Education

The Hidden Germs in Your Child’s Belongings

Jade Pallett, a top microbiologist at ZOONO, the scientifically proven longer lasting sanitiser, offers her advice on how to keep children protected against germs for longer.

A study conducted by the University of Warwick found children to be most at risk for both catching and transmitting infections due to the number and nature of their interactions with people and surfaces.

Here, we list three ‘hot spots’ for germs and share our advice on how to keep them clean for longer.

Electronic Devices

Tablets and phones touch our hands and faces and are often shared with children, turning them into a major source of germs.

Clean devices weekly with a product that does not contain harsh chemicals (for example, bleach) as this can cause damage. Using a longer lasting protection such as Zoono Surface Sanitiser that is scientifically proven can help keep you protected for longer.

Car Seats

From food and dirty socks to drink spillages, car seats are a haven for bacteria. Shockingly, a study carried out at the University of Birmingham found car seats can contain nearly twice the number bacteria as a toilet seat.

To clean it properly, remove the seat to allow access to all the nooks and crannies. Vacuum all visible debris then wash the cover on a cool hand-wash setting and air dry.

Use gentle soap to clean plastic components. Pay special attention to the harness as this is integral in keeping your child safe. Carefully follow manufacturer’s instructions. Finally, spray with a microbe shield to protect the seat from germs for longer.

Nappy Bags and School Bags

Bags touch several surfaces and could therefore be a haven for germs responsible for colds, the flu or food poisoning. Bags left in warm areas (for example, hanging by a radiator or inside the car) are at particular risk.

Use warm soapy water to wash plastic and insulated bags every day, then leave to dry thoroughly. For cloth bags, wash weekly in a washing machine as per manufacturer instructions. To help protect for longer, once dry, spray with Zoono Surface Spray.

Choosing a Primary School

Which type of school offers the best start for my child?

Parents looking for a Reception place for their child ask themselves a number of important questions:

1. What type of school will suit my child best – small, nurturing, academic, sporty, musical, single-sex? What is the ethos of the school?

2. How will I get them to school – by car, walking or public transport? Is there good wraparound care provision?

3. Does the school offer a nurturing environment and good pastoral care so that my child can settle in quickly and make new friendships?

4. Does the school have excellent teachers who aim to instil confidence and nurture talents and treat my child as an individual?

5. Does the school offer a good range of extra-curricular activities, school trips, and sporting fixtures?

As Headmistress of Palmers Green High School, I am very much aware of how important this decision is, and am confident that in choosing PGHS, you are giving your daughter the very best start you can. motto, By Love Serve One Another to reflect the very special ethos of our small and nurturing School. Located in the heart of Winchmore Hill, parents choose our School for a number of reasons:

• At inspection, every aspect of Palmers

Green High School has received the highest grades of outstanding/excellent – from the Early Years Foundation Stage (Nursery and Reception) all the way to

Year 11.

• The School has a reputation for excellence and is ranked Number One in

The Sunday Times Parent Power national league table for small independent schools.

• PGHS offers small class sizes and each girl is treated as an individual where all talents are nurtured. Girls are selected for entry based on their potential to learn and join like-minded individuals who are encouraged to achieve their full potential.

• Girls are taught by specialist teachers with Reception having specialist PE, music and drama lessons each week. From

Year 1, additional specialist teaching includes Art, Design & Technology, ICT and Languages. • PGHS is the only all-girls independent school for ages 3-16 in the area. As a through-school, pupils don’t suffer from the anxiety of transition at the end of Year 6, but move with confidence to the

Senior School.

• A wide variety of extra-curricular clubs are offered to girls in the Lower School, including Sewing Club, Marble Club, Cookery Club, Prep Choir, Speech and Drama, Gymnastics and Prep Violin Club.

• There are a wide range of trips and visits on offer, which have included the

Tower of London, Gunpowder Mills and

Shepreth Wildlife Park, and visits from authors, poets and illustrators as well as a Shakespeare Workshop.

• Exclusive wraparound care is provided by

M&M childcare who collect the children from both the Nursery and School and take them to nearby facilities. Our working parents can be reassured that their daughters are well cared for.

If you are interested in becoming a part of the PGHS family, please call Admissions on 020 8886 1135, email office@pghs.co.uk or visit us virtually at www.pghs.co.uk. We are still receiving applications for Reception entry for this September.

Real World Maths!

By Aimee Hart @hart_at_home

Do you remember being at school at the methods used back then being totally different to those being taught now? Have you sat down with your child over the past year and thought… hang on – what?! Well you are not alone. The English National Curriculum has undergone many changes in its history and has ‘evolved’ with the times. This might leave you scratching your head wondering why the old methods have been flung out the window as we all know we learnt maths and get along just fine now (minus that nonsense we learnt about algebra and Pythagoras that we’ve yet to use in life).

There are valid reasons for the changes, reasons that ensure children understand the inner workings of maths more clearly. For example when we learnt the column method for addition we just added the numbers and came to our answer. The column method is still used but the foundations of this method need to be clear before skipping straight to simple adding. 23 + 45 – for example; children will add the 3 + 5 easily as these are simple ones. However children need to understand there are 2 lots of 10 to be added to 4 lots of 10. Rather than just 2 + 4. Without this basic understanding the concept of numbers can be lost or irrelevant. Which is why many teachers who teach in early years or Key Stage 1 tend to keep column method at arms length until these foundations are secure. The most important component of maths in Primary school is basic understanding and manipulation of numbers. Without this children will find it hard to use money, measure, tell the time, divide and multiply. Imagine a line of dominoes, if children miss those vital number concepts then that removes multiple dominoes from the run, leading to breaks or pauses in later education which will then need to be revisited. Keeping those methods simple and real ensures a smooth flow of dominoes along their life of learning.

During this time of home learning you may be faced with a method, a diagram or a concept that YOU remember being taught – but in a totally different way. Try and follow the line of thought from the school as there are valid reasons for the change. However, if you find yourself stuck and at a total loss as to how to support your offspring with this foreign language then try these simple at home maths ideas that will keep their little maths brains ticking!

1. Junk Model Mayhem

You will need: Anything in your recycle bin, sticky tape.

This is a great simple maths activity for little hands that will help develop vocabulary for 2D and 3D shapes. Build a model, alien or town using things from your recycling. Get the children to make a list (verbal or on paper) of all the shapes they have used. Twinkl have great shape mats to help them identify the shapes and remind them of their names. Continue by doing a shape hunt around the house.

2. Let’s Play Shop

You will need: a range of coins, play food or packets from the cupboard, a calculator or simply a pen and paper.

This is a simple way to manipulate numbers and can be differentiated to meet the level of your child. Label all the objects at round numbers for ease of adding or branch out into more complex numbers for them to add together. If your child is experienced with this give them the challenge of working out change! Don’t get too bogged down with the decimal point if your child is younger – keep it all in pence £1 = 100p.

3. Let’s Bake

You will need: a recipe to follow, kitchen scales and measuring jug.

Another thing you will all be doing during this time! It might be messy, it might end in something that Mary Berry would shudder at, but the idea of measuring is so important. Pull out all the different measuring tools you have with scales on and get them to experiment. Flip it on its head and get them to tell you how much you have – reading and creating amounts on a scale.

4. What’s The weather?

You will need: a thermometer, clock, pen and paper.

Linking further to scales with the added element of telling the time. Get children to create a weather journal. Large thermometers can be picked up from Amazon quite cheaply, stick one outside and get children to record the temperatures of different times. This will help them to tell the time, read a scale and track data! Triple whammy!

5. How Many Ways?

You will need: a range of objects to create a certain number.

This is something we do at school to develop that all round number knowledge. The number 5 isn’t just 5 sweets. It’s a tally, 5p, written in words, dots in a 10s frame, identified on a number line. Having a number of the day/ week will give more depth to their understanding of numbers.

Virtual Learning

We know that face-to-face teaching in classrooms delivers the best outcomes but there are also very successful ways in which learning online can be delivered. When facing the current challenges at Mount House we have sought to deliver a ‘best in class’ Virtual Learning Programme, and we are incredibly proud of what the School online community is achieving.

Maintaining routine during lockdown is very important and therefore the timetabled School day is kept to as much as possible starting with registration at 8.25am followed by form time where teachers engage with small groups of students supporting their overall online learning and sharing school news. There are weekly PSHE and form actvities working through topics such as career pathways and physical health. We also hold weekly whole school assemblies which help support our sense of community and we introduce important topics such as mental health and Holocaust Memorial Day.

At 8.55am students begin their full timetable of lessons delivered live by their teachers in all subject areas on Teams. The use of online white boards, break out rooms and various online tools are included to support learning engagement. We even deliver live science experiments using additional cameras and also host various music lessons and choir rehearsals using our music technology suite.

The continuation of clubs and societies is also vital to keeping Mount House students motivated and part of the community. Students can still participate in choir, art clubs, drama club, bake-off competitions and even a live ‘beat the teacher’ fitness challenge with the PE department. With students experiencing their full timetable online we recognise the need for time away from screens. To support this, our students have been engaging in regular ‘offline days’, filled with activities such as outdoor exercise challenges, arts and craft activities, community engagement and offscreen research in areas of interest.

On behalf of all the staff at Mount House we are hugely grateful for the kind and supportive comments from parents and students about the virtual learning programme as teachers are working enormously hard to deliver stimulating and enjoyable live lessons.

Contact us to find out more: Email admissions@mounthouse.org.uk or call 020 8449 6889. Camlet Way, Hadley Wood EN4 0NJ

Reading Get Spring

Recommended by Pickled Pepper Books Babies& Toddlers

Who Said Cheep

By Yi-Hsuan Wu

Who said ‘Cheep’? Was it Puppy? No, it was Chick! Introduce animals and their noises in this tactile board book perfect for making baby laugh. Featuring sturdy flaps and fabrics with a surprise mirror ending, this makes for the perfect first introduction to springtime.

Early years

Baby Touch: Seasons: a touch-and-feel playbook

By Ladybird

Introduce your baby to all of the seasons with this bright, interactive playbook. Say hello to spring, summer, autumn and winter, from fluffy chicks to sparkly snowflakes! With textured patches to touch, feel and explore, this bright and sturdy board book with grabbable tabs will engage young children from six months upwards. High-contrast colours and touchand-feels stimulate a baby’s senses, while encouraging interaction and play.

Dog Gone

By Rob Biddulph

This is a brand-new, wonderfully waggy story of one dog day afternoon, from the genius behind the YouTube #DrawWithRob phenomenon. Rob Biddulph helped so many families in lockdown provide much needed illustration fun for little ones and parents alike. Every dog has his Dave (or otherwise-named human) but on a walk in the park, the adorable Teddy the pug, loses his. And when Teddy finds himself at the shed of the TERRIBLE TROLL in the woods, he might find more than he bargained for... a new friend. So much fun to share with little ones.

Where Happiness Begins

By Eva Eland

There are so many good books to help children and their grown-ups talk about emotions now. Here is another great one exploring happiness, and what it feels like. This is the second of Eva Eland’s picture books that helps little ones deal with big emotions.

An Interesting Word for Every Day of the Year: Fascinating Words for First Readers

Books to get them reading for pleasure

By Dr. Meredith L. Rowe

This book is perfect for home schooling. Learn a new and inspiring word every day of the year, arranged into 52 seasonally themed spreads. Each fully illustrated scene provides a fun and supportive platform to introduce little readers to big words and extend their vocabulary. Curated by a literacy expert, these 365 aspirational words will fire your child’s imagination, help them label their emotions and expand their comprehension. What’s not to love!

The Broken Leg Of Doom

By Pamela Butchart

Hilarious, illustrated school-based antics where everything that happens leads to drama and running around and even some fainting! When a session of extreme dancing leaves maisie in the hospital with a broken leg, things take a turn for the weird! Strange noises in the ward at night, missing cuddly toys and a sandwich trolley that only ever has tuna sandwiches. Could maisie’s leg be cursed? If it is, and it definitely is, then everything is doomed! Laugh-outloud fun from one of our favourite authors, pamela butchart.

When we got Lost in Dreamland

By Ross Welford

Katherine contacted author and illustrator friends during lockdown to contribute to this wonderful anthology. These stories show that imagination can be a shelter, provide hope, make us laugh, smile and help us to see some light – much needed! With 133 contributions children will revisit this book time and time again.

A Year Full Of Celebrations And Festivals

By Christopher Corr

Another in the beautiful A Year Full Of series brings us countless different festivals celebrated all over the world. Some are national holidays, celebrated for religious and cultural reasons or to mark an important date in history, while others are just for fun. Dance your way through the streets of Brazil at Carnival, get caught up in a messy tomato fight in Spain at La Tomatina or add a splash of colour to your day at the Holi festival of colours.

10 Middle Ln, Crouch End, London N8 8PL 020 3632 0823 • www.pickledpepperbooks.co.uk

Home Schooling Essentials

Dedicated school area

A dining room no more, this is now your dedicated space for schooling. If you’re short on space any organised small area will do.

Outdoor time

Being cooped up in the house all day is a recipe for cranky children, so get them out and about even if it’s drizzling with spring rain. Long nature walks, exploring local monuments or just scooting around the park from some fresh air will do the kids and you the world of good.

Art supplies

Kids love anything creative, especially if there’s mess involved. Make sure you have a large stash of art supplies to keep them going.

Top tip – save all your Amazon brown paper packaging, it comes in useful to lay down to protect the surface.

Quiet reading space

Even if, in reality, that means sitting on the sofa, it’s still a space for the children to sit quietly and read (just make sure you hide the remote!)

LO ND ON PARI S

My Motherhood

Mother’s Day is a day where all journeys of motherhood, however big or small, are celebrated. Cherubs spoke to the company who knows motherhood best – Merci Maman. The personalised jewellery brand create beautiful handengraved gifts for the whole family, and this year their #MyMotherhood campaign champions women on their own unique journey with motherhood, highlighting and celebrating the different experiences for each mother.

We asked the lovely ladies from Merci Maman what motherhood means to them.

BÉATRICE – Founder

Motherhood to me is the magic of the unbreakable bond between loved ones and the affection of a mother and child that cannot be matched. Merci Maman has always been and always will be a celebrations of motherhood.

MARINE – Head of Brand

Motherhood isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ kind of concept. Everyone’s experience as a child and as a mum can never be compared. To me, motherhood is unconditional love, constant support and the huge responsibility to inspire and be the one they look up to.

EVE – PR & Marketing Manager

Motherhood to me is all about laughter and love. If i’m half the mother that my mum was to me, I’ll be happy.

INES – Country Manager Spain & Italy

Motherhood for me is a challenging and very rewarding gift, that most likely will make me age quicker… but I have a much fuller life than I previously had.

BARBARA – Operations Manager

Forgetting nothing and forgiving everything, and getting your biggest kick out of your children’s happiness.

ALIX – Marketing & Sales Director

Motherhood is challenging, sleepless, crazy and scary and at the same time yet the most amazing thing ever!

ANNA – Design & Sourcing Manager

Motherhood to me is a gift, a moment whereby we shift to put someone else’s happiness and well-being ahead of your own. Whether you’re a mother or look up to your own, we devote ourselves to love, teach, protect and support.

LANA – Brand Marketing & Campaigns Manager

Motherhood means to me a constant support, someone who is always there no matter what. Knowing that there’s someone there to always listen to me and give me a hug when it’s needed!

CHIARA – Marketing & Business Development

My mum has always been my biggest support and she always pushed me to try. I came to the UK for the first time alone when I was 13; it was an experience that changed my life and I would have never done it if it wasn’t for her. Motherhood for me means always being there for your child and supporting them in every way possible to help them create their own future.

MARYSIA – German Customer Service

Motherhood means to do your best and remember in the hardest of times that the tantrums will pass, teenagers grow out of it, nothing ends a bad parenting moment like a big hug. Being a mum also gave me another perspective on my relationship with my own mum and helped me to be less judgmental with her and childhood memories.

Join in the conversation of what motherhood means to you over on Instagram by using #MyMotherhood and tagging @mercimamangifts

Personalised Initial Pastille Necklace £79.00

Cherubs Loves

Personalised Intertwined Necklace £89.00

Personalised Signature Disc Necklace £79.00

Personalised Signet Ring £49.00

Home Edit

Planter with Stand

£19.50

M&S marksandspencer.com

Henry Gathered Lampshade

£21.00

Neptune neptune.com

Woven Nest of Tables

£99.00

Next next.co.uk

Washed Linen Duvet Cover

£80.00

John Lewis johnlewis.com

Storage Basket

£69.99

Zara zarahome.com

Lick Paint in Terracotta 2.5L

£38.00

Lick lickhome.com

La Redoute Rug

£220.00

La Redoute laredoute.co.uk

Pendant Light

£139.00

Made made.com

Carafe & Tumblers

£22.00

Garden Trading gardentrading.co.uk

Farida Vase

£28.00

House Doctor housedoctor.com

Lick Paint in Greige 2.5L

£38.00

Lick lickhome.com