A wonderful week at preschool

Week 2 has flown by preschool and have been very busy!

In our mathematics we have continued to explore shape, this time we have hunted for shape in our outdoor environment. We went onto the playground and couldn't believe how many shapes we found "the brick is a rectangle" "it is a big circle" "look there is a triangle on the wall" "it's a square" "i have found 2 circles, this is little this is big". It was lovely to see how engaged the children were in this activity. We are super shape hunters and are becoming more confident in naming shape. We have also been identifying what is the same/different about the shapes circle, triangle, square and rectangle — ask your child to tell you what they know. I am looking forward to seeing all your shape finds from home.

In literacy we have continued to read our three little pigs stories and the children have been reading the stories to the adults, showing us the front cover, turning pages and letting us look at the pictures. What wonderful readers we have! We have also been introduced to the letter 'p' for pig, pirate, purse, pencil and pizza and have been writing the letter using a rhyme ' down the plait and over the pirates face'. Have a practise of this at home too preschool.

To develop our early writing skills this week we have begun to 'Squiggle While You Wiggle'. This is a kinaesthetic approach to stimulate early writing. Children use movement with music to develop their motor skills in preparation for writing. Through 'Squiggle While You Wiggle', children begin using 'Flipper Flappers' to rehearse a range of shapes, which lead to children mark-making with chunky pens, in preparation for more formal writing.

Over the last 2 weeks we have been introduced to the iPads and have used the camera to take pictures of each other at preschool. This has helped us to learn our friends names aswell as develop our ICT skills.

To develop our physical skills we have continued to develop our cutting skills, cutting straws and using scissors to cut out a shape.

In our free play our focus has been shape, we have splatted shape, printed with shape, used play dough to make shape and constructed with shape. We have also been very imaginative setting up picnics, baking cakes in the mud kitchen and used the blocks to create a bridge for balancing — very busy!

Have a lovely weekend preschool,
Tara