The children having enjoyed exploring the book Superworm through a fun, hands on experience. Using the tweezers and magnifying glass they searched for different sized Superworms (string) comparing them to find the longest and shortest. Using small cubes, the children then measured each worm and counted the cubes to see how long they were. This sparked lots of conversation about short, long, big and small helping to develop their  mathematical language and understanding of length while engaging in imaginative play inspired by the story.

“I got the longest ” AT

“It’s 15 cubes long that is the biggest I think” LH

“I think I need 5 more” PWE

“I found one look I did it’s 1234” ZM

This week in the art area the children have been exploring mirror image and sameness with paint and were able to create patterns with one line of symmetry. The children were able to reflect on their art and decipher what their marks looked like and listened to the opinions of others, introducing them to perspective and subjectiveness within art. Within this experience we used the sparkle words “half” and “double” introducing them to mathematical language.

PL “I’m making a tummy picture, i’m pressing it down with my tummy”

AM “this is a picture of my mummy” *folds paper* “ now its my mummy and daddy holding hands”

ES “ I folded it in half and now there are two of everything!”

ES “ I have to turn my body this way then that way to make it the same”

We had a very exciting morning on Thursday when Zoo Lab came to visit us, bringing along a fantastic selection of animals for the children to meet and learn about! Our children had the opportunity to see and, for some animals, gently hold or stroke a gerbil, tarantula, 5-year-old python, giant snail, bearded dragon and several other fascinating creatures. The children were captivated as they discovered wonderful facts about each animal, learning about where they live, what they eat, how they move and the special features that help them survive. Getting to experience the animals up close brought their learning to life and encouraged the children to ask questions, share ideas and develop their curiosity about the natural world. For many children, this was a wonderful opportunity to build confidence around animals, practise being gentle and caring, and develop respect for living things. It was a morning full of excitement, wonder and lots of memorable learning!

This week, the children have been having their voices heard by voting for their favourite snack choices for the following week! The children were excited to make their own choices and see which snack would receive the most votes, giving them a meaningful opportunity to express their preferences and understand that their opinions are valued. As part of the voting process, the children also began exploring early tally marks, making a mark to record each vote and helping them to see how we can collect and represent information. This was a fantastic way to develop early numeracy skills in a fun and meaningful context, as the children counted the votes, compared the different totals and talked about which snack had more or fewer votes. Most importantly, the experience encouraged the children to understand that their voices and choices matter and that they can play an active role in decisions within our nursery.

Our sewing table has continued to be a hive of creativity, with the children designing and creating their own wonderful pieces of artwork! The children have been encouraged to plan their own designs, draw their ideas, carefully cut them out and then sew them together, taking great pride in seeing their ideas come to life. We have seen lots of colourful creations, including beautiful rainbows, love hearts and butterflies. Through this process, the children are developing a wide range of skills, including fine motor control, hand-eye coordination, concentration and perseverance as they carefully thread and manipulate the needle and materials. They are also building confidence in using tools safely, making independent choices about colours and designs, and developing their creativity and imagination. Sewing provides a wonderful opportunity for children to slow down, focus and problem-solve, while experiencing the sense of achievement that comes from creating something that is uniquely their own.

Our woodwork area has been a hive of creativity and imagination, and it has been wonderful to see how much the children’s skills and confidence are developing! The children are becoming increasingly adventurous with their ideas, designing and creating bigger, more detailed and more advanced constructions. Through woodwork, children have the opportunity to explore real tools and materials in a safe, supported environment while developing important skills such as fine motor control, hand-eye coordination, spatial awareness, concentration and problem-solving. They are learning to plan their ideas, make decisions, measure, join and balance materials, while discovering how things work through trial and error. Woodwork also encourages perseverance and resilience, as children learn that their first attempt may not always go to plan and that they can adapt their ideas and try again. Most importantly, it gives our children the freedom to be creative, take ownership of their projects and experience the wonderful sense of achievement that comes from saying, “I made this!”

In the literacy area we have been focussing on the Book of the Week – The Paper Dolls. We worked on our cutting skills as we cut out our dolls and also looked in the mirrors as we discussed our own features and what we look like. We then carefully chose which colours we needed to draw ourselves. We focussed on using descriptive language and then went on to drawing different members of our families on the other dolls. 

Our outdoor area has been full of energy, creativity and teamwork this week! The children enjoyed taking part in a variety of ball games, developing their gross motor skills as they practised throwing, catching, kicking, aiming and controlling the ball. They also enjoyed playing circle games which they independently organised themselves, demonstrating fantastic communication, cooperation and leadership skills as they discussed the rules, took turns and included their friends. These experiences provided wonderful opportunities for the children to develop their balance, coordination, spatial awareness, listening and turn-taking skills, while learning how to work together as part of a team. To add an extra element of excitement, the children also took part in a dragon scavenger hunt, working collaboratively to search for clues and complete the challenge. It was lovely to see the children encouraging one another, sharing ideas and solving problems together, all while enjoying the benefits of active outdoor learning!

This week in the literacy area we have been exploring mark making people. This is part of the emergent writing skills for children. They have been developing the detail within their drawings and using mirrors to look at the details within their face to help them with their drawings. 

This week at Crookfur, the children have been exploring new foods and developing their confidence at snack time.
We made porridge for our afternoon snack. Some children had enjoyed porridge before and were excited to have a bowl, while others were unsure about trying something new. Everyone was encouraged to have a taste, with some children enjoying it so much that they asked for more! Others decided it wasn’t quite for them yet, but were praised for being brave and giving it a try.

On Wednesday, we made banana oat bars together. The children mashed the bananas, measured the oats using a cup and mixed all the ingredients together. They then spread the mixture onto a baking tray before it went into the oven. The children really enjoyed tasting what they had made and were proud to tell their friends that they had helped make the snack.

We will continue to provide opportunities for the children to explore, prepare and try new foods, supporting them to develop positive experiences and confidence around food.

Our children have been continuing to explore the wonderful world of woodwork! Using tools such as the Japanese pull saw, hammers, screwdrivers and sandpaper, they are developing practical skills while learning how to use tools safely and with increasing confidence.

Woodwork offers so much more than creating something to take home. As children saw, hammer, screw and sand, they are strengthening their hand and finger muscles, developing hand-eye coordination, building concentration and problem-solving skills, and learning to persevere when something doesn’t quite go to plan. It also provides wonderful opportunities for creativity, independence and pride as children see their ideas take shape through their own hands.

In our outdoor area the children have shown an interest in playing games, particularly basket ball with our new hoops. They have been challenging themselves to get the ball in each of the baskets and have been talking about how many points they have scored. In the outdoor classroom they have been developing their gross motor skills, balance and coordination by jumping over the hurdles, playing hopscotch and walking over the balance beams.

On the bikes the children have created a one way system and have been charging a ‘toll’ to cycle on the road. They have been discussing money and deciding how much they each have to pay.

“H i got it in the middle like this” TO

“I’m going to jump to do it” HG

“But you have to stand close” TO

“I got 1 point Miss Goldie” HMC

“I got 3 points I got the middles”. HG

“I nearly scored at the middle hoop, I got 7 points”. BH

“I can’t do this it’s soo tricky for me” LP

“He has to pay fourth ten” EHW

“E has to pay 10, it’s 10 monies” LP

“It’s 5 pennies” LMcP

“My machine said £7” HMcN

“It’s £3” LA

“Zero points” RJ

“I’ve to pay £5” ES

“$17” BH

The children have been planning and building different types of buildings within the block area this week. The children have been able to discuss in depth their constructions, “this is an aeroplane, we need a front” and explained it was important that it had an emergency button, in case the plane got into trouble for safety to save people (HG). 

Another group of children built a factory which they explained worked on batteries, the different pieces of small blocks had jobs such as food, communication and parts to run the factory. 

This week in the creative area we have been focusing on patterns. We have used patterned paper to practise cutting and sticking and different objects in the paint to create prints. 

Activities like these help children develop recognition of patterns in the environment building essential foundational skills in maths, cognition and fine motor control.

This week at the malleable area we have had lots of discussions to get children’s voice on what we want to do in the area. We have been talking about birthdays, cakes and the changing seasons. We have been creating cakes and cupcakes and using different materials to decorate our cakes. We have been using mathematical language when adding “candles” to our cakes, touch counting the straws and lollipop sticks. We have also been looking at the concept of “small”, “big” and “biggest” and looking at the length of the straws for our candles. 

In the home corner this week there has been a big focus on how we look after the babies. We have been building on our understanding of the needs of the babies and others, this is helping to build on personal connections to our own home life and real life experiences. We have been working on our social and emotional development by having conversations with friends and taking turns to feed the babies. 

“He’s eating because he’s hungry” – FBD

“I’m feeding him” – AT

“You can be the mother and i can be the sister” – ES

“We need lots of food or else we get hungry” – ES

The children have been really keen to listen to stories and have been choosing which ones to read from the book shelf. We have discussed what our favourite stories are, and what we like and dislike about the stories we have read. Some children had read some of the stories at home before and could recall what happened. The other children were encouraged to discuss the characters and events, and make predictions of what would happen next. 

LBG – “I’ve got Monkey Puzzle at home.”

ED – “I think it might be the snake.”

EL – “I liked all of them.”

AF – I think it’s going to be about a shark because there’s pirates and a shark fin on the back next to the ship.”

AF – “I didn’t like the nasty pirates.”

NMD – “I liked the parrot because he kept saying he done it.”

NMD – “They’re going to steal the treasure.”

IF – “I think these two bad guys are trying to steal that ladybug and that owl and that owl.”

SRC – “I think these baddies are trying to steal.”

SRC – “The blurb tells you about the story.”

AS – “That’s a stranger and he’s going to run away. He’s good, but that’s not a stranger its just a rabbit, he’s got a golden tooth. I like the shadow bit coz the big bad wolf was hiding in the trees.”

AS – “I didn’t like that bit because she looks at strangers.”

OR – “They all hiding, the cats are hiding, they will get that cow. I think they got binoculars.”

ZK – “She’s picking the flowers and he’s going to steal little red riding hoods gran’s jewellery.”

The children have been experimenting with their senses this week in the malleable area. The children have had their senses tricked as they tried to guess the smell of the orange playdough which was salted caramel, lots of suggestions were related to the colour of the playdough while others where closer to the actual origin of the scent. 

In the sewing area the children have been using the sewing machine and learning that it needs to be used safely and respectfully. They were following instructions and learning the importance of keeping their fingers away from the needle, sitting safely while using the foot pedal to control the speed of the needle and learning how to carefully guide the fabric through the machine. This experience encourages patience, perseverance and problem-solving as children discover how the sewing machine works and what happens when they change direction. They are also developing independence and creativity by making choices about fabrics, colours and designs and taking pride in their creations.

This week in the block area, the children have been continuing to build large scale buildings and models. The models include a boat and an animal shop! The children have been working well colaboratively, sharing resources, thoughts and ideas. They have been problem solving too when extending their models. 

Some of the new children have been building new friendships and enjoyed building tall towers using the foam blocks and liked watching them topple over and rebuilding them again. We have introduced comparative language when discussing the height of our towers. 

TOH – “It’s a shop for the animals so they don’t escape. They all escaped, me and H had to catch them. See this fence now.”

AC – “It’s a boat, that’s the spray to get the water out. See if the boat is damaged H!”

HMN – “I’m adding these to stop the boat.”

LA – “My daddy is taller.” 

LS – “It falled down! Let’s build it again!”

AD – “I build that!”

🍂 A Berry-Filled Adventure! 🫐

This week, we headed out on a little adventure to collect some blackberries. As we walked towards the field, we spotted an apple lying on the ground. We looked up and discovered an apple tree above us! This sparked lots of curiosity and gave us the opportunity to talk about the different fruits we might find growing in our local environment.
When we reached the blackberry bushes, we talked about how to pick the berries carefully and how to identify which ones were ready to eat. We noticed that some berries were black, while others were still red. We discussed how the blackberries were ripe and ready to pick, while the red ones needed more time to grow.
We also talked about keeping ourselves safe and making sure we don’t eat anything we find outdoors until it has been properly cleaned. One child explained, “We need to do that as there might be bugs in them!” This showed a great understanding of why we need to wash fruit before eating it.
As the children picked, they made their own observations and shared their ideas. One child noticed that the bigger the blackberry, the juicier it is! The children carefully collected the berries and placed them into their lidded tubs to keep them safe as we made our way back to nursery.
Once we returned, our learning continued. We placed all the tubs on the floor and took turns lifting them to compare their weight. We discussed which tubs felt lightest and heaviest, developing our understanding of weight and encouraging the children to make comparisons.
Now we have our blackberry harvest, we are thinking about what we could make with them. We are going to explore different recipes together and see what we can create. One child already had an idea — “Jam!” 🍓
We can’t wait to see where our blackberry adventure takes us next!

Our children have been enjoying exploring the woodwork area, developing new skills through hands-on, practical experiences. To begin building their confidence, they have been practising hammering golf tees into melons. This simple activity provides lots of opportunities to develop fine and gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination, concentration, control, problem-solving and perseverance. The children are learning how to hold and use tools safely and judge how much force is needed.

As their confidence has grown, the children have also been introduced to the chomp saw, learning how to use this tool safely and responsibly with adult support. They are developing their ability to follow instructions, listen carefully, assess risk, use tools with control and work collaboratively. Woodwork encourages children to become independent thinkers as they make decisions, test ideas and discover what happens when they change their approach.

Our Eco Group has also been busy putting their learning into action by creating a greenhouse for one of our outdoor planters. Using recycled plastic bottles, the children have helped to transform something that might otherwise be thrown away into something useful. This has supported their understanding of sustainability, recycling, caring for our environment and reducing waste.

The greenhouse will help create a warmer environment for our plants, giving the children further opportunities to observe growth, change and the natural world. Most importantly, the project shows children that small actions can make a difference. They are developing practical skills while learning that they can be creative, resourceful and active in caring for our planet.

From Sandpit to Pond!

This week, our sandpit became the starting point for some fantastic child-led learning!
The children worked together to dig a deep hole and decided they wanted to turn it into a pond. Once it was deep enough, they asked to fill it with water. They quickly noticed that although the pond stayed full while the hose was running, the water disappeared as soon as the hose was turned off.

The children began thinking about how they could solve the problem. One child suggested using tin foil, but when we couldn’t find any, another child discovered a large sheet of tarpaulin and suggested trying that instead. Together, we placed it in the hole and filled the pond again. This time, the water stayed!

With their pond complete, the children continued to investigate. They collected different objects from around the garden to find out what would sink and what would float. They discovered that the plastic animals sank, while the plastic sand moulds floated.

Of course, no pond is complete without getting in! The children then enjoyed jumping into their creation, experimenting with different jumps and seeing who could make the biggest splash! 🌊

Through their play, the children were developing skills in problem-solving, prediction, investigation and teamwork, while following their own ideas and curiosity to see where their learning would take them.

In the block and small world areas this week the children’s interests have been focused on building houses. These homes have been for families, dinosaurs and animals alike.

“It’s a house look how big it is. I sleep away up there. That’s the roof” BA

“A house put more there” ZA

“I’m making a house in here they keep falling down” E

“Let’s make a house, you need to make walls like this. I want to be a family” DM

“I want to put dinosaurs in” LD

“No dinosaurs allowed” M

“That’s our house that’s the door you have to wipe your feet” IM

This week in the literacy area the children have been exploring sounds. A key early skill in phonological awareness is being able to identify and differentiate between sounds in the environment. We explored this by playing sound bingo. The children listened carefully and had a go at guessing what the sounds were. They identified animals, vehicles and different household items. We also discussed how many we each needed or had left to win and counted them down as we played. Lots of children asked to play again during the week, and each time they were able to identify more of the sounds.

The children have been enjoying exploring our new woodwork area, developing their confidence as they learn the basic skills of woodwork. They have been hammering nails into wood, using screwdrivers and experimenting with different tools and materials. Through these hands-on experiences, the children are developing important skills such as hand-eye coordination, fine motor control, concentration, problem-solving and perseverance. They are also learning how to use tools safely and responsibly, while beginning to understand how different materials can be joined and transformed. It has been wonderful to see their curiosity, creativity and sense of achievement grow as they explore and learn through practical experiences.

This week in the malleable area the children have been making their own playdough and were exploring measurement and turn taking within this process. The children decided to shape and for their dough into cakes, exploring fractions and touch counting as they made their creations and extended their play by transporting their makes into the home corner for a birthday party and engaged in imaginative and symbolic play.

FS “The cake will take 12 minutes”

“ He needs 10 candles because he’s a 10 bear”

IQ “Do you want some cherries?”

In addition to this the children have also been exploring clay as their malleable material. The children have been experimenting with the clay and exploring cause and effect as it changes in texture and appearance. The children were also introduced to a range of tools and were able to take positive risks as they explored the resources safely and were able to create a range of marks on its surface. Some children began to extend their curiosity and explored making 3D structures with a particular interest in fairy castles which we will continue to explore in the next few weeks.

BH “ I’m making a tall house for the tooth fairies, pretend the bricks are teeth”

RP “I need a roof or they will get wet”

“37 Fairies live there”

SH  “It feels sticky now”

ES “It’s going to be five meters tall and have five floors”

The children have been enjoying exploring the sewing area as they make colourful bracelets to celebrate the Hindu festival of Raksha Bandhan. They have been carefully threading beads and materials, developing their fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and concentration. As they selected colours and patterns, they also explored creativity, decision-making and early mathematical skills such as counting and sequencing. The activity provided a wonderful opportunity for the children to learn about the cultural significance of Raksha Bandhan while developing patience, perseverance and confidence through hands-on making.

The children have been enjoying exploring the water tray through our tea-making activity. They investigated different ingredients and resources, including teabags, lemon, cucumber and orange slices, using their senses to explore the smells, colours, textures and changes in the water. As they poured, stirred, squeezed and transferred the ingredients, they developed their fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and understanding of cause and effect. The children also enjoyed using their imaginations and developing their communication and language skills as they talked about their ideas and experiences of making and sharing tea.

In the art area this week we have been exploring contrast, shade and texture. The children used a  variety of resources including glue, paint brushes, materials, toothbrushes, sponges, chalk and charcoal to demonstrate creativity and develop their skills of mark making whilst exploring texture, shade and contrast.

This week in the literacy area we have been exploring early mark making opportunities through a range of sensory experiences. We used a variety of resources to draw in the sand and foam, and some children looked for some of the hidden letters in the sensory bags. We used lots of descriptive language to talk about how the materials felt and smelled.

Some pre-school children have also been choosing to create stories of their own and have been working on writing their names. We have also had lots of lovely drawings from all of the children!

“I found a seven oh no its a Z and a S, S for snake” – DM

“Teacher I see this, look” – LA

“This is something special for your, it’s for your birthday” – IF

“It’s a story about a stolen cat” – AC

“I’m about to find a word. It’s an R, it starts with my name. That’s my mum K’s name” – RG

“I found one”- LP

“See if I can find another one” – HM

“It’s a G” – GM

“I found a Y” – RF

“My name starts with a S” – SL

In our discovery area, children embraced the role of young scientists by exploring the concepts of floating and sinking. They  worked collaboratively, gathering a variety of everyday resources from around the playroom to test in the water tray.

Using their developing observation skills, the children made lots of thoughtful predictions about whether specific items would float or sink. This sparked lots of descriptive language as they handled the objects and debated which felt heaviest or lightest. Some children made the connection that the heavy items sank to the bottom and the lighter ones floated to the top. 

“Look its gone way down down”

“I think it might float and stay at the top”

“I like seeing it sink”

“This one feels heavier”

This week, we have welcomed lots of new children to the family centre. The boys and girls have been participating in early block play and exploring our small world areas and characters. We have been using our bigger blocks and long wooden pieces to build large scale models and obstacle courses, developing problem solving skills, gross motor skills and balance and coordination whilst working with peers.

Some children have taken an interest in the animals in small world area and wanted to build enclosures for them. 

LBG – “Polar bears like the cold weather. Can we make a fence so they don’t escape? There’s a fire now, I need to put it out. My tiger can do it, he’s drinking water from the lake to put the fire out.”

BP – “This will be the zoo. This will be the doors and that’s the roof. That’s for the giraffe to eat, some leaves. If it rains we can just get a wee umbrella. Can you hold this Miss Hughes, it keeps falling over.”

ZK – “Play park, everyone got a space. Play on the swings.”

ZMc – “Superhero machine. It turns everyone into superheroes”

SL – “Animal house. They’re watching TV.”

RF – “I’m building a house.”

LS – “Summerhouse. I’ve got one in my garden.” 

AF – “I’m measuring, it says 47 for the house.”

DF – “It says stop! I’m making a tunnel. That’s me!”

The children have been looking at different kinds of pattern making at the malleable area. Whilst exploring the play dough some of the children used items from the small world area such as people, dinosaurs and animals to make footprints. The children also used different shapes of Lego and bricks to make prints in the play dough. The children also carved patterns in the playdoh using the various playdoh resources. 

The children have been enjoying the mixed weather outside. The rain has made the sand perfect for sandcastles. The children have been creating their own sandcastles. E told us that the castle was ‘missing flags’. As real castles have the flags. This led the children designed their own flags using twigs, leaves, paper straws and paper.

The children have also been experimenting with loose parts in the outdoor area, using resources such as guttering, tyres and tubes to create their own ball run. They worked together to plan, build and test their ideas, making changes when things didn’t work as expected. This experience encouraged teamwork, communication, problem-solving and creativity, while also developing their ability to negotiate, share resources and listen to each other’s ideas. It was wonderful to see the children learning through hands-on exploration and confidently developing their own solutions.

The children have been exploring the vertical and horizontal pulleys in the indoor sand. They have been developing their problem-solving, coordination and teamwork skills and their understanding of forces and movement and cause and effect as they worked cooperatively to successfully make the pulleys move. They helped each other attach their items to the carabiner clip , experimented with different amounts of sand, noticing how the quantity affected the speed and movement of the pulleys.

This week in the water tray we have been exploring different resources. We have been using jugs, funnels and tubes to create different mechanisms for the water to flow through and explore the concept of gravity.