By Mrs Rodger
The children in the Willow room have been doing a lot of tinkering! They have been exploring electronic equipment and took apart an old speaker, DVD player, and laptop.
They have been using fine motor skills and hand eye coordination to take screws out using a screwdriver. They have been using their gross motor skills to help pull parts of the objects apart.
“This is so cool”
“Look what’s inside this.”
“ This is fun.”
“I did it. Look, the screw is out.”
We harvested some of the potatoes we have been growing in our garden.
We boiled them to make some yummy mashed potato and used the leftovers to make potato scones for snack. So tasty!
Why not try our recipe at home-
450g floury potatoes, peeled and cooked
1/2tsp salt
50g butter
100g flour
1. Mash potatoes,add salt, butter and flour to give a stiff mixture.
2. Turn out onto floured surface, knead gently and roll out to a thickness of 1cm.
3. Cut into triangles and cook on a hot greased griddle for 4-5 minutes on each side.
I wonder what we will make next….
by Miss Bibby
We have been busy baking at Glenwood. First, we researched what we wanted to bake and looked at a range of recipes. We chose one for gluten free shortbread. Then, we talked about what ingredients and equipment we needed and we set up the table. The children were discussing the different measurements they would need and they worked as a team to weigh out the shortbread ingredients.
by Mrs Burnett
November has provided so many opportunities for quality conversations with the children and helped nurture a love of inquiry and investigation.
After the excitement of Halloween, the children were talking about scary things they had associated with having been out guising. Vampires and bats were a recurring theme, which some children seemed genuinely worried about, so we explored a little about bats to dispel the myths about them being scary.
“They drink your blood.”
“Bats are scary…but not Batman. I like him.”
“I don’t like them, they frighten me.”
Investigation
We talked about how we could find out more information on bats and discovered we could ask people to see what they know, we could look up books in the nursery and we could look on the computer to help us.
We considered what we wanted to know about bats, which included what they eat… particularly do they drink people’s blood at Halloween, but also where they live, where they sleep and what do baby bats look like?
Children naturally have inquiring minds and researching together further develops an interest in discovery. It also reinforces that it is ok not to know something because we can all learn something new.
We discovered that bats are not so scary after all…even vampire bats because “they don’t live in Scotland.” The children particularly liked the pictures of the Natterer’s Bat which they nicknamed “the laughing bat” because “he is smiling” in the photos. We learned that many of the species of bat we have in Scotland are tiny and most weigh less than a £1 coin, which felt very light when we held the coin in our hands. We even found out what bat poop looks like!
Development
We learned online that you can make your own bat box .
“It’s a bit like a bird house.”
Some of the children drew pictures of the bat they wanted to make a house for and even drew a design for a bat box.
With the help of a social enterprise that specialises in recycling wood, we sourced a bat box that the children helped assemble using the tool bench. One of the children even tested it out for size using a dinosaur!
Our bat box is ready for the spring when the bats come out of hibernation and everyone now agrees that bats are not scary any more.
We are delighted to have recently achieved our Digital Schools Award.
Digital Schools Awards is a national awards scheme to promote, recognise and encourage a whole school approach to the use of digital technology in schools and ELC centres.
Some of the feedback we received included-
“….children are actively encouraged to learn independently as well as collaboratively using digital technologies.”
“Different digital resources are utilised very effectively … targeting and challenging the learning for the children.”
“Glenwood Family Centre clearly demonstrates that it has a strong digital presence throughout the school.”
“Both the website and Twitter are current, vibrant and lively and help to convey all the wonderful learning and teaching that is going on in there.”
“Digital technology is an integral part of every day for the children and this allows them to be inquisitive and to challenge themselves regularly.”
“It is apparent that Glenwood Family Centre has a clear vision of where their digital journey will take them in the future and the staff are all on board to make this happen.”
We are delighted to have received our 7th Eco Schools Green Flag. This is a wonderful achievement and has been down to the hard work and commitment of the children, staff and wider community of Glenwood. 
Read the wonderful feedback here.
Recently, the children had the opportunity to learn about and celebrate Diwali. The children were able to choose from different experiences throughout the nursery.
The children in the Orchard room got to create their own fireworks in the shaving foam and there was lots of discussion . 
“Oh look red, that is my favourite colour.”
“ I like how the colour is splashed all over.”
“I love fireworks.”
In the Orchard room the children also go to try and make Chapatis. The children did very well following the recipe and listening to what we needed to do. The children were very patient in waiting for their turn.
“We need to pour until it says 100.”
“ I love baking.”
“These taste good ….. I love them.”
The children in the Willow room, participated in a variety of Diwali experiences as they learned about The Festival Of Light. They listened to the story of Rama and Sita with great interest. The children were keen to ask and answer questions about the story. We discussed ways that we can be kind to each other and how our behaviour can affect others. The children were given time to discuss and share their own experiences.
“I can be kind by helping to tidy the playroom.”
“I can share with my friends.”
Some of the children designed Divas made from clay. The children demonstrated good concentration and followed the instructions well.
They also had the opportunity to design Rangoli Patterns.
“Wow look what I made!”
“ Can I take this home to show my mummy.”
We are always in need of resources for our junk modelling area and would be grateful for any donations of:
Many thanks for your donations.
Junk modelling or recycled art is being creative with materials that would otherwise be discarded. Junk modelling construction gives children the freedom to build what they want with the addition of resources like tape and glue.
Modelling with recycled resources encourages higher order thinking. Children can work on their own or co-operate with others, learning to explore and share ideas. When they create something new it can build self confidence and boost self-esteem. Junk modelling is all about the learning process rather than the end product.
Here are some examples of what we have made so far this term:
Up-cycling!
Donated cable drums have also been up-cycled to make tables for our indoor role play areas and outdoor areas. We measured offcuts of cloth, cut them to size and stapled them to the cable drum surface.
Working with Starcatchers, we developed a creative project on triangles. Children and parents brought lots of lovely triangles from home (thank you).
Child: “The triangles are all different sizes. Oh, Look at them, they are all my favourite. I made some at home, here they are.”
Then …….
…we made more at Glenwood using lots of different materials to decorate.
…we cut slots into our triangles. We tried scissors and then saws.
…we found we could make 3D shapes by connecting them together and we could make lots of different shapes.
…we took some outside and made a traffic jam with lots of cars.
…we were thinking about our community and neighbours and being ‘intergenerational’. So we made some into bunting and delivered it to our friends with a card. We wrote:
“We are thinking of you and hope our triangles make you happy”.
Parent: “I really liked the idea of the triangles and having something to work with my child at home and bring in. It made me feel more connected to the nursery at this time when we can’t come in”.
Through play opportunities children can experience a range of resources that support their ICT knowledge and understanding.
CHOOSING ICT TOYS
In Glenwood, the children can choose ICT from a choosing book. The children chose a voice recordable game which supports children’s numeracy and literacy skills.
TORCHES
During their learning the children were interested in the shapes and patterns made by the light and shadows outdoors in the sunshine. To re-create shadows indoors light from a torch was projected onto a hanging sheet. The children used their bodies and open-ended resources to explore shadows, identify shapes or people from behind the sheet.
BEE-BOT
The children programmed a small robot to move forward, backwards, left and right movements to move around the floor. A programmable toy can support literacy and numeracy skills.
REMOTE CONTROL TOYS
Using remote-control toys children learn about cause-and-effect. As they play as they work out which buttons make the car go in each direction. The children set up an obstacle course with ramps to drive up and down, or tunnels for them to drive through. This is a great way to develop a child’s hand-eye co-ordination. Some of our remote control toys are operated by the iPad.
INTERACTIVE BOARD
An interactive smart board allows images from a computer screen to be displayed onto a classroom board where the children can interact with the images directly on the screen using a tool or even a finger.
IPADS/TABLETS
Ipads are available as part of the nursery’s continuous provision and children are encouraged to use them to record their achievements and share it with others using the ipads.
IMAGINARY PLAY
During their imaginary role-play children are provided with old ICT equipment. Children are observed in the home corner using the ICT in real life situations i.e. an office, a train or even a trip to space.
EXPLORING ICT AND HOW IT WORKS
Taking apart old pieces of everyday ICT equipment to look at what is inside and how it works is a popular activity. Children explore the inside of old clocks, computer boards, telephones and CD players.
We have had great fun learning how to use a variety of our digital toys.
We have been developing our use of directional language using our Code-a-pillars and Sphero.
“When you put the body bits on it goes left and right.”
“I made it go forwards then turn around.”
“The green one goes forward.”
We use an App on the iPad to make Sphero…
It took great teamwork and problem solving skills to build an obstacle course and pathways for the Wonder Bug. We had to work together to find the best way to help Wonder Bug travel from one end of the room to the other.
“We need a ramp for it to go up.”
“It will need to balance on top.”
“If we add a corner, it will need to turn the corner.”
Did you know, Loose Parts have no specific function or goal?
They can be moved, arranged, designed, taken apart and more!
Using loose parts the children explored patterns, building, and teamwork. By using the blocks, small cuts of wood, guttering and some cardboard boxes, they were able to build a house with a chimney and talk to each other about the placement of the resources!
There are a variety of resources lying around within your home that can be utilised as loose parts such as:
Check out the poster for more ideas!
When children interact with loose parts, they enter a world of “what if” that promotes the type of thinking that leads to problem solving and theoretical reasoning. Loose parts enhance children’s ability to think imaginatively and see solutions… the use of loose parts is open ended and limitless!
Over the past few weeks, the children have been investigating dinosaurs and where they lived.
After using different reference books the children decided that the dinosaurs must have lived with a volcano.
We used the internet to investigate what makes volcanos erupt.
We decided to make our own volcano using a plastic bottle and paper mache. We used bicarbonate of soda, washing up liquid and vinegar to make lava.
“Can you make dinosaur land?” Sorley
“Look at the lava, it looks hot and dangerous.” Fraser
“The dinosaurs lived along time ago, they are now extinct.” Zachary
“Will it explode?” Scott “No it will erupt, because the lava gets very hot, you know.” Maria
We are delighted to have successfully attained our 6th Eco-Schools Green Flag Award!
This is a brilliant achievement and is the result of sustained hard work and commitment by the Glenwood community.
See our video of evidence below.
After a stormy weekend, we have been using the water from puddles as we play and learn outdoors. We are transporting using lots of different containers, exploring the flow of water using the gutters, pouring and catching the water and having lots of fun splashing in the puddles!
We have been creating bird feeders and spotting the different feathered visitors who come to our garden as part of RSPB Birdwatch.
We have been learning about the impact of plastic on the environment. We carried out a survey on our lunch packaging and produced a graph to show the types of packaging used in our lunch boxes. Many of us have reusable wraps, tubs and flasks…. can we do more to reduce our waste?
We are learning to use a range of digital resources to support our learning in literacy and maths.
Using programming as we learn about direction using the code-a-pillar.
Using the word wands as we explore shapes, numbers and words.
We recently held a series of Outdoor Parent Workshops. These included outdoor play, den building and fire lighting. Thank you to everyone who came along and to the staff team for hosting these sessions.
Parents gave lovely feedback and we look forward to hosting some more workshops in the New Year.
“It was a lovely adventure for me to attend the Family Centre …for the wonderful Outdoor Education sessions”
“I really enjoyed the hands on play/ learning sessions”
“I had never thought of building a den in the garden using material, pegs etc. I will definitely take this forward.”
We have been learning about the impact of plastic pollution on wildlife, especially sea animals. We collected some plastic waste and created a map to show the route of a piece of rubbish from our homes into the river and then out to sea.
We had a visit from two turtles Wallace and Grommit.
