REFLECTION

Our week has been a busy one- starting outdoors has been a little chilly in the mornings but a little drizzle never hurts anyone! We are getting some much needed rain and it’s especially good for the vegetables which have just been planted. In the mornings we are finding our names in the circle so we know who is at kinder and who is absent.

The ‘penguin game’ has been very popular with Will, Guy, Claudia and Jasper. It’s a good memory game where the children roll the dice and need to ‘recall’ or ‘remember’ which penguin has the matching coloured egg underneath. Tracey has started a memory game on the mat where the children have to remember items she has covered with a cloth.

We have started human movement in preparation for Karen who will be started dance lessons every Thursday morning in Term 2. This week the children used slow movements across the blue material using under the sea creatures. Moving to the time of the music doesn’t always come naturally, however Karen’s lessons will provide opportunities for the children to practise self-expression, balance and body co-ordination.

Here are skills that music and movement can help develop:

1. Participating in a group
   
   
2. Social skill
   
   
3. Express emotion
   
   
4. Enhance self-concept by sharing music and dance of each other’s culture
   
   
5. Refine listening skills-noticing changes in tempo or pitch
   
   
6. Awareness of movement and body positions
   
   
7. Creativity and imagination
   
   
8. Explore cause and effect
   
   
9. Develop large motor skills
   
   
10. Improve balance, coo-ordination, and thyme through dance and movement activities
    
    

Many parents have commented on children coming home and singing more- which is such a positive thing to hear because ‘music’ is more beneficial than we realise. Children naturally love music! Whether it’s soft and soothing or a lively tune! Children feel it both physically and emotionally. We use a lot of singing and chanting throughout the day especially for transitions e.g. wind the bobbin up and one currant bun in the bakers shop. Music assists in the development of a child’s speech, enables us to express feelings, it creates a sense of togetherness and comfort. We notice the children will listen and pay attention to song and it settles the group before transitioning to words and listening time ‘singing causes the mind to focus and the body to relax’.

Our little scientists continue to explore new and interesting ways to experiment with water. We provided the children with small eye drop dispensers which suck up water and then can be slowly dripped out using the small pump on the ends. The children coloured the water in different compartments of the tray and could also experimented with different colour combinations.

Molly brought in a little science book full of interesting and interactive experiments which she has done with her older siblings at home, we are looking forward to seeing what our eggs will look like after sitting in a container of vinegar for a week ‘They will be bouncy eggs’ Molly told us!

The interest in ‘eggs’ has been a topic of interest with many of the children. Charlie, Molly and Isabella have been busy finding white rocks outside…. ‘They are alligator eggs’ said Charlie.

‘We have to put them in a warm place so they can hatch’ said Molly. The children decided to bury the eggs in the sand to keep warm. They displayed ‘parent like’ care towards the eggs….a sense of urgency to look after them and making sure the eggs were safe. Helen brought in a large nest which she found in her garden ‘Birds lay their eggs in nests’ said Audrey. We were all amazed to see how much work birds put in when making their nests ‘they have to find each twig and it takes a long time to make’ Helen told us.

The children have also made nests from clay and play dough by rolling a large ball and making a hole in the middle, we then ‘pinch’ the edges with our fingers to create a nest shape and roll little balls which are the eggs. Many animals lay eggs which we will explore further next week and into Term 2…..

Our favourite stories have included ‘new shell, old shell’ all about a hermit crab looking for bigger shells as it grew larger. ‘There’s a sea in my bedroom’ and ‘birds nests’.

Amy, Tracey, Helen and Fiona

The Extended Hours Team

Reflection week 8
Koala Group

Well it’s hard to believe that this first term is coming to an end! During this week we have been busy with many different experiences. The children in the Koala group have not only continued to enjoy painting at the easels with brushes, but have experienced their first finger painting at the table. This is a messy sensory play experience, and to begin with the children need to become familiar with the process as they have the opportunity to experience the feel of paint between their fingers. For some children this experience was a little overwhelming with just the thought of the paint between their fingers difficult to feel comfortable with, but after observing the children who approach this new safe experience with confidence, all children were eager to have a go and enjoyed being confident and involved learners.

Collage continues to be a busy experience with children using different coloured patty pans and feathers this week. Collage is a great open-ended experience, which helps children to make their own choices and to use their thinking skills, which in turn builds self-esteem.

During outdoor play we have had plenty of master chefs working really hard in the sandpits. We’ve been offered everything from cups of coffee to cakes and pizzas! The swings have been busy this week too, with children learning to take turns and waiting on the tyre for their turn. We have had Mosaics set up on one of the tables outside, and the children have really enjoyed copying the provided patterns and really using their thinking skills.

On Thursday at group time, we discussed what we need to do incase there is an emergency at Kinder. We discussed Karen and my whistle, and what we need to do if we were to blow it. We then had a practice outside talked about coming to your teachers if the whistle is blown. The children and Karen and myself then walked down to the back of the kinder yard to our emergency meeting place. The children did an amazing job and Karen and I were very proud of them all.

The children have continued to enjoy The Hungry caterpillar and We’re Going On A Bear Hunt during story time. I have also introduced a book called If You Hold a Seed by Elly MacKay, which explains what happens to a seed once you plant it and how you care for it. Which will help give the children an understanding when we do our planting next term.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend,

Fiona and Karen

GROUP A REFLECTION

The children have been very busy caring for our vegetable garden – we have noticed that after the recent rain, some of our seeds  (lettuce and radishes so far) have come up and our seedlings are looking very healthy. The children have been examining the growth and watering the garden – a bucket of water and some little watering cans are left by the garden each day – so the children are showing interest and a sense of responsibility  for our garden and the environment. We are also noticing that some of the leaves are starting to fall from our playground trees – Autumn is here !

We have had a baby corner set up following our recent discussions about babies – with soft babies, a little cot, some baby blankets and little cups and bowls and spoons – set up on a soft fur rug. We also had some books about new born babies in the corner. There has been some great imaginative play there. We have found that the things from our Home Corner and the baby corner  have moved  between the two areas – a few picnics here and there have been happening! We also put an ironing board and iron into the home corner, and some of the boys have been noticed ironing (we’re trying Mums !!)

On Wednesday  we talked at mat time about the reason the Teachers all wear whistles – so that in an emergency we could blow our whistles and then follow an emergency plan so the children would be safe. We discussed what an emergency was ( the children’s suggestions ranged from a fire to something falling down or maybe somebody hurting themselves?). We also discussed the emergency phone number 000. We then carried out some emergency evacuation drills with the children- the children pretended to be playing, then I blew my whistle and the children needed to come straight to  me – we then walked together quietly through the playground to the gate near the shed (which is our gathering point in an emergency  as it leads into the park) , the children then sat together on the ground while I called the roll  to make sure all the children were safe. We practiced this plan many times  both inside and outside – the children were very attentive and responsible – we didn’t lose anybody!! Apparently some of the children reported to their Mums that we had had an emergency at Kindergarten ! We will repeat these practices regularly during the year, so that that the children are quite familiar with the procedure, and will immediately remember what to do.

Another item of interest which shows haw the children have remembered information they have learnt – I am aware of two situations where children have met dogs and been uncertain, and have immediately responded as they were taught at the recent Responsible Pet Education talk – by standing still, hands by their sides, quiet as a mouse, and look at the ground – I’m very proud of them – great remembering – clever children!

What will happen this week?

Group A Educators – Margot, Ann and Lisa.