Garden Explorers, Tea Parties & Tracking!

Recently the toddlers have been delving into role play and hosting many a tea party for themselves and their friends, as well as for the dolls. A few children approached a beautiful table set up with a table cloth, napkins, plates, bowls, cups, cutlery and food, and sat themselves on the surrounding cushions before taking on their hosting duties. When one of the children brought over an armful of dolls and placed them at each of the plates the other children began feeding them. There were lots of sounds of, “Num num num” and “Mmm!” as they began emulating eating noises whilst holding food up to the dolls mouths. After food time, it was nap time, and the dolls were lowered to the cushions and gently patted to sleep by the toddlers. The children have also loved their new cosy hiding nook with many of them pairing up to venture inside and hide behind the curtain with a story or a few toys. Two children took some dolls inside along with some of the doctor’s kits and made themselves comfortable, pulling out the thermometer and stethoscope, saying “We being doctors”. It’s also been an excellent place for some of the children to play peek-a-boo, as they hide behind the curtain and pop out with a roar, or peek through the small hole on the side and surprise their friends with a giggle! 

One of the sounds the toddlers have been looking at recently is the ‘T’ sound, with one of the activities that this led to was to search the Imber Court grounds for tracks in the grass. A group of children set off for the field and were amazed to find some rather large tracks, big enough to have puddles in! This triggered instant shouts and points of, “Tractor tractor!” as some of the children worked out what had left the large tracks, while another child suggested it was a “Little car”. After bending down and taking a closer look in the grooves and waving to their reflections in the small puddles, they began walking along the lengths of the grooves of the track, stepping through the squishy mud and splashing in the puddles. There were comments of “So squishy!” and “Squelchy!” as the children stepped through the track, as well as a few shouts of, “Stuck” or “Help!” as the occasional welly got stuck in the mud!

Over the last couple of weeks, the children in the under two’s room have been exploring their bigger home corner and it’s new additions. After breakfast one morning, a few children spotted some familiar faces in the home corner. Each child now has their own portrait, framed and up on the wall inside their own little home. A small group of children began to point and name the children in the photos, along with spotting their own photo. As they’re attached to the wall with Velcro, the children are able to take them down and examine them closer, as well as moving them around on the wall. The children have also been eager to take part in our daily messy activity, including making a gooey pancake batter using flour and water, as well as a chia seed slime using chia seeds mixed with water. A child spotted the chia seed slime in the tray from across the room and shouted, “Look!”, as they approached. This sparked the attention of the other children who also came over for a look. At first the children used the scoops and spoons to explore the slime, whilst others went straight in with their hands, feeling the interesting texture. A child looked at their friend and said, “Cold, cold!” as they pushed their hand down into the slime further. Once they had pulled their hand out, it was covered in chia seeds. They held their hand in the air to show everyone and said, “Wow! Monster!” and giggled waving their hands around. 

Whilst out and about, we have also noticed the children wanting to explore things further as their minds develop with curiosity. One morning, a few children showed signs of wanting to explore the toddler and preschool garden by pointing over the fence. Since it was a very quiet morning, the gates were opened and off they went into this big, exciting space. Excitement took over as they ran to see what they could find, some choosing the tree house and some heading straight over to the giant sand pit. The route to the tree house involves a path way through an archway covered in greenery, which must have seemed like a jungle for our little under twos! A few of the children began their journey through the jungle and made their way to the tree house, taking one step at a time and smiling with friends. As they got to the bottom of the tree house steps, they were given a helping hand up by a teacher and cheered together, smiling and waving from the top. To celebrate their huge achievement, the children took part in a circle time sing-along involving their favourite song, Hammer Hammer.