Investigation Hub and Discovery Hub at Deckham

We have enjoyed a brilliant and busy first week of the summer term!

It has been lovely to welcome some new families to nursery this week, and we look forward to continuing to support the children as they settle in, begin to explore their environment, and get to know their peers.

On Tuesday some of the children enjoyed a session of Kalma Yoga with Hayley Bewley who used to work at our nursery and is now a Kalma teacher. The children were very excited to welcome her back!

The session encouraged learning new yoga poses, travelling in a range of ways, and balancing, all based around a circus theme. We also spent some time being still and enjoying the calmness of our bodies. The session ended with the children enjoying popping and blowing away bubbles.

In the Investigation Hub the children have been enjoying the story ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’. The children have planted some of their own beans on cotton wool, and used their fine motor skills to operate the spray bottles to water the beans. We wonder if they will grow as tall as Jack’s beanstalk….

Outside the nursery garden is a beautiful cherry blossom tree which has been our inspiration at the painting area this week. The children have observed and touched some of the blossom and explored painting using their fingers and brushes to paint onto paper doilies.

Building on the children’s interest in growth and the natural world, we have continued to explore flowers and plants in more depth. The children have enjoyed bringing natural materials inside and using them creatively in their play.

They took part in a transient art session, creating pictures using loose natural materials such as flowers, sticks, leaves and pine cones. It was lovely to see their ideas come to life.

“That looks like Stickman!” 

“I’ve made a girl with a pink skirt!”

We also explored using natural objects in playdough. The children were fascinated by the different prints and patterns they could make, discovering that pressing the top of a pine cone created a familiar shape.

“It’s a star!”

Continuing our theme of growth, the children spent lots of time outdoors exploring compost and using gardening tools. They enjoyed digging for vegetables and even worked together to build a “soil castle”!

The Sensory Hub

This week in the Sensory Hub, the children have settled back into routine really well. They have enjoyed exploring jigsaws and playing in the garden. The children have shown great interest this week in mark making, using different resources such as water, paint, pens and pencils, strengthening those fine motor skills. The children have also really enjoyed end of session where we have been choosing from the song board. A firm favourite was 3 Little Ducks!

Investigation Hub story of the week: Jack and the Beanstalk

Discovery Hub story of the week: Five Little Ducks

Song of the week: Five Little Ducks

Parents as Partners

Just a reminder…

With the sunny weather upon us, please could you ensure that your child arrives at nursery wearing sun cream each day.

For children attending a full day, we kindly ask that you also provide a sealed bottle of sun cream so that we can reapply it as needed.

In addition, please ensure your child brings a named sun hat.

We hope you have a lovely weekend.