Brrrrrr….. there has been a definite drop in temperature in the last week or so. Cool, dry and bright spells have meant we are still able to get outside. We believe it is better to learn about the seasons by experiencing them first hand and not just talking about them – although this is important too! Remember there is no such thing as bad weather – just bad clothing. We strongly advise hats, gloves and warm padded jackets. Wellies can ensure little feet are kept dry and cosy too. For the children who are with us in the afternoons the darker evenings mean we can explore the dark which produces lots of giggles. Torch play is a favourite past time this season.

The babies get excited at hats and coats time as they know the doors will soon be opened. The children are allowed to move from the inside to the outside or vice versa as they choose. Keyworkers provide different resources in all areas depending on their children’s interests and needs. For the children who are not quite able to move independently their keyworkers watch them closely for visual cues from the baby as to what they would like/ need. Has your baby been making the “Choo, choo” sound of a train lately? This could be down to their imaginative box play encouraged by the baby room team. The children have been climbing aboard boxes to ride a train.

In the toddler room, children are still getting plenty of outside time too. When the weather has been very wet and windy though our indoor activities have been concentrating on developing the social skills of sharing and co-operation. Small group activities including arts & crafts, play dough, jigsaws and block play are great for this. The toddlers marked the change in season by hanging their Winter tree. Lots of little hands went into making this.

Meanwhile in the Montessori the cooler weather has allowed us to set up state of matter experiments. The children have been fascinated with the thin sheets of ice formed. The children discussed how it looks like glass and found that it shatters very easily – which was quite fun. One child asked their teacher “Why does the ice leak in my hand?” This was the perfect opportunity for the teacher to talk about melting and the change of state being caused by the heat from the child’s hands. It also made the teacher smile.

Be sure to check out next week’s blog!