Little Minds, Big Ideas

Weekly Show #13: The Episode All About Observations Hey everyone, welcome back to Little Minds, Big Ideas Podcast! Episode #13 just landed, and guess what? Ben's made his triumphant return after a brief hiatus, and this week, we're getting into the nitty-gritty of "Observations in Early Childhood Education." Join Ben and Emily as they dive into the world of decoding tiny humans – yes, we're talkin...

Weekly Show #12: The Episode All About Group Times Join the dynamic duo, Lucy and Emily, as they dive deep into the fascinating realm of group times in early childhood education. Ben takes a back seat this time, giving the spotlight to the ladies for an insightful discussion on the power of group times and how we can ensure we get the very most out of these moments. So, tune in for practical tips,...

🎙️ Welcome back to the Little Minds, Big Ideas podcast, the go-to space for all things early childhood education! Join your hosts, the dynamic duo Emily and Ben, as they embark on a playful journey into the magical realm of creating an early years curriculum. In this episode, Emily and Ben are on a mission to unravel the secrets behind crafting the perfect adventure in learning for our little ones...

Weekly Show #10: The Episode All About Technology In The Early Years Step into the digital wonderland with Ben and Emily on Little Minds, Big Ideas! This episode dives deep into the intriguing realm of technology in early childhood education, exploring creative ways to integrate it into curriculums and environments. Join the dynamic duo as they uncover the magic of tech beyond screens, unlocking i...

Weekly Show #9: The Episode All About Physical Development Welcome to "Little Minds, Big Ideas," your go-to podcast delving into the fascinating world of early childhood. In this week's episode, we shine a spotlight on the critical theme of physical development. Join us as we explore the intricacies of how little ones develop their gross and fine motor skills, coordination, and spatial awareness....

Weekly Show #8: The Episode All About The New EYFS Changes As everyone in the world of early years finishes up packing away the Christmas decorations and adjusting back to some sort of routine, we thought we'd check in on how everyone's adjusting to the latest EYFS changes. With several 'low key' but significant and impactful amendments to the EYFS coming into play as of last week (the 4th Jan 202...

Weekly Show #7: The Episode All About Building A Successful Early Years Team Happy New Year!! Welcome to the very first episode of 2024, and to kick things off Ben & Emily decided it would be a good idea to discuss the key components of what makes a successful early years team. Both Ben & Emily bring their 3 top tips for how to build a successful high performing team within the world of ea...

The Christmas Special 2023 It wouldn't be Christmas here at The Early Years Network office without an extra special Christmas bonus podcast episode, and who better to welcome back than Ruby and Bea!! In this episode the girls sit down with Emily and discuss all things Christmas, including what they've put on there wish list, who they'll be spending Christmas day with and the effects of baked beans...

Weekly Show #5: The Episode All About Independence In Early Childhood This week Ben & Emily explore the topic of independence in the early years and how learning these life skills is crucial for their development. Learning to be independent across all facets of life and education is a crucial step for any child, however requires plenty of support, patience and guiding on our end! Within this p...

Weekly Show #4: The Episode All About Social Learning This week Ben & Emily explore the topic of social learning and the important role it plays in early childhood education and overall holistic development. Within this podcast they explore what social learning is, how it plays a pivotal role in knowledge acquisition within early childhood development, why being an active participant in social...

Weekly Show #3: The Episode All About Getting Outdoors This week Ben & Emily explore the magic of outdoor learning and all the benefits embracing natures playground can bring. By exploring topics such as risky play, emotional development, physical exercise and sensory play they uncover why getting outdoors is so important during early childhood education. It's certainly true that outdoor play...

Weekly Show #2: The Episode All About Music 'We all love music but can it really have a major impact on brain development?' In this weeks episode Emily is joined by Lucy as Ben recovers from a serious bout of man flu that has left him unable to speak or communicate, which isn't very useful on a podcast. Anyway the show must go on and in Ben's absence Lucy and Emily have a fantastic discussion arou...

Weekly Show #1: Guess Who's Back 'Guess who's back, back again? Little Minds, Big Ideas's back, tell a friend!' In this first Weekly Show Ben & Emily chat all things The Early Years Network following the launch of the brand new Learning and Development platform dedicated to the world of early years! Finally, after two months The Little Minds, Big Ideas podcast is officially...

In this episode Emily is joined by George Joyce, a sports coach who works with children in early years and beyond, helping to develop their physical skills, social confidence and hopefully become the next football superstar! Together they discuss the impact that sports clubs can have on young children. Conversations about how children can flourish in a sports clu...

In this episode Emily is joined by Olivia Hulley, a Nursery Manager who trained to be an actor when growing up. Together they discuss the skills Olivia gained throughout her training that have been valuable and transferable. Conversations about the impacts of the building confidence in early years and how gaining these skills has helped Olivia to build a career in a new se...

In this episode Emily is joined by Paul Carlon, a book illustrator who has recently worked on the story book ‘Amazing Albert, the Hero’. Together they discuss the impact stories and literature impact the early years! Conversations about how we can continue to add stories into early years environments and the work Paul is doing to create even more stories that will continue...

In this episode Emily is joined by the fabulous Hayley Winter, who is an Early Years Lead within a local primary school. Together they discuss the unique differences in Ofsted inspections across the various different age groups and their experiences within early years setting. Exploring important topics such the wider impact on Nurseries and Schools due to Ofsted inspections, t...

This week Emily is joined in the studio by a very special guest as she's reunited with her childhood dance teacher (Sam Burnham) for the first time in over a decade! Together they reminisce over a shared passion for all things dance and musical theatre, as well as exploring some important topics around teaching, nurturing childhood passions and lifelong lessons learnt as young children. Hosted on...

In this episode Emily is joined by the incredible Ben Kingston-Hughes, best known for his awe inspiring and award winning book ' A very unusual journey into play ', in which Ben explores the power of play during childhood through the lens of neuroscience and with the wit of a stand up comedian. Whilst Ben's not busy writing inspirational and groundbreaking books (he's got another one on the way th...

In this episode Emily is joined by Operations Manager Jordan Tully, who together discuss the importance of strong leadership and different leadership styles when working with large teams. They explore topics around the different and unique routes many take within the early years industry and how we can get the most out of each member of the team. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priva...

In this episode Emily is joined by nursery manager Rachael Farrow. Together they discuss the importance of a whole team approach to learning through play, and how we can ensure that everyone in the team has the same information to give children the best opportunities in an early years setting. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode Emily is joined by the amazing Ruth Brennan to discuss life as an Early Years Teacher and Deputy Head, as well as being a full time super mum! Together they explore the importance of striking a work/life balance, the internal conflict between teacher and mother and some really useful insight into child development! With new episodes being released every Wednesday make sure to follo...

In this episode Emily is joined by the wonderful Lucy Mills, an early years practitioner who recently qualified just a few weeks before recording. Together they explore what it's like to enter the world of early years, the process trainees and apprentices go through in order to qualify and some of the key things Lucy has picked up along the way! What a better way to kick off this early years podca...