News Blog

 

Chinese New Year

We have been learning all about Chinese New Year and how people celebrate. We were extremely fortunate to have a pupil's parents come into school and share some of their traditions with us. The pupil dressed in traditional Chinese costume, and their parents delivered a wonderful dramatisation of the Zodiac Story, using puppets and children to help! The children practised their fine motor skills by paper folding, colouring, and cutting a dragon! To make our dragons move, the children attached lollipop sticks for holding and operating their dragons!

Activities such as this help to put the pupils' own cultural identity and celebrations into context and increase the pupils' knowledge about other cultures.

 

Valentines Day

We acknowledged Valentine's Day at school this week by using a range of one handed tools to make and decorate a heart shaped card for our families. This led to a discussion around empathy and caring for others; recognising what it means to show love and identify how important our relationships are. 

As part of our PSED 'Jigsaw' curriculum, the children engaged in an activity where they passed a paper heart around the circle using a peg instead of their hands. This not only took a lot of concentration and focus, but also gave way to considering positive thoughts about others. 

Children were invited to say one thing they liked about the classmate sitting next to them. Statements heard were, "I like playing with you," and ,"You can come to my house."

 

Pirates!

The F1 children have been enjoying role play as pirates. This type of play encourages positive and prosocial experiences for the children as they engage in back and forth conversations with one another. The provision of open ended props allowed all the children to participate simultaneously with the use of pirate costumes, rolled pieces of paper taped as telescopes and a large cardboard box, fashioned as a pirate ship!

Captain Blackbeard left us a special note and a map which led to a lot of excitement and a treasure hunt in the playground. We examined the map closely for signs and symbols such as directional arrows and an "X that marks the spot!" We discussed routes, locations and positional language, using words such as 'in front of,' 'behind' and 'under.' 

We used tea bags to create our own aged treasure maps.

 

Making a Splash!

Foundation One embraced the inclement weather, donning their wellington boots and snug all-in-one rain suits, to joyfully splash in the puddles.

The young explorers thoroughly enjoyed the moment, but also reaped valuable learning benefits. Outdoor play in the rain stimulates a sense of well-being and opportunities for social interactions with peers. Sensory experiences can also help to foster a deeper connection with the natural world. From understanding the concept of cause and effect through splashing, to developing gross motor skills, muscular strength, coordination and the ability to take well intentioned, safe risks. These rainy escapades contribute to holistic child development, turning a simple puddle into a classroom of exploration and growth.