Hello everyone!

We hope you are keeping safe and well.  We are missing each and everyone of you. 💕

Let’s welcome everyone in our usual way to our, ‘Special Sports and Fun Fitness Blog.’

Hello Everyone!  Click on the Sound Link and let’s join in together . . .

In this special, ‘Special Sports and Fun Fitness Blog,’ we are going to support your wellbeing through exercising our bodies and minds through the following activities;

• a special virtual Sports Day experience
• develop our knowledge of outdoor games and activities
• dance activities
• workout activities
• mindful activities

Virtual Sports Day

As we cannot be together to take part in our usual Sports Day, we thought you’d enjoy taking part in the Newport Nursery Virtual Sports Day.

Have you got a Twitter account? If not, set one up and follow Newport Primary School and Nursery.

You can see our Newport Nursery,  ‘Spectacular Sports’ videos on Twitter (Part 1 and Part 2). Enjoy!

You could also view the School’s virtual Sports Day on Twitter too.

Why not plan your own family sports day using the ideas from our, ‘Spectacular Sports?’ and the School’s videos.

You could send us video clips or photographs of your special day.

Mrs Ross found a lovely sports day poem she wanted to share with everyone . . .

It’s Sports Day Time by Sara Fox

Fasten your laces,

Toes behind the line.

The sun is shining,

It’s Sports Day time!

It’s time to have races,

It’s time to have fun,

On your marks, get set . . .

Jump!

Skip!

Run!

Sporting Facts . . .

Watch this short clip to find out some amazing sporting facts!

How many facts can you remember?

Interested in learning more facts?

Watch this video to find about your body parts.

Why not join Maddie Moate and find out about your bones?

There are lots of WOW facts on this short video clip!

More Sports  Day Fun!

Mrs AC’s family had their own Sports Day with lots of different events from running and jumping to balancing.

‘It was super fun and we even had 1st, 2nd and 3rd positions for the different races. The dogs even joined in.  Our hearts were beating so fast and we were rewarded with yummy ice lollies at the end!’

Mrs Kay’s family tried out some gymnastics and racing events too. The girls are awesome!

Outdoor Games and Activities

‘Playing, learning and having fun outdoors helps to improve wellbeing and resilience, as well as physical and mental health and also provides children with the opportunity to develop a life long appreciation of the natural world.’

Obstacle Courses

IMG_1890  

Press on the link to see part of the video clip.

Obstacle courses  can be created both indoors and outdoors. Mrs Laing’s daughter had fun with a friend, designing their own obstacle course using natural materials around them. A simple and fun activity for all the family!

As well as  developing our fitness through learning new games, we can also have fun learning to read, write and develop a huge range of numeracy skills.

Can you create your own special pathways?

Games and Activities

Follow these fun activities from the Play Scotland Website.

The Penguin Shuffle
Equipment needed – bean bags/soft toy in a ball and hula hoops.
Best done as a relay race. The group  is split into equal teams and each child is given a bean bag or small ball. The bean bag/soft toy  is placed between the child’s knees and they shuffle up to a hula hoop. They must drop their bean bag/soft toy into the hoop and return to their team, allowing the next child to go. The first group with all their bean bags in the hoop wins!

Catch Don’t Catch
Equipment needed – ball or small beanbag/soft toy.
Players stand in a circle with their arms crossed. One player in the centre throws the ball to someone in the circle, saying either ‘Catch’ or ‘Don’t catch’. If they say ‘Catch’, the player should not catch the ball and must not move their arms. If they say ‘Don’t catch’, the player should catch the ball! If a player
does the wrong thing or misses the ball, they’re out! Listen very carefully!

Ticking Bomb

Equipment needed – ball or small beanbag/soft toy.
Players stand in a circle. One ‘spy’ stands with his back to the circle. The bean bag/soft toy (or bomb) is passed quickly round the circle
but cannot be dropped. If it is dropped the person who drops it must hold it for three seconds. The spy shouts ‘stop’ at any time
during then game. When ‘stop’ is heard, the person holding the ‘bomb’ is out. Winner is the last person in the circle!

Sleeping Lions
Equipment needed – none!
Everyone lies on the floor except one or two hunters. Everyone else is a ‘sleeping lion’, and once they’ve settled they’re not
allowed to move. The hunters walk around trying to make the sleeping lions move by making them laugh, telling jokes and
so on, but they aren’t allowed to touch them. Once a lion has moved, they get up to join the hunters.

Pass the Hoop
Equipment needed – hula hoops.
This game is excellent for building trust and co-operation between players.
• Players stand in a circle holding hands.
• A hoop is placed between two children.
• The hoop must pass round the ring without breaking contact.
Add to the fun by adding more hoops!

Rock, Paper, Scissors, Catch!
Equipment needed – hula hoops.
The group  is split into two equal teams. As a team, they decide if the team is going to play ‘rock’, ‘paper’, or ‘scissors’. They meet for a “face
off” at the centre line of a gym or field and on the count of three they play their rock, paper, or scissors. Remember, paper beats rock, rock
beats scissors, and scissors beats paper.
Whoever wins then chases the other team to the end line  and catches as many people as they can on the way. Those that
are caught then join the other team. The game continues until all the players from one team are caught.

Floating Balls
Equipment: 3 Balls (Beach Balls)
Players scatter over the playing area and a ball is tossed into the air. The players must keep the ball in the air using any part of the body. Once one ball is up, get two or three balls going at
the same time. Keep count of the number of times the ball (or balls) is kept up in the air before it hits the ground. Try to improve the score each time.

Scatterball
Equipment needed – 4 balls and set markers up like rounders.
No teams, everyone plays for themselves! One kicker and everyone else is a fielder. The kicker kicks (or throws) the four balls as far as they can. Once all four have been scattered, the kicker must run around the bases aiming for a home run. The fielders try to collect all four balls to the home base before the kicker
gets there. Swap the kicker each time.

 Bench  Ball
Equipment needed – a bench/log/marked standing area for each team,4/6 balls.
Split group into two teams. Each team stands in their half of the space. At the back of their half is a bench/log/marked standing out area. Balls are placed on the centre court line. The game is a bit like dodgeball, but if you are hit (below the hips only) you must stand on the bench/log/marker at the back of the other team. Benched players can re-join the game by catching a ball and hitting someone on the opposing team (below the hips only). The winning team is the one with the most players at the end of the game.

Everyone is It
Equipment needed – none
Set up a playing area. All children start inside the playing area and all are IT. Children run around trying to avoid being tagged by people,
but at the same time trying to tag others. Once tagged, the child is out and steps out of the playing area. If two children tag each other at the same time, they are both out. The aim is to be the last two left.

Numeracy and Mathematics (Technology)

Here are two games which some of us have experienced  in nursery.

Have some aiming fun with these ball games!

Remember to think carefully about which challenge is right for you.

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/ordering-and-sequencing/coconut-ordering

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/learning-to-count/place-value-basketball

Developing Dance

When a child dances, they learn about how their body can move.  Through dance, children learn to coordinate and control their bodies and the movement helps them develop spatial awareness.

https://youtu.be/mUSgKSgS4-E

Wonderful Workouts

Within every Blog, we have enjoyed taking part in Sticky Kids Workouts.

Sticky Kids have now produced Season 2 for us all to enjoy!

Which song is your favourite to work out to?

https://s124.podbean.com/pb/9393d3ead087e63a13bec2122c274c18/5ee9ad0b/data2/fs179/7826650/uploads/SK_WORKOUT_S2_1_7q4qt.mp3?pbss=3ba35fc7-2237-5dec-a410-d271cec4f56b&download=1

This workout can be enjoyed by adults as well as wee ones.  You can exercise in a circle or opposite each other on the spot, sometimes down on the floor or moving around your space.

Track List and Workout Benefits

• Weekly Workout (action, co-ordination, memory skills)
• Standup, Sit Down (actions, stretching)
• Rhyme – Right Hand, Left Hand (right and left)
• Running Shoes (action, balance, imagination)
• Wash your Dirty Hands (motivation and cleanliness)
• Kangaroo Brown (active)
• Tap, Tap, Tap (listening).

Music and Movement

Are you ready to use your brilliant body to make music?

Can you perform your body percussion infront of an audience?

Have fun!

The Breathing Song by Julia Donaldson and Malcolm

Before we explore mindfulness, let’s think about our breathing through a fun song with Julia Donaldson and Malcolm.

Mindful Moments

Mindfulness develops the whole brain and helps children to understand their emotions and feelings, reducing the risk of mental health issues.  Practicing mindfulness helps children to notice the positives, and develop a sense of appreciation, gratitude and contentment.

Story Time

Sharing books together brings many benefits, including fostering closeness and conversation and developing empathy and listening skills.

Reading books which discuss wellbeing and mental health together can provide a great way to start conversations about emotions that children may be experiencing  or struggling with. Research shows that children who read with someone at home say it helps them to feel calmer  and happier.

Reading before bedtime helps children to switch off from the day and prepares them for a good night’s sleep and to wake up refreshed.

Sit back and relax as a hare and a tortoise 🐢 take part in race.

The Tortoise and the Hare is  a fable.  A fable is a short story with a life lesson at the end.  One man, known as Aesop,  is  famous  for the many fables he told in his life.  Here are two versions of one of his fables called, ‘The Hare and the Tortoise.’

Which version do you prefer?

The Gingerbread Man

In this story, lots of characters use their running skills to try to catch the Gingerbread Man. Can you remember the characters who run after the main character?

Stick Man by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler

‘One day he wakes early and goes for a jog.’

‘He sets off for home with a hop and a twirl.’

Listen to the illustrator Axel Scheffler reading this special story .

This is dedicated to all our Dad’s…Happy Father’s Day 2020!

Fife Council  Psychology Service and Five Ways to Wellbeing during Covid 19 

We all have a responsibility to look after our own and others’ emotional wellbeing and this becomes even more important during times of uncertainty, when people’s levels of anxiety are increased.  Children and young people look to trusted adults to work out ways of dealing with challenging situations.

Fife Council Psychology Services provides a wide range of resources to help  everyone support the wellbeing, learning and behaviour of our children (just search Fife Council Psychology Services).

One of the websites they signpost is Young Scot, which explores Five ways to Wellbeing during Covid 19.

Follow the five ways to wellbeing to look after your mental, emotional and physical health and think about how you can support others in your community.

As the Government has just announced that we are entering into Phase 2, you may wish to explore our special visual poster. Remember Government Guidance may change.

We hope you have had fun exploring our, ‘Spectacular Sports and Fun Fitness  Blog.’

Thank you for joining us and we hope to see you very soon.

Remember to add your thoughts and ideas linked to the Blog using the comments feature or why don’t you share some of you experiences through our school website?

Would you like to send a photograph? Click on your photo and send an email to

https://www.fifedirect.org.uk/NewportPS

newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk

⭐️Mrs Beat will forward your special photographs.

Keep safe and keep connected.

The Newport Nursery Team

Mrs AC, Mrs Kay, Mrs Laing, Mrs Ross, Miss Crichton, Mrs Cunnigham, Miss Allan, Mrs Beat and Miss Stevenson

Gallery

This week Harris and his family have connected with us.

You have been having lots of fun!  We are missing all your investigations and creations, Harris!

Keep connected everyone.

Hello everyone

In this week’s Blog we thought it would be great to focus on keeping safe in the sun. We have had some lovely sunshine so lets put on our hats, sun cream and sunglasses and have some fun in the sun.

Mrs Kay recites a wee rhyme about the sun.

Do you remember when you were in nursery we would use the outdoor thermometer to find what temperature it was? In the winter months it would sometimes go below 0° and in the summer months it could go as high as 18°.

This is a story about the sun.

https://youtu.be/EwyqaLnsi5Q

Can you tell us what part of the story you liked best?

Here’s Mrs Ross singing about how to stay safe in the sun.

Now we all know how to keep safe in the sun. Here’s an activity that you can download off Twinkl.

https://content.twinkl.co.uk/resource/2b/40/t-tp-759-pack-for-sun-safety-activity-sheet-.pdf?__token__=exp=1591882420~acl=%2Fresource%2F2b%2F40%2Ft-tp-759-pack-for-sun-safety-activity-sheet-.pdf%2A~hmac=58739d9fae3a75de9b63d25bcdf3b5b2549dc042821915eda761c888570b6f70

Mrs AC and her big boy, Samuel, sing Row, Row, Row your Boat!

IMG_2079

Here is a flower chart that you can download. Then you can go on a summer flower hunt. It’s a fun way to find lots of different flowers either in your own garden or during your daily walk.

https://content.twinkl.co.uk/resource/d8/ca/t-t-1103-plants-and-flowers-hunt-sheet-_ver_6.pdf?__token__=exp=1591882650~acl=%2Fresource%2Fd8%2Fca%2Ft-t-1103-plants-and-flowers-hunt-sheet-_ver_6.pdf%2A~hmac=192a08322cdf1ddf5b15df1b3e6ffcabce06b3da922c9bc11c45177bba81ab51

When you’re out and about you might find some minibeasts too. Mrs Laing found a story about a snail on a sunny day.

Another fun experiment you can do with your family is to plant sunflower seeds. Why not sew some seeds in a sunny area and sew some in a shady area?  Watch to see how tall they grow.

This is a photograph of Mr Ross with Kirsty and Duncan on our garage roof. The sunflowers were measured and the tallest one was 10 foot tall.

We thought you would like to try some of these fun activities that you can do in your garden.
Why not make a Nature Mandala? All you need are some stones, sticks, leaves and flowers. Here is a photo of Mrs Ross’s granddaughter making her own Mandala.  

A Mandala is a circular symbol often seen in Hinduism and Buddhism which represents the universe. It can be a calming experience.

Here is a workout to help you keep fit and healthy .

Sticky kids workout 8

https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-qun2g-dce61d

This workout can be enjoyed by adults as well as wee ones. You can exercise in a circle or opposite each other on the spot, sometimes down on the floor or moving around your space.

Track List
Warm Up Song; Music, Music, Music; Two Little Hands; Wind Your Bobbin Up; Tall As A House; Stir Up The Porridge; Hands On Hips.

Now its summer and the days are getting longer why don’t you  experiment and make a sun dial in your garden. All you need is : 1 paper plate, 1 long pencil, 1 pen a ruler and a watch.  You can either pop your plate on the ground or put it on a table( I used a table and stuck the plate with blue tack) you then insert the pencil in the middle of the plate at a slight angle.  Every hour you need to mark the shadow using a pencil and ruler.

Remember to write the time on the edge of the plate.  You can decorate your plate and send us your photographs.

Here’s what mine looked like after I added some times.

I am sure everyone is missing going on our weekly trip to the forest. Maybe you could have a forest session in your garden? Make a den using lots of loose parts including blankets, sheets, rope and pegs. This will keep you cool. You can always ask an adult to make smores or cook sausages on a barbaque or on a fire. Do you remember any of the forest rules to keep safe?  Here is a little reminder of some of them.

1. Always make sure you can see an adult.

2. We sit behind the safety square on your bottoms.

3. We have a great time exploring.

Can you think of any other rules we use in the forest?

This is Mr Tumble keeping us safe in the sun.

If you have a tent why not camp out in your garden with your family. You might hear an owl hooting or even see a hedgehog.

Why not draw pictures of the animals, birds and insects you have seen in your garden and share them with us?

Here are two different types of sun hats you can design and colour using chalk, pens, paints, crayons or anything you have in  your garden, for instance leaves, flowers, grass and sticks.

https://content.twinkl.co.uk/resource/c4/5f/t-t-2547894-design-your-own-sun-hat-activity-sheet-english.pdf?__token__=exp=1591884389~acl=%2Fresource%2Fc4%2F5f%2Ft-t-2547894-design-your-own-sun-hat-activity-sheet-english.pdf%2A~hmac=bef8ef491a2a89971aa0a7cb82fa7c915240b541e0f0782c0651d1aa9bd07c9d

I think everyone likes an ice lolly they are great at keeping you cool and hydrated. On a warm summer day why not try these recipes. Click below to try making your own.

T-T-20521-Ice-Lollies-Recipe-Ideas_ver_1

Please share your comments, photos, drawings and ideas in the Comments section or send us an email at newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk.  We’ll share these with all your nursery friends.

It’s time to sing goodbye with Bookbug!

I hope you have enjoyed our blog. Please share your comments, photos, drawings and ideas in the Comments section or send us an email at newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk.  We’ll share these with all your nursery friends.

Keep safe,

The Newport Team

Mrs Ross Mrs AC    Mrs Kay   Mrs Laing

Miss Crichton   Mrs Cunningham   Miss Allen     Mrs Beat     Miss Stevenson

A happy hello!

We have been learning about lots of changes in nature from brilliant bugs to all sorts of plants growing in our gardens and parks.  I wonder what you have found in your outdoor space!  Could you share what you have found?  My family (Team AC) and I took a walk to a duck pond near our house and we found some frogspawn a few weeks ago so I thought that this week we could look to see how frogs grow and develop.  Let’s join Bookbug and start with the Hello Song!

Frogs are fabulous creatures because they can live in water and on land which is why they’re called amphibians.  They grow from eggs to tadpoles to froglets to frogs. The eggs (frogspawn) hatch and tadpoles grow gills so they can breathe in water. Their back legs grow first followed by their front legs and at this stage they are froglets. Their tails shrink and they get bigger and bigger. Poof! They’re now frogs!

Mrs Kay sings one of my favourite frog songs…join in!

Keep safe,

The Newport Team

Mrs AC    Mrs Kay   Mrs Laing     Mrs Ross

Miss Crichton   Mrs Cunningham   Miss Allen     Mrs Beat     Miss Stevenson

Gallery

A big hello to Bobby who has reached out and said hello! He has been very busy helping his family decorate, as well as jumping really high on his trampoline and going for walks in the forest. Thank you for sharing these with us and your friends.

We also had a lovely comment from Lachlann and his family who have been busy too.  We love connecting with you and hearing what you have been up to.  Please keep sharing!

Hello everyone!

I hope you all enjoyed learning a little about some of the exercises children might experience in Primary 1. We are going to continue using The Very Hungry Caterpillar to look at exercises around Maths, Health and Wellbeing, Science and Technology.

First lets say hello to everyone with the help of BookBug.

Mrs Kay’s caterpillars finally hatched from their cocoons. Here is a video of Jessica releasing them into Mrs Kay’s garden.

Maths

Here are some ideas of ways to use Brilliant Bugs to explore maths.

Design your own board game.

You will need:

Paper or card

Pens, pencils or paint to decorate

Dice and counters (borrow some from a board game you have at home)

Some ideas include:

Spiders and Drainpipes

Just like snakes and ladders but using spiders and drainpipes instead. Climb up the spiders web and fall down the drainpipe.

Butterfly land

Draw a beautiful scene with lots of butterflies and other bugs. Make a path all round the board and see who can be the first player to reach the end. You might like to add some funny tasks or forfeits along the way.

Matching pairs

Cut out some square pieces of card and draw 2 of your favourite bugs, with one bug on each square of card. Once you have at least 10 pairs turn the squares over and take turns trying to find each pair.

Patterns, size and shape.

Using beads, buttons or whatever else you have at home make caterpillars. Try and create a pattern and see how many times you can repeat it before you run out of materials.

Look at the size and shapes of bugs in your garden. Can you find a large bug or one that is really very small? Look at symmetry, bugs should have a line of symmetry (when you draw a line down the middle, the image is the same on each side). Does the line of symmetry work for lines drawn top to bottom and from left to right?

There are lots of songs that feature bugs and maths, here are some examples.

Health and Wellbeing

Sticky Kids have lots of podcasts on their website. They are great for getting children to be more active and are fun for all the family to join in.

Week 6 can be found here.

https://stickykids.podbean.com/e/sticky-kids-workout-6/

The Bad Tempered Ladybird by Eric Carle is a great way for children to explore their feelings. It shows that it is better to be kind to our friends but that even ladybirds get grumpy sometimes!

Recipes

Here are some yummy bug inspired recipes to try at home.

Mrs Ross has a recipe for snail swirls she would like to share with everyone.

https://www.eggs.ca/recipes/

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Fruit Kebabs

• 1 apple, cored and diced
• 2 pears, cored and diced
• 3 plums, pitted and diced
• 4 strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 5 oranges, (make it easy on yourself and use mandarin slices)

Arrange all the pieces of fruit on sticks using any combination you want. Serve as a picnic lunch, and don’t forget to drop a few pieces in the grass for the neighbourhood caterpillars!

Perfect Picnics

Why not pack up as many of the foods that the hungry caterpillar ate and go on a picnic. You could have a picnic in your garden or while on a nature walk.

The hungry caterpillar enjoyed

• 1 apple
• 2 pears
• 3 plums
• 4 strawberries
• 5 oranges
• 1 piece of chocolate cake
• 1 ice cream
• 1 pickle
• 1 slice of cheese
• 1 slice of salami
• 1 lollipop
• 1 piece of cherry pie
• 1 sausage
• 1 cupcake
• 1 slice of watermelon

Send us some photos of you enjoying your treats! Children can help prepare these recipes developing their fine motor and life skills.

Science and Technology

Get outdoors and see what bugs you can find. Look under stones and logs, bugs prefer damp and cold places.

If you have a magnifying glass have a look at all the parts of a bug. Is what you have found an insect? How do you know what is an insect and what isn’t?

Insects have 6 legs, a head, thorax and abdomen. They may or may not have wings. If a bug doesn’t have one of these things then it is not an insect and may be something else like an arachnid (spider), an annelid (worms) or a myriapod (centipede). Lots of information can be found at www.natgeokids.com/uk/discover/animals/insects/15-facts-about-bugs/

Mrs Kays caterpillars are still wrapped snugly in their cocoons. They will hopefully emerge next week sometime, we will keep you posted. In the meantime this video shows the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly.

Mrs AC’s children Luke and Neve made a poster about bugs and their habitats.

Songs and Rhymes

Mrs Laing would like to share a new rhyme she has thought up just for Newport Nursery.

Mrs Ross has a worm at the bottom of her garden.

Mrs Kay has a rhyme about a little girl and her caterpillar.

Mrs AC likes this rhyme about 5 speckled frogs.

Thanks for reading the blog this week, have a great weekend and don’t forget to let us know what you have been doing. We miss you all very much. Lets listen to the Goodbye song.

Hello everyone! Welcome to this weeks blog all about Brilliant Bugs and the Very Hungry Caterpillar. We hope you have all had a lovely week enjoying the sunshine and celebrating Book Bugs birthday.  Send us some pictures showing what you have been doing and we will add them to next weeks blog. We miss all of you very much and hope you are all safe and happy at home with your lovely families.

This is usually the time of year Mrs Kay would be inviting children and their carers to attend Peep sessions. These sessions are aimed at transition to Primary 1. This week and next weeks blog will be around transitions. A special transition that happens in nature is when a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly. Caterpillars work very hard to prepare themselves for this transition, just like our nursery children do all year round.  They prepare for school with the support of parents, carers and nursery staff.

Mrs Kay has got some little caterpillars to look after. they started of tiny, hopefully you can make them out in the picture.

Over the last 2 weeks they have grown bigger.

They grew bigger and bigger by eating lots of food. They crawled up to the top of the container. They have now made a cocoon around themselves and are waiting to transform. Hopefully by next week the caterpillars will change into beautiful butterflies, lets wait and see!

Twinkl has some fantastic resources that supports children’s learning following the Very Hungry Caterpillar theme. They are offering free access to the resources during lockdown. Visit twinkl.co.uk and search The Very Hungry Caterpillar for lots of great ideas.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle is a lovely story about a caterpillars transition to butterfly. Let’s listen to the author talk about the book, he has a great way of explaining why children have enjoyed the book for the last 50 years.

The book can be used to support every area of the curriculum. We will explore some activities that can be done at home.  Let’s enjoy the story now.

This week we will focus on Literacy, Art, Drama and Music.

These are some ideas which will support children’s development in literacy. Children learn best through play, wherever possible ​learning should be fun and child led. These ideas are designed to be a gentle introduction to some of the activities children might expect to do in school.

Literacy ideas

Sand tray writing

Fill a small tray or dish with sand, salt or flour and allow children to make letter shapes or just enjoy making marks in the sand. There is no expectation for children to ‘write’ just to enjoy the experience. Gently shake the tray to clear, ready to start the fun again.

Play dough or plasticine.

Encourage children to use play dough or plasticine to make the letters that form their name. Plasticine is better to use if possible as it encourages strengthening of the finger muscles. This is needed to help when learning to write as strong muscles supports a child’s stamina when working.  More information about building the strength of finger muscles and some fun games and activities can be found here https://www.teachhandwriting.co.uk/more-activities-help-develop-handwriting-skills.html

Playdough Recipe

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon oil.

Mix flour, salt and oil in a bowl, using your hands can be easier and fun!

Add  a little water at a time to get the desired consistency.

You can add some food colouring if you would like, we do not add any in nursery so that we do not influence their design process.

Tell your own story

Have a go at being a story teller. You might want to be like Eric Carle and write over 70 books for people to enjoy.  Parents can take on the role of authors if children do not want to write.  Children can choose to be authors and illustrators if they wish. Older siblings can help too, it can be a fun activity for all the family. Try using some of these ideas and tips when publishing your book:

• Who is the main character? Is it an insect?
• What does the character do? Do they have an adventure, or have a problem they need to work through?
• What other characters are in your story? Do they help the main character, are they kind?
• Try to think of a start, middle and an end.
• Think about your illustrations, they should do a lot of the story telling. Children that cannot read can still enjoy the story by following the pictures.
• Have fun, would you like to read this story yourself?

Share a story

Share some story books together. Do you have any books at home about bugs?

The Very Quiet Cricket is another story from Eric Carle. It’ s a lovely story about a little cricket who hasn’t managed to find his voice yet.

https://youtu.be/xEJ10k1_Fjg

I Love Bugs is written and illustrated by Emma Dodd. It tells of a small boys love of bugs, do you all love bugs as much as he does?

What the Ladybird Heard is a well known book by author Julia Donaldson. This is one of the children’s favourite books in Newport Nursery!

Art ideas

Eric Carle has a very distinctive art style. Why not try and create some images in his style? You could use paints, pens or crayons.

A fantastic way to explore art is by doing some transient art outdoors. You do not need any special equipment, just the materials nature provides. Go into your garden or on a nature walk to the local forest or beach. Collect sticks, stones, fallen leaves and flowers (only if they are from your own garden). Mrs Kay and her family collected sea glass from the beach. Jessica used the sea glass and some leaves and flowers from Mrs kay’s garden to create a beautiful butterfly.

Here are some pieces of art from Andy Goldsworthy who is an artist famous for his use of natural materials.

Art can be found in nature, the hive of a colony of bees, the patterns on a ladybirds wing or the markings on butterflies and moths. Can you find any patterns when you are out and about?

This week saw us celebrate World Bee Day. We celebrate world bee day to highlight the importance of looking after bees. The United Nations have a great section on their website giving lots of information about bees. https://www.un.org/en/observances/bee-day

Here we have a craft idea to make your own bee, send a picture of any of your art creations.

https://www.facebook.com/weeseedlingswithnickibradwell/videos/276337956880626/

https://www.facebook.com/218202244867441/posts/3162278080459828/?d=w

Music ideas

Why not try and make your own musical instruments? Empty containers filled with rice or pasta make great shakers. Pots and pans and wooden spoons make good drums. Old kitchen utensils hung from string make good wind chimes for outdoors.

Listen to the sounds that some well known bugs make. Can you hear bees buzzing or crickets chirping? Listen to some sounds here but go into your garden at different times of the day to see what noises you can hear.

Here is a funny song about some bugs going to a ball. What bug would you like to be? Would you dress up? Maybe you could make some fancy hats or clothes for your bug friends to wear to the ball.

Mrs AC, Mrs Laing, Mrs Kay and Mrs Ross have all sang a bug related nursery rhyme for you to enjoy.

Drama ideas

Sock puppets

You will need:

• Old socks
• Felt tip pens
• Pieces of material
• Googly eyes
• Glue
• Pipe cleaners

Decorate your socks in any way you’d like. You can make worms, caterpillars, spiders, bees or ladybirds.

Masks

Make bug masks using card or paper. Make lots and ask family members to take on the role of their favourite bug. Use old clothes and material to make a costume and put on a play. 

Watch a bug themed film

Gather your family, make popcorn and turn the living room into a cinema. Some good bug films are:

A Bugs Life –  Disney Pixar rating U

The Ant Bully – Warner Bros. rating U

Bee Movie – Dreamworks rating U

James and the Giant Peach – Disney rating U

Charlotte’s Web – Paramount rating U

Other news

Solihull Approach

Solihull is now available to parents and carers. This is a fantastic resource that is usually delivered to staff to support understanding of peoples emotional and behavioural needs. More information can be found here:

https://www.children1st.org.uk/who-we-are/news/news/children-1st-welcomes-announcement-of-access-to-solihull-online-for-parents-and-carers

Book Bug’s Travels

Mrs Laing has provided a list of all the places Book Bug travelled to. Did you get any correct? Show us some pictures from your recent adventures.

Answers to each picture left to right.

1. Lay-by on Newport Road
2. Inverdovat
3. Newport Library
4. Blyth Hall
5. Tay Street
6. Tayfield Estate
7. Under the Tay Bridge
8. Newport Bowling Club
9. Tay Bridge Carpark, Bridge Access
10. Top of the steps on Blyth Street
11. Church, Blyth Street
12. The Braes, Tay Street
13. Tay Bridge Carpark

Sticky Kids workout 5

https://stickykids.podbean.com/e/sticky-kids-workout-5/

Thank you for taking time to read our blog, we hope you are able to try some of the activities at home. Don’t forget to send pictures of your activities and we can add them to future blogs. See you all next week and lets all sing the Goodbye Song before we go.

Hello everyone! 🎼

We hope you are all keeping safe and well. We are missing each and everyone of you and hope this Blog will help us to connect. 💕

In this special Bookbug Birthday Blog, we shall be marking  Bookbug’s special tenth Birthday by sharing lots of special activities. We hope you enjoy this week’s Blog!

 

We know you can all sing Happy Birthday beautifully in English.  Why not have a go at singing Happy Birthday to Bookbug in French? 

https://youtu.be/F-Mn8Woi9XM

We are so proud to present a special Signalong Happy Birthday Video specially created to celebrate Bookbug’s ten years. Thank you to tracygood@signalong.org.uk

Can you learn and share the special song for Bookbug? Why not send us a video?

Why was Bookbug  Created?

https://www.scottishbooktrust.com/reading-and-stories/bookbug/about-bookbug

Who Created Bookbug?

https://www.scottishbooktrust.com/articles/how-bookbug-came-to-life

We celebrate birthdays in different ways.

🎂  ⚖️ 🎂 ⚖️🎂⚖️🎂⚖️🎂⚖️🎂⚖️🎂

Baking let’s you use lots of different life skills. With an adult, why not bake a cake for Bookbug?  Can you follow the Victoria sponge recipe?

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/classic-victoria-sandwich-recipe

🕯 🕯🕯🕯🕯🕯🕯🕯🕯🕯Don’t forget to add Bookbug’s ten candles!

✏️💌 We often receive lots of interesting Birthday cards with pictures and messages to mark our birthdays.

Can you make a birthday card for Bookbug?

Can you write him a special message?

🧮Teddy has come to celebrate Bookbug’s birthday.  Can you feed Teddy the correct number of cakes?

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/learning-to-count/teddy-numbers

✏️ 🛒 Bookbug’s planning a Birthday party. He needs to write lists to help get organised.

Party Food

Party Games

Party Bags

Bookbug needs a few ideas from his friends. With adult help, can you write a list to help Bookbug?

Party Games

👄 👂 Before we followed Government Guidance, the morning children suggested we played Musical Statues and what fun we had! I wonder if you can organise a game of Musical Statues with your family? Remember to explain the rules of the game clearly so it is fair for everyone.

👄 👂 Can you play, ‘I went to the Shop?’ with your family?

• Someone starts by saying ‘I went to the shops today and bought…’ something beginning with A (e.g. apple) 🍏
• The next person continues by saying the previous item (apple) and then something beginning with B (e.g. banana) 🍏 🍌
• Continue around your family members, working through the alphabet, adding one more item to the end of the list each time. 🍏 🍌 🥕

👣 🎶 Let’s Dance with Go Noodle

As you all know, exercise is great for our bodies as well as our minds. Why not join in with this ‘I’ve got a Feeling’ dance routine?  Click on the link.

https://app.gonoodle.com/activities/i-gotta-feeling?s=Search&t=i%20ve%20got%20a%20feeling%20dance

Bookbug and his Sticky Kids Workout

Bookbug likes to get moving with familiar tunes. Bookbug wants to share the fourth Sticky Kids Workout 4.

What was your favourite part of the workout?

Book Bug app

The Bookbug app helps everyone explore amazing songs and rhymes. Why not explore the Bookbug app as a family and have a Bookbug Birthday Concert? Share your concert with your friends or family.

Our Favourite Bookbug Songs and Rhymes

Mrs Laing’s would like to share this fun song called, ‘Ickle Ockle Blue Bottle.’

https://www.scottishbooktrust.com/songs-and-rhymes/ickle-ockle-blue-bottle

Mrs Ac’s favourite Singing Game is Sleeping Bunnies.  Can you think of your own animal and movement to create your own verses?

Mrs Kay’s favourite Bookbug song is the Jeely Piece song.

‘I remember my teacher teaching it to me.  She sang and played along on her guitar.  When I told my Mum about the song, she said that it reminded her of when she was a little girl.  My Mum grew up up in Glasgow and lived in one of these flats.  Mums and Dads would throw sandwiches out of the window to save them from walking up lots and lots of stairs everyday for lunch.  I like to think of my Mum catching her lunch everyday, I’m not sure if any of her pieces made it to space though!’

https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/606369486&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true#

To celebrate Bookbug’s birthday, I would like to share a special game called, ‘Cut the Cake.’

Everyone makes a circle with one person in the middle.
Place an odd number of objects in the middle of the circle.
🎶Sing the song;

Clap your hands together (clap hands), give yourself a shake (shake your body), make a happy circle (hold hands with the people next to you and swing them), then you cut the cake. The person in the middle ‘cuts’ between two players and they run and collect objects in the middle. The person with the most, is the winner and they become the cake cutter.  To make it trickier, why not add more items into the middle of the circle.

Our Favourite Books

Miss Stevenson’s favourite book is The Rainbow Fish.  She loves the book because of the beautiful illustrations and the message of the story that sharing with others makes us happy and brings a smile to others.

Mrs Laing’s favourite book is Stick Man by the author Julia Donaldson and the illustrator Axel Scheffler. She loves looking at the changing seasons and all the adventures Stick Man experiences.  Mrs Laing always feels relieved that he makes it home to his Stick Lady Love and their stick children three.

✂️  Bookbug really enjoyed listening to Stick Man so we started to make him a Stick Family for a special gift.

Can you make a Stick Man?  Why not take him out on an adventure and talk about what he is doing?
Stick Man is lonely. Can you make him a Stick Family? Can you make family members of different sizes?  Can you order them from biggest to smallest? How many sticks did you use? Can you describe the Stick family?

Stick Man Illustrations

Illustrations are very important to help us work out words. Even as adults,  we continue to use pictures to help us quickly work out messages  shown in different environments.
Look at the video showing the Stick Man illustrations.  Can you talk about the different seasons Stick Man experiences?

🌍 Can you describe the changing weather in each season?  How do people dress in the different seasons? What happens to the trees throughout the story?

Join in with the the Seasons song.

🎭 How many ways can you use a stick? Why not work with an adult to write a list or send us some pictures?

Bookbug Sessions

On at Fife Libraries offers Bookbug sessions. Why not join in with  one of the sessions by clicking the link and selecting videos? Look out for Pauline our local librarian.

http://bit.ly?ONFifeYouTube

👀 🧐Where’s Bookbug?

Since following Government Guidance, Bookbug has been enjoying  his outdoors daily exercise. Bookbug has travelled around Newport and stopped to  rest at different places on his journey.  Look carefully at each photograph. Can you guess where he has stopped?  Why not share your thoughts in our Comments feature? The answers will be given in next week’s Blog.

Bookbug Cosmic Kids Yoga Dance Party

We would like you and Bookbug to experience one final birthday treat with Jaime from Cosmic Yoga.

We hope you have had fun celebrating Bookbug’s tenth birthday.
Thank you for joining us and we hope to see you very soon.
Remember you can add your thoughts and ideas linked to the Blog using the Comments feature or why don’t you share some of your experiences through

newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk

Keep safe and keep connected.

The Newport Nursery Team

Mrs AC    Mrs Kay   Mrs Laing     Mrs Ross

Miss Crichton   Mrs Cunningham   Miss Allen     Mrs Beat     Miss Stevenson

🖼Gallery

Mrs Laing met Lachlan cycling his bike. You were having fun balancing, pedalling and steering. It was lovely to see you and your family. 💕💕

🎶 Goodbye Everyone

We would like to say hello to all our Newport nursery families and we hope to see you all very soon.

In this weeks blog we thought it would be great to focus on Play on Pedals at home. The weather has been mild and we are now getting some much needed sunshine so let’s put on our helmets and get some fresh air.

Riding a bicycle or balance bike is a great way to get exercise and have lots of fun. Mums, dads, brothers and sisters can join in with their bicycles and maybe even learn some new moves too!  Play on Pedals or POP for short, also links in with our learning outcomes in the children’s PLJ’S. There are a variety of themes and we will be sharing some with you today.

Mrs Kay and her family exploring the woods at Tentsmuir Forest.

This chart shows us how to be safe when we are out riding our bikes.

Can you see what Mrs Kay is wearing to keep her safe?

Here’s another sticky kids workout 3 video to keep you fit and healthy in you have to stay indoors.

Road Safety

When you’re out and about for your daily exercise, keep your eyes open and see if you can spot any of these signs.

Can you spot the difference between the two bikes?

Can you find the large, medium and smallest?

https://youtu.be/pmAzhohAeIs

We would like to share some ideas from Play on Pedals that you can use to help your child with their hand eye coordination, balance and confidence. These themes include control and steering, balance and control, pedalling, helmet heads and saddle me up.

Here are some songs that you can join in and sing along with.

We hope that you found this blog about play on pedals informative and fun!  We miss you all very much and would love to see what you’re doing at home.  Please share your comments and requests in the Comments section or send us an email at newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk.

Please feel free to  share photographs, drawings, your experiences and  ideas.  Remember if you are sending us anything, you are giving us permission to share these on our Blog.

Keep safe,

The Newport Team

Mrs A-C, Mrs Kay, Mrs Laing, Mrs Ross,

Mrs Cunningham, Miss Stevenson, Miss Allan, Mrs Beat and Miss Crichton

Message Gallery

Ellie and her Mum surprised Mrs Kay.  Mrs Kay was delighted!

Mrs Laing was happy to meet Annabelle and her family who were out for a walk.  Annabelle has been learning to draw people.  What a fabulous achievement!

Mrs Kay went for a cycle to Newport and she spotted a lovely piece of artwork.

What a fabulous rainbow Olivia H.

A warm hello to all our lovely families at Newport Nursery from Mrs A-C and the rest of the team!

In this week’s blog we thought we could focus on planting and growing at home.  We have been very lucky over the last few weeks to have had such sunny weather which we know that plants love! The rain will also be very much appreciated now.  Have a look at the clips and photos of what’s growing in and around the nursery team’s gardens.

Being outdoors is great because the fresh air and sunshine is good for your body and mind.   Gardening provides so many benefits.  It provides great sensory development as children feel the different textures of soil, seeds, flowers and petals. You can smell different flowers and see different colours.  Whilst gardening children build hand-eye coordination and physical strength because it can be quite hard work digging, lifting, watering, etc.

Growing your own food encourages healthy eating because if children have had a hand in growing fruit and vegetables, they will be keener to eat them.  Children will learn how much care and attention is needed to grow something from seed and also the time is takes, which teaches patience.

Here’s what we have been growing in our gardens, please use the comments box to show us what you have in your garden.

If you want to have a go at planting a seed yourself.  Here are some instructions on How to grow a plant.  

We thought it would be a good idea to give you a game that you could play with your family while out on your daily walk.  Here’s a treasure hunt – t-t-1103-plants-and-flowers-hunt-sheet-_ver_5

Here’s some of what we have found…

It’s #NationalGardeningWeek – so get outside and explore the nature and all of its glories!

We were talking about how important it is to keep exercising to stay fit and be happy.  So following on from last week here’s the second Sticky Kids Workout.

Track List
I Jump Out Of Bed; Funky Monkey; Shake Your Fingers; My Head My Shoulders; Here Are My Hands; Zooming To The Moon; Hands On Hips

Cosmic Kids on YouTube provides a variety of activities to help support your Health and Wellbeing.  In this 5 minute meditation we do some movement!  We begin curled up like a little seed in the earth and experience the sensation of growing into the light and stretching open just like a big yellow flower! 🌼🌼🌼

Now we all know how much you like your stories at nursery and we are missing reading to you! Here are a couple of stories for you to share with your loved ones.

This book is part of Ladybirds First Favourite Tales series – these retellings are perfect for introducing young children to classic stories and fairy tales, and the books are just right for those just learning to read. The Enormous Turnip Retold by Irene Yates 32 pages, Ladybird ISBN-10: 9781409309574 ISBN-13: 978-1409309574 ASIN: 1409309576

We hope you liked hearing that story.  Can you remember who the main characters were in the story? What happened at the end?

https://youtu.be/oyYh43hxSts

Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/Storylime

That is one of our favourite stories to read aloud to you.  Let’s see how well you listened! How many magic beans did the old man give Jack for his cow?  How many potatoes did the giant eat before falling fast asleep the first time Jack climbed up the beanstalk?

Can you put these beanstalk’s in order from smallest to biggest? T2-M-038-Beanstalk-Height-Ordering-Pictures

We miss singing  songs with you.  So here are some nursery rhymes you can sing along to…

We hope that you found this blog about planting and growing at home fun!  We miss you all very much and would love to see what you’re doing at home.  Please share your comments and requests in the Comments section or send us an email at newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk.

Please feel free to  share photographs, drawings, your experiences and  ideas.  Remember if you are sending us anything, you are giving us permission to share these on our Blog.

Keep safe,

The Newport Team

Mrs A-C, Mrs Kay, Mrs Laing, Mrs Ross,

Mrs Cunningham, Miss Stevenson, Miss Allan, Mrs Beat and Miss Crichton

Welcome back to our Newport Nursery Blog. To start today’s new style Blog, we’d like to share a few video clips with you. Just press play!  Why not join in with us!

Theme: Keeping Happy and Happy

Over the next few weeks, we are going to create Blogs which have special fun activities linked to special Themes.

Daily physical exercise is important not only for our bodies but our minds also.

Here’s the first Sticky Kids Workout which features favourite songs and rhymes.  Why not send us a photograph of you exercising?

Sticky Kids Workout 1. Press play a couple of times until it goes green!

Cosmic Kids on YouTube provides a variety of activities to help support your Health and Wellbeing.

Here is a mindfulness activity which helps you to explore your feelings and emotions.

Whilst being at home and staying local for our daily exercise, we have been keeping ourselves, families and pets healthy by going on walks, cycles and runs in our local area as well as admiring our local wildlife and nature.  We’ve all had amazing adventures!

We have found a  Cosmic Kids Yoga adventure involving a Troll.  Can you go on the adventure with the Troll?  Which part of the adventure did you enjoy the most?

Reading helps your brain and imagination to develop.  It teaches you about language and emotions, and strengthens relationships with your family.

Here’s a lovely story about a boy who takes a beautiful sandwich to the park.  Find out what happens to the boy’s beautiful sandwich.  The story is shared by Sharon, part of our Fife Libraries Team. Highlight and point to the link.

https://youtu.be/Xv2Mjw3wF44

What was your favourite part of the story?

Can you make a special sandwich?

Can you draw a picture of a disgusting sandwich?

We have all been enjoying special family time.  How do the Gruff family help each other?

Can you go for a shape hunt in your home, garden and whilst out on your daily exercise? How many shapes did you find?

The Wildlife Trusts provides lots of good ideas for the whole family when exploring the great outdoors. Have a look at our Newport PS Twitter page for other ideas. Here are some activities you could explore at home.

We hope you have enjoyed our Keeping Happy and Healthy Themed Blog.

Please use the Comments feature on this Blog or send us a message to

newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk

Your thoughts and opinions are important to us.

Please feel free to  share photographs, drawings, your experiences and  ideas.  Remember if you are sending us anything, you are giving us permission to share these on our Blog.

Have you got any special Themes, stories or songs/rhymes you wish us to explore?

Message Gallery

Ella wishes to say hello to all her friends and misses everyone dearly.

Here are some special moments, experiences and achievements she would like to share with us.  Thank you.

Creative pictures by Ada. Thank you for sharing your inspiring pieces.

We miss spending time with each and everyone of you in our Nursery so let’s bring the fun, creativity and  investigations to our Blog! Let’s keep connected.

Keep safe,

The Newport Team

Mrs AC, Mrs Kay, Mrs Laing, Mrs Ross,

Mrs Cunningham, Miss Stevenson, Miss Allan, Mrs Beat and Miss Crichton

Welcome to our Summer Term. Our weekly Friday Blog will recommence this week and will help us to connect with each other. We miss each and everyone of you.  Highlight the link below to make you smile!  It certainly made us feel happy.

IMG_8469

There are lots of books and resources to help you learn about the Coronavirus. We know many of us at Newport Nursery love the illustrations by Axel Scheffler.

With an adult,  why not explore this book published by Nosy Crow?  Coronavirus: A book for Children by Elizabeth Jenner, Kate Wilson and Nia Roberts.

https://nosycrowcoronavirus.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/co

We hope you and your families are keeping well and enjoying this beautiful weather and the great outdoors as much as you can.   We are definitely doing this through our daily exercise and taking time out  in our gardens.

At the end of last Term, the Team were able to provide many of you with a variety of resources in a Home Learning Pack. A selection of stories with a variety of associated activities were also sent through e-mail communication.

As many of you are aware, Newport Primary School and Nursery have their own Twitter page.  Using this media, the Team have been sharing a wide variety of ideas which may be of interest to you and your family. If you are not already following us, why not create an account and join us at: Newport Primary @newport_primary (download Twitter on the App Store).

Throughout this term, the Newport Nursery Team wish to provide you with some ideas to support you and your family and to keep us all connected.  You should have already received an email which gives you a wide selection of stories (eighteen) with associated Literacy, Numeracy, and Health and Wellbeing activities.  There is also guidance on how to share your wonderful experiences should you wish to use these resources.

As we have been using the Glow Platform throughout the year, we feel this would be a good way for us and you to share information, ideas and experiences.  Please feel free to make any suggestions of how we can help you and your family through the comments feature.  We value your thoughts and opinions.

Remember any activities we post are optional because as you know, the best way to learn and develop is through play!  Play enables us to develop a range of skills including communication, problem solving, imagination, co-operation and much, much more and can take place both indoors and out.  The following weblinks will help your adults and carers with further practical ideas.

https://www.playscotland.org/parents-families

https://education.gov.scot/parentzone/learning-at-home/learning-through-play/

To complete our very first Summer Term Blog, why not use the Bookbug’s Songs and Rhymes app to take part in one of our favourite tunes, Sleeping Bunnies.  Can you adapt the song using a different animal and movement eg. lions and ‘Roar little lions, roar, roar, roar . . .?’  If so, why not either share your ideas in the comments feature or through our school website:

newportps.enquiries@fife.gov.uk

By sending in your ideas/experiences/photographs, you are agreeing that we can then post them on our Nursery related media.

If you have not downloaded the Bookbug’s Songs and Rhymes app why not explore what it offers  through the following link.

Download the Bookbug’s Songs and Rhymes on the App Store or Get it on Google Play.

https://www.scottishbooktrust.com

We look forward to sharing our personal experiences and practical ideas with you all every Friday. We are even more excited about learning about what you and your families have been exploring, creating and investigating together.  You can share these special moments at anytime using the Blog comment feature, the school website and Twitter.

Please keep safe.

Special thoughts and hugs,

Mrs AC, Mrs Kay, Mrs Laing and Mrs Ross