Continuing our exploration of our senses we've been outside recognising the visible changes around us in the environment. Leaves and pine cones have begun collecting in abundance in our gardens and surrounding area, which can only mean one thing- it's the start of the welly walk season. Bags on arms, we've been out exploring, looking for autumnal treasure and the wealth of natural resources to explore. Looking upwards as well as down, the children have been finding out about tree life cycles, investigating pine cones and leaves, conkers and seeds.
We've enjoyed reading and re-reading Ferdie and the Falling Leaves together, inspiring beautiful glittery artwork, flexing fingers to crumble leaves, challenging co-ordination to follow the bare branches with glue and practice scissor work to snip leaves. Leaves have become wonderful artwork as wreathes and free form pictures, inspired by stories of Leaf Man and Tree, wonderful autumnal stories that have captured imaginations. There's also been a frenzy of hedgehog art to celebrate the Very Helpful Hedgehog story, painting on easels, playdough modelling and colouring. Continuing to follow our children's interests, pine cones have become spiders, as we've started to find webs out in the garden and tiny spiders hiding in the crevices of the play house.
We've been exploring with our taste buds too, testing our powers of deduction to try and identify the different fruit based drinks of black currant, pineapple and apple. The children proved up to the challenge and identified each one correctly. We even guessed that the orange coloured drink was just water. This lead onto further play with the windfall fruit and vegetable left overs. Pictures were created with focus, carrot peelings became hair, trees and decorations, pear pieces transformed into noses and ears; and rocket leaves became clouds and nests. We used our noses to smell, our hands to touch and our eyes to look at our creations; and watched as the pear pieces browned and the rocket leaves wilted, prompting interest from our pre-schoolers and lots of discussion about decay, we were reminded of bananas at snack time, the different colours and variation between them; and the sludgy mess they create if they're over ripe.
Our hospital has been in service this week too and we've had an abundance of doctors in action, x-rays and patients examined; and medicines prepared and given. Teeth have been brushed and checked, with the crocodile given strict instructions to brush more frequently to look after his beautiful white teeth. We look forward to continuing our exploration of teeth over the coming weeks.
All in all it's been a busy third week of term, as we've all settled into our Stepping Stones routine.
