We have continued our Chinese New Year theme this week. Today we made rooster masks, 2017 is the year of the rooster.  All the children got involved sticking beaks and combs on to their masks.  The children have also been learning about Chinese letters and have been tracing their names using them. They have been really focused on this activity and have been practising their fine motor skills.  

Yesterday we used the Geoboards creating lots of great shapes, also some of the children took out the stencils and made some rubbings using wax crayons. 

Today at circle time Jane discussed the Great Wall of China with the children, the children got involved asking and answering questions.  We used the laptop to look at pictures of The Great Wall, the children commented on how small the people looked who were standing on it.  We continued our wall theme after circle time and created a game using ribbon on the floor.  The children had to balance along the ribbon ‘wall’ and negotiate the turns with their partners being careful not to bump into anyone else along the way.  A great exercise in gross motor skills and also their personal, social and emotional development (PSED).

There were more Chinese New Year celebrations today.  We used cut out Chinese style paper clothes, the children used stick glue to place small pieces of ribbon onto the paper. We also made noodles and all tried some using chopstick to scoop them up.  Both these activities were great for fine motor skills.

We also made created a new maths game, using hoops and beanbags.  The children had great fun throwing the correct number of beanbags as fast as they could and even self correcting if they made a mistake. 

This week we having been learning about Chinese New Year.  We have made New Year rooster cards, practised using chopsticks, counted one to five in Mandarin, created Chinese lanterns and have coloured in lion pictures.  We also watched a film on the lion dance for Chinese New Year.  Issy made a lion head and we all took turns dancing around the hall to Chinese music. We have lots more activities to do over the next few sessions.  Learning about other cultures is an important part of Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), within this topic we can incorporate all areas of learning (communication and language, physical development, personal, social and emotional development, literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and expressive arts and design) and have fun doing it!

Today some of the children used the large plastic construction set to make cranes, arms, robots  and lots of other fascinating items.  We had the wooden puzzles out on the mats, lots the children spent a while with these.  Liz came in for singing and movement with the children, we had a few solo singer requests which is always lovely to see. Our music lessons are really great for all areas of learning for the children.  The movement helps with their physical development with motor skills, stretching and awareness of other children around them.  It’s also great for the children’s self confidence, lots of the children really enjoy getting up and singing solo.  There are also areas of mathematics, literacy and ‘understanding the world’ which are developed  with music and movement. 

Following on our ice, snow and cold weather theme we were using the scissors to cut icicles today.  Some of the children liked the challenge of following the lines.  We were using the threading letters to look at the structure of small words, dog, cat, hat and pig.  We had visual illustrations of each, the words which we overlaid with the plastic letters.  

At the moment we are concentrating on the numbers 1-5 and helping the children to recognise these figures and their value.  It would be great if parents could get involved with this too at home.

One final thing we have some beautiful mittens that seem to have been left behind.  Please let us know if they belong to you.

We have continued our theme from last week looking at ice, snow and cold weather.  Yesterday Issy made a messy play tray full of fake snow.  We placed polar bears, penguins and other polar based animals in too.  The children really enjoyed exploring the texture of the snow and burying the animals. The children were using their communication skills to describe the feeling of the snow and building on their vocabulary together.  

Today Issy bought in lots of plastic small world animals that she had frozen in water.  We took the frozen animals out of the plastic cups and discussed how we might get the animals out.  Some of the children tried to hold the ice for a while to see if it melted in their hands, some threw them on the ground to help them escape quickly!  We placed warm water outside in the big trays and we could experiment with defrosting the animals slowly.  This activity really interested the children, they all got involved. They discussed their findings with each other and tried to help each other.  

Some of the boys have been enjoying using the scissors and snipping up old Christmas cards into small pieces. This is great exercise for preschoolers to start. Cutting with scissors can be quite challenging, using fingers and thumbs separately to move the scissors up and down. 

This week we have been talking about ice.  We have been discussing how we can change water to ice, how ice feels, where we might see ice.  On Tuesday all the children took part in an activity using ice cubes and dropping food colouring.  The children worked cooperatively in pairs using straws as droppers.  As we dropped the different colours we could see them mixing together to create new colours.  This gave us an opportunity to look at colours and in some cases predict the colour that would appear when they were mixed.  We also created ice pictures to take home.

As well as our ice activities some of the children have using the magnetic letters with Jane, breaking down small words (eg dog) phonetically. We’ve also been singing and doing actions along with the Jolly Phonics CD.  Liz came in on Tuesday to do some singing, which the children love to get involved with. We had a number of solo singers this week. 

Today we bought the bricks out and the children used them to create lots of different structures including a wall that they enjoyed walking along and jumping over.  

After our Christmas and New Year break we are excited to be back in our newly decorated hall.  The children have settled back in and we have welcomed some new children too.

We made the most of the lovely sunny weather yesterday and were outside playing in the garden.  The children were really interested in the places where the water had frozen.  We discussed the ice and why places in the garden had frozen.  The children loved looking and touching the ice, it’s texture and how it smashed on the ground. 

Today some of the children made a palace using the wooden cubes, shells, metal canisters and wooden storage boxes.  They  spent a long time creating this amazing piece.  Issy made some new playdoh with some of the children counting down the microwave timer and helping to stir.  Some children also spent time listening to the Jolly Phonics CD and following with the book. 

We thought it would be educational for the children to see how the money raised at the nativity could pay for our donation to the Foodbank.  Issy went to the supermarket and bought lots of nappies, wipes, baby formula, toothbrushes and food.  We showed the children all the products and explained to them where they were going and why.  They helped to pack them away in bags before Issy took them over to the Foodbank.  

Wow what a busy week we have had!  Not only have we been getting on with our usual activities.  We have had our Nativity and our end of term Christmas party.

We were so pleased with the children’s fantastic efforts at our nativity.  I hope you will all agree they did so well considering the number of parents and family members.  We have spent a few minutes for the last few weeks going over the songs and the children have enjoyed learning and singing the songs.

Thank you to everyone who helped with teas, coffees, selling raffle tickets, bringing cakes, raffle prizes and of course contributing on the day.  We raised £99 from raffle ticket sales, which will go directly back to preschool.  The refreshments raised £95 for the East Grinstead Food Bank.  All in all an amazing event that has not only helped our preschool but also people in our area who are needing help with food.

This week has been another filled week so far.  Yesterday we went to the Primary school to see their Nativity.  The children all sat very well and listened to the whole play and were fascinated.  Well done to all the children and their teachers for a great performance. 

Today we put up our new preschool Christmas tree.  Our tree and decorations were kindly donated by Homebase along with lights. This is preschool’s first ever Christmas tree, many of the children helped to thread the string on the baubles and place them on the tree.  Another great opportunity to get fine motor work in.  We have also put our handmade Tree decorations on. 

Issy has been busy making some of the Nativity set with some of the children which has involved lots of cutting and sticking.

As well as all our Christmas activities this week we been using the gears set, threading and the children have been creating some fantastic pictures with felt pens, paint and sticking.

Please look for the sheets to sign up for help with the Christmas party and nativity food, also raffle prizes.  Every little helps us to continue to keep our community preschool thriving.