Weekly roundup - 12 January 2024

Welcome back and a Happy New Year to all of you! 

The children have shared many of their experiences of being with family and friends over the Christmas break and have settled back in well. They have been taking part in lots of activities related to our topic, People Who Help Us and have enjoyed exploring small world resources and role play. In Honeys some of the children used bandages and medical equipment while pretending to be doctors and nurses and the Bumbles children learnt about hospitals. They put together their own X-Rays and discussed how we all have different sized bones in our bodies that can be seen with a special machine.

We have spent time talking about the people that might help us in everyday life, for example, our parents, teachers, doctors and shop assistants etc. Our intention is to help the children's development of understanding the world by showing interest in different occupations and noticing the differences between people. Playing with small figures, vehicles and dolls houses and engaging in role play allows the children to develop and make up complex stories, supporting their understanding through the worlds they create and allowing them to express themselves. They can work through these ideas with pretend characters, working through scenarios and trying to understand how each character behaves.

Our current featured artist is Banksy and the children have observed the piece 'Girl With A Balloon', exploring his skills and learning about the techniques he uses. Some of the Bumbles attempted to create their own versions of graffiti art in the tuff tray using chalks. We'll be looking at some more of Banksy's artwork over the coming weeks and inspiring the children to get creative.

To help promote communication & language both at home and in the setting you may have seen a white tree on the reception desk. This is our Wow Word Tree and is for parents and staff to use to encourage the development of language and build upon our already 'chatty' setting. 

Wow Word Tree!

Celebrate my words with me and put a leaf upon our tree.
Please write your child’s ‘wow word’ on one of our leaves & hang it on our tree. This can be any word which makes you go ‘wow’!
Let’s watch our tree grow!

Types of words: Noun: a naming word – e.g. person, place, thing. Verb: a doing, being or action word – e.g. jump, run, talk Adjective: a describing word – e.g. big, fast, red.

For more advice and ideas about how to support your child's communication and language at home visit; www.bbc.co.uk/tiny-happy-people  www.nhs.uk/start-for-life/toddler/learning-to-talk/learning-to-talk 

Wow Moments

'Wow Moments' are available at reception for you to complete when your child has done something they can be proud of. Children are encouraged to talk about their achievements with the staff and other children. These are a great way for staff to gain further information about their key children at home and promote self-esteem and confidence. 

Library and Borrow Bags

Don’t forget our Library and Borrow Bags too! Just speak to your child's Key Worker or Rachel/ Carla for a Reading Record, stamp or borrow bag.

Superstar Sports has resumed with a new coach who taught the children about rugby which was very well received by both Honeys and Bumbles. More fun with keeping active next Monday!

Have a great weekend.