The Den:

Characteristics of effective learning:

We have had a busy week as we explore a range of books for world book day! We chose ‘gruffalo’ and ‘going on a bear hunt’ as our main books as the children have shown interest in these when we read them during our group times.

We’re going on a bear hunt! 

We created a walkable sensory experience for the children, with different trays containing environments linked to the story. The children sat well as I read the story and copied facially phrases like “uh-oh”. I then showed the children the sensory walk, they were really excited to have a look! They were a little unsure putting their feet in, so we encouraged them to sit on the floor and place their hands in instead. We spoke about the different textures like “thick oozy mud” (gloop) and “deep cold river (water). The children expressed happiness as they dipped their hands in and explored all the different textures. By the end of the week, the children were more confident with walking across the textures, one child spent lots of time splashing between the ‘mud’ and ‘water’.

The gruffalo

Holly created a tray containing ‘Gruffalo crumble!’ Holly read the book to the children and used props like an owl and fox to help engage the children. They sat really well for the duration and were able to identify key animals in the story like ‘snake’ and ‘mouse’. We then introduced the ‘gruffalo crumble’ to the children and they were really excited! We added some metal scoops so they could scoop and pour the mixture. We encouraged the children to feel the textures like “crunchy” cornflakes and “squashy beans”.

Parents as partners:

Our oldest children have been beginning their transition visits to The Discovery Hub. They will be officially moving over after the Easter half term. We will be conducting ‘share the learning’ meeting in the upcoming weeks to discuss your child’s transition in more detail.