Before the sunshine came out this week we had a wonderful time in the rain in the big playground. We used our whole bodies to explore some scientific questions, for example... 

We wondered why some areas of the playground had deep puddles and realised that it is because there were dips in the concrete. We also explored trying to dam the flow of water down to the drain.

Next, we experimented with who could make the biggest splashes. We found out that the best way to make a huge splash was to jump with two feet together and, much to the children's surprise, the big, heavy grown ups could make the biggest splashes of everyone!

The week before half term we enjoyed lots of sensory play and stories related to Valentine's Day. We talked about who we love and made cards for them by practising using the pva glue to stick hearts onto our cards. We also greatly enjoyed exploring some coloured spaghetti, we scooped it into bowls and pots and used vocabulary such as long and short, slippery and slimey!

This half term in Nursery, we have introduced ‘Mystery Motor skills’ as part of our morning routine. The children have enjoyed jumping, balancing along beams, climbing through tunnels and throwing and catching beanbags!

Last week we was Children's Mental Health Week. In Nursery, we focused on feelings and the children were brilliant at identifying their own feelings and beginning to work out how others might be feeling from their expressions or behaviour.

We thought about things that can help us to calm our bodies down if we are feeling very excited, cross or worried. We learned how to do a big breath in and then a loooong breath out, for example by pretending we were holding a bowl of hot dinner and blowing on it to cool it down. In our small group sessions we made glitter bottles and practised breathing while we watched the glitter settle again. 

We also read lots of stories with a focus on feelings, mental health and being proud to be yourself!

This week in Nursery we have been learning about Lunar New Year. The children have taken part in a range of activities which included; Looking at similarities and differences between numerals, making Lunar New Year inspired dragons, and finally acting out the story of the Great Race using shadow puppets!

Recently in Nursery we have noticed that lots of our children are passionate about vehicles of all shapes and sizes! To support this interest, Mrs Fleck collected together as many books as she could find about different kinds of transport and added them to an old fashioned suitcase. There was much curiosity about the suitcase when it appeared in Nursery and the children have been fascinated by the books inside! We learned lots of new and interesting vocabulary, for example 'excavator', 'transporter' and 'stretch hummer limmo'(!) and the children were buzzing with conversation about which they had seen before and what each vehicle was for. It also inspired lots of imaginary play with different vehicles, and after talking about different tyres some children added them to the painting table so we could see the tracks more clearly. We are looking forward to seeing what kind of books will appear in the suitcase next time!

Yesterday we celebrated, 'This is Me!' Day. We talked about how we are all different but all very special and we all have different skills. Some of our teachers showed off their talents; Mrs Huskinson played her guitar, Ms Chappell showed off her rollerskating skills and Mrs Glindon showed us how to tap dance! The children all had brilliant ideas about things they are good at and showed off dancing, gymnastics, singing and cartwheeling skills. They also told us other things they are good at, including 'Helping Mummy with the washing' and 'Running really fast!'. After this, the children made pictures of their skills to show to their Reception class teachers on Thursday.

Last Friday was Science Day in Nursery. We began the day in the school hall with a special STEM ambassador guest speaker called Ethan. He talked to us about the ways we can look after our planet and we shared what we had learnt when reading 'Greta and the Giants', a story about climate change. In Nursery, we found out about Daniella Dos Santos, a British Veterinary Scientist and her role looking after pets and other animals. We had fun pretending to be vets ourselves and we took turns to care for the animals. We also thought about our own bodies and all the special jobs it does, creating a class poster together. The children showed curiousity and enquiry skills throughout Science Day, well done Nursery! 

It has been a bug-tastic week in Nursery! The children visited the bug hotel in our outdoor area, and thought about what the mini-beasts living nearby might like in their home. They collected sticks, leaves, soil, pine-cones and grass to add to the mini-beast's habitat - not forgetting lots of minibeasts to introduce to their new and improved home! The children showed curiosity and kindness this week, well done Nursery!

It has been a fun filled and busy end of term in Nursery. The children decorated 'nature eggs' in our outside area, collecting grass, sticks, daisies and leaves to decorate their eggs. They also made Easter cards, tearing yellow tissue paper to make their Easter chick. The children rounded off the term by working together to make Easter nest cakes, melting chocolate and mixing in rice crispies. Yummy!