Bo’ness childminder, Cecile Recio, shares her experience of using Dr Claire Warden’s ‘Floorbooks® Approach’ to encourage child-led play and learning in her childminding setting
When I started Cleo Childminding in Bo’ness in 2019, I was already really interested in how outdoor experiences support children’s health and wellbeing, but the COVID-19 pandemic meant I began to really explore this area of interest sooner than I had planned to. I decided to fully embrace the outdoors - and as part of my Continuous Professional Development I started the
Virtual Nature School, which provides both practitioners and families with the learning resources they need to confidently explore nature with children. This led me to discover Dr Claire Warden’s Floorbook® Approach.
This is a child-led approach to observation, documentation and planning. The process encourages shared thinking, as children recall their ideas and record them through writing, diagrams and photographs.
"This child centred approach records the evidence of the process of play and the learning that comes from it" - Claire Warden
By listening to children and identifying their interests I can provide lots of relevant play experiences and learning opportunities within my childminding setting. For example, the children were recently particularly interested in boats and cars and so following their lead, we started our Floorbook® on Transport.
How A Mystery Box Can Help Explore Children’s Interests®
We started our journey with a ‘mystery box’ as the children call it (it’s called a ‘talking tub’ in Claire Warden’s approach). Our mystery box held various objects and images regarding boats and safety at sea, for example, boat toys, sinking and floating materials, materials to build a boat with, a lighthouse candle holder and photographs of a variety of boats.
Picking out items of interest and engaging with the resources in the box really helps to spark conversations and questions from the children.
Each child found something interesting to them: one was particularly interested in the light house, another in the photos of the lifebelt and the children all enjoyed sharing their knowledge, for example, discussing what they are used for, how they are made, what they like about them. During our conversations about the topic, I write down their words, ideas and theories. The children told me about the materials they thought would sink or float and later on we tested their theories and recorded the results!
Dr Claire Warden said: “Planning can be a joyful process when we do it with and for children through Floorbooks®. Listening to children’s theories and ideas fills me with the positive energy to be able to plan for experiences in a creative and meaningful way, it is wonderful to read how they are being used so widely and so positively by childminders.
“Being in a home-based environment gives us a meaningful context, flexibility, smaller numbers of children and a diverse range of age groups. These provide the core foundations for responsive planning that is at the heart of the Floorbooks® Approach as they emerge from the positive relationships and care already in place."
Floorbooks® Encourage Child-Led Play and Learning
During one day with the children, we wondered “what makes boats go fast?” One of the children suggested it was because of the wind. We wrote this down and a few days later, he built a small sailing boat and used a hand-held fan to make it move fast in the water.
On another day, the children decided to build a pirate ship, using crates, planks, ropes and a wheel available in the garden. Children are in control of their play though I sometimes intervene to extend their experiences. On that day, I offered tools such as a small hammer and screwdriver when I saw a child playing at fixing the boat with a stick, and this then led them to talk about the various tools they could use. When the boat became bigger and bigger through the day, I commented about it and wondered how big it was. A child suggested a number and we took the tape measure out to measure it.
Recording Childrens’ Floorbook® Experiences
All of these experiences are recorded in the Floorbook® with the children:
- I usually print photographs of what they have been doing and the children can then cut and glue them.
- I like to listen to all children and record their communication in any form. I may take a note of a baby or toddler’s high interest in a photograph, or gestures, sounds or words in multiple languages.
- I may write for younger children what they say, or they can scribble, draw or make meaningful marks, while older children can write themselves.
Parents find this kind of information really interesting and informative and helps to update them on what their children have been doing during the day with me, and they can continue to have conversations at home about the topic.
The children love revisiting their Floorbook®, it is somewhere where their thoughts, theories and their experiences are recorded and children can see their own progress, their challenges and successes. It supports healthy self-esteem and resilience and promotes children’s responsibility for their own learning.
Following children’s interests is at the heart of my childminding practice. This means that I never know where a particular topic is going to take us and how long we will focus on it. We recently started a Floorbook® on water - and this led us into exploring and investigating snails because on a rainy day, children noticed all the snails coming out in the garden. Recently, children have been more interested in dens and shelters due to the changing weather, which means we will be starting a new Floorbook® soon!
Want to know more?
Improving practice and seeking to achieve the best possible outcomes for children is what makes childminding such a high-quality service.
SCMA has developed a range of learning resources to help childminders to build upon their existing skills and knowledge.
You can find out more about our courses, including
Outdoor Play which aims to improve the quality and provision of outdoor play; increase confidence in offering outdoor play in a childcare setting and a positive approach to risk in order to achieve the best outcomes for children; and
Think STEM Science Inquiry and STEM Outdoors – which promotes STEM science inquiry skills and STEM outdoor opportunities in your childminding setting and builds on the outdoor play ideas shared above – a great practical CPL – all our courses are designed specifically for childminders.
For further information and background, a free e-magazine called
Inquiries, is also available at
mindstretchers.academy that shares examples and practical tips in using Floorbooks® and Talking Tubs.