Music

In Stages 3 and 4 this week, we began our lesson with our ascending and descending scales on ‘LA’, still working on our tongue placement. Using some animal sounds, we sang various other warm-ups over descending scales and arpeggios to help improve our sense of pitch. With our voices warmed up, we sang the “Good Morning Song”, the action song “Open Shut Them” and “Apples and Bananas”, helping us work on our vowel shapes.

With our maracas we revisited pitch – ‘HIGH’ and ‘LOW’. Stage 3 shook in the air for ‘high’, and to the floor for ‘low’. Stage 4 took steps forward and back to demonstrate they could hear the pitch moving up and down – and testing to see if they could count how many notes were being played.

Using our building blocks, we started to build a variety of rhythms using 'DOG', 'CAT' and 'SPIDER'. The blocks help us see and count how many sounds are in the words to then clap them out. With the castanets, we got our fine motor actions moving with counting and clicking in time. We tried our best to keep in time while singing "Twinkle Twinkle", and then tested to see how high we could count, clicking our castanet for every number.

In Stage 2 and The Fledglings we settled into the lesson with “Open Shut Them”, and then warmed up our voices with our simple counting and scales on ‘MA’ followed by our sing-alongs. We used our scarves with actions in “Wheels on the Bus”; we shook our maracas and our scarves in “ABCs” with our layered stomping and freezing; and danced our way through the garden in “The Sunflower Song”. With our castanets we worked on our clicks and counting in time, before playing along to “Mary Had a Little Lamb”.

I introduced the children to the triangles – enjoying some free time playing our triangles. Stage 2 worked on hitting each side, counting how many sides create a triangle.

In The Nest we opened the lesson with our singa-longs and various instruments and props. It’s great to see the confidence building in our babies each week as they collect their instruments and pack them away. We used our scarves, maracas, castanets; got as many legs moving and marching for “Ants Go Marching”; and introduced our babies to the triangle –getting our visual motor movement working while trying to hit it with our metal beaters.

Dance and Drama

This week in the Nest, Stage 1 and 2, the children went on an expedition ‘Under the Sea’! At the beginning of the lesson the children practised shaking the parachute, freezing skills, colour recognition, and singing skills. Jesse said the parachute looks like the waves in the sea. Florence in the Nest had a beautiful smile on his face the whole lesson.

Next, I handed out the “fishing rods” (ribbons) and asked the children to follow the various movements I did. We made a circle shape, a rainbow shape, and used the ribbon as a tail they all loved the ribbons and moved them beautifully. The children were good at packing away the ribbons. Then I told them that I had brought back Peter Rabbit (puppet). They loved it the last time I brought him in. It was wonderful to see their faces light up and their imagination switched on, especially as they thought it was real! For the final activity, we listened to classical music, while using our hands and bodies to act as different sea creatures. They all wanted to tell me what their favourite was!

In Stage 3 and 4 the theme this week was ‘The Toyshop and Mrs Smelly Cheese’ (using the idea of Toy Story). We started on the parachute as usual and warmed up our bodies by doing the train. Well done to Olivia in Stage 2/3 who did wonderful train arms.

The children began by moving around the space in different ways e.g. Like they were a train, a robot, and aeroplane etc and on the command ‘Freeze’ they had to stop as quick as they could. The first couple of rounds we used mime and then introduced sound building up to a sound scape. Next, I told the children that I would be someone else and use a head scarf to show I was someone else. I asked the children to think of their favourite toy and to show their toy through their stance as well as portray any sound it may have. They were going to be this toy on the toy shelf.

Next, I told the children that I had found a key over the weekend, and it says ‘Toyshop’ on it.

“I know someone who owns a toyshop”, I said to them. “Shall we go and visit her shop?” Of course the children said “Yes.” Next, I transformed into a lady called Mrs Smelly Cheese.

Mrs Smelly Cheese owns a toyshop that is famous for all its magnificent toys (I asked the children to turn into a toy and show me what it looks like on the toy shelf). Every time Mrs Smelly Cheese leaves the shop (hides in a corner or turns her back on the children so she can’t see them), all the toys make as much noise as they can and move like their toy! But when Mrs Smelly Cheese returns all the toys must freeze and trick her. Because while she has had her back turned, Mrs Smelly Cheese’s toys have been up to mischief! This activity was based on ‘Red light, green light’!

The children practised a couple of times, so they got into the routine of moving and being noisy and freezing. I then used a scarf to transform myself into Miss Smelly Cheese. We had some wonderful toys – Annie in Stage 3 was an aeroplane, Jet a dinosaur and Milla was a robot.

Each time I left and came back I acted surprised at the toys being in different positions. I pretended that I had left a door open, and the wind had blown the toys across the shop. I also pretended that they were running out of batteries. Lastly, on my return I told them, “I have terrific news. The lady I have been talking about has decided to buy all of the toys (but the ones I am playing with are my favourites and I’d never sell them). I am going to the bakery to get a chocolate cake to celebrate.” Well done, everyone. We are having another wonderful term of drama!

On my return, I described the cake to the children and then suddenly Miss Smelly Cheese remembered that she had forgotten the candles, plates, forks, and napkins. She left the cake in the middle of the room - “I wonder if my toys will eat my chocolate cake”? I said. Yes, I’m sure you can guess what happened next. On the next arrival, Miss Smelly Cheese noticed that the cake had disappeared, and the toys had chocolate all over their faces, on their noses, lips, behind their ears in their hair on their stomachs etc. She then wiped up the mess and threw the napkins away. This would be the last time she left the room and she told the children to be as loud as they can! When Miss Smelly Cheese came back, she told the children that she thought that they had been making lots of noise while she was gone, and she was going to test them by asking them if they thought ‘Mrs Smelly cheese is completely bananas. If so, it meant she would have to close her shop!’ The children all shouted out “Yes Mrs Smelly Cheese” and then she pretended to cry but said, “Oh well, it’s not so bad. At least I get to play with my favourite toys!”

Sport

This week in ELS Sport we complemented last week’s activities with the further use of bean bags as our main equipment item. The boys and girls played several games working as a team and individually on their balance, coordination and focus. The class was set up with spot markers with bean bags in the activity area. The spot markers were used as a home base.

We played the following games corresponding with a category for each child to progress and develop their own Physical Movement skills:

Colour Move – Locomotor Movement

Tower Building – Social & Emotional skills

Bean Bag Flies - Balance

Waterfall – Hand/Eye Coordination

Give with it – Object Manipulation

Next week, the children will be working with ropes, to again instil the Fundamental Movement Skills required at a Stage 3 and 4 level. As always the children are really enjoying their lessons.