Nina Marni, all our little learners and awesome families,
Welcome to our third term & week four preschool blog.
We warmly welcome all new and existing families to our weekly blog as we share some learning experiences from this week.
Learning Intention 1:
To establish group norms to support a safe and inclusive learning environment for everyone (building on from the previous week).
Why?
• Group norms help children understand how to interact respectfully with their peers and adults. This can lead to increased social interactions, development of social skills, and a greater appreciation for diversity.
• When children know what is expected of them, they feel safer and more secure in their environment.
• Feeling safe and included fosters a positive sense of self-esteem and confidence in young children.
ILPs – All children
• Read stories about respect, being kind, frienships or helping others (Teeth are Not for Biting, Hands are Not for Hitting, Have You Filled a Bucket Today? My Friends, How to Make a New Friend)
• Discuss the following with children and create a poster together.
- How can we help each other be safe?
- How can we be safe in our preschool room and the outdoor environment?
- Encourage children to voice their thoughts and draw pictures
• Display the poster created together in the preschool room
• Display the buckets for filling with cut out stars after reading/ listening to the ‘have you filled a bucket today’ book.
• Story of the week – Possum Magic
• Rest time stories – (Giraffe’s Can’t Dance)
Learning Intention 2:
To engage in science experiments that support us in asking questions, making predictions and observing and drawing conclusions as we celebrate national science week.
Why?
• Children are naturally curious. Science experiments tap into their sense of wonder and help them explore the world around them.
• Experiments teach kids to ask questions, make predictions, observe, and draw conclusions, which are important foundations for critical thinking.
• Talking about what they see and do during experiments helps children build vocabulary and communication skills.
• Experiments often involve trial and error. Children learn how to test ideas, change plans, and find solutions.
ILPs – All children
• The children will be introduced to the ingredients used in each experiment and supported to name them.
• The children will be supported when making predictions, observations and drawing conclusions.
• The children will be supported to become familiar with the terms ‘prediction, observation, and conclusion.
• Setting up many science experiments for children to engage in,
- Volcano in the sandpit
- Walking water experiment
- Making fizz balls
- Rainbow rain
- Magic milk experiment
Learning Intention 3:
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.
o Candle flames remind us that God is with us.
o The Bible reminds us of God’s love for us through special stories.
o The Cross reminds us of Jesus.
o Water is used for special blessings.
• Sacred symbols are used in my school/ELC and in church celebrations, prayer and liturgy. (CCC1145)
Other faith traditions also have sacred symbols
The 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.
ILP’S: All Children
Each morning children engage in making the sign of the cross, singing the prayer song and saying a little prayer to God our Father. Children join their hands and engage in song and prayer respectfully.
Celebration of Rahki festival.
Raksha Bandhan, also known as Rakhi, is a Hindu festival that celebrates the love and duty between brothers and sisters. It’s a celebration of the bond of protection, where sisters tie a sacred thread (rakhi) around their brothers’ wrists, symbolizing their prayers for their well-being.
In celebrating this festival, children will be making bracelets and sharing them with their friends.
Literacy and numeracy intentions
Literacy
• To support fine motor skills by tracing patterns.
• To be able to identify and speak about their family members.
Why?
• Tracing helps children build hand-eye coordination and learn the basic strokes needed for writing letters.
• Literacy incorporates a range of modes of communication including music, movement, dance, storytelling, visual arts, media and drama, as well as talking, signing, reading and writing.
• When tracing, children learn to follow a sequence of steps, which can help them develop problem-solving skills and improve their ability to concentrate on other tasks as well.
• Talking about family helps children understand where they come from, who loves and cares for them, and what makes them unique.
• Describing family members (E.g. “My sister has curly hair”) helps children practice using descriptive language and storytelling, conversations and vocabulary growth.
Numeracy
• To be able to identify and name basic 2D shapes.
Why?
• Shapes are one of the first concepts in geometry.
• Recognizing and naming shapes helps children learn to classify and sort, which are foundational skills for math.
• Identifying and comparing shapes helps children develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
• It encourages attention to detail and pattern recognition.
• Many letters and numbers are made up of shapes.
ILPs – All children
• Identifying initial letters of children’s names – if your name starts with ‘s’ you can…
• Singing the phonics song for sound of the week – /a/
• Supporting children identify numbers in their surrounding environments
• Group time – Support children to share their family photo with the class
• Literacy provocations – Tracing patterns.
• Mark-making –Drawing their family members.
• Maths provocation –Number and quantity.
• Art and Craft – Mixing colours.
• Role-play – Hair salon
• Construction– blocks.
COMMUNITY FUN WITH NEW FRIENDS:-
SOME SPEKS OF GOLD FOR THIRD WEEK OF TERM THREE: – 2025. [PRESCHOOL]
Cooking Club: Making Biscuites
children enjoyed biscuites making activity with nfriends.
Making biscuits with preschool-aged children offers numerous developmental benefits.
1. Develops Life Skills ·
2. Improves Motor Skills ·
3. Increases Reading & Language Skills ·
4. Improves Maths & Numeracy Skills ·
Friendly reminder for families, Please send a family photo if you have not already done so, as children will be given the opportunilty to talk about them next week.
We hope all our ELC children and families had a great week and wishing all of you having wonderful weekend.
Take care guys & Thank you once again for your good understaning and support as being a great parents/carers.
We will see you all back on next week. Stay safe and warm.