We welcome Bella who joined the Oaks this week; we hope that she will be very happy with us here at Broughton.

This week the Oaks have been continuing their ‘all about me’ topic. The children have used string to measure how tall each of their friends are, making comparisons by calculating who is tallest or shortest.  They discovered that so far Evie is the tallest!

They produced self-portraits using their fine motor skills to draw in their features while exploring their emotions, the children then went on to make ‘emotions pizza’ for their tea.  They discussed what makes them happy and what makes them sad.  Bertie said that his dog, which is soft and fluffy makes him happy. Creating their pizzas tested their fine motor skills as their picked up ingredients between finger and thumb. Ham, cheese, peppers and tomatoes were all foods suggested as those which could represent details such as hair, eyes, nose, mouth etc.  They also used spoons to spread the pizziola sauce onto the dough. The Oaks then decided whether to make happy or sad faces.

Whilst in the garden the children enjoyed sporting activities using their gross motor skills to swing bats to hit balls, demonstrating friendly behaviour whilst working in pairs to see how many volleys they could get.  Noah and Hugo compared their game to that of tennis and were especially proud that they managed to hit the ball.  The children also worked on their accuracy, throwing bean bags into coloured hula hoops calling out the colours as they did so.  Nova and George particularly worked well together taking turns and showing great accuracy whilst each praising the other for their efforts. The Oaks demonstrated good balance and coordination whilst moving in different ways, standing up tall, crouching down low etc as they took part in further physical activity in the Active room.

This week the Saplings have been getting creative while learning all about Autumn and the changes that happen to our natural world through the different seasons.

The children observed the changes within the trees, looking at the different colours and looking at the fallen leaves then in turn making their own representations. They explored and used a variety of Autumnal colours such as brown, orange, red and yellow before using their fine motor skills to scrunch up paper and use these to print using continuous up and down movements. They then added some gold glitter to create a sparkly effect.

Another activity which proved rather popular was moulding dough to form hedgehogs.  This was prompted by their discussions surrounding Autumnal animals, looking at their habitats and what they like to eat. The children created their hedgehogs using a variety of creative resources such as play dough, googly eyes and dried spaghetti representing hedgehog spikes. They used great accuracy as they first watched an adult demonstrate to them before independently copying each of the steps with limited help from the adult.

The children further extended their idea of representation by creating a large tree for their display. They were all highly engrossed as they used their hands to mix two paints together before using their handprints to create an Autumnal leaf effect. They loved the process and the messiness and were especially proud as it went up on display!

The children have also been busy exploring different textures and natural objects from the environment such as different coloured leaves and pine cones that have formed part of their Autumn tuff tray. The children went into the garden and took great pleasure in collecting the leaves for themselves using their senses to touch, smell and hear as they rolled and scrunched them in their hands then stood on them to listen to the crunching sounds beneath their feet.

The seedlings have continued creating farmyard animals and particularly enjoyed using their senses to create chicken pictures using hand prints and feathers. They thought it very funny to tickle their faces (and that of the staff). They repeated the ‘animal mother and baby’ matching game demonstrating that they can play cooperatively with a familiar adult.

The children engaged in varied physical experiences and particularly enjoyed ‘baby yoga’.  All of the children joined in and showed great enthusiasm and perseverance while attempting to follow the moves.  They have also enjoyed lots of garden play, developing their gross motor skills in pulling themselves up onto the climbing frame and playing with sand and water. They enjoyed mixing the two elements then transporting them using a variety of spoons, bowls and buckets.

While outside the Seedlings joined the Saplings as they explored the tuff tray using their senses to investigate different textured ‘autumn treasures’ such as leaves, conkers, acorns and sticks. This supported their language skills as they learnt new vocabulary such as ‘cold, spikes, crunch etc’.

The Acorns have also been exploring different textures whilst looking closely at nature.  They explored the woodland area seeking out leaves and crunching them on the ground. They enjoyed the sweet taste of blackberries which they had helped to pick and also further developed their sense of smell by playing and splashing in scented bubbly water.

The children further developed their understanding of the world as they created a ‘beach’ scene in the courtyard using foil to represent the waves and wet sand as the beach. They took hold of spades to scoop the sand and  tipped it into buckets all the while helping to strengthen their gross motor skills and hand eye coordination.

The Acorns sat on mats and did some gentle yoga stretches as they listened intently to the story of ‘We’re going on a Bear Hunt’.  They did very well to concentrate and follow the actions of an adult.

The Acorns have enjoyed lots of dancing immersed in music, moving their whole bodies in response, joining in with the actions, and on occasions, using musical instruments as an accompaniment.

The Oaks have requested some old newspapers please as they wish to make papier mâché heads as part of their theme: ‘all about me’.

Another reminder please that all clothes be named and a request that all children be supplied with jumpers or coats as the Autumn weather approaches.

Stars of the Week

Oaks – Imogen – for settling so well and making a real effort to join in with her friends.

Saplings – Annabelle – for being so helpful when tidying up.

Seedlings – Thomas – for joining in with his friends and for sharing so well.

Acorns – William – for developing his confidence in taking more steps independently.

We hope you are having a super weekend enjoying the beautiful early autumnal weather.

Yours sincerely

The Broughton team