Reddam ELS Lindfield Newsletter Term 4 Week 2 Friday 20th October 2023
Principals Message by Lara Wilson
1 - “Children are active constructors of knowledge. They are not empty vessels waiting to be filled; they are already full of curiosity and ideas.” – Alison Gopnik
Dear Families and caregivers, As we move into the warmer weather, Reggio Emilia sensory provocations are incorporated into our curriculum based on the children’s interests. Sensory provocations encourage independent discoveries, inspire children to form open ended conclusions about the world around them and reinforce the learning of cause and effect. Sensory provocations are all about providing open ended activities for the children to experience the world around them without overt guidance from the teachers. This week, Stage 1 immersed a multitude of sensory experiences into their curriculum. Children were afforded the opportunity to explore through their sense of touch and smell in these play-based experiences and over the past week, I have observed the children engaged in captivating play with their friends where play dough was used as “cement” to build walls with construction vehicles and large ice cubes were carefully prepared with Spring flowers frozen inside to invoke curiosity and wonder as we watch them melt. Children giggled with glee as they attempted to mould slime into a shape, only to watch it form a gloopy mess in their tray. Small scoops and cups were arranged in sand as the children experimented with water and we observed the most magical sculptures created. Sensory play has many benefits apart from exploration; motor skills are developed through dumping, filling, kneading and scooping and children work collaboratively with one another to strengthen social friendships. Conversations flow throughout sensory experiences as we are challenged with the what, why and how? Sensory experiences often provide children with a sense of calm and can be used to support children through challenging times.
You can join in with your child and create sensory resources together at home. Homemade playdough and slime, treasure buckets filled with sensory items, sensory bottles and cloud dough, kinetic sand and icy flower cubes are just some of the resources we can make at home that allow for open ended exploration. Next week, school photographs will be held from Tuesday 24th to Friday 27th October. You can find more information about the photography company here: https://www.ncsphotos.com.au/
Have a lovely weekend and I look forward to seeing you all next week.
Lara Wilson, Principal
Stage 1R “Our task is to help children communicate with the world using all their potential, strengths and languages, and to overcome any obstacle presented by our culture. ” (Loris Malaguzzi)
Dearest 1R Families, It has been another beautiful week in the Nursery as we continue exploring all things 'Spring' with the children. 1R have continued to demonstrate interest around all things flowers, plants, animals and nature and we have . The group each day have shown us this through their eagerness to navigate the space confidently while inviting their peers and educators to join in investigating our provocations each day.
This week the Nursery continued their learning journey with an emphasis on sensory exploration. Our stand out provocation this week was easily our beautiful sensory trays. Each day Nika, Jing and Cigdem collected natural and processed materials to create a multi sensory experience for the group as they explored the textures, smell - and maybe a little taste! - of the objects. The children's fine motor development was showcased as they poked, squeezed, prodded, poured and mixed different shapes, sizes and weighted resources. Sand, petals, sticks, feathers, leaves, slime, wood pieces were popular staples this week. The group were thrilled when we added ice cubes and coloured water to the mix! Many of the group enjoyed simply holding and fingering ice cubes while others worked at chipping away and melting the cubes in their little hands. Aside from being an stimulating visual and tactile experience, provocations such as this create opportunities for the group to begin exploring their emerging cognitive, social and communicative skills. Questions posed by educators such as 'What colour is the sand?', 'Is it hot or cold?' , 'Which leaf is big? Which is small?', 'Can you point to the white shell?' invite the children to use their developing critical thinking and receptive communicative skills. Further to this, our educators love hearing the children as they begin to try out formulating some of their first sounds, words and sentences in response. We will be bringing our ever loved sensory trays into next weeks learning environment, keeping elements that proved popular this week as well as adding some new ones to reflect some new interests in the room that emerged over the week. Our stand out specialist class this week was a wonderful Drama session with Miss Chelsea. Along the theme of our Term 4 provocation, Storytelling, Miss Chelsea brought in an array of adorable, colourful soft puppets that the children thoroughly enjoyed. Some of the group enjoyed feeling the soft textures and parts of the animal puppets where some of our older children enjoyed animating and role playing along with their friends. It is so wonderful seeing our nursery children feel so confident in expressing their excitement with their educators and their peers. The weather this week afforded us some brief opportunity to enjoy the dry outdoors and we made full use of the beautiful sunshine. The Stage 1 Yard saw an extension of our indoor table interests as the children took to the garden and the mud kitchen area to create what appeared to be, their own version of our sensory trays! The children added rocks, dirt, bark, fallen twigs and even some lost Lego and puzzle pieces to fill up their cups and bowls. The children appeared to very much enjoy scooping and transferring their concoctions into different sized vessels as they spend extended periods of time engrossed in this. It wouldn't be a wonderful week in the nursery without some fun outdoor physical challenges! Our large foam blocks served as an obstacle course on the Stage 1 hill. As well as gross motor development, we observed a great deal of the children showing off their resilience and determination as they navigated the blocks, high, low, curved and sloped. With trial, error and lots of encouragement from their educators, we witnessed many proud and satisfied smiles as they conquered the climb! Wishing all our families a wonderful weekend Jing, Nika and Cigdem
Stage 1E “Children are not things to be molded, but are people to be unfolded.” (Jess Lair)
Dear Families, We are thrilled to provide you with a glimpse into the wonderful week that your children have had here at Reddam ELS Lindfield. Our focus this week revolved around cars, vehicles, construction, and sensory play-based experiences. It was a week filled with exploration, creativity, and valuable learning opportunities. Miss Natalie guided the children in a fascinating adventure of making playdough, which they later used in construction play. They explored the texture of flour and watched it fall through their fingers to experience its softness. The children's interest in playdough and construction continued as they used the playdough as "cement" to build walls for their vehicles. This experience promoted imaginative play and problem-solving. Wednesday saw a small group experience where the children honed their fine motor skills. They carefully selected cars and coloured pom-poms, discussed their choices, and paired them up, fostering cognitive and motor skills. Creativity took the spotlight on Thursday as the children crafted paper cars and painted them with their favourite colours. They eagerly shared their creative expressions with their friends. The week wrapped up with a fun colourmatching learning experiences using colourful wooden rings and laminated car images. The children had a blast swapping colours and correcting themselves through trial and error while matching images and rings with the same colour. These experiences were thoughtfully designed to stimulate various aspects of child development. Sensory exploration introduced the concept of ingredients and different textures. Playdough play extended imaginative skills and fine motor development. Small group matching experiences promote cognitive growth, and creative art sessions encourage individual expression and fine motor skills. Finally, the colour-matching experience further refined fine motor skills and colour recognition.
To continue nurturing your child's development, we will introduce more sensory and exploratory experiences, provide opportunities for imaginative and role-playing with construction themes, and incorporate colour-related games and crafts. We will encourage discussions about daily life experiences to expand our understanding of the world through related books. We strive to spark the children's curiosity, stimulate their creativity, and strengthen their social development in the weeks ahead. We look forward to many more exciting weeks of growth and learning together. We hope you all have a lovely weekend. Regards Natalie, May & Resie
Stage 2R “Culture is the arts elevated to a set of beliefs.” - (Thomas Wolfe)
Dear Families,
Developing a healthy sense of identity and self-esteem in young children depends heavily on cultural knowledge and tradition. This week, we travelled to China. Yellow is the colour of monarchy, whereas red, China's national colour, represents happiness and good fortune. We engaged in various red and yellow sensory experiences after being inspired by these two vivid colours. The Chinese rice sensory trays encouraged their fine motor skills as there was lots of fabulous filling and emptying. The history of Chinese writing dates back more than 3,000 years. Writing each character is like drawing a tiny picture. Drawings were made to look like the objects they represented. This led us to create art using black paint to write Chinese characters and words. Moreover, 2R was encouraged to learn how to use chopsticks to transfer cooked noodles. Each child attempted this experience from a different angle and we observed lots of trial and error and problem solving along the way. Throughout the week, the children learned about the animals that live in China, including the giant panda, snow leopard, red panda, and many more. We then created natural habitats for pandas using natural resources. Dumplings are a popular and meaningful food product in Asia and other parts of the world. According to Miss Connie, Zhang Zhongjing, a Chinese medicine practitioner, invented dumplings and she revealed this to 2R. She then explained why this dish had been passed down through numerous civilizations from one generation to the next. It was a harsh winter, and many people were suffering from the effects of the cold. Zhongjing used the dough to wrap the mutton, herbs, and chillies, keeping them warm by steaming the mixture to hold it all together. People could withstand the cold because these steaming, pillow-like delicacies and the herbs that Zhongjing added enhanced blood circulation and prevented frostbite. Many different cultures invented their dumplings, and many of those dumplings look pretty different from what Zhongjing first created. Understanding this unique history helps us better comprehend how food has served as both a necessity and a form of therapy for the body, mind, and soul throughout human history. Inspired by this fascinating story, this week, 2R was invited to make chicken dumplings that involved everyone in our room in the process, and the flavours inside these dumplings turned out to be as rich as the history behind them. For our art experience, we invited the children to create some Chinese character inspired paintings using black paint on a red piece of paper. The Chinese symbols began as pictures. Pictures were drawn to resemble the items they represented. As time progressed, these characters evolved into a more abstract and complex system, incorporating semantic and phonetic elements. The characters became fewer literal representations of objects and more symbolic and structured. This transition allowed for a more versatile and efficient writing system, as it reduced the need to memorise countless individual images and made it possible to represent abstract concepts and phonetic sounds. This observation highlights the ingenuity and adaptability of human culture and communication. It showcases how a writing system can evolve and adapt to meet the changing needs of society, transitioning from a system that relied on visual representations to one that is more abstract and symbolic, yet still retains a strong connection to its ancient roots. The children were exposed to the Chinese culture this week as we disseminated this information to them that we have shared with you today. We welcome families into our community at Reddam to share with us their customs and beliefs so we can learn more about our world. We hope you all have a lovely weekend! Miss Vivian, Miss Connie and Miss Fatima.
Stage 2E "Those who have a strong sense of love and belonging have the courage to be imperfect.” (Brene Brown)
Dear Families, Creating a safe environment and building secure attachments encourages children to talk about their feelings and emotions. From daily interactions and conversations, we guide children to identify their feelings, openly express them and cope with unwanted feelings by asking reflective questions, suggesting positive behavioural choices, and through relaxing techniques such as breathing and giving one another personal space. How can you feel loved? The intangible feeling that means so much when we express it with our loved ones. This strong and affectionate feeling can be expressed through a cuddle, a smile, holding hands and giving compliments to each other. While healthy attachment with parents are crucial, positive attachments with extended family members, teachers and friends are very important for our young children. With a simple chart and colour coded column, our friends can tell the symbolic meaning of each colour. They confidently shared their feelings openly by sticking their face sticker on the chart and then we engaged in collaborative discussions about why they were feeling this way. This week's focus is Love is all around in which we expressed our gratitude and love towards our relationships with parents, teachers, friends, nature and all other living creatures. The highlight story of this week was The Things I Love About Family by Trace Moroney and we discussed how we could
show love: sharing toys, asking to play, cuddles and kisses, being kind and having gentle hands. Miss Xanthe asked our friends “What do you love?” -Elijah: "all of paw patrols" -Miles: "mum, dad and Mason" -Erika: "mum, dad and brothers" -Kirra: "mummy, daddy and brother" -Thomas: "mum, dad and Zachary" -Eleanor: "playing" -Bao: "papa and mama" -Priscilla: "go to inside playground" -Alex: "I love paw patrol and Peppa pig" -Kylie: "Moana and Elsa" -Nicholas: "going on a bullet train" -Charlie: "paw patrol" After observing that some of our friends loved singing songs in group time, Miss Xanthe invited them out to do some rhythm and tapping practice in a small group. We started by looking, feeling and testing the clapping sticks. Miss Xanthe demonstrated the moves to the song Tap Your Sticks and invited the children to try themselves. To extend on this, we invited some of our friends to engage in a music activity based on songs incorporating the number 5. Using the small lego pieces, the children took turns to choose 5 colours and count out as they selected them one by one. Once everyone had their set, we counted and placed them on each of our fingers. We then sang the song, 5 Little Men in a Flying Saucer and removed one the lego pieces each time a little man left the flying saucer. We counted our remaining pieces each time. We repeated this process with the songs, 5 Green and Speckled Frogs and 5 Little Ducks. The children sang along confidently and proudly counted along with their lego blocks. Through our exploration of the theme Love, Miss Chloe invited the children to create lavender bath bombs for their loved ones. The children were curious by the variety of ingredients, their eyes filled with excitement. They happily took turns to measure, scoop and shape the bath bombs in flower moulds. Their excitement was vivid as they couldn't wait to show their parents the beautiful bath bombs they had created with care and love. Have a lovely weekend, 2E Team
Stage 3R "When we talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting and less scary”, (by Fred Rogers)
Dear Families, Through creative play we are looking deeper into understanding our emotions by expressing ourselves through acting different characters in the book 'Jack and the Beanstalk' by Anna Milbourne. This has been a highlight for our children this week. We have had many discussions regarding how each character felt throughout the reading of this book. Jack’s Mother felt angry and disappointed when Jack sold their cow for magic beans, but then felt happy when he brought home the gold from the Giant. Having this money allowed Jack and his Mother to have food to eat. Through the breaking down of each emotion, the children gained a concrete understanding of what the characters in the book were feeling. The Giant felt angry, and annoyed when Jack stole from him. The last time the Giant woke up, this would have made Jack feel scared as he sprinted to the bean stalk to climb down. The Giant was close by, quick thinking of Jack he chopped down the beanstalk, and the Giant fell. Through discussing what each character felt, the children were able to express these feelings when they acted out the different roles. This provided an opportunity to engaged in further discussion about ways we can make our friends feel happy when they are feeling sad, or lonely. Kai - "Give our friends a hug", Sierra, "let our friends join in our play", Felix "be kind".
Last week, I introduced the book ‘Colour Monster’ and each week we are unpacking emotions. This week we have been exploring happy emotions. We read ‘When I feel Happy’, by Trace Moroney. After reading this book to the children I asked them, “what makes you feel happy”? Ethan - “When Mummy cuddles me”. Amelia - “My brother makes me feel happy”. Jared - “Mummy and my brother want to be my friend". Reyann - When Daddy, Mummy and my brother play with me”. In keeping with our theme of Jack and the Beanstalk, the children planted their own magic beans. We are eager for the sun to come out, for our beans to grow. Over the upcoming weeks we will continue to water our beans and look closely at any changes that might have occurred.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend.
3R Team
Stage 3E "The power to question is the basis of all human progress" - (Indira Gandhi).
Dear Families,
Recapping last week, we had brainstormed about body parts, such as arms, legs and head. This week began with a focus on exploring into the fascinating world of our bodies. Being able to identify body parts is important for children because it allows them to start developing a sense of body awareness. We went in-depth to investigate organs and structures of bone. The children learned how their fingers and arms contribute to their creativity by wrapping sticks with strings, an activity that nurtured their fine motor skills. The children's curiosity led them to examine a life-sized skeleton. Educators guided them in placing organs into their correct positions on the skeleton. Using visual aids, the children explored their organs. They touched their chests and identified the location of their lungs, gaining a basic understanding of human body. The children not only expressed but also demonstrated their understanding of the human body. We continued to explore the topic by discussing how our bones support our bodies and what might happen without them.
The children engaged in a hands-on experiment by applying slime to sticks, allowing them to experience firsthand how bones provide structure and stability. The children expressed their creativity by using colours to create body prints on a large piece of paper, reinforcing their understanding of human anatomy through a play based experience. We introduced the concept of dinosaur skeletons. Having previously explored human bones, the children were eager to investigate the differences between human and dinosaur bones. Their observations and discussions were not only creative but also provided valuable insights. The children were immersed in a STEM experiment where we placed sugar and salt at the centre of a tray filled with sand. They awaited the outcome as the sugar and salt combined. To their amazement, the sand seemed to produce some 'worms'! Then they drew with the charcoal produced from the experiment. Science is learning about the natural world through observation, listening, and recording. It includes reasoning, classifying, experimenting, hypothesising, making predictions and wondering. STEM explorations support children to develop skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving skills and creativity. We look forward to sharing more adventures with your children in the coming weeks.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend.
3E Team
Stage 4R "The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." - Dr. Seuss
Our second week in the 4R class has been filled with exploration and excitement as we continue our journey through "The Changing World." This week, we delved further into the fascinating topic of how technology has evolved over time.
Our exploration of old technologies began with a simple yet intriguing question: "What's under the blanket today?" The children's imagination soared as they speculated about the hidden treasure. When it was time it was unveiled a CD player along with a Trolls song CD. This discovery ignited a lively discussion. We delved into the world of old technology, exploring the CD player. The children eagerly took turns manipulating buttons, like play, stop, and adjusting the volume. It was a delightful sight to see their curiosity shine through. This hands-on experience allowed them to comprehend the inner workings of a CD player, enhancing their understanding of technology's evolution through the years. The next phase of our exploration led us to old forms of communication, specifically the telephone. Together, we crafted and used a string phone, which fascinated the children. This practical activity illustrated the fundamentals of sound transmission. They learned that speaking into one cup generated sound waves, which were transformed into vibrations and travelled through the string to the other cup. This revelation sparked discussions about the essential principles of communication. The children observed the simple design of the string phone and discovered its historical significance. This exploration led to reflections on the advancements in technology, with a humorous remark that a "very long string" would be needed for long-distance communication. The session shed light on the history of communication devices and the rapid progress of technology. During the week, Miss Sarah's group participated in an intriguing learning experience that delved into the evolution of computer technology. The children were introduced to the captivating world of computers by comparing older models with modern computers. Together, they examined these devices, engaging in discussions that highlighted the similarities and differences between them. In an innovative twist, images of computers from various historical they embarked on the task of creating a timeline to trace the development of computers over time. This collaborative effort was instrumental in fostering teamwork and encouraging insightful discussions among the children as they weighed in on the changes they observed. Continuing our journey, we explored the historical modes of transportation before the advent of cars. The children engaged in a lively class discussion, sharing ideas about how people got around. Voices included "people would walk," "they would ride a bike," and "people would ride horses." We watched an educational video about horse-drawn carriages and then crafted our own horse and carriage. As we completed our carriages, we circled around, mimicking the sound of horse hooves with our hands. This hands-on exploration highlighted the significance of different modes of transportation throughout history. Our journey through "The Changing World" continues to be an exciting and insightful experience. The children's curiosity, engagement, and reflections have made this exploration a valuable learning journey.
Warm wishes, Miss Sarah and Mr Callum
Stage 4E “Art is a place for children to learn to trust their ideas, themselves, and to explore what is possible.” – (Maryann F. Kohl)
Dear Families,
The children have been revisiting their colourful artworks they started making last week. During our morning group times, we discussed the importance of having colour in our lives and how different colours can make us feel different emotions. We referred to our Colour Monster posters and how his colours changed with each emotion he felt. The children then shared which colours are their favourite and why… Children’s Voices: “Pink and golden because they are lighter colours.” - Natalie “Green, blue and white because it’s part of the world.” - Alison “Silver and golden because they sparkle.” - Sarah “Gold is sparkly and yellow is bright.” - Alexander White because it’s a light colour.” - Toshimitsu “Pink because it’s a lovely colour.” – Charles
In our atelier, the children started adding more colours and ideas to their masterpieces. Paints, water colours, crayons and markers were provided for the children to experiment with. We discussed the importance of perseverance with our artwork and how we can take breaks and come back to it when we have more ideas to add. Sometimes our ideas don’t all come at once and that’s okay. The most important thing is that we enjoy the process of making our artworks and create something we are proud of. As the children created their flower artworks, their creativity and imagination were supported. Their fine-motor skills were strengthened as the children manipulated the markers, brushes, and crayons, creating intricate lines and shapes. Art plays an integral role in human development because it encourages thoughtfulness, reflection, and expression. In young children, art supports brain development, mastery, self-esteem, and creativity. Later in the week, the children’s interest in shapes was incorporated into another art experience, inspired by the famous artist Wassily Kandinsky. He was a talented abstract artist from Russia who believed that colours, lines, and shapes could express deep emotions. We learned that he created a special artwork called Squares with Concentric Circles to understand how colours affect our feelings. The children started with a big piece of paper and then they drew circles with colourful oil pastels inside squares. The interesting part was that the circles didn't have to be perfectly round, and each child could make them in their own unique way. After drawing the circles, the children painted over them with watercolours. This was a fun step because oil and water don't mix, so the effect was quite interesting. The colours repelled each other, making the circles stand out. The children used different and contrasting colours, making each square vibrant and lively. Through this art activity, the children not only had fun but also learned about expressing their feelings through colours and shapes. The children have started visiting their primary schools they are enrolled at for 2024. After each orientation, the children love to share what they did at “big school”, who they met, which areas of the school they visited, and the activities they participated in. Many of the children have also mentioned how they have met new children who might be in the same class as them next year. Inspired by the children’s transitions, Miss Lauren read a story called Old Friends, New Friends, by Andrew Daddo. The class saw how excited a little girl was to be starting a new school year in grade 1 and spending more time with her existing friends. However, when she walked into her new classroom, she saw no familiar faces. Not one! Her feelings of excitement quickly disappeared, and our class determined she was feeling scared and nervous like the black Colour Monster. Our story led to a conversation about how important it is to be able to make new friends throughout our lives. At Reddam, many of us have played with the same friends year after year and developed strong friendships. On our “big school” wall we can also see if any Reddam friends are going to the same kindergarten as us too. However, many of us are going to different schools and will have to make new friends for the first time. To practise this skill, Miss Lauren suggested the children try and make a new friend in our 4E classroom before the end of the year. At lunch time, Miss Lauren had placed the children’s school photos on each dining table for them to find. They quickly realised that they were sitting next to someone they usually wouldn’t sit next to. As they ate their lunch, it was beautiful to observe new interactions between the children. New dialogue was exchanged, as they asked each other questions and their conversation came naturally to them. As the children learn to approach new social situations and initiate interactions with new peers, they will continue to develop their resilience and pro-social skills as they invite each other to play.
Another wonderful week of creativity in our classroom!
Lauren and Rebecca
Monday - Yoga
Tuesday - Drama with Miss Chelsea
Wednesday - Music with Mr Alan
Thank you
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