stretchandplay.co.uk

Big News!

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 01:59:59 GMT

After 3 years of stretching and playing hard I am leaving to work full-time in health promotion. Stretch & Play will still have its website, email address and postal address but we can no longer be contacted by our 0845 number as I am in the process of closing the Carn office down. If you have any urgent queries for me you can, of course, contact me on 077 346 505 17 or, preferably, by email.

Stretch & Play will still be offering training to adults who want to work with children but we will no longer be facilitating actual sessions with children. If you are interested in attending one of these training sessions keep an eye on our website for dates and prices. We're stripping Stretch & Play down to basics!

New week, new courses

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 01:53:12 GMT

Hi!

This week I've been preparing for our delivery of the Active IQ Level 2 Certificate in Teaching Physical Activity to Children. The course will take place over 4 or 5 days days depending on whether you choose to study 'under-5s'; '5-11s' or both age groups.

The first weekend (21st & 22nd Feb) will see both groups together to learn about the anatomy and physiology of children as well as look at the rationale behind why we need to provide physical activity to children.

The second weekend (28th Feb & 1st Mar) will see the group split into learning specific games, exercises and techniques for the under 5 age group on the Saturday and for the 5 to 11 age group on the Sunday. Those who have chosen to study both both age groups will have to attend both days.

The last day (7th Mar) will see both groups brought back together again to consolidate their learning and look at some of the health & safety aspects of teaching physical activity to children.

In order to receive accreditation there will be 3 different forms of assessment.The details for all of this (including cost) can be found on the News page of the website.

Enjoy!

Victoria

Happy New Year!

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 09:16:29 GMT

I know I promised big things back in August that I would update the blog more regularly etc.etc. but I got too caught up in feeling sorry for myself... But now it's a new year and I've come back with a new attitude! So, I'm gonna use the blog to tell you some stuff that I'm doing this year around personal development.

I'm starting this year by re-reading The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. It's all about rediscovering your creative self and I think it's a great fit with Stretch & Play and all the creative work we do with children and young people.

I'm also reading a new book to me called the Wisdom of Yoga by Stephen Cope which "unlocks the teachings of the Yogasutra by showing them at work in the lives of a group of friends and fellow yoga students who are confronting the full modern catastrophe of careers, relationships, and dysfunctional family dynamics. Interweaving their daily dilemmas with insights from modern psychology, neuroscience, religion, and philosophy, he shows the astonishing relevance and practicality of this timeless psychology of awakening". (Amazon) I think this will give me great insight to my own yoga practice and I'll let you know if it has any relevance to Stretch & Play.

It's good to be back!

Victoria XO

Eileen's Evaluation

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 04:49:01 GMT

Eileen has been working hard at Little Friends in Banbridge and this is what they had to say about her in her recent evaluation:

Elements of Stretch and Play Sessions that you liked…Interaction between everyone in the group.

Anything you didn’t like? No music

Favourite thing about Stretch and Play…

Games

Possible Improvements…

Left Blank

Views on the Stretch and Play Facilitator e.g. good use of resources, planning of sessions, relationship with staff and children, themes used etc.

-We think you are fantastic and the children really relate to you and the various programmes you do every week.
-All the children have really enjoyed their sessions with you and Percy!!!
-Very good relationship with all the children in the group.
-Thank you!

Wow Eileen! Well done for such positive feedback! Although, in training you were a natural!

Vic X

I'm back...

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 04:36:34 GMT

Hi Everyone!

Long time, no speak but I'm back now and raring to go again.

I have just returned from a Girls' Holiday with my Sister, my Mum and my Aunt and the 20+ degrees in mid-October plus the lovely food, fabulous views, wonderful spa treatments and time to rest and recuperate properly after my fall has really been the making of me!

I had a really hard time after splitting my kneecap open and I got lazy and complacent about everything in my life, including Stretch & Play, so the holiday was the start of me reclaiming my old energy and focus. From now on it's regular yoga practice for me as well as my students. It's good food every day (and maybe a little less of it!). It's even date nights with my husband! In order to be a good Facilitator you need to be good to yourself and I had really forgotten that over the last few years. I had put so much energy into building up Stretch & Play that I didn't know where it would go and what would happen if I lessened the intensity. Then, because of my fall, nature forced me to stop. And SURPRISE, SURPRISE Stretch & Play is still going strong!

In fact tomorrow sees the start of the new 10-week "Child Development, Movement & Play" course in the Ballynafeigh Community Centre, Belfast where Elizabeth and I will be building a strong yoga foundation to the Stretch & Play teachings.

It's happening! It's really happening!!!

Love to all,

Vic XX

Summer chill...

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:51:11 GMT

It's been a long summer for Stretch & Play and, just like my sister's dog, we've been VERY chilled out!!!!!!

We had NO website or email contact for the month of July and then I fell and split my kneecap open so am not able to do any teaching until September so I have decided to take this all as a sign to slow down over the summer and give myself a bit of breathing space...

But I'll be back in September with all guns blazing.... Promise!

Victoria X

Hayley's Evaluation of Gaelscoil Week 5

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 02:24:41 GMT

I decided that my voice doesn’t project well over the chitter chatter of 5-6 year olds. So today I have a whistle with me (an essential piece of kit for any facilitator – well it worked for the Von- Trapps !!!!)

Anyway we began with a warm up session and we do ‘five little monkey’s’ and all the actions that go with it. The children especially enjoyed using their feet for the phone. I’m then informed that this will be the last week of Stretch & Play because there are a lot of other activities happening within the school.

So I decide to make it a fun week and let the children decide on what activity they want to do today. I’m suddenly bombarded with requests for the bear hunt. Which we do and the children are hysterical and screaming when we ‘find’ the bear. Bring on the whistle!!!!!. So with everyone settled we play a game of hot potato, boys against girls and it goes down really well, with Garbhan (the bain of my life for the last 5 weeks) winning and becoming an instant hero with the boys, and now my new best friend. We ended the session with parachute games.

As you can see it has been a very eventful and thoroughly enjoyable experience. I feel that dealing with such large numbers has really been like an initiation and I feel totally capable of facilitating any group. I learned from Victoria that you have to be able to think on your feet and always have a plan B!!!!!!. Till the next time. Hayley xx

Hayley's Evaluation of Gaelscoil week 4

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 02:15:46 GMT

THE WEATHER WAS AWFUL !!!!! So we had to do Stretch & Play indoors. So me and 41 rowdy children were cooped up in a tiny prefab for one whole hour ( I must have been so bad in a former life to deserve this!!!!)
Anyway we used the weather as our theme and started off in a circle, using our fingertips to make the sound of the rain, then the rain got heavier so we used our hands to slap the floor, then came the thunder so now we are stamping our feet louder and louder and shaking our bodies for the lightning, trying to give instructions over the ‘din’ was impossible, so I went home that day with no voice.

Hayley's evaluation of Gaelscoil Week 3

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 02:14:47 GMT

This was by far my favourite week. I decided to join both P1 and P2 together!!! (I know I need to be sectioned at the very thought of it). However I felt that the change over between the two groups meant missing out valuable Stretch & Play time as it took forever to line the children up and swap groups.

Anyway the school were having a book week, so I decided to bring along my favourite book and read it to keep with the theme of book week. I gathered all the children around me and began to read, ‘we’re going on a bear hunt’. The children LOVED it and were soon screaming out all the lines that were repeated in the story. I asked the children if they wanted to go on a bear hunt, you can guess the response. It was great fun outside pretending to go through the swishy swashy grass, the sticky, icky mud and so on.

The session went really well and I felt that the children got a lot from it. Can’t wait now till next week.

Hayley's evaluation of Gaelscoil Week 2

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 02:13:51 GMT

I’m a lot more confident this week and decide to keep the groups separate again, as there are such big numbers. I started off with P1 we did a few warm up activities like ‘flying hands’ and ‘gloomy cloud’. We then talked about the farm and sang ‘Old Mac Donald’ and did all the animal stretches. We finished off the session with ‘human bop-it’ which they really enjoyed.

For P2 this week we started off in a circle and did ‘down in the jungle’ with each child naming a jungle animal we then pretended to go to the jungle and find all the animals, when we got to the elephants we managed a very successful elephant chain. I did bop-it with this group also and they thoroughly enjoyed it. Went home feeling on top of the world, and exhausted!!!