Author: Miss MacPherson

Blog 23/1/23

Continuing with the Scottish theme children had the opportunity to try Haggis neeps and tatties at the snack area and also enjoyed some Scottish oatcakes and cheese.

   

In the creative arts area we have been celebrating and discussing Robert Burns. We have been looking at the different patterns created by tartan and made our own kilts using weaving skills. Some beautiful tartans were created. We also looked at Robert Burns song ‘My Love Is Like A Red Red Rose.’ We looked at real roses, their structure, petals, stem and leaves. We used red and green paint to paint our own red roses. 

In the tech area we have enjoyed listening to Scottish music and watching highland dancers. With the children showing in an interest in Nessie we watched a video of Barnaby Bear on a boat searching for Nessie the Loch Ness monster. We discussed what Nessie might look like and looked at photo’s of Nessie sightings. The children shared “Nessie might be shy” and “there might be lot’s of Nessies because the water is really big” We extended this learning by drawing our own Nessie’s and making Loch Ness Monsters out of loose parts.  In the malleable area this week we have been exploring the Scotland book and creating play around our interests from the book . We made coloured play dough and weaved tartan and used play dough to stick patterns together using coloured sticks .Nessie was pointed out in the Scotland book so we found out where he lived in Scotland and made our own loch and Nessie using green play dough. We found Nessie lives in a loch in Inverness and is very shy and is hard to find. 

Great week learning through children’s own ideas and curiosity leading their own learning.

Inspired by the ice in the tuff tray “looking like a spider’s web”, the children  have been drawing their own art work on the playground using the giant chalk provided. Some have attempted to write their name.This has allowed them to develop their own creativity, imaginative, literacy and fine motor skills.

• Susan

This week the children have been enjoying building with the crates to make a tower near the swing. Then they have been sitting on the swing trying to knock down the tower of crates they had created. During this play we talked about the risks and how far away you should stand so you don’t get hit by the crates as they fall.

The children have also been exploring the ice trying to break it up using different tools like plastic pipes, wooden sticks and metal spoons. The children were using great team working to break all the ice up in the tuff tray. Later in the week we put some fruit and vegetables into a bowl of water and left it over night to freeze. With the weather being so cold we talked about how the ice is formed and what clothing we need to keep us warm in this weather.

• Angela 

This week the children have been building dens in the forest using different sizes of branches, logs and sticks. We have been talking about risky play, risk assessing and forest safety whilst tree climbing, log balance walking and playing hide and seek. The children were also exploring flora and fauna found in the forest and discussing safety around foods growing in the forest. We have also been on a shape hunt, groups of children would try to find any natural circles, squares, rectangles or triangles in the forest and tally mark their scavenger hunt sheet.

To celebrate Chinese New Year this week we have been mark making Chinese numbers in sand using sticks. We went on a rabbit hunt to celebrate the year of the rabbit by trying to find hidden paper rabbits throughout the garden space. We have watched a short video on Chinese New Year and the celebrations around it as well as exploring a Chinese New Year sensory tray which included tangerines, Chinese tea and orange leaves whilst looking at books about Chinese New Year to learn about food, traditions and the lunar calendar.

• Rachel 

Outdoors:

Reindeer food: 

A group of children requested to make reindeer food like they had done at home so we set out a tray with seed, oats, carrot peel and carrot chunks with some cinnamon essential oils. This gave the children the opportunity to explore their senses by having  different smells, textures and colours to explore. We spoke about what reindeers eat and the important job they have at Christmas time and how it is very tiring for them which is why they need special food to keep their magic going. 

Forest – mushrooms: 

Whilst we were in the forest this week we were doing our risk assessment to find any hazards or risks in the garden. We found some wild mushrooms so we gathered round to have a look and we spoke about how some foods that grow aren’t safe to eat so we looked at different foods and plants that grow in forests and which ones are safe and which are not. We also found lots of bugs and insects under logs and bricks, we spoke about the life cycle of the worm and what worms need to thrive in the forest. 

Healthy eating: 

There has been lots of interest in healthy eating recently and the life cycle of foods like fruit and veg. Today we chose some healthy and not as healthy foods and put them in a basket beside this was a tuff tray split in half and the children were asked to sort the foods into healthy and not so healthy.  When we had sorted the foods out we had a discussion about why they thought each food was what they’d chosen and what makes a food healthy or not. 

Construction: 

Snow blocks were set out in a tuff tray following a child asking to build igloos in the garden. A group of children worked together to design and build their igloo. The children were developing language skills, team building skills, learning about when to talk and when to listen, sharing resources, gross motor skills, planning and problem solving. 

Mud kitchen: 

The mud kitchen has been very popular recently with children making soups and stews so we added some real fruit and veg into the mud kitchen to give the children the opportunity to use real foods in their soups. They are learning about soup ingredients, cutting skills and how to cut food safely using child safe equipment. 

Numeracy: 

We set up cotton wool balls (snowballs – as the children decided they were) and tongs/ tweezers in a tuff tray with different numbers written in the tuff tray with the aim the children would use the tweezers to move the correct number of snowballs into the numbered circles. This is developing fine motor skills, hand grip, hand eye coordination and wrist movement which help build the skills required for writing as well as developing numeracy skills such as number recognition, counting and 1:1 number correspondence. 

St Andrews day: 

To celebrate St Andrews day we set out some different activities such as our Scottish loch in the water area; where we used water, blue paint and white glitter to create our Scottish coloured loch and the children were exploring making their own Loch Ness monsters using natural objects like leaves and sticks. This is to develop their imagination skills, creativity, learning about and celebrating the country they live in. We also discussed what floats and sinks in water as they tried different materials to make their monster. 

We also set out two tartan inspired painting activities. In one tray we put green, yellow and blue paint with glitter along with celery sticks to use to mark make. We also taped paper down in a tuff tray and provided paint and cars for the children to explore and create their very own tartan. 

Play dough area

The children have been helping to make play dough everyday and one day this week, children started making pizza with the play dough. They used some loose parts around the room for toppings and pretended to cook it in the oven. I set up the table the next day with a small tub of shells and conkers along with a cook book. Children started to make more pizzas and other food items with the play dough. The children were learning about the timers and how the oven can be hot – “use oven gloves”.

Art area

This week the children were creating firework pictures using black paper and chalk. We talked about being safe near fireworks and that fireworks can be very noisy. Some children mentioned that they went to see a firework display with their family -“Lights in the Skye” and “sparkly”.

Cozy area

This week the children have enjoyed reading several books with friends or an adult.

Some popular books have been ‘ten little pirates’ and ‘ I don’t want to go to bed’.

The children have also been creating their own stories. The children have been drawing pictures and asked an adult to scribe their story for them.

A truly fantastic way to use their imagination.

Outdoors:

When doing pumpkin carving as we lifted the top off after cutting it we discovered it was mouldy and fluffy inside. The children showed an interest on how and why it became this way, after reading about perishable foods, composting and watching a video of a compost bin the children asked if we could put fresh fruit and vegetables into a box and watch what happens to them over time. We filled a box with compost and various fruits and vegetables and we will check on it and photograph each stage as the fruit and vegetables slowly go off.

Rachel

The children have been busy constructing in the garden this week. Using the large plastic shapes they have built houses, ships and aeroplanes. The children have taken turns and worked well as a team while using their problem solving skills.

Laura

The children have been exploring the forest and meadow recently. The children have been climbing trees, looking at different trees and plants, exploring wildlife in the woods such as bugs, slugs, snails and birds and learning to self risk assess. They have also been creating dens, pretend fires and campfire areas. They have had lots of fun climbing, exploring and engaging in risky play. In the meadow the children have been rolling down the hill, hiding in dens, playing role play games in the boat and lots of physical activities and games.

All

The children have been learning about Autumn in the outdoor area through exploring leaves, sticks and vegetables in the recent weeks. They have been dissecting different vegetables and using magnifying glasses to explore what they have found inside.

Sophie

The children have been using the roller to paint the ground and see the patterns they have made. They have also  used the paintbrush to paint pictures on the surface of the playground. This activity allows the children to see the different utensils we can use for the painting process.

Our water tray has been filled with washing up liquid and the children have been a encouraged to play with the utensils in the water. These have included a sieve “ Ta dah it’s magic” a child exclaims as the water drips through the holes. The children have enjoyed filling up and pouring from one utensil to another.

Susan

With the weather being so unpredictable we have set up an area in our shed outdoors to allow for some shelter – whilst we are still dressed for puddle jumping.

Following the interest of the children who have been hunting and collecting bugs,we created an area dedicated to relevant stories about our insect friends.

We have added in some insect toys including worms, spiders and crickets.

The children have enjoyed being under cover whilst still being able to bug hunt. Laura 

The children have been making all sorts of concoctions in the mud kitchen.

“I am putting in salt “ says one child as she sprinkles sand into her chocolate cake. We have introduced real, raw food into the area to allow them to discover texture, appearance and smell. They are learning to develop fine motor skills as they sprinkle and pour. – Susan

Building an obstacle course  using interlinking waffle bricks has allowed the children to work together as a team. They have used their problem solving and designing skills to place the wooden plank between the two tyres allowing them to balance and take risks. The children have also used their counting skills to count the number of bricks  they walk on. – Susan

The children have been constructing a wall to protect themselves from the bears. They are working together as they carry the bricks over and one child helps another

child as she says “this plank is too heavy for me”. They are beginning to understand about weight and size. – Susan

The children have been exploring the newly developed outdoor small world area. The children chose to have a farm, construction site, Dino land and cars small world which they are able to develop independently according to their interests. – Sophie

“We’re going on a bear hunt” has become a big focus outdoors with the children reenacting parts of the book such as going through the mud. The children have been using this book to explore their senses and we have created a sensory tuff tray to develop this further. – Sophie

 

    

We have been settling into our new room and outdoor environment. Our teepee has created a calm and safe environment for children to relax and explore their emotions. We have provided different types of stories for children to explore using their senses and that are relevant to their home life through different interests.  

 

In our malleable area these interest are continued as we provide provocations for children to independently explore. Each loose part can be investigated and the children can use their imagination to construct their own ideas. The spaghetti was used as hedgehog spikes, lolly pop stick created ice creams and the different rollers made patterns.

Our music station provides provocations for children to explore and extend their vocabulary as we sing, rhyme and expressing our emotions. This months rhyme is Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Children used a variety of instruments to keep the beat as we sing along together.

At our creative table children used the paint and resources to print and stamp with.  This led to discussions about many animals, from where they live to what they eat. We will continue to explore animals and there habitats in the weeks ahead.

Children have been reading the story the lonely wasp, and how sad the wasp was not to have a home and friends. We had a talk about what we could do to help, and  decided to create a house for the wasp. Exploring our forest to gather resources the children worked together to build their own bug house in our new outdoor environment.

In the curiosity area we had a tea party. Children were using a china tea pot, china teacups and some glassware. Children were developing their senses as we were smelling all the different flavours of tea – peppermint, lemon, lavender and gingerbread. – Angela McNeil

In the malleable area children have had the freedom and choice to make various materials such Play-dough and gloop this week. There is also a play-dough station that has a step by step guide to follow and resources that are always available to have free access too. – Curiosity Room

In the art area children have been cutting a range of shapes and types of lines with scissors. Whilst using the scissors we learnt how to cut safely by keeping our fingers out the way and not carrying them around the nursery. – Sophie MacM

The children have the opportunity in this area to choose a story to enjoy alone, with their friends or with an adult. They can also create their own story book and sing nursery rhymes too. – Yvonne

In the sand area this week we have been exploring numbers, by finding the number stones in the sand and then copying the numbers in the shallow trays of sand “look I’ve made the number one”. Children could use their fingers, sticks or spoons to mark make with. – Angela McNeil