Reddam ELS Lindfield Newsletter 17 November 2023

Reddam ELS Lindfield Newsletter Friday 17th November “You’re off to great places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, so... get on your way!”

Dr. Seuss - “Oh, The Places You’ll Go!” Dear Families and caregivers, It’s timely this week as we reflect over the past year and look towards the nearing year end, to consider what transitions look like in our learning spaces and how we as Teachers, view transitions not as single events but as a journey to successful outcomes pertaining to each child’s learning and sense of security.

We understand the significance of our children transitioning to a new room and as such, we will be working collaboratively both within our team and with our families over the next month as children prepare to transition to their new room in the New Year. When children are prepared and know what to expect, they will feel safe and secure in their learning environment and through working collaboratively

with families, we strive for a smooth transition where children and families are supported, valued and respected.

As we draw closer to the end of the year, we start to think about celebrations and we certainly have a great deal to celebrate here at Reddam ELS Lindfield. What we do every day celebrates our children and the work of our teachers. With a great amount of care, we have created a safe and secure environment that invites children to actively explore as we observe and reflect. Day to day we celebrate each child and our community at Reddam Lindfield through moments of discovery and steps of learning.

We traditionally celebrate birthdays and festivities throughout the year and this year, we are thrilled to invite our families to our Graduation of Stage 4, our class of 2023! In addition to this we are excited to welcome you to join us for our end of year celebration to which you received an invitation to last week.

Key dates in December 2023 Stage 1R/1E – 4th December 930am – 10.30am Stage 2R – 8th December 3pm – 4pm Stage 2E – 5th December 3.30pm – 4.30pm Stage 3R/3E – 7th December 3pm – 4pm Stage 4R – Wednesday 6th December 11am – 12pm Stage 4E – Wednesday 6th December 9am to 10am

Wishing our families a safe and healthy weekend ahead.

Lara Wilson Principal

1 - “Quote"

“Creativity becomes more visible when adults try to be more attentive to the cognitive processes of children than to the results they achieved in various fields of doing and understanding ” Loris Malaguzzi.

Dear 1R Families, It was great meeting many of you this week to stop for a chat. Feel free to email or speak with me in the mornings, our door is always open, and we appreciate your feedback.

As we continue with our schematic play, we also started to add trajectory to their play. We have started our Christmas artwork by extending through their mark making experiences. So far, the process been a great experience as they own the masterpiece by choosing their own colour and were active participants in how they envisioned their work. School readiness and preparation for life skills does not only start when children are 3 years old. We in 1R start through building their confidence and self-identity through our daily experiences, empowering children to make choices that matter to them.

We have also started our transition program by encouraging our older children to scrape their own bowl, put their water bottle away and take responsibility for their own hygiene such as hand washing. Over the coming weeks, we will communicate with you more in regards to the transitions that will take place shortly for some of our children to new rooms.

We are so excited that some families have already started to send us the pictures for 1R to create their own photo book. It is an ongoing initiative, do print us a picture of your weekend if you are out and about and we can add this in to their book. We encourage families to share with us their weekend so we can continue to extend the children's interest and learning. Continuity of learning Is very important to ensure we work collaboratively with families to enhance children’s learning. Your children will have access to their book throughout the week and we will take special moments of opportunity to reflect on your child's photo book with them to develop a sense of belonging for each and every child in our room.

We have been focusing on using routine opportunities to build upon our existing connections with our children, communicating and getting to know each and every child to a greater level of understanding.

We have started to create a family wall at the children's level so please send through a family photograph.

Outdoors our younger children have been practising their balancing and climbing skills and our older children have been throwing balls both under and over arm.

Lastly, we are looking forward to celebrating with you at our End of Year Party! Please RSVP to let us know who will be attending.

We're excited to see what next week holds! Have a lovely weekend.

Shirley, Nika and Cigdem

Stage 1E “Play is the work of the child." (Maria Montessori)

Dear Families,

Transportation-themed adventures took centre stage in our room this week, and what an exciting journey it has been for our little ones!

On Monday, with a fire truck-themed collage experience, our little artists not only fostered imaginative play but also enhanced their social development amongst peers as they communicated while cutting, sticking and creating. On Tuesday, a buoyant exploration unfolded as the children tested objects for floatation in a water-filled tray, discovering the wonders of buoyancy and sharing their observations through collaborative discussions. Creativity sparked on Wednesday when our young adventurers transformed into ambulance drivers, responding to a fictional car accident in a dramatic play that ignited their imaginations. On Thursday, our fine motor skills flourished through another water and transportation-themed collage, providing a tactile experience where children utilised their senses. We sailed into the end of the week with a stamping activity, creating boat-shaped masterpieces that showcased the artistic talents of our young learners. Our little movers explored musical concepts such as tempo, rhythm and dynamics with egg shakers as they sang along to their favourite songs about transport.

Throughout the week, our young learners immersed themselves in the dynamic world of transportation, fostering the development of our cognitive and motor skills while inspiring a love for imaginative play.

The engaging experiences not only deepened the children's understanding of various modes of transportation but also promoted teamwork and creativity. We will be reflecting upon our environment,

particularly in our home corner/role play learning space, and encouraging the children to be active participants in their own learning like setting up a vehicle repair station or a pretend gas station can provide tangible experiences. Introducing a diverse range of transportation-related literature and fostering outdoor play with ride-on toys further enhances their understanding and physical engagement.

These strategies aim to create a comprehensive and immersive learning environment, encouraging the children to explore, inquire, and apply their newfound knowledge in various contexts. We look forward to continuing this exciting journey of exploration and discovery with your little ones next week.

Wishing all our families a lovely weekend ahead.

Regards, 1E

Stage 2R “We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race."

Kofi Annan

Dear Families, We all want a peaceful world for our children to grow up in. Our exploration of cultures embraces one another from an early age. This week, we engaged in various opportunities to support the 2R children to develop a deeper appreciation for the enriching differences they'll encounter throughout their lives.

We travelled to the "Mother Continent", Africa and shared some information with one another to determine our pre existing knowledge. The Sahara in Northern Africa is the largest desert in the world and the most famous pyramids were built in ancient Egypt. To develop meaningful experiences, we created some desert small worlds using magic sand, tumbleweeds, cactus plants, and desert animals. 2R used pyramid-shaped molds to create pyramids and sand sensory trays to create a realistic landscape.

This experience provided the children with the opportunity to learn more through imaginative play. Our learning was transferred through a creative arts experience to create cactus paintings.

In Africa, we can find some of the largest mammals on this planet. Among them are the largest land mammals, the African elephant, the tallest mammal, the giraffe, and the fastest mammal, the cheetah!

We introduced the African animals to the children using the safari sensory trays filled with these amazing African animals. We observed the children engaged in collaborative discussions as they exchanged ideas and furthered their understanding of African animals.

As some of the main natural resources in Africa are minerals such as gold, diamond and platinum, we created sand sensory tray with hidden treasures to dig for gold and diamonds. Our curious and determined children were so proud to show us what they found and were encouraged to count out how many objects they found in their tray.

Sorting of snakes was an experience the children engaged in to further develop their finger muscles and co ordination. Through verbal and non verbal communication, the children expressed their thoughts and ideas as they problem solved, investigated and experimented throughout this experience.

We hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Miss Vivian, Miss Connie, Miss Fatima and Miss Coco.

Stage 2E "A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees." (Amelia Earhart)

Dear Families, Kindness is contagious and has the ability to change the world. Simple acts like listening to a person in need, saying hello to a new friend or looking after an injured animal are pure forms of kindness. These acts inspire others to be kind and compassionate in different situations and forms. Acts of kindness help us form connections with others which are reported to be a strong factor in increasing happiness.

Throughout this week’s discussion, we defined kindness through a variety of stories. The highlighted book of the week was Kindness Makes Us Strong by Helen Beer and When I’m Feeling Kind by Trace Moroney where we explored what being kind feels like and what it means to be kind. The visual images alongside the text encouraged the children to recognise that when we take care of ourselves, share toys, take turns, use nice words, and comfort others, we are being kind.

Calming eucalyptus scented salt was one of our favourite sensory experiences this week. With a little spoon, our friends carefully scooped and poured the salts into a jar. Filling, scooping, and pouring experiences assist in the development of fine motor skills as well as using mathematical concepts such as less and more. These tasks assist children to coordinate their hand movements with what they are seeing, feeling, and smelling. It certainly was a calm sensory experience!

As the children's growing interest in patterns and colors continues, Miss Mia invited a small group of children to engage in pattern threading. This game required the children to utilise their well developed fine motor skills and pay attention to detail as they were challenged to thread through the holes and focus on the pattern.

Miss Mia read and demonstrated a pattern, and our friends spontaneously repeated after her. The children were focused and started to thread through the reels with a very positive demeanor. After a reel, they proudly displayed their achievements which were celebrated through positive communication.

- Zoe: "Look! I did it! I did the yellow one. Now pink."

- Nicholas: "Yellow done. Can I have pink?"

- Evie: "Look, Miss Mia, I put it through, yellow and pink."

- Kylie: "This is hard!"

This week, as we emphasise kindness and calm and the 2E class engaged in a yoga session led by Ms. Nikki. We started the yoga session with breathing exercises, imagined we were smelling the flowers and then blowing out a candle. The children were asked to select their preferred yoga poses. Ms. Nikki demonstrated each pose with the class, guiding them with clear instructions. The atmosphere transformed as the children embodied various animals such as camels, lions, flamingos, elephants, butterflies, and more, adding an element of creativity and playfulness to the session. The children's adept listening and locomotive skills during the yoga session highlighted their engagement and ability to follow instructions effectively. The incorporation of different animal poses not only stimulated their bodies but also nurtured imaginative thinking.

Wishing our families a very calm and joyous weekend ahead.

2E Team

Stage 3R "The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more you learn, the more places you'll go. ” - (Dr. Seuss)

Dear Families,

This week, the children have been sharing their books about Christmas. Our exploration of prints continues as we read about the fascinating world of Christmas stories and write Christmas cards.

The stories we read are about writing a letter to Santa, decorating the tree with lights and decorations, making special gifts, enjoying a yummy feast with family and friends, and, of course, unwrapping presents.

Sierra: I helped my dad put the star on the Christmas tree.

Rory: I don't have a star, but I have many baubles.

Emily He: I have a tall Christmas tree.

Victoria: Santa likes drinking milk and cookies.

Charles: Santa climbs in the chimney and we can’t light the fire.

Throughout the week, the children have discussed Christmas trees as they can symbolise Christmas. In our quest to deepen their understanding, we presented another type of print—a picture of a pine tree—prompting the children to share their observations. The children compared what they read in the storybook with the picture of an actual Christmas tree. We then clarified that while Christmas trees resemble pine trees, they are not the same and not all people bring actual pine trees home due to their height and weight.

Amelia C: I don’t have a real Christmas tree because I don’t know how to trim it.

Teddy: You need to plant a Christmas tree in the soil.

Wondering if they could keep a Christmas tree in their own space, the children embarked on a creative experience using recycled materials and cardboard was transformed into box-shaped trees and painted in an array of greens.

Extending on the children's learning, we introduced the concept of Christmas cards. Presenting a card with a Santa surfing picture, the children read a special message inside. The children grasped the significance of cards, understanding that they hold meaning for the one who wrote the card and the receiver. The educators emphasised that cards could be for Santa, parents, or anyone they wished to write to. Armed with newfound knowledge about prints and their varied forms, the children embarked on the next chapter of their learning adventure—writing letters to Santa.

The children's keen interest in Christmas stories and their understanding of symbolism in prints demonstrated their progressive knowledge. Inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach, this activity allowed the children to interact, question, hypothesise, and create connections between their experiences and the world around them. We will create a letter-writing station where children can write or draw their messages to Santa or their loved ones, promoting writing and early literacy development.

Have a lovely weekend.

3R Team

Stage 3E “It’s the things we play with and the people who help us play that make a great difference in our lives” (Fred Rogers 1928-2003).

Dear Families, During Week 6, the children have continued to show a huge interest in exploring various ways they can use their bodies and move through the learning spaces confidently and with ease. The children engaged in sport experiences to further their emerging fundamental movement skills where they kicked soccer balls and moved through various obstacle courses by climbing and crawling over frames of varying heights and walking across unsteady balance beams. The children were provided with the opportunity to reflect upon their learning by discussing what part of their body they were using and how. This allowed them to identify and label various body parts and recognise the functionality of their heart and breathing patterns.

Throughout the week, the children began exploring and investigating different skeletons where they could proceed to recognise and identify different parts and functions. This allowed the children to build upon their vocabulary and broaden their understanding of people. The children were able to engage in

experiences that involved them looking at teeth and begin to understand the importance of dental care.

The children practised brushing off any plaque on the pretend teeth by using a toothbrush and other sensory materials. We took the opportunity to incorporate early mathematical concepts and counted how many teeth were in our mouths in addition to analysing our teeth structure in comparison to each other, and used the mirrors to observe. The children proceeded to engage in conversations and experiences surrounding the importance of eating healthy food which enabled them to recognise everyday food and sometimes food.

Rich literacy experiences took place where the children read storybooks of their choice and then engaged in collaborative discussions to determine what happens before, during, and after particular events mentioned throughout the story. We discussed the illustrations and how we can use these to make meaning of the print whilst we continued to investigate and explore our ideas of the context of each story.

Have a lovely weekend.

Laura, Kai, Ona, Fiona & Eunice

Stage 4R "The environment is where we all meet; where we all have a mutual interest; it is the one thing all of us share.” – Lady Bird Johnson

Week 6 Dear Parents and Guardians, Another exhilarating week has unfolded in the 4R class as we continue our captivating journey through 'The Changing World.' The children's recent fascination led us into a deeper exploration of environmental changes and potential solutions. Here's an insight into their enriching learning experiences.

The week commenced with a profound focus on the repercussions of waste accumulation in our environment. The children, displaying their compassionate spirit, initiated a play area cleanup, sparking a thought-provoking discussion on the impacts of litter. Through an immersive educational video, they discovered the far-reaching effects of waste on diverse landscapes. This sparked heartfelt conversations where the children shared their observations and expressed genuine concerns. Their proactive suggestions for cleaning, recycling, and reusing exemplified their environmental awareness and proactive mindsets.

Building upon their concerns about environmental shifts, the children further explored their interest to instigate positive changes in the world. Deeply moved by the implications of rubbish on ocean life, they passionately brainstormed various solutions, ranging from employing boats and divers for ocean cleanups to advocating for waste reduction and reuse. Engaging in water play, they creatively envisioned and constructed a future ocean landscape, outlining their vision for a healthier, happier marine environment.

Midweek, their focus shifted to comprehending the detrimental impact of oil spills on the ocean and understanding how global warming affects marine life. Engaged in an experiential experiment, they simulated oil spills and observed the effects of temperature changes on ice. This hands-on learning experience provided a profound understanding of environmental shifts affecting marine ecosystems.

As the week came to the end, the children delved into innovative recycling methods by watching educational videos and crafting their designs from recycled materials. They also refined their handwriting skills by documenting various types of rubbish materials they used in their designs.

Kind Regards Miss Sarah and Mr Callum

Stage 4E “Why try to explain miracles to your children when you can have them plant a garden.” – (Janet Kilburn Phillips)

Dear Families, This week we spent more time in our vegetable garden, where the children learnt about the life-cycle of our broccoli plants. Since term 1, the children have been involved in planting various seeds, observing plant growth, and harvesting crops. Recently, the focus shifted to collecting seeds for the next season, fostering a sense of sustainability and environmental care among the children. The joy and excitement were visible as they collected seed pods from our broccoli plants, opened them up, and discovered matured seeds ready for the next planting cycle. The children also harvested beetroots, purple basil, mint, and lots of parsley from our herb garden. Fostering a connection with nature at a young age is crucial for developing environmental awareness. By harvesting and caring for our plants, the children continue to gain an appreciation for our natural environment here at Reddam ELS Lindfield.

To continue our social-emotional learning, we read Worries Are Like Clouds by Shona Innes. Some children said that they afraid of the dark, thunder, shadows, worry about being separated from parents, and changes to their routine. Miss Rebecca asked the children, "What worries you the most about going to big school next year?”

“Meeting my new teacher.” – Lucas “If a bad boy scratches me.” – Arielle “Making new friends.” – Lachlan “Losing my hat.” – Burhanuddin “I’m not worried because my brother is at my school.”- Avery “My sister isn’t in my class to help me.” – Chloe “I’m not worried because Sophia is there.” – Gabriel “I’m worried about using new toys.” – Seth “If I forget to bring something for school.” – Olivia Miss Rebecca invited the children to create a colourful umbrella to keep our worry clouds away. The children used various colours of cellophane sheets and a transparent umbrella for this creative project.

The children cut the cellophane into circles of different sizes and then stuck these circles onto the clear umbrella using glue. Miss Rebecca encouraged the use of primary colours - red, blue, and yellow, to create new hues. The children eagerly experimented by layering blue and yellow cellophane, resulting in a delightful green colour. They also combined yellow with red, producing orange. The children proudly took their vibrant suncatcher outside and in the sunlight, the colours became even more enchanting. The children were excited with the project's outcome, making it a delightful and educational experience into the world of colours while basking in the sunshine.

The children have been enjoying learning about famous artists. This week we explored the artworks of Jackson Pollock, an American artist who loved to move his body as he painted. The children looked at photos of him walking around his giant canvases he laid on the floor. He would dip his brushes into the cans and let the paint drip randomly over the canvas, creating a splatter effect. The drips of paint landed in various directions, crossing over each other to create layers of chaotic designs. We then read Jackson Pollock’s life story, and how he moved to New York City when he was 18 to become an artist. Many people didn’t understand his paintings and thought they looked messy, however over time his artworks became very popular. To further-explore Jackson Pollock’s artistic designs, the children were invited to contribute to a whole-class artwork during our morning Affirmation Circle. We discussed how Jackson’s paintings acted like a surprise because he never knew exactly where the paint was going to land. We then talked about good and bad surprises such as being excited for our birthdays and Christmas, and surprises that might disrupt our routine and make us worry. The children took turns to drop a piece of string covered in blue, red, green, or yellow paint, onto an A3 piece of paper. They moved their string around to create lines and drips and were excited to see the final product in the afternoon after it dried.

Later in the atelier, the children got to create their individual artworks, using marbles dipped in paint to roll around on paper inside a tray. As they moved their tray from side to side, and up and down, the marbles created the lines, similar to the style of Jackson Pollock. The children especially loved having the freedom to have their hands covered in paint and creating a controlled mess in their own trays. Each artwork looked completely different as the marbles had a mind of their own.

What a delightful week in our classroom!

Lauren, Rowel and Rebecca

Monday - Yoga

Tuesday - Drama with Miss Chelsea This week in Stage 2, 3 and 4 we went on a pirate adventure. We used a theme based structure for this week’s lesson as it allows the students to lock into a strong idea to identify images when using their imagination during exercises/games. In Stage 1 we focused on fine motor skills and care in the form of play. Our pirate adventure started off with teaching the children a few repeated actions such as pulling on some imaginary ropes as though they’re ‘hoisting the sails’ and motioning the action of ‘scrubbing the deck’ of a pirate ship. This was for the purpose of playing a game called ‘If You’re a Pirate And You

Know It’, as a reimagined version of the classic children’s song, ‘If you’re happy and you know it’. Once the children were familiar with the physical movement associated with a command it was time to put their memory to the test. This game also helps extend the skill of being able to split our focus such as listening for a new instruction whilst performing the repeated gesture for the previous command. We need to be able to immerse ourselves deep enough within the character, so the audience is willing to invest in the possibility of the stories reality however it is necessary for the show to continue safely that the actor can be aware of what is happening on stage/set at all times. There is also the use of repeated gestures in this game which is a drama technique used quite often in abstract or movement-based performance. This game is a fun and easy way to introduce this concept in a more literal way to younger children than if they were to try and create their own gesture and extend them which is an activity regularly used in rehearsal rooms during the devising stages of work.

We also extended on the use of the students’ imaginations during this lesson when we engaged in an activity titled, ‘What’s that treasure?’. Each student used the drama technique of mime to place an imaginary treasure box on the floor in front of them and had to pull an item out from the ‘box’. The children were told this treasure chest could hold and item/object of any shape and size allowing them to explore as large as their imaginations could run. With the use of mime, they had to demonstrate to their peers the physical weight and size of the object they pulled out and it was then up to the others to have a guess as to what their friends were holding. This gave the students the opportunity to work on their attention to detail within action/movement.

In Stage 1 we used the concept of gentle hands and care to encourage the idea of responsibility from a young age. This directly correlated to drama and performance as they start to get older where children develop the ability to handle props and costume with care. We tied this idea in with the image of treasures just like we were talking about with the older children as well. We partook in a treasure hunt around the room, using some colourful material to help us find treasure which they play with and act out the motion. Together we found item such as books, farm animals and faux fruit to incorporate into our lesson.

Well done everyone, a wonderful week of drama.

Wednesday - Music with Mr Alan

Thursday - Playball with Coach Lauren

Friday - Mandarin with Miss Chloe

Thank you

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