The Magic of .....Potions, Early Years and Beyond

Now I am a firm believer in play, and not just in the Early Years. So, one of the bonuses of this Lockdown is the opportunity to play and learn with my own children. My Son is currently mad, keen on Harry Potter and in particular pretending to break into Snape’s Potion cupboard! So, whilst out walking we gathered a range of bits and pieces to create both Snape’s store and our own potions. Obviously, this required a potion recipe, which he was really excited to write, including things like burnt Niffler Claws, Unicorn Tears and, my personal favourite, one streak of Hippogriff mane! 

Finally, the mixing could begin, he crushed snail shells, pressed the colours out of petals and brewed different, bizarrely named, potions. The experimenting was a lot more thought out than when I do this with my Three-year-old Nursery Class, with a lot more contemplation. In this I think it was more identifiable as science to the untrained Early Years eye. He busied himself trying out different jars and containers, exploring capacity, colour and developing language ‘I’m going to add this, you need just a dash…see…?’ ‘This one is so toxic, it only needs a splashlet’ He was absorbed for nearly an hour and a half, before pouring out his final concoctions, labeling them, the whole time in the role of Ron!

I know I am biased, in my ‘for’ argument, but it does seem clear to me, this was a science lesson, with relevant and appropriate links to maths, literacy and the all important one for my Summer born boy; fine motor development. I can’t help but think as children grow, their play does too, and that play, is the best and easiest way to teach. Often in my Nursery Class I am visited by Teachers with no Early Years experience, and often I am explaining the relevance of an activity like this which looks like ‘just playing’ or ‘messy’ With this age I think the learning was clear and therefore begs the question, why don’t we play beyond Year 1…?