Oaks 1:
We would like to begin by welcoming Rowan and Noah back to nursery. You’ve both settled in so well and your friends love having you back. We also welcome Harry to Oaks 2 and Rawdon to Seedlings and hope they will be very happy with us.
We say good bye, for now to Vickie who has just started her Maternity Leave; we look forward to hearing news of a safe delivery next month.
This week, the Oaks 1 group kicked off their new Planet Earth topic. Using an atlas, globe and world maps, the children discussed their heritage with Yannick from the Czech Republic, Reeve from China and Oliver from Argentina and Ireland. James S informed peers he’s from South Africa, while Jaime revealed he’s from Germany and Thomas of Canadian descent.
The children then talked about the languages they speak and enjoyed learning how to pronounce various numbers in that tongue. Following on from this, Oaks 1 also looked at their country’s flag and the colours/symbols that appear on it. Soon the children will be using fine motor and creativity skills to paint their own interpretation of their flags. This will help to promote not only their physical development, but also their understanding of the world.
The children have been learning about Earth’s layers too, starting with the Ozone layer and the crust, before working through the mantle, the outer core and the inner core. This will be extended later by delving into volcanoes and earthquakes where the children will be simulating their own.
Oaks 1 have begun to think about how the ozone layer is affected by pollution and in turn, how pollution is created. They’ll be looking at creating their own rivers and oceans, and adding various types of litter to see what kind of effect this could have on wildlife. This will encourage the children to think considerately about recycling, while touching on the notion of waste and what can be done to prevent this. To extend this, the children have started to think about densely populated countries and ones that are deprived with underprivileged children.
To promote physical development, the children attempted to complete a selection of large floor puzzles on rotation while split into three groups. The race was then on to see who could fit all pieces together first. Evie and Jaime expertly devised a plan for each person in their team to take a particular corner of the puzzle. And with a little adult guidance to get them started, Ollie B, Danny and Adrian worked hard to complete the giant racing car puzzle. Bella and Hugo then put together a 28-piece animal floor puzzle by themselves. The duo were quite rightly proud of their fantastic achievement.
As a continuation of this, some of Oaks wanted to play more board games. Ottie, Oliver G and Alba loved playing Tummy Ache. This fun game requires the children to pick up cards to make an edible meal, while avoiding yucky bits of food covered in bugs.
Star of The Week:
Ollie B – For always sitting nicely during circle time and for demonstrating core values.
Oaks 2:
Oaks 2 seem to be really enjoying their ongoing transport theme.
This week, the children have completed many inventive activities such as running vehicles through cereal and biscuits. They were then required to use hand muscles to squash the food. The group also made their own hot air balloons, using fine motor skills to cut ribbon with scissors. The children then snipped strips of Sellotape to enable them to stick their balloons to yoghurt pots.
We also got crafty decorating double decker bus puppets and making cards for Mothering Sunday. Both allowed for true creative expression as the children made their own decisions about which paint to use and what materials to work with. Having the chance to make choices helps foster independence and confidence in a child.
We’ve also spent time furthering the children’s literacy and mathematical understanding. The practitioners spelt out words with magnetic letters linked to transport, pronouncing them clearly for the children to hear. Oaks 2 then had to match a vehicle to each word. We then asked the children to count the number of cars, trains and buses.
Outside, we tasked Oaks 2 with collecting items from the playground which were green, yellow and red. The children gathered resources such as cones, magnifying glasses, cars and hoops. The adult then organised their findings into groups of colour. We all then sang Twinkle, Twinkle Traffic Light with the children running to the green items when the lyrics said, ‘green means go’. While singing the words ‘go but very slow’, Oaks 2 had to walk at a snail’s pace. And when it came to ‘red means stop’, the children froze on the spot.
Oaks 2 also collected worms and soil so that we could create a wormery. This amplified the children’s understanding of the world and highlighted the fact we need to take care of living things.
Star of The Week:
Harry – He has settled into life at Broughton Cottage so brilliantly.
Saplings:
In the Saplings room this week, the children displayed their love of listening to stories while looking at books by Eric Litwin. The Saplings were able to recognise numbers throughout Pete The Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons, with Emi cleverly matching a four in the book to one on the face of a clock.
Because Litwin’s stories feature lots of repetition, the Saplings could confidently tell us the next part of the plot in Pete The Cat book I Love My White Shoes. We also took the children on a sensory walk themed around this story. This saw the Saplings re-enact the tale while walking through different coloured paints to replicate Pete’s shoes. This was an excellent opportunity to review colours and learn sequences.
To follow on from this, the children participated in a colour-matching game using shoes. This aimed to enhance recall ability.
To celebrate Mother’s Day and special people we love, the children got involved in a creative activity designed to develop gross motor skills. The Saplings showed us how they could competently grasp paintbrushes while drawing colourful strokes on to a flower bouquet. They were all very proud of their finished floral creations.
Star of The Week:
Stanley – For saying lots of new words recently.
Acorns:
Spring has been the focus of the Acorns this week and the children adored working together to plant sunflowers and gladioli in the garden.
Alfie was fascinated by the compost, squeezing it before using an index finger to make marks in it. Lorelai and Adrian diligently filled the pots with soil, using both a spoon and their hands. Handling spoons helps strengthen grip and enhances co-ordination skills.
In a second outdoor activity, we built our very own bridge using logs and planks of wood. Alfie was very brave and showed he has brilliant balance by walking along the bridge without holding on to a member of staff.
The children have enjoyed sensory water play with flower petals and essential oils too. During this task, Raul had a lot of fun filling and emptying cups. He found splashing in the water hilarious and managed to get his hair very wet! Freddie couldn’t resist joining in and the boys played beautifully alongside one another.
Back inside, we created a small world farm Tuff Tray complete with natural materials like dried flowers and textured fabrics including hessian, cotton and satin. Archie loved pushing along the tractors to make marks in oats, while Freddie treated peers to his best animal impressions as he walked the creatures across the tray. Mia impressed us when she pulled herself up to stand to better get involved. Not only did this task allow the Acorns to use their different senses, it also helped develop their understanding of the wider world while boosting skills in language and communication.
We’ve also been practising ways to carefully crawl down the stairs backwards on our knees. We’re thrilled to tell you that all of the Acorns were able to safely navigate their way up and back down again. This is a significant physical development in the children.
Star of The Week:
Lorelai – For being incredibly caring toward her friends.
Seedlings:
The Seedlings have continued their exploration of colour this week through lots of sensory play. Our hand-printing activity – which saw the children create a rainbow using paint – was a great way to reinforce learning of the primary shades. The children enjoyed feeling paint on their palms before making marks on paper. A colour-themed Tuff Tray was also set up for the group and the Seedlings showed great interest as they touched shiny objects and materials including spoons and tin foil.
We’re sure you won’t be surprised to hear that our bold and bright theme continued during song and story time. The Seedlings loved learning actions to accompany the rainbow song, with some even making up their own gestures. We spent plenty of time analysing colours in books too.
A bubble machine we used outside also had the Seedlings captivated. They looked on in wonder as bubbles floated around them – and couldn’t resist trying to pop them with their hands. Rawdon ran around the garden shouting, ‘bubble pop pop’. Finally, the Seedlings have been working on their schemas by filling containers with sand. They then poured out the contents, sparking a discussion about whether their vessels were full or empty.
Star of The Week:
Rawdon – For the amazing confidence he showed during his first week at Broughton Cottage.
Enjoy your weekend,
The Broughton Team