Mini Beast extravaganza

The children had two African snails and a stick insects join them for the morning at nursery.Practitioner Kim and Chelsea sat with a group of children to look at the insects and watch them nibble on some pear. The snails were moving very slowly along the ground leaving a nice snail trail behind which was pointed out by the children. Children stroked and picked up the snails carefully and were very interested in watching the snail come out of their shell. Kim explained that the snails live inside a shell and move along very slowly and that we must treat them very carefully and not drop them.Having insects at nursery provides children with the opportunity to develop an awareness of how to care for living creatures and to also learn about the world around them. Children from a young age should be given these opportunities as it helps fosters a positive attitude for preventing cruelty to animals and teaching them to respect those who are different.Africian snails can grow up to 25cm and they are a great pet as they are low maintenance, children would be able to sit and watch these and see what the snails get up to.