Celebrating and Remembering

This week we have welcomed the children back after half term and we have had a very busy week, focusing on Bonfire Night, rhyme town, stories involving the number 3 and Remembrance Day. 

We have been using our artistic skills with different types of paint to create firework patterns in the outdoor area. Using a long piece of fabric, paintbrushes and paint, we splatted the paint onto the fabric. With all of the bright colours we used it created a firework effect. We've also explored the powder paints. After wetting the floor outside we used spoons to scoop up the paint and flick it onto the floor, which also created a similar effect. During our carpet time we've also been discussing a little bit of the history of Bonfire Night and learning the rhyme 'Remember, remember the fifth of November.' We also had lots of fun making sparklers with breadsticks, chocolate and sprinkles for snack. This was a lovely treat for the children and they thoroughly enjoyed it. 

In rhyme town we have been focusing on 'Incy Wincy Spider' and 'Rain, Rain, Go Away.' Our pre-writing shape is a diagonal line, starting at the top and sliding down, as in 'X.' This is our first week of this rhyme town so we will be exploring it more next week. 

We have also had fun listening to stories involving the number '3.' Such as 'The Three Billy Goats Gruff', 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears' and 'The Three Little Pigs.' We have been acting our these stories which helps the children to understand the different parts of the story. Everyone has had lots of fun with this activity! We will continue to explore numbers to three and beyond. 

Finally, we have been exploring Remembrance Day. We've been using our creative skills to make poppies. Using red tissue paper to scrunch up and stick onto paper templates. We then stuck lollipop sticks to the back of them as the stem. We are going to take these into assembly on the 11th November, alongside a collaborative wreath we have made out of egg cartons. Some of the children took it in turns to paint this red so it looks like a poppy. The children have all been asking lots of questions about the meaning of the poppies, we have explained briefly about the history behind it. We've also been using the playdough to make poppies. This helps the children with strengthening their hands and fine motor skills. We used red dough cut out black circles for the centre of the poppies, and used green lollipop sticks as the stems. All of the children enjoy exploring the playdough so they had lots of fun with this.