Welcome to Silkysteps - Early years printables, ideas and resources for Children's play.
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Welcome, please enjoy all our activity and printable craft ideas. They are developed for use in Preschool, home and by all Childcare professionals

Preschool activities & early years resources. 
Developed for childcare providers, parents, children & all areas of play.

On the character pages Silkysteps has many free activities & links to help with early years planning. Focus craft & play suggestions use a range of ideas & tactile materials that promote play, development and learning. 
Please note that only the
store has resources that can be purchased.

A few of Silkysteps free resource pages ..

Spindle Spider's black line colouring pictures can be used for topic focus, signage and play activitiesColouringMischief Mouse's preschool craft projects, collage and paint - enjoy tactile play in your early years setting ..Preschool craftsNewest outline added - Click the text link for all Mischief's available outline templates ..Craft templatesSilky, our website cat, has a small collection of clipart images and desktop wallpaper downloads, please enjoy them.Clipart

Navigator Narwhal's outdoor in - play! Ideas for a flexible and open approach to planning.Outdoor play activitiesInky bear - activity sheets for conversation, creative play and mark making.Activity SheetsMagical Mammoth's recipes for messy play, snack time and playdough activities .. Playdough activities

Ruthierhyme is online nowMark making activity ideas - this is a forum thread link and Downloads
Hope Hedgehog's area has useful articles published for Early Years reading & implementation .. 
Early years articles Calculato Caterpillar and Number line orders .. activities for Math 


Front page early years index 
Latest website resources  The store  Map  Plugboard  Take part   Competitions  Diary Dates  Seasonal activities: Summer - preschool planning ideas   Special features  Preschool Book reviews  Additional craft activities  Text Links

Bouncy Squirrel mini topic for autumn play ..
 Nature basket - Puppet play, printables and acorn numberline ..


Design a playhouse competition from Waltons.co.uk
Design a playhouse competition on Waltons.co.uk - Closes 12th November 2010

The following are the websites newest added titles

 

Please click to visit the newest resource title added to the store

 Summer time outline templates £2.25
pay, download, print and and play.
& the most recently added store titles:
 Glitter jar image activity cards £1.75
 Pirate Dog's keys mini topic for paint & role play £2.50
 
Hibenation outline set £2.25
 Clover leaves mini topic £2.50
 
Reindeer Sleigh display board activity - craft kit £2.00

Please click to visit the newest free character resource

 Boat making for all ages

 
Silkysteps Store
Read through all the title resources available for sale on Silkysteps.
 


All our early years resources from the store can be viewed on one page, please click the image above or view by category: Mini Topics  Craft eBooks  Craft kits  Outlines & Templates  Early Years Miscellany
Most of the products available on Silkysteps are Grey post box image: denoting the goods are DOWNLOADABLE they will not be sent through the post by courier. downloadable: Once paid for, an invoice with instructions will be sent to your email address and please remember that support is always open.
About the resources
All the titles you see available on Silkysteps have been developed in-house, designed for preschool, home and early years settings.
Consideration is given to how the titles can be used for training purposes and how to adapt them to help promote your craft and play activities, display, parent's notice board areas and information centres. 
 
Popular titles include
Lily pad frogs interactive numberline. Lily pad frog & numberline resources  Promote Children's rights and introdce free choice, access and decision making to your fruit and vegetable snacks ..Snack Dragon fruit outlines
Tudor pottage or winter time stew - use Elephants stomping rhyme to build focus activities around vegetables and recipe ingredients Elephant's stew mini topic  Bouncy Squirrels for all seasons ..Bouncy Squirrels mini topic - numberline
 


Silkysteps map - find you way around ..Plugboard advertising - promote and visit Preschool Craft and Business websites ..
Silkysteps Image Map - Navigate through our craft resources with a little more ease .. 
Plug Boad advertising for Preschool Crafts and Business websites.
Independant unaffiliated screenshots for visitors to browse excellent resources for home and Preschool

 Preschool early years forums - online community. Completely free, they give all early years professionals - parents, childminders, teachers, preschool, nursery and toddler groups the chance to question & answer - discover & plan!!
Click for the past ...
3 Days | 4 Days | 5 Days or the Past Weeks posts
Silkysteps Early Years focussed eNewsletter 
Sign up and keep ahead of everything happening on Silkysteps - new activities, forum updates and early years news all delivered to your inbox.
For a Sample of our previous Newsletters ~
Please take a look HERE
NB: Registration for our newsletter is separate to your forum membership and store account

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Some interactive opportunities, on Silkysteps and other's networks:
 
Enjoy some of the interactive early years focussed features on Silkysteps ..
Competitions to enjoy for home and Preschool Campaign and awareness dates for planning activities ..
 Please visit our Early Years Preschool & home competitions - prizes for play on this page
 Preschool 'Dates for your Diary' includes campaigns and awareness events that can help imform your planning and setting provision.
 

Building links
Policy and research

 
Better Regulation: from BERR - see how you can help improve restrictive regulation .. 
DCSF Consultations - how does the Department for Children, Schools and Families want your help ... 
Ofsted Consultations - Get involved, find out what's new and pass on your views ..
 

Building links
Preschool activities for the season - Sping, Summer, Autum and Winter play

Summer activity ideas for your children's preschool play ..
Pick up a themed set of ocean activity sheets from Inky's page ..
UK and USA activity sheets - Under the sea
Click to watch Daisy Petals counting rhyme ...
 Daisy rhyme and downloadable play sheet - blow tissue paper petals with your rhyming play ..
 

 Sun awareness poster 



Click for the Sun collage template - full image opens in a new window
 Sun collage and craft  activity

Summer themed resources from the store

Summer fun, games and activities for the warmer months ..

 
Stitch Squirrel has sewing projects, knot and guides for general information ..
Calculato Caterpillar and Number line orders ..Fiesty Firefly has a whole range of printable resources ..

Errol Eagle  rhymes and rhythm - home communications and ideas for home corner activities Hope Hedgehog's area has useful articles published for Early Years reading & implementation ..Omni Orangutan has a range of activity pack titles to read and adapt to individual setting's needs ..

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Special features - articles that reflect our interests ..

Our areas of interest - Preschool & Children's early years: 
involvement, home and community. 
 

Book reviews for Preschool, Nursery and Early Years
Books for preschool and Early years 
The list of preschool books contain links to purchase which are in association with our Amazon affiliate account.
 Please, copy and paste the book title to search using your own independant supplier.
 Book titles & reviews are based on personal experience and recommendations.
 Wherever possible links to learning resources, reviews and additional information is also included.

Children in the picture - Inclusive practice.Children In The Picture 
 This Inclusion poster is a great resource to help promote diversity in all types of settings. 

 You can order it for £5.00 inc P&P by emailing
inthepicture@scope.org.uk

  More about Richard Johnson and his wonderful Illustrations
  For activity ideas please see our range of Early years themes and topic forums

 


 

HBA - hospital radio activity Ideas
Have you thought of ways your Early Years setting can help support and network with the local volunteers working in your hospital radio stations?

You can find contact details of your local station on the HBA ~
Hospital Broadcasting Association's website.
To introcduce concepts and plan activities for any links you hope to build please feel free to use and adapt these suggestions:  

 
Early Learning preschool play planning  
 
Activity Sheets ~ Radio Listener ~ Request Sheets Print, write, tear off & enjoy !!
Hospital radio activity sheets, play ideas for role play and preschool planning suggestions


Handykam - Birds in Preschool, activities for home, nursery, school and foundation ...

Please visit our affiliate merchant Handykam.com for details on how you can watch and monitor the birds in your area.

These preschool focussed activities are a few play ideas that help explore protection, care and conservation of the birds we see regularly in and around the gardens.
Watching and naming native & international migratory friends can be great fun and important for noticing changes to their habitats and routines.
Wherever possible involve the Children and interested adults in the lives of your birds and help secure a corner of your outdoor and indoor play for feathery awareness.
 
Playdough Bird Nests an interactive activity from Magical Mammoth's Playdough page
 
Sakalava Rail a craft collage activity from Mischief Mouse.
 
Our Birds forum many preschool play & activity ideas for a tactile, holistic approach to your early years provision.


 

GALS - Giant African Snails. Care and considerations within Preschool settings .. The-Snail-Trail.co.uk
 Giant African Land Snails - GALS
 Join the snail trail and discover what GALS can do for your Childrens knowledge & understanding of the world.
 Giant African Land Snails are a great addition to any learning environment, home or classroom.
 
Preschool & early years topical activity play plan ideas for introducing GALS to your setting.
 Download and print The Snail Trail's
free Breeding Awareness Poster, display it on your notice boards and help their efforts to spread the word of responsible snail ownership. 


 

Silly Books ~ SillyBooks.net 
Where pen is put to paper and wonderful Illustrations come to life.
Sillybooks is a stunning website run by some pretty amazing people. Full of original interactive stories, games, music, puzzles and much more. It's updated frequently so be sure to pop back and see what's been newly published!


 

Head lice and nit information Head Lice in your setting ?
Please click through for our free Headlice and nit activity pack - information, colouring pictures and preschool play ideas that can be printed out and enjoyed by your whole group and extended community.
Distribute the booklets or individual pages to your parents and display on notice boards for everyones information...
Our Bug busting day forum has lots of ideas on how to break the cycle of infestation and play ideas to openly discuss any problems ..
Heads craft activity from our 'All about us' Forum. 

 
 
Let me be I am a child by Peter Dixon - forum thread

 
International Perspectives on early learning 
© Wendy Ellyatt 2008 written for and hosted on the OpenEYEcampaign site.

Link opens in a new window
International Perspectives on Early Learning οΎ© Wendy Ellyatt 2008 Written for the Open EYE - Early Years Education Campaign. 

People you may meet
A list of supporting professionals you may meet.
Download from the ECM publications website:
People I may meet - Early years and Preschool professionals

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Early craft activities published with permission ...

Dinosaur puppet - role play with junk modelling boxes .. 

Dinosaur stomping published on Under5s.co.uk
Take puppet making outdoors and enjoy the jungles found in your play areas ..



Dinosaur Colouring pictures for themed and focus activity play  
and on Silkysteps 
Dinosaur colouring pictures
 

Support Silkysteps and visit other sites of interest with these links
Help us to increase visitor numbers
Click through to register your vote of support for Silkysteps & to discover many more websites:
 TeAchnology Topsites Sites for Teachers Sites for Parents Mumszone

 Building links

Monthly health and safety tips from the UK's HSE ...
5 steps to risk assessment

HSE - Health and Safety Executive's myth of the month ..

Myth of the month from the HSE - Health and Safety Executive