Ladywell Nursery School

This week, in the Nursery, we introduced caterpillars and frog spawn.  The children have been inquisitive and keen to learn about the life cycles of these and other animals.  We are keeping a close eye on them looking out for any changes.  Through exploring this topic the children have been learning new vocabulary and working hard on their counting skills.

We have also been enjoying seeing the sunshine and looking for signs of spring.

During stories and conversations, we are using the language of time and developing an awareness of what happens and what time of the year.

The children have also been drawing and painting various flowers and plants developing their ability to add detail to their artwork.

We celebrated Burns Day in the Nursery.  The children have been dressing up in traditional clothes such as kilts and tartan shirts, we have had Scottish music and dancing, Scottish stories and at snack we tasted oat cakes and haggis, neeps and tatties!   In the art area, we made Scottish flags and made our own tartan by weaving coloured paper and participating in different painting activities.

To promote an understanding of diverse traditions we have been learning about and celebrating Chinese New Year with a variety of activities.  We have made and tasted different Chinese food at snack, and we have watched a short video on the story of the Chinese New Year and its traditions. Some children have been learning to write numbers and letters in Chinese and made their own dragon with which they participated in a dragon dance.

When discussing different countries and cultures around the world some of the children have been sharing their personal experiences about different buildings and structures they have visited or seen on the television.  In the blocks and small construction, the children have been working together to recreate these or make their own

This week in Nursery, the children have been participating in various activities to develop their knowledge and understanding of symmetrical patterns.

We have also been using the interest in winter and the weather to increase the children’s vocabulary around this topic.  We have been practising clapping out syllables in a variety of winter words.

In the construction area, we have seen lots of co-operative play as the children work together to create structures.  This has led to some conversations about buildings we have seen on television or have visited around the world.

Happy New Year to all our families.  It has been lovely to have you all back at Nursery.

This week has been all about the weather.

The children have been telling us about the fun things they have been doing in the snow at home.  They have also enjoyed experimenting with the snow and ice in the Nursery garden.  This has led to the children using many words to describe the snow and ice.  We have also been making snowmen at the playdough and in the art area leading to discussions around size, shape and symmetry.  We plan to build on this interest in Nursery and will be focussing on independence in personal care, for example when getting all wrapped up to go outside.  Tapping out syllables in words when we are describing the snow and ice, how it feels and the noises it makes. We are also experimenting with freezing different volumes of water to see which ones melt the fastest.  We have different arts and crafts activities planned to build on the children’s knowledge and understanding of symmetrical patterns.

We have had a fantastic week in Nursery this week with lots of Christmas fun.

A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all the staff at Ladywell Nursery School

We have set up our very own office with a typewriter kindly donated by Lynne’s daughter.  The children have thoroughly enjoyed using this and have been building on their knowledge and understanding of letter names and sounds.

Wednesday was Christmas lunch day and the children enjoyed a delicious feast.

December has arrived and Christmas is in full swing.  We have had a busy week in Nursery decorating our tree and doing lots of Christmas activities.

Lots of creativity, teamwork and hard work to develop fine motor skills.

At the skills session, the children have been carrying out activities to develop their mathematical language and ability to order items according to size.

We have continued to explore the jobs of the people in the world that help us.  The children have been practising their bandaging and reenacting and creating lots of role-play situations.

The weather has turned cold, and some of the children requested soup to help warm them up after playing in the garden. So, the children made and thoroughly enjoyed tomatoes and roast pepper soup.  It was delicious.

Great independence and fine motor skills.

While discussing people who help us some children have been talking about their parents and carers and how they look after them and their siblings.  This sparked an interest in caring for and looking after babies.  Which then led to where babies come from.  Some parents have kindly shared their pregnancies, scans and baby photos.  We have been using a lot of mathematical language here when discussing time, size and measurement.

As we move into December let the Christmas madness begin.

Following on from our conversations about fireworks and keeping safe the children have begun talking about the people in the world that help us and the jobs that they do.  We hope to learn about the roles of different people such as firefighters, nurses, doctors and police officers.  The children have been engaging in lots of role-play and working hard on putting a story line in their play.  We have also used these opportunities to build on the children’s use and understanding of positional language.  For example “the firefighter is at the top of the ladder”

This week in Nursery we have had a fun-packed week.  The children have been taking part in lots of Halloween activities.  Through these activities, we have been learning about words that rhyme, developing the children’s understanding and use of the language of measure, developing counting skills and allowing them to express themselves through art activities.