Our Blog

Traditional Tales & Fairy Tales: What are the benefits in the EYFS?

Posted by EYR Team on 7th Jul 2025

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Traditional tales and fairy tales have been used to support literacy development in the Early Years Foundation Stages (EYFS) for many years. Sometimes referred to as folk tales, these short stories ha … read more

5 Simple Activities for World Book Day

Posted by EYR Team on 10th Feb 2025

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World Book Day is just around the corner and it’s the biggest celebration of its kind. We celebrate World Book Day to salute authors, books, and illustrators and to give all young children … read more

EYR Budget Friendly Series: How to Teach Literacy on a Budget

Posted by EYR Team on 20th Jan 2025

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For the second in our budget-friendly blog series, we will be exploring literacy! Specifically, we will be suggesting a variety of cost-effective solutions for you to support children’s learnin … read more

Promoting Literacy in the Early Years

Posted by EYR Team on 12th Feb 2024

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Literacy is one of the key areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage and therefore understanding effective ways of promoting literacy in the early years is vital as it sets children up for success in … read more

28 World Book Day Ideas for School

Posted by EYR Team on 5th Feb 2024

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As World Book Day circles around once more, the panic for World Book Day Ideas begins to set in. In this blog we bring you 28 different activities to try in your setting from creative art and crafts, … read more

EYFS Literacy Activities: 10 Engaging Ideas for Early Language Development

Posted by EYR Team on 22nd Jan 2024

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The Early Years Foundation Stage, or EYFS, covers children’s education between the ages of 0 and 5. It is therefore a crucial stage in any child’s development. The EYFS is split into 7 ke … read more

The Importance of Reading in the Early Years

Posted by EYR Team on 8th Jan 2024

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There are few things in a child’s early years (birth to 5) more important than reading. Not only is it a fundamental skill for early education, but is required multiple times a day. In this blo … read more

How to Engage Children in Literacy

Posted by EYR Team on 24th Jul 2023

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  "Literacy is the ability to read, write, speak and listen in a way that lets us communicate effectively and make sense of the world."   - National Literacy Trust   Did … read more

How to Support a Child with Dyslexia

Posted by EYR Team on 3rd Oct 2022

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  What is Dyslexia?   Dyslexia is a learning difficulty commonly associated with difficulties in reading and spelling. As well as this, dyslexia can also present several other diffic … read more

How to Encourage Speech, Language and Communication in Young Children

Posted by EYR Team on 4th Jul 2022

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As we know, speech, language and communication skills are vital for children’s general development. The ability to speak clearly, process sounds, understand others and express themselves are al … read more

The Importance of Stories for Children with EAL

Posted by EYR Team on 31st Jan 2022

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What is EAL?   EAL refers to English as an Additional Language. It is a term used to describe the teaching of English to students who have not learned it as their first language.   EAL … read more

10 Activity Ideas For Your Setting This National Storytelling Week

Posted by EYR Team on 10th Jan 2022

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  This blog has been written by EYR Industry expert Emily Hanson, a qualified EYFS teacher with an M.Ed in Education from the University of Cambridge. In this blog, Emily delves into 10 dif … read more

DIY Hungry Caterpillar Costume: An Easy Step-By-Step Guide

Posted by EYR Team on 4th Feb 2021

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World Book Day, taking place on Thursday 4th March (2021), is a celebration of all things books, stories and reading.   It’s a perfect time to commemorate children’s favourite stor … read more

How To Record Stories & Boost a Child’s Storytelling Skills

Posted by EYR Team on 19th Dec 2019

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  This article has been written by storytelling specialists, Tonya and Natasha, from Little Creative Days. Tonya and Natasha are sisters and authors of a series of books about a little dog … read more

How Can Stories be used to Help Bridge Cultural Differences?

Posted by EYR Team on 25th Nov 2019

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This article has been written by storytelling specialists, Tonya and Natasha, from Little Creative Days   Stories are such a powerful tool, they can help us to make sense of the world and each … read more

Understanding the Basics of Phonics

Posted by EYR Team on 18th Nov 2019

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  Phonics is the way in which children begin to understand words, and as such is one of the most important parts of a child's early education.   This blog will go over the basic prin … read more

How to Take Storytime Back to Nature

Posted by EYR Team on 30th Sep 2019

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This article has been written by storytelling specialists, Tonya and Natasha, from Little Creative Days    It’s great to be able to make the most of the summer weather! Children lov … read more

How to Make a Story Add up

Posted by EYR Team on 23rd Sep 2019

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This article has been written by storytelling specialists, Tonya and Natasha, from Little Creative Days. In this blog they explore how to combine early maths and early literacy to support children's … read more

How to Breathe Fresh Air into your Storytime

Posted by EYR Team on 16th Sep 2019

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This article has been written by storytelling specialists, Tonya and Natasha, from Little Creative Days    When the weather is lovely we all like to be outside to make the most of it and … read more

Creative ways to improve language and communication

Posted by EYR Team on 19th Aug 2019

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This article has been written by storytelling specialists, Tonya and Natasha, from Little Creative Days    Children have an amazing capacity for creativity, their imagination holds no bou … read more

The Importance of Literacy in the Early Years

Posted by EYR Team on 15th Jul 2019

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  Once upon a time…   We all know the famous words, but can you remember the first time you heard them? From an early age, kids and parents tell stories for many reasons; to bon … read more

How To Use Stories To Engage Children With EAL

Posted by EYR Team on 3rd Jun 2019

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This article has been written by storytelling specialists, Tonya and Natasha, from Little Creative Days    The importance of stories for children with English as an Additional Language & … read more

How to Encourage Children to Write

Posted by EYR Team on 11th Feb 2019

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Do your children grunt when it comes to writing? Are you struggling to engage them in the activity? Writing is an important tool of communication which we encounter in everyday life. It is vital for … read more

Engage Literacy Reading Scheme - what is it?

Posted by EYR Team on 1st Oct 2018

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When children are learning to read and developing their skill, it is important that they have access to books of the right difficulty level. They should be challenging enough so that improvement can … read more