January's Cultural Capital

The Arctic & Polar Regions

January is the month in which we look to the Arctic and polar regions of the world to investigate all things cold. We'll look into Inuit arts and culture - the songs and lullabies; arts and crafts of the nomadic peoples of the North; we'll look at the animals and wildlife that can be found amongst the tundra; we'll see the Aurora and ice caps and much, much more besides. Read on to discover the magic of the Arctic and how we're priming our preschoolers to be mindful of Climate Change and the importance of protecting what lies at the top of the world....

Literacy & Language

Arctic Pole Folk Tales

The nomadic cultures of the Arctic and polar regions have a rich cultural heritage of folk tales delivered in an oral tradition and song, for the most part. But there have been some wonderful compendia developed over the years, much of which we use to pepper our children's stories over the month of January.

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Arts Programme

Inuit Folk Art

There is a rich and varied cultural arts traditional across the Arctic and polar regions. Similar to the vibrant colours associated with the traditional textiles of Scandinavia, the arctic peoples bring life to the dark, arctic winter in their surreal sculptures, masks and textiles. There are some great blogs on the history of their cultural development but we've done a quick blog on what we intend to do and study below. Happy reading!

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Music Programme

Arctic Folk Music

For a region that lacks much by way of natural resources to make and manufacture musical instruments, the Inuit, Aleut and Nanets had to focus on their voices, drums made from hides, and wind instruments made from the ivory and bones they'd captured. Married with its traditions animism, the lullabies are haunting, but equally beautiful...

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Be the best parent you can be

Hatching Dragons Blog

We keep our community up to date with activities and the best of early years methodologies and parenting tips to keep you up to date with how to be the best parent you can be...