This week’s topic was a classic; The Cat in the Hat by Dr Seuss. The book brought our attention to rhyming and the cat's famous red and white stripy hat which gave us opportunities to learn about and look out for repeating patterns. A lot of the week's activities were therefore inspired by our topic book's focus on rhyming and patterns. The activities involving pattern were particularly popular with the children during Free Play and Focus Time where the Chicks designed their own hats, remembering to alternate the different colours to create a pattern similar to that of the cat's.
We enjoyed playing a range of rhyming games throughout the week. We encouraged the children to match rhyming words as well as making their own nonsense rhymes related to their names and the words we use frequently in the classroom. The children loved this activity and it was lovely to watch the Chicks creativity in making their own rhymes. During Literacy, the children we're given the task of matching pictures depicting a range of animals and objects, e.g. cat – hat, frog – log.
In Art, the children worked together to create their own representation of the Cat in the Hat. The Green, Orange and Yellow children worked as a group to create a collage whilst the Pink Chicks painted the cat. They painted beautiful brightly coloured stripes and practiced re-creating alternating patterns in their pictures.
The highlight of the week was our scavenger hunt in the aid of Ella’s charity. Ellas' are an organisation which work with women who survive trafficking and exploitation and ensure that they have a safe space to recover and build their lives. The money raised will provide funds for the women and their children that Ella'a support, to take a trip to the seaside. The Green, Yellow and Orange Chicks were given thee challenge of searching for a range of natural materials on the common whilst the Pink Chicks’ hunt was focused on AnimaPhonics. They had to find all the letters that the cheeky AnimaPhonics monster had scattered around the common. We were extremely impressed by how well the groups worked together, showing excellent teamwork and supporting each other beautifully.
After our scavenger hunt, we had a picnic together on the common before setting up our next activity; an art activity where we explored making natural prints in clay. The Chicks searched for a range of leaves and flowers on the common before bringing them back for us to observe. We studied the different shapes and textures of the plants before experimenting with and observing the different patterns these left in the clay. The children can’t wait to take them home once they dry after half term and share them with their families.
It has been a wonderful last week and we wish all of you a wonderful break.