Kindergarten One continued their learning about winter during their Peacock Lodge session this week. Using a variety of clothing items, the children explored which clothes are suitable for winter and which are worn in warmer weather. They then worked in small groups to sort photographs of items into the correct seasons. Colour sorting was a firm favourite, with the children enthusiastically matching objects and toy animals to different colour cards. These hands-on activities support language development while making learning fun and engaging for our youngest children.
Inspired by our weekly pond sightings, Reception focused their learning on ducks this week. The children learned the names for male and female ducks (drake and hen) and discovered that a group of ducks on water is called a raft. They then explored the Oaks Room, sequencing pictures of a duck’s life cycle, creating nests using sticks and playdough, and developing their counting and number recognition skills by feeding the birds the correct number of ‘worms’. The session also included some bird watching, making it a rich and varied learning experience as the children progress towards earning their Birdwatching Badge.
Kindergarten Two took shelter from the wind and rain in the warmth of Peacock Lodge while learning more about wintry weather. The children decorated snowmen, matching buttons to numerals, practised subitising using the snowy small-world resources, and created mark-making patterns in glittery flour using sticks. Their love of books shone through as they shared stories in the wicker den, eagerly recognising favourites such as Stick Man. To end the session, the children confidently identified the animal in the shared story as a fox and listened attentively to Foxes in the Snow, learning that baby foxes are called cubs and that they live underground in a den.
A bright blue, sun-filled sky provided the perfect backdrop for Forest School on Wednesday. Kindergarten One enjoyed listening to the story Squirrel’s Snowman, eagerly guessing what might be hidden behind each flap. Although we didn’t have real snow, the children were excited to explore different ways of creating snowmen. They decorated snowman pictures using loose parts such as stones and pinecones, and used playdough to roll balls, adding arms, eyes, and noses with twigs and leaves. Pots and pans were transformed into a lively musical band that could be heard far and wide! The children also enjoyed mark-making with white paint and fir tree branches, offering another creative experience, while a muddy puddle provided great excitement for those keen to get messy.
Reception’s Forest School session provided a wonderful opportunity to continue our learning and observations about birds. The children were eager to spot different birds and are becoming increasingly confident and accurate in identifying a variety of species. Together, we made bird feeders by threading cereal hoops onto pipe cleaners and hung them from the trees. Tree climbing and rolling down the hill offered excellent opportunities for physical development, while helping to move branches allowed the children to build their strength and demonstrate fantastic teamwork and determination.
