Love cooking – Little Cooks Co product review

As someone who massively believes in teaching children independence and important life skills such as cooking early on in life, I am absolutely thrilled to introduce this amazing subscription box to you all. Little Cooks Co is a monthly subscription box for just £7.99 that provides you with all the dry ingredients you need to make a delicious snack with your little ones, the box includes the recipe card for the snack, as well as a recipe card for a simple hot family meal you can also cook with your little ones too.

The company’s tag line is Healthy Kids cooking kits delivered through your door and this is completely true with products that are organic,l and contain no refined sugar or gluten, it truly is a perfect way to spend quality time together having just delicious healthy fun with your little ones.

The Little Cooks Co was founded by two amazing mums, one of which is a registered nutritionist. The company was founded upon the believe that the kitchen is heart of the family and that it is somewhere to share and learn as a family. The companies philosophy is keeping it natural and keeping it simple. Little Cooks Co is passionate about making a difference to children and families across the UK by providing an exciting way to access healthy food and start good food habits early on in life.

What did we receive?

This month we received a recipe card for Bouncing energy balls!

They were simple to make with only peanut butter and boiling water needed in addition to the dry ingredients provided.

We received an additional recipe for a hot family meal to cook, this one was Fantastic family meatloaf!

We also received a special tea bag for the little one.

We even received some beans to plant and grow our own ingredients, these also came with an instruction card.

What did we think?

Luke was absolutely thrilled with this box and enjoyed making the energy balls. He was excited about having his own recipe card and even attempted to read it himself, although we aren’t actually at the reading stage yet. At the end we all enjoyed the treats he had made as a family and he tried his first ever cup of tea.

After we had enjoyed our treats we got the plant pots and compost out to plant our beans.

Needless to say we were impressed. This product has really stood out for us and is definitely something we would subscribe to in future. It is good value for money; it is a quality product and has a lovely philosophy behind it which is hard to deny. Add to that the lovely products you can buy along side your box, such as a recipe binder and apron for your little one, you really can’t go wrong.

Please visit Little Cooks Co and try a box for yourself.

Love Early Education,

Love Kylie x

Love reading – Chuckie makes mistakes (sometimes) by Amy Jensen

I recently had the pleasure of receiving a wonderful book called Chuckie makes mistakes (sometimes) from a very kind author named Amy Jensen. I am grateful to have the opportunity to review this lovely book and be able to share it with all of you.

Who is Amy Jensen?

Amy Jensen is an Author, Playwright and Vocal Music Teacher from New Jersey in the United States. In addition to her many wonderful roles, her most important role is being mommy to two wonderful Chocolate Lab’s named Chuckie and Nestlé. These sweet pups are her inspiration for her delightful debut book called Chuckie makes mistakes (sometimes). Based on our reaction here at Love Early Education, I imagine all her fans can’t wait to receive another instalment of Chuckie and Nestlé’s adventures.

Who is Chuckie?

Chuckie is a handsome and sometimes mischievous Chocolate Lab who lives with mommy and daddy Amy Jensen and her husband Roger. Chuckie also lives with a Chocolate Lab named Nestlé and a cat named Bert.

I recently had the pleasure of receiving a wonderful book called Chuckie makes mistakes (sometimes) from a very kind author named Amy Jensen. I am grateful to have the opportunity to review this lovely book and be able share it all with you.

Chuckie makes mistakes (sometimes)

From the first time we saw this book we loved the beautiful and unique illustration by Ulana Zahajkewycz, whose pictures really bring the story to life. My son Luke absolutely adores the doggie and was thrilled to be able to see some real life photos of Chuckie in the book and when we started to follow him online, we are definitely #TeamChuckie .

This book is beautifully written and its rhythmic sentence structures are perfect for young readers. Not only is it well written but it has a touching underlying message about making mistakes. The story explains that even though Chuckie tries to be on his best behaviour sometimes he makes mistakes and forgets to use his manners. Chuckie’s playful and mischievous nature is a sweet and funny way to teach children about the importance of making mistakes in order to learn and would help promote growth mindset, so this story is an ideal teaching tool for teachers and parents. The book also gently teaches children the importance of being kind and considerate towards others with a focus on good manners. The book is extremely engaging and in this house we can’t seem to get enough of it, my son has asked to read Chuckie every morning since it has arrived.

This book is a must have for children who are animal lovers. It is also an ideal teaching tool for parents or teachers looking to teach children about good manners, kindness and and growth mindset. It’s the type of story that the whole family will love and that you will all read time and time again.

You can buy Chuckie makes mistakes (sometimes) from Amazon on the link below (UK delivery is available!)

https://www.amazon.com/Chuckie-Makes-Mistakes-Sometimes-Chocolate/dp/198429699X?pldnSite=1

You can follow the adventures of Chuckie and his family on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/TeamChuckietheChocolateLab/

Love Early Education,

Love Kylie x

Love Spring – Peas and Beans

It is Spring and no Spring season is complete without growing beans in a jar. This year we decided to try Broad Beans and Peas. This is a fantastic little science and nature experiment for children within the EYFS and primary aged children to learn about how a planet grows and why they need to grow, as well as all about the different parts of a plant.

You will need:

* Seed of your choice (we chose a Broad Bean and a Pea)

* A glass jar

* Kitchen roll or napkins

* Some water

(If your using a Broad Bean soak it in a saucer of water for an hour before you start).

Step one:

Swirl some water around the and tip it out (leave the jar wet, do not dry).

Step two:

Fold your kitchen roll and dampen it and put it inside your jar (you may need to put several in dependent on the size of the jar).

Step three:

Place your seed in the jar resting between the kitchen roll and the side of the jar.

Step four:

Put your jar on a windowsill somewhere it can get natural light and spray with water daily or every few days depending how damp your kitchen roll stays.

The seed should begin to sprout within about 4 to 5 days and after about 10 days the seed should have grown roots, a stem and leaves depending on the plant you have chosen to grow.

This is a great time to introduce some growing themed books to learn all about how plants grow and what they need.

Writing opportunities:

List – children can list or draw what they think a plant would need to grow and stay alive.

Plant journal – dependent on age/ability children can keep a journal documenting the growth of their plant either with pictures or in writing. For older children this can include labelling a diagram of a plant and using correct terminology when describing the plants growth.

Technology opportunities:

Document the plants growth using an iPad/tablet by taking photos. These photos could be used to make an ebook using apps such as Book Creator, giving children the opportunity to explore what makes an effective piece of non fiction writing.

Regardless of what you do with the activity it is an opportunity for children to explore the wonder of nature and see a real life plant grow.

Love Early Education

Love, Kylie x