Holy Family Preschool Reflection Term 2 – Week 3 #2025

Nina Marni preschool children and families and welcome to our weekly blog.

Re-establish expectations within our community and foster each child’s sense of ownership in being active, respectful and involved participants in the preschool program.

Why: All children are competent and capable and should have endless opportunities to apply their innate agency. We have new members within our community (children, families and educators) who will require support in adapting to our rhythms and rituals. In the approved learning frameworks, agency is defined as being able to make choices and decisions to influence events and to have an impact on one’s world. Supporting children’s agency is about recognising that children have a right to make choices and decisions and are capable of initiating their own learning.  Each stage with development comes with new interests, capabilities, and requirements. On reflection, educators believe that revisiting our expectations (developed with children in term 1) should be revisited and re-designed collaboratively.

On reflection, educators have re-designed some learning areas within preschool. Children will require some scaffolding to become familiar with new spaces and materials to ensure that they are maintained and used safely

ILPs – HM, RW, SG, TB, ZH

Learning Intention :2

Sacred symbols are special and important.Why?
Doctrinal Insights from the Catholic Tradition that support this Enduring Understanding include:Sacred symbols remind us that God is close to us, and with us.In my Catholic learning environment, I can see many sacred symbols.Candle flames remind us that God is with us.The Bible reminds us of God’s love for us through special stories.The Cross reminds us of Jesus.Water is used for special blessingsSacred symbols are used in my school/ELC and in church celebrations, prayer and liturgy. (CCC1145)Other faith traditions also have sacred symbolsThe Sign of the Cross is a prayer to God.Doctrinal and Content Elaborations:Doctrinal Insights from the Catholic Tradition that support this Enduring Understanding include:The Sign of the Cross is a prayer with actions and words.The words remind us that God is called Father, Son and Holy Spirit.The actions represent the symbol of the Cross, and that prayer involves our head, heart and body.

Learning Intention :3

To support children to develop positive and inclusive dispositions towards diversity by learning about the festival of Vesak celebrated by Buddhists all over the world ILPs – All children

Why: Inclusive education is about everyone learning, growing and flourishing together – in all our diversity. It embraces human diversity and welcomes all as equal members of an educational community.Inclusive education supports the development of qualities such as patience and trust, as well as greater awareness and responsiveness to the needs of others and their beliefsIt results in increased awareness and valuing of diversity, and understanding of individuality

Preschool children were engaged in making and decorating Vesak lanterns . Children loved this activity and this activity is developing their fine motor skills, hand -eye coordination, and visual perception.This activity also enhance focus, attention, and even contribute to a child’s creative expression and sense of accomplishment.

We read book to our preschool children about different festivals people celebrated around to world .

Literacy and numeracy intentions To engage in open-ended small world play at the story table (Owl Babies) and the sensory table (under the sea)
ILPs – CB, NS, JL To be able to identify and
name numbers to 10 and represent each number using loose parts materialsILPs – All children

Children have shown a great interest in the bearded dragon which is in the MUDLA and have been inquiring about it’s movements, what it eats, drinks and does. Hence, we planned to initiate an inquiry project on bearded dragons. As a first step, arranged for an expert (Mr Gerry McCarthy) to speak to the children and provide us with more information about the bearded dragons. Children were very intrigued during this experience and learned many things. They also got the opportunity to feel the bearded dragon and hold it.

What we have learnt

What children recalled after the session with Mr McCarthy:

It has sharp claws – HM
He stuck his tongue to eat worms – RG
It was a little bit white – JN
Brown, yellow – HM, SS
Soft – IsG
He eats carrots and strawberries – JN
He eats salad – HM

Last week some of our children have shown interest in fishes and sharks so we created ocean sensory table with shark book . We also read shark book story to children as well.