Autumn Term Week 4

Our farming theme is great fun and we are really enjoying learning about harvest and where our food come from and we have been cooking, making mini pizzas, making soup and roasted veg and also made smoothies together and the children here really enjoy taking the time to sit and talk and learn and practice their new skills using the knives.

Our farm shop is now empty of all its goods and has been tidied away in preparation for next week’s fun and games and we will be exploring the theme of transport after watching some of the children pretend to go on a bus! The children have been really settled this week and we are really pleased with how the sessions are going. We have a long list of reminders for the toilet so we will be working really hard to ensure there are no wee accidents as we get to know the children more and know their timings a bit better – who needs a reminder before snack and who needs a reminder during their play. It is completely normal for children to regress a little given new surroundings and timetables and very hard to leave a lovely activity where someone else may take your spot if you leave to go to the toilet!

Forest School is such a wonderful experience for the children, the Sun group go on a Thursday and the Moon’s on a Friday and after half term we will swap around so that all the Sun and Moons have that experience. There are some gorgeous photos on the blog this week as well, and I have added the Friday photos in so each week the pics from the previous Friday will be on the blog.

Circle times have been wonderful, we have a routine which allows the children choice and free flow time to extend their games and activities and learning but we still really value those small group times and we will be starting nurture groups as well with children to focus on different areas. Your key person has been completing an on entry assessment to help us decide which children may need nurture – often it is just a different way of us spending time with a smaller group of 3 children to work out what they know and where they are developmentally. Some children find it hard to share in a larger group so nurture work is key to ensuring we know where each child is individually.

The Star group are doing brilliantly, lots of great photos of them this week. They have used lots of building towers and learning names and getting settled into the routine of the circle time.

Other free flow activities have included spending some fantastic time in our sensory garden enjoying potion making, natural craft and a wonderful Teddy Bear’s Picnic. We have rescued animals from being wrapped in wool – it was truly amazing to watch how carefully and delicately children were snipping and unravelling the wool around the figures!

Next week we have a transport theme and will have a story reading focus so if you would like to come in and sit for 15 mins and read a story that would be wonderful! Please let Mandy know if you would like to do that – usually at 2.50PM in our Sun and Moon groups.