This week our topic was Diwali where we learnt all about the Hindu Festival of Light. To introduce the topic we read the Diwali story of Rama and Sita before discussing what Diwali means, why it is celebrated and how.
During Free Play the children explored Rangoli patterns at the Mark Making table and during our Art activity they created Mahndis by imitating Henna and painting designs and patterns onto paper hands.
On Thursday we discussed the types of food that are made to celebrate Diwali. In Cookery the children made a traditional Indian sweet called Peda sweets which is made with cardamom and saffron spices. The children passed round the spices, sharing their descriptions of the different smells and textures.
On Friday we practised taking part in acts of kindness to continue exploring the Diwali tradition. As part of our Team Building activity we discussed the different acts of kindness we take part in. The children took turns saying thank you to each other for the things we were most grateful for. They shared some lovely things that they were grateful for, with one of the most popular responses being that they were grateful for their ‘Mummies and Daddies’.
This week we introduced the children to our Deconstruction area where the children discussed the safe use of tools and explored what was inside of an old DVD Player. It was great to see the children explore their curiosity and finding out more about how objects work. They had the opportunity to discover how the wires were connected and asked lots of questions about the functions of different parts of the DVD Player. This activity encouraged the children to learn not only to use ICT gadgets but also to understand more about mechanics and how objects work.
On Monday, Ballet continued to be an absolute favourite afternoon activity amongst the children. Every week Miss Georgina takes the children on an imaginary journey where the children have to imitate riding a Unicorn, picking flowers or flying on an aeroplane. The children practised carefully walking on tiptoes as well as walking while lifting their knees up high.
