Author: jdace

On Monday, we met some animals from Reptile Life who had come into school for the day. The class were really sensible and learnt that it is important to stay quiet and calm around animals so as not to scare them, and also to keep our hands away from our mouths if we have stroked an animal. We met a python, a tortoise, a skunk and a meerkat!

This term in Nursery, we have been learning about traditional tales, including The Gingerbread Man. We began by learning the story and acting it out in the role play area, which we transformed into a fairy tale cottage. Then we made our own gingerbread. Luckily, ours didn’t jump out of the oven and run away, so we got to taste it! We wrote our own gingerbread recipes so we could share what we have done, so next time you come into class, have a look at our gingerbread recipe book which will be on display!

This week in Nursery, we have been talking about fireworks and finding lots of different ways to make our own. Have a look at the pictures below and let us know which is your favourite way to make firework art!

We also thought carefully about how to stay safe on Guy Fawkes Night – the class know that they stay safe by staying with their grown-up and standing well back from any fireworks.

Dear Parents,

Please follow the link below for some ideas on supporting with maths and literacy development through play and everyday activities at home. If you would like to share your own ideas, or have particularly enjoyed trying these suggestions, please leave a comment on the blog!

Supporting maths and literacy development at home

Understanding the report targets:

“Hearing the initial sounds in words“: it is essential for reading and writing that children can hear the different sounds that make up a word; we begin this process by listening for the first sound in any given word.
This video is a useful guide to the sounds taught in Nursery: Phonics Song
Children should be able to hear and say the first sound of any given word.

Activity ideas:
* Play I Spy using the sounds the letters make rather than the name of the letter.
* Choose a letter sound and do a treasure hunt around the house to find as many objects as possible with that sound. (Bear in mind that ‘ink’ and ‘ice’, for example, do not start with the same sound!)

Here is a video of some children at Cathedral Primary School saying all 26 single letter sounds correctly:

In Nursery we use sound talk to segment the sounds in simple words. Children begin by listening and understanding an adult sound-talking, then practise producing sound talk themselves. Once children can hear and talk in sound talk, they begin to apply this knowledge to reading and writing. Below is a video from last year’s class demonstrating sound talk with ‘robot arms’:

Early writing depends on good fine motor skills. Playdough is a great thing for getting hands and fingers working…

Best Easy Playdough Recipe:

1 cup plain flour

½ cup salt

1 tablespoon cream of tartar or bicarbonate of soda

1 tablespoon vegetable oil or baby oil

1 cup boiling water *

(Optional) glitter/food colouring/scents e.g. peppermint, anything you like!

– Stir all ingredients in a large bowl. Mix until a ball of dough is formed, then knead for about 5 minutes – the longer you knead, the better it gets!

* You can also use cold or warm water so the children can help with the mixing and kneading (though boiling water makes better, longer-lasting dough).

Playdough activities:

Make some ‘dinner’ – Roll peas with thumb and fingers, and ‘sausages’ between the palms
Use all kinds of tools for mark-making – cutters, rolling pins, plastic cutlery, old pens/pencils, toy cars
Make some monsters using craft sticks and goggly eyes

Cover the base of a shallow tray with:
Shaving foam
Dry oats/rice/couscous
Sand or salt
Cornflour and water ‘gloop’
Draw, make patterns, write letters or numbers while exploring the different textures.

Other activities to develop hand strength and dexterity:
Treasure hunt with large tweezers, pasta tongs or clothes pegs. Bury small objects, beads, minibeasts etc. in a sand tray and sort into dishes
Try picking up small foods e.g. cheerios, mini marshmallows, raisins with tweezers (then eating them!)
Construction toys with nuts and bolts, toy screwdrivers
Lacing and threading – beads, cheerios, macaroni etc.
Make pictures or spider webs by threading hole-punched card or paper plates
Pipette paintings – watery paint/food colouring in pots, drop onto paper or coffee filters
Wind up toys and spinning tops
Big chalk on paved area/big paper taped to floor
Paint, pen or chalk on an easel, blackboard or other vertical surface
Give children clothes pegs to display their own work on a washing line

Scissor skills:
Making fringe along edge of paper
Cutting along pre-drawn lines (straight, wavy, zigzag, shapes and pictures) – use to make collages
Make paper lanterns to decorate the house by cutting parallel lines on folded paper
Try cutting through playdough with scissors.

We read Rosie’s Babies by Martin Waddell and thought about the things that are special to Rosie and her babies. We acted out parts of the story in the small world. What do the characters like to do? How does Rosie care for her babies?

Then we thought about the things that are special to us and drew some pictures to share our ideas with the rest of the class. Here are some of the things that are special to us:

As a Rights Respecting School, we have made a class charter that everyone has signed as a promise to respect each others’ rights.

These are the five things we all do to make nursery a great place to learn:

We are kind.

We listen carefully.

We keep ourselves and others safe.

We keep nursery clean and tidy.

We try our best.

Take a look at our charter next time you are in our class. What can you do to respect others’ rights?

Nursery had a wonderful time on Thursday helping Sara dig up the nursery garden. Lots of potatoes and carrots had grown over the summer, as well as some fresh parsley. We harvested the crops then everyone helped to make some soup in the microwave, making sure we washed our hands and the vegetables thoroughly.

While the children were digging, they discovered lots of garden wildlife, including caterpillars, worms, slugs and two frogs or toads! We thought they were toads because their skin was dry, but they hopped instead of walking. Have a look at the photos and see if you can help us identify what they are, and leave us a comment on this post.

Talking points:
What did the parsley smell like?
How did we make soup?
Where do frogs and toads live?
What do you think they eat?

Well done to everyone who started nursery this week! The class have settled in beautifully and really enjoyed getting to know each other and Miss Dace and Sara.

Please check the class blog regularly to see what we are up to in class, and post your own comments too.

Below are the class letter and curriculum map for this half term, which will be sent home soon.

nursery letter to parents sept 2015

Nursery curriculum map autumn 1

Please remember if you have any questions or anything you would like to talk about, please speak to Miss Dace or Sara, we are always happy to help!

Watch nursery demonstrating how to sound talk using their robot arms. If you are in nursery or reception, practise your sound talk in the holidays to become an even more wonderful reader and writer!

We used the app I Can Animate to bring castle characters to life through stop-motion animation. We then thought about what the characters were saying to each other, and what might be happening in the story. Read the comments section to find out about the adventures the characters are having. They are full of exciting conflict, and a few happily ever afters!