To be worried that nursery worker didn't stop toddlers from eating sand?

[GingerMaman]

Hi,

I went into a settling in session with DD at nursery. There were three or four toddlers/babies (some younger than 1 and some older). They went over to the sand and started playing with it and putting it in their mouth. The nursery worker didn't stop them or say no, don't do that, or put it away. I was rather surprised and certainly don't want my little one eating sand, especially one that has been played with by children with very runny noses! Am I just being over protective and over worrying?

oh dear you really cant stop them if it goes in it goes in the nursery worker probably didnt even have time to tell them to stop it is harmless wait until is glitter and your child poos glitter

oh i see we have mentioned the glitter poo I remember i worked in a nursery years ago and a little girl was munching her way through the glittery playdoh she was loving it

OP you need to remember that your child will get a snotty nose and a cough and a runny bum the first few weeks of nursery it is just what happens,

I used to dip biscuits in sand at the beach. i remember i liked the crunchiness
;-)
i think i was 5 at the time

When i was 3 or 4 I used to drink the white glue at pre school - it was poured into yoghurt pots and my friend and I used to take swigs of it!

Never did me any harm [twitching uncontrollably emoticon]

All kids eat sand don't they? And mud? Now if it was eating worms from the garden you might have a point, but not with sand. Plus how is the nursery worker suppose to stop them?

They should not be allowed to eat sand. YANBU. I used to go to a play group which used salt instead of sand, I wasn't keen on that at all.

I used to love sand. My exH told me that when he was a baby sitting on the lawn, his mother called him, he turned his head and had a massive worm hanging out of his mouth. I've also licked mud and there is probably a host of stuff I tried as a kid, including grass. I'm a healthy, if slightly quirky adult now.

id rather a toddler had a snack on some sand than salt

Ideally the nursery worker would tell the child not to eat the sand. But, if we're talking about clean play sand that is kept in sandbox that's protected from animals, I wouldn't be too concerned.

We've had sand, glitter and blue paint in nappies. Our nursery Miltoned their sand regularly, it was fine.

The glittery 'disco' poo was actually amazing and made me smile all day because I wasn't expecting it!!

Every word that Bertie said. I was gardening with DD2 on Sunday and everytime I turned my back she was nibbling soil! My neighbour has a saying about a child eating a peck of dirt, can't remember it propwrly though.

I think this is 2 issues really. Yes babies/children do eat sand/soil/anything they can but as a nanny/x childminder/Mother I always tried to stop it if I was in time/saw it, but not get too stressed about it. My last charge went through a stage of putting everything in his mouth, stones/daisies/and once a fag butt! Horrible.

The worker probably didn't want to be saying no and moving them away constantly.

I would expect them to discourage them from eating it. Yanbu op.

Hippo I used to eat worms. And snails. Apparanetly I'd bash the snails with things to get to the poor creature inside the shell

Marylou that's exactly it isn't it? There isn't much you can do once they've done it. Not something to be encouraged but somehow they always end up with it in their mouths. My last charge managed to chew on a fag butt My current charge puts everything in her mouth, usually it's stones on the path and half-rotten acorns from the ground (massive acorn trees all over their garden so they are everywhere).

Ploppy, my grandad used to say that "we'll all eat a peck o' muck before we die". He favoured outdoor play and his garden was fun!

I want to see some glittery poo!
must start doing some creative activity with glitter then going away to have cups of tea

My DD had a sand pit she played in, and I told her "no" when she went to put in her mouth, a once off trying to put some in is one thing, but to passively sit and watch them eat it, is entirely another thing.

I grew up in the desert and my mum said i constantly had nappies full-o-the-stuff. Nursery sand probably far less to worry about than a dune full of camel droppings. There's probably more germs on your house keys / mobile / tv remote than in the sand box. Relax... as Dr coconut says "peck o muck"

• Not something to be encouraged but somehow they always end up with it in their mouths

Yes children explore with their mouths, they go to put everything in their mouth but I am seriously failing to see how its ok not to dis encourage them from doing so.

I think there is a massive difference here between not catching the child in time who was putting sand in their mouths and just passively watching them doing it?

I am seriously failing to see how its ok not to dis encourage them from doing so.

I imagine it's because to teach toddlers you have to be consistent so they aren't going to learn by being told it is against the rules like an older child. Therefore, in an active, stimulating baby room where the children are choosing their own activities, you have to pick your battles. The fewer rules the better because the ratios don't allow for every child to be watched constantly.

If they do have a member of staff who can sit by the sandpit to watch them all the tine, they may feel that constantly trying to prevent them putting the sand in their mouths interrupts their exploration of it and reduces the quality of the play.

Born I never said that it's okay to not discourage them, I said that they always end up with something in their mouths. There is a difference.

In a nursery setting I can entirely see how a toddler will end up eating sand as even one-to-one it's virtually impossible to stop a toddler mouthing things occasionally, as most people on here would know.