Koala Group - Term 2, Week 11

Here we are, the final week of kinder for the Term! How it had flown by.

We finished the term off with making our own healthy pizzas. The children seem to really enjoy the cooking experiences we have in the room. These activities allow the children to create something which they will eat and as these experiences are not frequent, they are more fun. The children were given an English muffin as the base and could put a range of toppings on their pizzas; including a tomato sauce, olives, capsicum, pineapple, mushrooms, ham and cheese. The children used the knife to spread their sauce and the tongs to place the other ingredients on top of their pizza; these require fine motor coordination, a skill which assists in holding pencils and writing. At the end of each cooking session, we sit down and consume our food together. This time we called it a pizza party! Most of the children seemed to have overestimated what vegetables they actually liked, but most did eat their pizza. Sitting at a table and eating together is very important for the children to learn, as it encourages skills that are used as they grow older, such as sitting with others, eating in a manner which is polite (i.e. chewing with their mouths closed and not speaking with food in their mouths). Also, it is fun for the children and they often sit next to someone whom they do not always play with, encouraging new interactions.

This Term we have two fire drills, as we did not practise one in Term 1 and it is a requirement for the children to have at least a basic understanding of what is expected. This week we had our second fire drill. This time we practised lining up at the door in a “train” (each child holds on to the person in front of them) and we moved to the gate. When we got to the gate, I took a roll call during which each child had to yell out ‘Yes!” in response to their name. Though the experience was a fun one, we had a discussion about how serious it would be if something happened and we had to evacuate. We have two more drills this year to assist in preparing the children.

There has been a strong interest in numbers and letters from the children, so we have been ensuring more numerical and mathematical language is used during the session. Additionally, activities which require the children to count some numbers or sing songs using numbers have been provided in the room. As I follow an emergent curriculum, one which is responsive to the children’s capabilities and interests, formal instruction on these subjects will not occur. However, this learning through play is the way you will find children of this age will develop comprehension of these topics.

We hope you all have an enjoyable Term break and we will see you for the beginning of Term 3!

Jess, Karen and Fiona