Responses to planned activities:
Sandwich making for the Coronation lunch – of the planned activities, this was among the most successful with both groups. For both groups the spreading was a challenge, the older group also had close supervision and teaching around how to use a sharper knife to cut bread and cucumber – the safest place to put their fingers. Teachers also took the opportunity to explain the concept of ‘a half’ – the bread needs to be the same size on both sides! Maths, Physical, PSE
Fire Drill – We carried out a fire drill this week, which led to many conversations about what the ’emergency horn’ is and why we need it so loud. Teachers also talked about the fire extinguishers, and what these are for. Understanding the World
Balancing Beam (and some spontaneous maths) We may plan for a specific area of development, but teaching and learning moments usually touch several areas of learning. When our balancing beam was taken apart, children helped to rebuild it, counting with teachers the number of blocks on each side in order to create a stable beam. Once this was done, they could concentrate on their balancing skills! Maths and Physical learning
Spontaneous teaching moments:
At forest school the teachers provided the duck identification poster and talked to the children about duck feet. A conversation followed about webbed feet and why they are useful for ducks. We also watched some impressive diving skills from one coot, and talked about what he might be looking for under the water. Understanding the World
Super worm – During the reading of this story children noticed the honeycomb and asked what this was and why it was sticky Literacy, Communication and Language
Big Ben in the Construction Area – A child questioned why the clock tower building block was so small, they were familiar with Big Ben, and said it should be bigger than the other blocks in the town he had made. The teacher suggested they add stood Big Ben on bigger blocks. Maths, Physical