What are Dolphins doing in January 2015

The children in Dolphins have been showing an interest in the extremes of weather we have had over the last few months, and now that the festive season is over, we can focus and extend this interest.  This month Dolphins will be looking at a range of different “opposites”. 

The activities this month will be based around

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) areas of learning:

Prime areas:

PSED: Can play in a group, extending and elaborating play ideas. PD:  Show control in holding and using jugs to pour, hammers, books and mark making tools. C&L Developing an understanding of simple concepts (eg. Big/little).

Specific areas:

L: Ascribe meaning to marks that they see in different places. M: Beginning to categorise objects according to properties such as shape or size. UW: Talk about why things happen and how things work; notices detailed features of objects in their environment.  EA&D: Experiments with blocks, colours and marks.

Some of the activities we will be doing this month to support this will be:

·         Experiments to explain different opposites. Marie Claire will be conducting a range of different experiments with the children such as sink or float, heavy or light, noisy or quiet, short or long.

·         Opposites in the weather. Abongi will support children to make weather pictures using a variety of materials.  She will also be introducing the children to a new ‘opposites’ song.

·         Big Vs. Small opposites. Victoria will be explaining things that vary in size within their groups, such as big vehicles vs. small vehicles, big buildings vs. small buildings, big animals vs. small animals.

·         Body Opposites.  Emma will be looking at the differences in our appearances.  She will provide a range of materials so that children will be able to make ‘people’.  She will then encourage children to notice the differences in eye colour, hair length and colour and differences in the body shapes.

·         Weight. Christine will be using scales to weigh items and talk about things being heavy or light.  She will be looking at the numbers on the scales and encourage children to learn the meaning of the numbers in relation to weight, eg. 5kg is heavier than 1kg etc.

·         Length. Matthew will be taking children outside to use the tape measure to measure the height of things in our outside environment such as trees, fences, cars and talk about how short/ tall things are.

·         How tall. The team will be measuring the height of all the children and will make a large display to visualise the variances between all their heights and ages.

What you could do to support your children at home:

·         Get the scales out! Get the weighing scales out and get everyone on.  Ask your child to call out the number the needle’s pointing to, write it down and compare the numbers.  You can do the same when baking, or even when un-packing the shopping, weigh the different sized packets.

·         Using measurement words, such as heavy, light, big, small etc. when out and about. Ask your child if they think the bus is heavier or lighter than the car, if the tree is taller or smaller than the bus.

What are we doing in Sea Turtles in January 2015

A lot of the children have been attempting  to hold their fingers out when singing counting songs such as 5 Speckled Frogs, and some are attempting to say a few counting words. To encourage this further and help the children develop their mathematical awareness this month’s topic will be based around Numbers, shapes, space and measures.

The activities this month will be based around the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) areas of learning:

Prime areas:

PSED: Show interest in the activities of others and respond differently to children and adults (e.g. more interested in watching children than adults and pay more attention when children talk to them. PD: Use different body parts to help act out action number rhymes.  C&L: Use single words.

Specific areas:

L: Handles books and printed materials with interest. M: Say some counting words randomly.  EA&D: Move their whole bodies to sounds they enjoy, such as music or regular beats. UW: Become absorbed in combining objects (e.g. banging two objects or placing objects into containers.)

Some of the activities we will be doing this month will involve:

·         Number puppets. Using socks and other materials Hannah will assist the children to make number puppets to use alongside songs and rhymes.

·         Play dough shapes. Afia will help the children to recognise different shapes by helping them to create different shapes with the play dough using cutters and simple tools.

·         Water & Sand play. Using a variety of resources such as bottles, cups and small containers, Christina will support the children to transport, fill and empty, measure and compare sizes. Christina will also be introducing new words.

·         Categorising objects. Alice will be supporting the children to fill balloons, bags and other containers and help the children to categorise them by size and weight and count them.

·         Physical play. Amina will help the children to explore shapes and space through physical play. Amina will set up different physical activities both indoors and outside and introduce new words as she encourages the children to climb, crawl, jump, count and recognise different shapes as they use the equipment.

·         Treasure Baskets. Manjit will be supporting the children to explore shape, space and measures using treasure baskets containing hard and soft objects and heavy and light objects.

Some ideas to support your children at home:

·         Bath time. Bath time is a great time to experiment with quantities and measures. Put a variety of bottles and containers of different sizes and shapes in the bath and let your child play with them using key words with your child such as big, small, empty, full, heavy and light. Encourage your child to repeat these words.

·         Puzzles. Puzzles are great way to help children learn about space. Spend a quiet 10 minutes with your child completing puzzles together, puzzles with large pieces and knobs or handles are ideal for small hands and help support success in fitting shapes into spaces.

November and December in Dolphins

For November and December Dolphins focused on the topic of Christmas and other celebrations.

In November Dolphins have begun looking at different celebrations.

We began the month celebrating Fireworks Night by using a variety of materials and methods to make fireworks pictures.

Remembrance Day was commemorated with paper poppies and poppy wreaths.

On November 27^th we celebrated Thanksgiving. The children made cornbread, finger print turkeys and story bracelets.

At the end of the month the children made Scottish flags and tartan pictures and had their faces painted for St Andrew’s Day.

As December arrived, Dolphins began to look more closely at the celebration of Christmas. We started the month by decorating the large Christmas tree!

The preschoolers began the month by making an Advent calendar to count down to Christmas, and enjoyed removing one window a day.

Boxes were used to decorate with Christmas paper ready for to put presents in.

In December we also celebrated Hannukah by making a large Menorah and putting a candle on to it every day of the celebration from 17^th – 24^th December.

On the 13^th December we celebrated St Lucia, a Scandinavian festival of light, by learning a song and dressing up in white capes and crowns of paper candles.

During December we also had our Christmas dinner together as whole nursery, and had our Christmas parties for the children where Dolphins enjoyed a show and we even had a special visit from Father Christmas!

What Sea Turtles did in November and December

To follow on from October's topic of changes around us, we decided to look at the big change of the year, which was all things Christmas; with decorations, carols, presents, a total change in the environment. We also took a look at some of the other celebrations that go on around at the same time of the year such as Thanksgiving and Hanukkah. 

We had a lot of creative hands over the last two months as there is an endless amount of creative activities that centre around Christmas that involve glue and all things sparkly and glittery!  

Children are making a nighttime backdrop for our nativity scene. 

Children used clay to make models of animals and characters to go in our Christmas Nativity.

We made a Pumpkin Pie in Celebration of American Thanksgiving.

Children had lots of fun exploring our Christmas treasure basket.  We had decorations and ornaments hidden in and amongst the tinsel!

 We collaborated on making and decorating Santa's Sleigh, and then had lots of fun going on little rides around the room in it! 

The highlight of December was our Christmas Party.  We had face painting, balloons, a ball pit, bouncy castle, dancing, and a special visit from Father Christmas!

What Dolphins will be doing in November and December 2014

With the children getting excited about Christmas and learning new Christmas songs, we have decided during November and December we will look at different celebrations from around the world. This includes Fireworks, Remembrance Day, Hanukkah, Thanks giving, St Andrew’s day, St Lucia and Christmas.

The activities this month will be based around

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) areas of learning:

Prime areas:

PSED: Adapt behaviour to different events, social situations and changes in routines. PD: Show increased control over an object in pushing, patting, throwing, catching or kicking it. C&L Show interest in play with sounds, songs and stories.

Specific areas:

L: Ascribe meaning to marks that they see in different places. M: Realise not only objects, but everything can be counted. UW: Recognise and describe special times or events for family and friends.  EA&D: Join in singing favourite songs,

Some of the activities we will be doing this month to support this will be:

·         Poppies. The children will be making poppies for Remembrance Day.

·         Advent calendar. Marie Claire will be supporting the preschool children to make an advent calendar using pictures and numbers and learn more about advent.

·         Thanks giving. Marie Claire will be making finger paint turkeys with the children in celebration of thanks giving

·         Salt Dough decorations.  Christine will be working with the children to create salt dough decorations to decorate and take home to hang on the Christmas tree.

·         Box decorating. Abongi will support the children as they decorate boxes using paper fabric, tape and other resources,

·         St Andrew’s day. Abongi will be making Scottish flags and tartan patterns with the children in celebration of St Andrew’s day.

·         Menorah. Victoria will be assisting the children to create a menorah and learn about Hanukkah.

·         Hand print Wreaths/Reindeer. Using their own handprints, Victoria will help the children to make wreaths and reindeers to hang up.

·         St Lucia. Emma will be helping the children celebrate and learn more about St Lucia, by making paper candles, head dresses, sing songs and making buns to share.

·         Christmas songs. In preparation for Carols by candle light we will all be practicing our favourite Christmas songs and learning a couple of new ones.

What you could do to support your children at home:

·         Practice for Carols by candle light. With your child practice some of the songs that we will be singing at carols by candle light. (song sheets available by email or in reception)

·         Get wrapping. Get your child to make their own wrapping paper or gift tags, and get them to help you wrap presents for people special to them, this can help them develop their hand eye coordination as well as their self-confidence through selecting and using resources.

What Sea Turtles will be doing in November and December 2014

To follow on from last month’s topic of changes around us, the big change of the year will be Christmas with decorations, carols, presents, a total change in the environment. We will also take a look at some of the other celebrations that go on around this time of the year such as thanks giving and Hanukkah

The activities this month will be based around the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) areas of learning:

Prime areas:

PSED: Explore new experiences & environments with security from a familiar person. PD: Develop and use fine motor skills to explore and manipulate textures and objects new to them. C&L: Enjoy rhymes and songs, listening and trying to join in with actions and vocalisations.

Specific areas:

L: Handles books and printed materials with interest. M: Gaining an interest, know that some things exist, even when out of sight.  EA&D: Use a range of media to create festive works of art and decorations. UW: Observe changes as the festive world starts to emerge around them.

Some of the activities we will be doing this month will involve:

·         Christmas stories. Manjit will being telling Christmas stories using story sacks, puppets and props.

·         Music and movement. Afia will encourage the children to move their bodies in a variety of ways such as trotting like a reindeer, stretching as tall as a Christmas tree and making themselves round like a Christmas pudding.

·         Flash cards. Using different medias, Christina will be assisting the children to make their own festive flash cards and then use them in circle time to help extend their vocabulary.

·         Christmas Grotto. Alice will be making a Christmas grotto for the children to explore and play in.

·         Hanukkah. Amina will be looking at Hanukkah with the children and making paper Kippahs/ yarmulkes and Menorahs and decorating them

·         All things Christmassy. Hannah will help the children to make Christmas stockings, bake Christmas cookies and make a Santa’s sleigh using large boxes.

·         Nativity. Alice will work with small groups to create a nativity for the children to look at and play with.

·         Salt dough Reindeers. Afia will assist the children to make and paint Salt dough reindeers.

·         Christmas Carols. We will all be practicing Christmas carols for Carols by candle light.

Some ideas to support your children at home:

·         Christmas treasure basket. Create a Christmas treasure basket for your child to explore, using tinsel, baubles and bits of ribbon.

·         Sing some Christmas songs. (Carols by candle light Christmas song sheet available by email or in reception)

What Dolphins did in October 2014

Dolphins topic for October was Autumn.

The children used lots of natural materials such as conkers, acorns, leaves and pine cones to make pictures and models, including conker animals, Autumn leaf hats, a tree display in Dolphins and sensory bags.

 Also this month we celebrated Pumpkin Day with pumpkin carving, pumpkin rolling and pumpkin soup!