Pre-school helpfully cast Finn as a king in the nativity this year. I am still recovering from my c-section and we have Ioan’s king costume from last year.

True to form, Finn decided that he would like to be an orange king. Why be any other colour when you can be orange? After some negotiation, we decided that if he wore the red cloak then he could make some orange accessories.

Resources

  • Card
  • Scissors
  • Paint
  • Stickers
  • Sequins
  • Glittery paper
  • Pipe cleaners
  • Beads

Last Christmas, Ioan spent hours painstakingly sticking all the sequins on his crown (front and back). He was incredibly proud of his creation. That crown has been used for a full year in dressing up games, it is well loved and still played with, even though the final sequin fell off last month.

When we found out that Finn was going to be a king, he started planning his crown straight away. I cautiously asked him if he wanted sequins and was secretly relieved that he didn’t… until I heard his alternative plans! Finn had a very clear vision of the crown he was going to make.

In October, we let the boys choose where they would like to eat for our last meal out as a family of 4 and they chose… Burger King? As a result, Finn wanted his crown to be shaped like his crown from that visit. It had to have a ‘F’ on each of the points, sparkly orange squares and orange dinosaurs. It also had to have pipe-cleaners with beads on, to match the pipe-cleaner jewellery he was planning to make!

Whilst we were making pipe-cleaner decorations, Finn made his necklace and some bracelets. Once his costume was complete, Finn’s grin was as big as Ioan’s last year.

DfES Early Learning Goals (2017)

Physical development

ELG 04 – Moving and handling:

Children show good control and co-ordination in large and small movements. They handle equipment and tools effectively.

Expressive arts and design

ELG 16 – Exploring and using media and materials:

Children safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function.