Kinetic Letters

is for socks, slippers, snakes and spoons...

Nurseryenjoyedawalktotheoutdoor learningareaonasunnyandfrosty morningTheyweregoingonaSoundHunt withMrBrown.Thechildrenwere fascinatedbythefrost,makinghandprints andwriting‘s’intheice.Takingthe children’slearningoutsideisboth rewardingandbeneficialforthem.Weare soluckytohavethisdesignatedarea nowandMrBrowntoleadit.

sunshine, sausages...

Mrs Gutteridge introduced the children to some football skills in Games. They learned how to control the ball and kick it towards a goal.

Then the children improved their stamina by going for a jog across the School fields.

Nursery children had a wonderful afternoon at the Fire Station meeting the Red Watch team. Firefighter Ronny and Firefighter Helen showed us around their new fire engine and children who wanted to, were able to sit in the cab – it was really high up. Everyone had chance to spray water using one of the hoses – this was a real highlight.

Nursery children have been introduced to air writing. This uses whole body movements to form letters in the air. Research has shown, by using this method the movements in the brain become secure four times faster than by starting with small movements using pencils.

Nursery children were inspired by Andrew Goldsworthy’s work and when they went to the Outdoor Learning Area, they collected natural objects and collaboratively made a beautiful heart sculpture.

Mrs Gutteridge and her team have reorganised the outside space so there are clearly defined spaces reflecting the seven areas of learning.

The children have been using the pumps in the mud kitchen to strengthen their fingers while making potions, mixing paint in the puddles and planting some seeds. The grass we grew inside at the beginning of the year has been transferred outside in the hope that we can use it for fairy and dinosaur worlds.

They have enjoyed playing with the rockets and planets and have tried to make their own rockets using the wooden blocks.

The craft table is always popular. It is lovely to see how proud they are of their finished pieces.

Our hammered butterflies are nearly finishedthis skill will be useful when they make their own rocket in a few weeks time.

Kingfishers and Owls completed their science topic on Materials with a Bridge Challenge. Working in small groups they were given limited resources and asked ‘to make a bridge that will support the weight of a toy car’. The bridge had to be longer than 40cm and they could only use eight sheets of A4 paper and masking tape. They worked wonderfully together, and I am delighted to say each group built a successful bridge – some budding engineers in Year 2.

Butterflies performed a dragon dance to celebrate Chinese New Year. It proved more difficult than they first thought it would be. However, the children quickly recognised they had to work together to avoid the dragon falling apart! The children also made decorations and dragons. It is the year of the rabbit so many of the activities were based around that theme.

Year 5 created wall hangings that depicted “The Great Race” which is all about how the Chinese New Year came about. We have made them into bunting and hung them in school.

The children wanted to brighten up their windows so they carefully made 'stained glass' hearts and wrote about something or someone that is special to them.

Exploring the history of toys

The Hedgehogs really enjoyed learning about the history of toys. Then everyone had a super time making making six toys of their own - a split pin bear, magnetic fish, spinning top, thaumatrope, a football game and peg doll.

OwlsandKingfishersmadepropsand sceneryforthefortheirplay,LittleRed RidingHood.Thechildrenworkedvery hardlearningtheirlines,tryingtoget loudervoicesandpractisetheirbeebuzzes.

The RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2023

Everyone in Lower Prep had fun learning to identify garden birds and making bird feeders in readiness for the Birdwatch. The children had high hopes of spotting all kinds of species. While we weren’t lucky enough to spot a flamingo, which had been predicted by a few children, we did see land gulls, starlings, blackbirds, robins, magpies, wood pigeons and a couple of red kites.

Owls and Kingfishers recorded their bird sightings carefully and made tally charts to keep an accurate check on the number of each species they saw. It was lovely to hear the spontaneous conversations about birds when the children were in the playground and when walking to lunch. It is so important we help the children value the nature we have on our doorstep.

Every Wednesday, Year 6 pupils come to Hedgehogs, Owls and Kingfishers to hear the children read. Huge thanks to all the pupils who volunteer to help. It it always enjoyed by everyone involved.

The Hedgehogs delighted everyone - children, parents, staff and Governors - with their wonderful production of The Enormous Turnip. They all sang beautifully, said their words clearly, and confidently performed to three audiences – Bravo!

Hedgehogs had a marvellous time with Mr Brown in the Outdoor Learning Area for their art lesson. Mr Brown had ‘forgotten’ to bring paintbrushes with him, so the children had to solve this problem. They were very creative using natural resources such as grass, leaves and feathers.

Butterflies enjoyed the Outdoor Learning Area this term They searched for natural materials to make a home for Oakley our Outdoor Learning Bear, and made some wonderful natural art faces that are remarkably expressive The children really are very creative