St George’s Day Dragon Craft We’ve got a fun craft activity to try with your little ones this St George’s Day! Get your art supplies ready as you and your children have a go at our St George’s Day dragon craft kindly made by playful_porter.   What you’ll need: Toilet roll tube Green paper or green paint Pom-poms Wiggly eyes Crepe paper Pens Scissors Glue   Step 1 Wrap your cardboard toilet paper tube in green paper or paint it with green paint.   Step 2 Stick two wiggly eyes onto two pom-poms.   Step 3 Stick your pom-poms onto the back of your tube with the eyes ..read more

Easter Basket Craft As Easter approaches, it’s the perfect time to engage in some crafting with the little ones! Making Easter baskets are not only a fun project to tackle together with your children, but also a wonderful way to teach them about the spirit of Easter and the joy of giving. Let’s follow the step-by-step below and create some Easter magic!   What you’ll need: Easter basket pack Coloured pens Ribbon Glue stick Tissue paper grass Mini chicks   Step 1 Grab a pre-cut Easter basket made from card.   Step 2 Decorate using coloured pencils and pens with an Easter ..read more

Easter Card Craft Spring is in the air, and Easter is just around the corner! What better way to celebrate the season than with a fun and adorable craft activity for your little ones? Our Easter bunny card craft will have your children engaging with their fine motor skills and implementing their creativity. Follow the simple steps below!   What you’ll need: Coloured Card Scissors Colouring pens Glue stick Pencil   Step 1 Draw around your hand on a piece of card and cut it out.   Step 2 Cut the middle finger off of the card.   Step 3 Using a pen, colour in the ins ..read more

How Movement Feeds the Brain Across the country, well-meaning grownups are trying to get children to sit still, cross their legs and listen intently to learn. However, any early years educator will tell you this is quite the challenge, why is that you may ask? Once you know the science behind it, it’s not hard to empathise with the child who is constantly rolling around the carpet or climbing the shelves indoors. Children are born with the strong biological drive to move and for very good reason, because that’s what the brain needs and children’s bodies are designed to seek out the physical ..read more

Ask the Expert: NEW Nordic Inspired Range Often admired for its progressive and child-centered philosophy, the Nordic approach has gained international attention for its emphasis on play, nature, and equality in early childhood education. We caught up with our Early Years Product Developer Adelle Whitfield to get the scoop on our brand-new Nordic collection. We discuss what influenced this collection and the reasons why we’re so excited to release it to our customers!   What inspired the development of the new Nordic range?   As a product development team, we are constantly res ..read more

St David’s Day Daffodil Craft As St. David’s Day approaches, it’s time to embrace the spirit of spring and Welsh tradition with a delightful daffodil craft designed especially for early years. Our brand ambassador Raising Small Readers has a simple step-by-step for this lovely St David’s Day daffodil craft. Follow the steps below!   What you’ll need: Yellow card Paint sticks or paint Pencil Glue Scissors Printer Split pin   Step 1 Print the template and cut it out. A great one to use can be found here Step 2 Glue each arm down the wheel, working your way around. Then glue the ..read more

Mothers Day Card Craft With Mother’s Day coming up, we’ve got a lovely craft for your children to enjoy. This DIY card craft from The Creative Strawberries will allow little hands to show appreciation for the incredible mother figures in their lives through creativity. Let’s make this Mother’s Day one to remember!   What you’ll need: Coloured card Coloured paper Lollipop sticks Glue Scissors Pen Pencil Wooden hearts or cut hearts from card Step 1 Fold a piece of coloured card in half. Step 2 Cut a plant pot from a piece of brown card folded in half to create a doubled-sided pot ..read more

St Patrick’s Day Rainbow Craft Get your little ones celebrating the Emerald Isle with some crafting this St Patrick’s Day! We’ve got a wonderful St Patrick’s Day handprint craft from @charlotte_and_the_boys which is ideal for little hands with big imaginations. Follow the step-by-step below to create a colourful St Patrick’s Day craft that your children will love!   What you’ll need: Paint Paintbrush White paper Card or cardboard Scissors Pencil Glue Round sponges Cotton pads   Step 1 Paint your child’s hand in the colours of their choice, for example rainbow colours.   ..read more

Top Resources for Storytelling in Early Years Nurturing the love for storytelling in the early years lays a foundation for lifelong learning. It can become a wonderful journey of language development, creativity, and imaginative thinking. Here at Hope, we have an inspiring selection of resources designed to engage and foster a lifelong love for storytelling for your little ones. We’ve selected some of our favourite resources for storytelling, have a read below to get inspired!   Discovery Stones   These super stones have been designed by us to bring a traditional tale to life ..read more

Christmas Craft: Cherished Nativity Scene   Gather your little elves and embark on a special craft project that goes beyond arts and crafts. It’s about nurturing imagination, instilling the spirit of the season, and creating a cherished nativity scene that will be a source of inspiration, in any classroom or nursery for years to come.   What you’ll need: Recycled Craft Rolls Classmates festive Ribbon  Felt sheets  Classmates Ready Mixed Paint Giotto Turbo Max Colour Pens Egg Trays  Classmates Tinsel Pipe Cleaners Rhinestone Tape Classmates Peel and Stick Wiggly Ey ..read more