Monthly Archives: May 2024

Literacy, Snack

What’s cooking in the Cart Mill Kitchen

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This week in the snack area, we’ve been exploring foods from around the world, sparked by the children noticing that the fruit we eat comes from different countries. Our focus this week was on making pitta bread and hummus, a delicious snack enjoyed in many Middle Eastern countries. We looked online to find a recipe we could follow. Let’s find out how we made them. 😃

Step 1: Making the Pitta Bread

First, we used scales to measure the ingredients, Weighing out 350g of gluten-free flour, we added it to a bowl. Next we used a jug to measure out 300ml of natural yogurt, adding it to the bowl along with a pinch of salt and 2 tsp of baking powder. We mixed them all together with a wooden spoon to create a simple dough.

We then used a rolling pin to roll out the dough into small circles, ready to cook. Doing this helped develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. Once cooked, the pitta breads were ready to taste at snack time.

Step 2: Making the Hummus

We combined chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, and tahini in a blender, taking turns to measure out the quantities needed.


Next we turned on the blender mixing them until we achieved a smooth paste. At first we noticed that the consistency was a little thick. Using our problem solving skills one the children suggested adding water. We added a little water at a time till it was perfect to try with our freshly baked pitta breads. The process expanded the children’s vocabulary and helped them follow multi-step instructions.

Take a look at some of the fabulous comments bellow.

“It’s mixing together”

“It’s evolving”

“I think it will be smooth”

“It’s mixing really fast”

The children enjoyed both the process and the delicious results, learning about foods from around the world and exploring new cooking techniques. 

I wonder what we could make next week? If you have any suggestions please leave them in the comment box below. 😃

Article 1
Everyone under 18 has all these rights

Article 28
You have the right to education.

 

Creativity, Expressive Arts, Froebel, Imaginative thinking

Colour Mixing Playdough.

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We have been learning how to make playdough all by ourselves. The playdough area is a self-serve area designed to promote the independent skills of all our children.

We have been selecting our ingredients and we are learning about the different quantities of these ingredients that we will we need for our recipe. (Following on from the new government guidelines we have been using heat treated gluten free flour in our recipe).

All our children aged 2-5 have the opportunity to make their own playdough and enjoy doing so independently.

This week in our Playdough area we have been exploring and experimenting with colour mixing.
First we made our playdough, by each collecting the bowl, spoon and ingredients we needed. We each choose a primary colour to make our playdough to start with. We had red, yellow and blue.

We were able to see if our playdough was ready, by testing if it was too dry and needed more water or too wet and needed more flour.


“more water”


“Too sticky,  need more flour”

”it’s ready”

Once our playdough was perfect we set up our playdough station and invited our friends to come and join us.

We each took a pinch of two or more colours and mixed them together to see what colours we could make.

We used our gross motor skills as we rolled the playdough together to mix up the colours.

We were amazed at the colours we were able to make.

“I’ve made so many”

“I’ve made pink and purple and orange”

We discovered that we got green by mixing red and yellow. Purple by mixing the red and blue. And a pinky orange if we mixed red and yellow. We even ended up with a rainbow playdough mix.

Once we made all our new colours we got to work creating playdough masterpieces using the loose parts.

“I made a unicorn”

“A birthday cake, blow out your candles”

We also used a variety of different tools to help us mould our playdough such as scissors

rolling pins

and even used the loose parts to make patterns

We have been so busy at our playdough station. I wonder what we will make tomorrow.
Here is some of our playdough creations so far….

Article 29 – I have the right to an education which develops my personality.

 

life cycles, nature

Life cycle of plants 🌱🪴🌷🌼

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In the science area we have been learning all about the life cycle of plants.

We  have been noticing lots of dandelions growing in our gardens, so we decided to take a closer look at the dandelion and discover more about the plant.

First we observed the different stages of the plant in our glass box. Some of us  were keen to share what we already knew about dandelions.

“I’ve got dandelions in my garden”

“We can make a wish”

“They grow in the ground”

“They have yellow flowers”

After further discussion, some of us were able to name different parts of the plant.   To develop our knowledge further, we then looked at the petals and seeds up close under the microscope and through the magnifying glass.

“ They are hairy!”

As mini scientists, we have been busy carrying out some different experiments to discover more about the plant.

Experiment 1

We wanted to see if we could change the colour of the dandelions?

We place a few dandelions in different coloured water to see if they would change.
The dandelions remained bright yellow but maybe there are other flowers we could try?

Experiment 2

Are the fluffy dandelions seeds water resistant?

To investigate, we dipped the dandelions seed heads into the water and watched as the seeds repelled the water and puffed back into a ball when gently taken back out the water.
This must help to protect the seeds when it rains.

Experiment 3

Extracting the yellow colour from the petals to make yellow playdough.

We picked a big bunch of dandelion flowers from the garden then picked off the yellow petals and placed them into the pestle and mortar. We ground them a little before placing in a jar with nail varnish remover. After a few shakes of the jar the liquid became yellow. We later added this to our playdough.

“I’ve got tulips in my house”

Experiment 4

We wanted to see if we could change the colour of some white tulips.

We placed a few cut tulips in different coloured water to see if their petals would change. We watched in amazement as the petals in the blue water started to turn blue. As we observed the tulips more we discussed how the flower is having a big drink and absorbs the coloured water, the water travels up the stem and starts to change the colour of the petal.

“They drank the water.”

“Only mine has turned blue.”

Today we have been having a closer look at the tulips. We picked a petal off the flower and trapped it between a piece of plastic to make a slide for the microscope. The colour dye has shown up all the veins in the petals really well. Using the microscope we were able to see the finer details in the petals. 

“It’s got lots of lines”

“ I like the blue one it’s so blue”

We then dissected the flower to discover more. Inside the flower we found the stigma and anther with its pollen. These are all new words for the children.  We talked about how the bee collects the pollen to feed their young and help to pollinate the flowers. We cut up the stems of the flowers that were in coloured water and found that the red and blue colour was all the way up the stem.

”I’m cutting off the stem.”

“It’s sticky and gooey.”

“This looks like blood”

As we chatted away it got the children thinking and asking more questions.

The flowers in the green water did not change colour I wonder why? “Maybe it only drank a little water” or “ maybe because the stem is already green.”

Why did the one in the water not change? “Because it was just in white water”. 

“Where are the bee’s?”

The children have really enjoy taking part in the various experiences in our science area. I wonder were their new found knowledge and interests will lead us to next.

Article 13 – I have the right to find out and share information

Article 28 – I have the right to an education

 

Uncategorized

Sinking and floating, wind and waves 🤔

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Today we started with a scavenger hunt looking for items around the nursery that sunk or floated. We looked in all the rooms to see what we could find….



We tested the chosen items to check what category they fell into…

and recorded the results.

When we knew what items floated, we introduced some straws to create some wind and waves to see who’s item floated to the other side the quickest. We also had lots of fun making bubbles in the water and investigating cause and effect.

Article 28 You have the right to education.

Creativity, Expressive Arts, Imaginative thinking

Colourful Creative Coos

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In the art area outdoors we have been learning about a Scottish artist called Steven Brown. We have explored some of his Mccoo pictures and a couple of his Mczoo animals.  We talked about how beautiful and colourful they were and that he uses lots of colours.
A few of the children were familiar with the Mccoo and had recognised it.

“ my granny has that in her house”

”I have seen that before”

Today we decided we would design our own Mccoo and work as  a team to make a big, huge one. We gathered our resources and had a discussion on how we were going to begin. Firstly we drew a big circle for its head and then some horns.

We had a variety of resources to choose from including pallet knifes which Steven Brown used for various of his  own pictures. The children used their fine motor skills to create different marks and shapes on the cow, we even managed to mix some of our colours together creating even more beautiful vibrant colours. The children took turns and shared the colours and utensils


“whats it going to be called.”

”can I think of a name”

The children then began rhyming off all there friends names.

Finally it was dry and we could cut our cow out and add some other details  to our own cow.

We were  then back to thinking  about a name .

Then we heard at the National Museum of Rural Life in East Kilbride there had been two calves born. We looked this up and we decided we would call our highland cow Ishbel.

Froebel, nature, Outdoor Learning

Farewell to our forest!

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We can’t quite believe that our forest school sessions have come to an end for this term!

Here’s a wee summary of our fun filled 4 weeks!
Week 1: we were introduced to our forest site where we explored how to keep ourselves safe through setting boundaries and learning how to identify hazards and assess risks. It was super muddy so we squelched in the mud and even lost our wellies! It was lots of fun to look for trees we might want to climb and to learn about plants that grow in our forest.

Week 2: As we were now experienced explorers, we recognised familiar landmarks to navigate our way to our forest  and were able to remind each other of our rules and boundaries.  Our bug hunt helped us discover insects and animals that might live in our forest and we learned more about what they need to survive.  And who could forget that this was the week Harry Potter came to the forest with us!

Week 3: This week saw us swinging through the trees on our very own rope swing! Our confidence has grown in leaps and bounds and we led our own learning by revisiting who lives in our forest through searching for bugs and reminding each other of how we should respect the environment and look after our forest.

Week 4: cook out week – a firm favourite! We listened very carefully to our safety instructions! It was very important that we stayed outside the “green square” to make sure we “stay away from the fire so we don’t burn ourselves”.  In our fire safety kit Fiona had special gloves to protect her hands, a fire blanket and lots of water in case she needed to put the fire out very quickly.  We also learned that only adults should light the fire in a safe place away from “trees and houses”.   The potato scones Fiona toasted on the fire were so tasty!  There was a pond at our site today and we discovered it had tadpoles in it! We were very careful around the pond to keep ourselves safe and to ensure we didn’t “frighten the tadpoles”.

There was lots of time left for us to have fun and play some games! Hide and seek was a firm favourite, along with a game of football, rolling the ball to our friends, pole climbing and of course a wee impromptu dance on the stage!

As always, our last sessions are a time to come together, have some fun, reflect on our favourite moments and most importantly, celebrate the new friendships we have made.

“I liked playing hide and seek”.  “I liked snack the best”.  “I climbed the tree”.  “I was on the rope swing”. During our time in the forest we have grown in confidence and self esteem, become independent, are able to use our problem solving skills and  have learned how to care for our environment, all while creating some wonderful memories!

Article 29 – the right to an education which develops my personality, respects each other’s rights and the environment.

life cycles, Literacy, nature

Cart Mill Caterpillar Centre 🐛🦋

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Each year at Cart Mill we like to learn about the lifecycle of butterflies and what better way than a hands on experience. We ordered caterpillars and they arrived on the 10th of May, we have been recording their growth each day since. They can grow up to ten times their size before forming a chrysalis. Look at how they changed each day..

This morning we arrived at nursery to discover many of the caterpillars had formed their chrysalides over the weekend. One of them was forming theirs at the exact moment we checked on them, it was amazing to watch! So we thought we best start learning about the next stages of the lifecycle. We looked through the information handbook and we also read the story of The Hungry Caterpillar.


“A butterfly.”


“Butterflies come from caterpillars.”

We also watched the short video of The Hungry Caterpillar as a treat. Afterwards, I asked the children what they could tell me about caterpillars and butterflies..

”They live on trees and eat leaves.”

”They make a raccoon.”

”He turns green.”

”Butterflies need to flap their wings.”

The metamorphosis process takes 7-10 days so we could see some butterflies before the holiday weekend 🤞🦋

UNCRC Article 28- every child has the right to an education.

UNCRC Article 29- education must encourage the child’s respect for the environment.

Creative movement, Creativity, Expressive Arts, Imaginative thinking

Paint -Let’s Explore !!

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Today we decided to explore and have some fun with the paint through colour mixing and sensory experiences. We had a look at the colour charts and chose our colours and filled our pots.

We began to mix our colours together and were excited to see them change right before our eyes. “ Look you made pink”.  The children created peach, lime green, sky blue , yucky brown!

The children always enjoy some hand painting. Engaging with different colours, textures and materials stimulates the child’s senses, promoting integration and cognitive development.

We can even paint our nails and blow them dry like mummy does!

Some of the older children began to try different ways to use the cotton buds  “Look I can roll mine and it makes a bigger mark and it feels nice in my fingers “.  This helps develop the fine motor skills and enhancing hand eye coordination.

Producing their own artwork gives all our children a sense of accomplishment and pride, boosting their confidence and self-esteem. Plus it was just great fun!!

Article – 13  You have the right to play and learn through new experiences.

Outdoor Learning

Who lives in our Forest?

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We can’t believe it’s week 3 of our forest school experience already!  Each week we have grown in confidence leading us to be independent and lead our own learning!

Today was a wet and damp day in our forest. As we came together to do our sticky toes, we immediately noticed a number of “friends” had joined us!   Can you guess who they might be?

“Look what I found, it’s a baby snail”

”Look at that one up there. It’s massive”. “How did it get up there?”

There were lots of snails,  we counted at least 20 of all different sizes.  Using our magnifying glasses we spotted some tiny baby snails hiding on a leaf and some bigger more adventurous snails higher up in the tree! This sparked much discussion of where snails live, how they move around and how they managed to climb up trees!

It was lots of fun exploring our forest floor to see who else might live there!  Looking carefully under logs and gently moving leaves we discovered a “family” of woodlouse, “a wee black beetle” and a spider who was making a web “just like Spider-Man”.   Just like last week we could  also hear “birdies singing in the trees”.  We have been learning how to look after our forest and the wildlife who live there.  With this in mind, we decided to carefully return our friends to their homes and be super careful “not to stand on them and squash them”.

Before we left there was just enough time to squeeze in a wee turn of our rope swing where we demonstrated we could assess our own risk by deciding where to place our swing, identify the rock nearby was a hazard and warn our friends to “stand back so you don’t get hurt”.

It was another action packed, fun filled forest school where we demonstrated we truly are responsible citizens!

Article 29 – the right to an education which develops my personality, respects each other’s rights and the environment

Creative movement, Creativity, Expressive Arts, Imaginative thinking, Literacy

Pikachu clay models

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The children wanted to make something different with the clay, but they were unsure of what. So last week we sat down together and discussed some ideas, I asked the children questions to get them to really think about their interests and how we could incorporate these in to our clay area.

Pokémon seemed to be a common theme so we used the iPad to search the internet for some Pokémon ideas. We came across a clay Pokémon figure, it was perfect! The children helped pick out some other clay model pictures including unicorns, garden gnomes, and even Elsa from Frozen . I printed these out and laminated them, leaving them on the table to inspire some ideas.

The children began to make their own models, squeezing, rolling, and manipulating the clay to their desired shape. They soon realised looking at the pictures that our clay was grey and the pictures used coloured clay, how would they make their own models colourful? They worked together using their problem solving skills to come up with some ideas. “I know, we could get paint!” “and paintbrushes and paint them and that’s how they will be colours”.


Once their models were finished we left them to dry out over the weekend, ready for painting this morning.

There was lots of great ideas.


“A bowl of soup with spoon”

“Pikachu”

“I made a snail”


They put their finished models on the shelf to let the paint dry, we can’t wait to see the end result.