It’s amazing that we are already halfway through Term Two, time certainly flies when you’re having fun. We welcomed our new teaching assistant Sandhya to Red Group at the beginning of Term Two, how lucky we were to find such a caring, knowledgeable educator. Thank you to Fiona, Anna, Michelle and Georgie for working with me in Term One, it’s always such a pleasure to work with such passionate teachers.
So far this Term the children have been focused on outdoors play. The swings, sand pit, mud kitchen and green hill are used every week. One particular interest, which is repeated weekly, is rolling balls down the hill. The children eagerly chase the balls down and gather them up to start again. They are working on many physical and social developmental areas during this play. I can see many beautiful social moments when balls are shared, and children wait for their turn. Sometimes we need a little reminder about safety, so we are introducing the concept of doing a “safety check” before you do something. They will use this skill when they are at kindy and Bush Kindy next year.
We have put out the bouncy plank and soft mat a few times this Term, which the children have loved. Just like the ball rolling game, the children are negotiating turn taking, looking out for their friends and having fun.
Many children are beginning to play together in a very mature, cooperative play style. They can take turns, share ideas and negotiate ideas for their play. Some still prefer to play alone for part of the afternoon, but we are all keen to come to the mat for singing, games and stories. They all come racing to the mat when we ring the bells and I encourage them to choose the story and songs for mat time to help them think about what they like and what interests them.
The children were keen to make a gift and a card for their mums, I was amazed at how many helpers there were to make the sugar scrub. We sent the gifts home this week, but don’t worry if you didn’t get yours, you will get it next week. We hope to have a new date for the Mothers Day Campfire soon, so we can all celebrate our wonderful mums.
Many of the children love to paint, and we have offered a variety of mediums. We have used acrylic paints and water colours, so far. We did finger painting this week, getting fully immersed in the tactile experience and colour combining. We have an amazing Art Show in September, and we will be collecting some of your children’s art for that event. We will be sharing more information about the Art Show next Term, but please Save the Date in your diary now, Saturday 10th of September.
Have you thought about coming to visit Red Group? We love parents and grandparents to join us for the afternoon, just add your name to the Roster list. Impromptu visits are fine also, we value all family connections at pre-kindy. If you have an interest or skill you would like to share with everyone, please have a chat with me and we can work out a suitable time for you to share it with the group.
