was humiliating my poor mindees !!

The people making those comments should maybe check their diversity policies. :D

CookieCutter
06-10-2014, 08:31 PM
We got outside in the end! We had about half an hour before lunch when it was only raining lightly and the thunder stopped and wind died down. Poor mindee's shoes were soaked through, but I did give in and put my daughter's socks on her. I made sure to take a photo of mindee stood outside next to my daughter, who was appropriately attired for the weather and am hoping parents will notice their child looks a bit cold and wet. Today was the first day in a very long time that we've had consistent heavy rain for nearly the entire morning, we've always managed to find a break in the heavy rain for some outside play.

I've been childminding for nearly a year now and in that time, there have only been 2 days where we've stayed inside all day- and that was due to very icy roads and walkways. I felt so terribly guilty for those days, worrying that somehow Ofsted would find out I hadn't taken the kids outside and I would be labeled a terrible childminder and mother. I guess the point of this whole post was that I'm finally coming to the point where I'm feeling a bit less worried about Ofsted because I don't think I could please them 100% even if I tried!

tess1981
07-10-2014, 11:28 AM
Last time I mentioned on here that my spare clothes were allocated to children in exactly the same way Bunyip I got lots of comments about how I was humiliating my poor mindees !!

I remember that thread ...