Learn Through Play - Bears In The Water

Our second episode of Snapshot: Learn Through Play takes a look at how the children have learned using a famous story, as well as enjoying some water play.

Painting the story

The children are given the opportunity to use paints to represent the three bears in the story.  Having the freedom to experiment and mix the colours and also explore the texture of the paint allows the children to build their confidence in manipulating the materials.

Being able to have the choice to select finer paint brushes enhances their fine motor skills and encourages new techniques. 

Language is being developed as the children are confidently trying a new activity and are engaged in talking about their ideas for their painting.

It's a small world

After becoming familiar with the story the children enjoy collaborating together, acting out ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ using small world toys. Their language and communication skills are being developed as they repeat the narrative of the story. They are developing their ability to recall and sequence story events in the correct order. As they remember the story, the use of more complex sentences develop as they link their ideas together.

Recreating a familiar environment the children are building on their knowledge of their surroundings and the world they live in. The key person asks questions that extend the children’s thinking on what the bears might be feeling. 

Their knowledge of  mathematical concepts is being boosted as they explore size and quantity with in the story such as ‘big, medium, small’ and ‘one, two, three'. The children’s social skills are developing as they listen to and respond to their friends as they act out the story.

The shape of water

Putting on their aprons by themselves develops independent skills. The children learn co-operation skills as they discuss the resources they can share to experiment with. 

Mathematical language is used by the key worker to encourage and build on the children’s understanding of measurement and counting, such as "the container is empty", "the pot is full up", "you have poured half of it out", "let’s count how many scoops of water it takes to fill the container". Children also are able to use their estimating skills by figuring out how many scoops it will take to fill the pot. The sensory experience of playing with water often brings a sense of joy and well being to the children.

So that's it for this time and we'll be back soon to continue our learning on Snapshot: Learn Through Play.

Learn Through Play - The Gingerbread Man

In our new Snapshot series, 'Learn Through Play', we examine the educational methods behind each activity, analysing what the children are learning from their experiences and how it helps them evolve and grow whilst at nursery.

This first episode is hosted by one of our Early Years Advisory Teachers, Catherine Bond, as she studies the activities the children enjoyed for January's 'Book of the Month' - The Gingerbread Man. Have a watch of the video or read through Catherine's notes and accompanying pictures.

Gingerbread gloop

Gloop gives children opportunity to explore materials using their senses. The ginger presented to the children gave them a new powerful scent to experience.

Communication and Language development is being supported by the use of the story’s repeated rhyming refrain. As the children join in they are building their attention and listening skills. Early literacy is supported through the growing awareness of the rhythm and pattern involved in story language.

Physical skills are being developed through controlling the one handed tools to mix the ingredients together. They are physically exploring the texture of the gloop and learning about the consistency of the thick liquid and how it behaves when poured and dripped through fingers.

Making marks using their fingers and tools is providing experience important to the developmental journey from experimentation to subsequent early writing. Forming circles is another important element of this.

Gingerbread dough

In this dough exploration these babies are using their developing fine motor skills to control different tools. The process of exploring is as important as the end result of achieving a little Gingerbread Man shape.

This particular activity requires them to explore the range of physical movements involved in rolling with rolling pins, cutting with wheels and gingerbread man shaped cutters. The Key Person is helping them to acquire these skills by showing them and guiding their actions, this leads to having a go by themselves as they copy the actions they have seen and experienced.

Communication and Language skills are being developed through the staff providing an ongoing narrative for what is happening using a range of descriptive vocabulary. This gives meaning to the words as the child physically experiences the action simultaneously as they press, roll or cut. A roly poly rhyme gives added emphasis to the use of the rolling pins.

These older children have refined their physical skills in the use of rolling pins to successfully flatten the gingerbread dough and press down cutters to make a gingerbread man.

Their emotional development and well being is boosted through the sense of achievement having a go by themselves provides. The Key Person reinforces the related language throughout.

Body drawings

Drawing around a child to create a large scale gingerbread man image requires teamwork with the Key Person and children working together in a small social group. This requires skills of listening and following simple instructions.

The Key Person names each body part as she draws around it, and uses language related to the direction of the marks as she makes them such as around and down. This ongoing narrative reinforces children’s knowledge and related vocabulary.

The children’s fine motor control is being developed through the use of coloured crayons to mark out the outline. The children were free to explore making their own marks, with all attempts being valued. This is important in encouraging a positive willingness to have a go that will stay with them as they continue to develop both early drawing and writing skills as they progress through the Early Years Foundation Stage.

The position of the paper on the floor enables these young children to move more freely without being restricted to a chair and table top, which is beneficial to the flow of their mark making movements at this stage in their physical development. They are motivated to persist with the task, concentrating on what they are doing together. The end result is shared and celebrated together.

Run, Run, As Fast As You Can

Outside provides the space to move freely in this running game of chasing The Gingerbread Man. The children’s physical skills are challenged by negotiating their way around the various obstacles in their path in the playground. They are also acquiring the ability to vary and control their speed and direction.

Communication and Language development is supported as the children are experiencing listening and following instructions and understanding the concept of stopping and starting. The children are also gaining skills of cooperating in a small social group and following the rules of the game together.

The story is experienced in a new way through this very active approach which gives all children the opportunity to access learning in a way that suits them.

“Fee Fie Fo Fum!” - Traditional Tales at Snapdragons

Each month we focus on a well loved story as we believe that storytelling and a love of books are vital in providing a firm foundation for our children’s communication and language development, and readiness for reading and writing.

The stories we have chosen include modern favourites such as The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Peace At Last and We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. We also like to focus on those enduring classic folk tales which we all remember from our childhood such as; The Three Little Pigs, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, and Little Red Riding Hood.

Our planning incorporates the story of the month, and many fun activities grow from the ideas sparked by the children’s interest and enjoyment in the story’s characters and events. Our children are currently exploring ideas surrounding “Jack and The Beanstalk” with cries of “Fee Fie Fo Fum!” resounding from every corner of our nurseries!

Activities include exploring the variety of different leaves in the local environment and using their creative skills to make leafy Beanstalks of their own. Beans have been planted in clear bags so the growth of shoots and roots can be observed. Story maps full of imaginative ideas have been plotted using drawing, early writing and mark making. Alternative versions of the story are being shared so the perspective of the Giant is considered and different feelings explored. Role play corners have giant sized tables, bowls and plates fit for a Giant. Construction areas are busy building castles, and magic beanstalks have sprouted and grown up through the ceiling in many of our playrooms! 

Like so many of the traditional tales, the story of Jack and The Beanstalk has been passed down through the generations, surviving through storytelling. Jack and the Beanstalk was recorded as “The Story of Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean” and “Jack The Giant Killer” in the 17th and 18th century. However, research has now revealed that this story and other folk tales actually have much earlier origins than previously thought. Many have been traced back to more than 5,000 years ago!

The Giant has gone by many names over the years, including “Blunderbore”and “Gogmagog”, but his familiar cry of “Fee, Fie, Fo, Fum! I smell the blood of an English man” remains. This seemingly nonsense phrase is thought to be Gaelic in origin and has a meaning of disapproval and anger. “Fie, foh and fum, I smell the blood of a British man” features in Shakespeare’s King Lear.

Whatever the origin, it is repeated phrases such as this that enable children to remember and join in with the story with enjoyment. We like getting the children actively involved, getting up and becoming the characters, stomping like the giant or climbing the beanstalk as Jack. So with each of our traditional tales we encourage not only sharing the book of the story, but telling the story ourselves, carrying on this age old tradition, and hopefully our children will pass this down to their little ones one day too! 

Natural Objects To Spark The Imagination

The way an activity is presented to the children has a powerful impact on its potential for learning. Skilled adults provoke children's interest and curiosity through the way they set up resources. This invites children in, leading them to become engaged and motivated, with opportunities to extend their thinking.

Initially a house was made with sticks, which then sparked her own recall of the snake’s log pile house from “The Gruffalo”.

A child entered into this activity, tempted in through the adult’s arrangement of a tree with bark and leaves, and a bird using circles of wood and sticks for a beak and legs. This was rooted in the children's interest in the different birds from our recent story focus of “Chicken Licken”.

As a variety of natural objects are available for exploration, presented in baskets for the children to select freely, this enabled her to build upon and develop her own ideas in the following ways.

Leaves were used for the fox’s den, it was important to her to provide him with some of these leaves to use as a blanket.

The owl’s house was created using bark pieces placed to form a large tree with spreading branches.

Shiny stones were selected and lined up to mark out the mouse house. Then finally, pine cones were carefully arranged for the Gruffalo’s cave, complete with a piece of bark stood up as his door.

The owl’s house was created using bark pieces placed to form a large tree with spreading branches.

These natural loose parts had been used by the child to create a complete story environment. A toy mouse could then explore and visit each of the character’s homes, retelling the story in her own way.

From an inspiring starting point, ideas evolved through the child’s own story knowledge and creativity. Freedom to select and arrange these natural objects gave the control to make her own choices and decisions. The open ended nature of this activity gave her the opportunity to use objects to represent the features of a story she knows well and remain motivated through her own interests.

This activity was an effective context in which she could use her communication skills to express her ideas. Also physical and mathematical experience was gained through manipulating and arranging the objects carefully. Access to this variety of natural materials also increases understanding of the world around us.

All this learning and imagination from such simple resources, and so much fun!