Kindergarten One
Kindergarten One enjoyed their first outdoor session at Peacock Lodge, exploring a range of water and sand play experiences. The child-sized wheelbarrows were a huge hit, with the children happily pushing them around the space and negotiating their way around one another. They then challenged themselves further by working together to move some of the logs. The children also enjoyed mark-making experiences, stamping apples into paint and creating their own colourful prints.
At Forest School, the children continued to explore sound and music, creating their own rhythms using pots and pans, with infectious giggles spreading throughout the group. Conkers were a new and exciting discovery and were used in a variety of ways, including filling and emptying containers and rolling them down the guttering. The children have also begun to develop their understanding of safe tool use, using trowels to dig into the soil and fill their buckets.
Kindergarten Two
Kindergarten Two have been looking closely for the early signs of Autumn. They were delighted to meet Hedgy the hedgehog again and revisited some of their learning about hibernation. The children then created their own hedgehogs, collecting beautiful fallen leaves and carefully weaving them behind the wool on their hedgehog templates.
A horse chestnut tree provided further excitement as the children watched conker shells fall to the ground. They carefully collected a basketful, noticing and comparing the different shapes and sizes. At Forest School, the children were introduced to a new tool, the ‘palm drill’. With careful guidance and the use of a special clamp, they safely drilled a hole into a conker to create their very own conker necklaces.
This experience provided a wonderful opportunity for the children to develop independence and take ownership of their learning. Safe, early experiences with tools can help build confidence and self-esteem, while the turning motion of the palm drill, combined with the application of pressure, supports both gross and fine motor development. The children wore their conker necklaces with great pride and were eager to show their creations to any passing adults.
Reception
Reception have also been learning more about Autumn and exploring how the changing seasons are a regular and important part of the natural world. They listened to the story Fox’s Favourite Autumn, in which Fox shares his favourite things about the season and explains how he knows Autumn will return each year.
The children then created their own Autumn tree pictures, using leaves to print beautiful patterns in a range of autumnal shades. Their learning continued through conker maths, matching conkers to numbers 1–10, as well as Autumn-themed water play, where they experimented with mixing, pouring and emptying different coloured waters.
At Forest School, Reception continued their Autumnal exploration by combining natural resources with clay to create their own faces. The children thoughtfully selected a variety of treasures, from acorns and sycamore seeds to leaves and other natural materials, carefully arranging them to create individual facial features. They also revisited their mark-making skills using the elderberry paint they had made the previous week. The children were delighted to use the natural paint which produced three beautiful shades of purple, blue and pink, adding colour and detail to their creations.
Looking Ahead
It has been a wonderful week of outdoor exploration, discovery and creativity across all of Early Years. From conkers, leaves and hedgehogs to water, sand and natural materials, the children have been given opportunities to learn through hands-on experiences and to follow their own curiosity. They have been developing their physical skills, confidence, communication and independence while building a growing appreciation for the changing natural world. We look forward to seeing where their outdoor adventures and Autumn discoveries take them next!
