This week, we went on an amazing adventure on the south bank of the River Thames in the London Bridge area, where our children stepped back in time and discovered the fascinating history of the beautiful Southwark Cathedral!
They explored the evolution of the structure and learned how the cathedral started as a wooden structure and was rebuilt in stone over the many, many years into this magnificent cathedral children could see on our trip.
As they stepped into the church, they could see the variety of styles and features reflecting the changes through the years.
They had the opportunity to admire the beautiful craftsmanship inside the cathedral as we saw some amazing woodwork, statues, including one of William Shakespeare, and mesmerising stained glass windows.
Feeling curious about the Southwark Cathedral? Read more about their history here!
Our babies also went on an excursion to explore the amazing local history that is right in the heart of Rotherhithe Village - the St. Mary’s Church and Churchyard Gardens.
The church has deep roots in the maritime history of the area and links to the ‘Mayflower’ and the Pilgrim Fathers, who were the English settlers who traveled to America on the Mayflower ship in 1620.
Here, they could admire this amazing structure that has such important meaning to local people as it carries a lot of history.
They also saw the poppy wreaths by the church, seeing how people paid their respect on Armistice Day and even brought their own poppy to add to the memorial.
Children enjoyed a sunny walk by the river Thames from the nursery and explored the churchyard gardens as well.
Our preschoolers explorers continued to engage in activities about South America and dove deeper into the Amazon Rainforest and its animals.
Specifically, this week, we focused on gaining a foundation of concepts of ecosystems and the environment.
Exploring the layers of the rainforest—the forest floor, understory, canopy, and emergent layer—children continued to learn how animals and plants have adapted to different environments.
They started to grasp ideas like habitat and survival in the rainforest, such as stories about jaguar camouflaging, colourful patterns of birds and other animals for blending in the tropical environment, hunting at night, or hiding in the treetops.
Some of the activities through which we explored the Amazon included animal sorting games and animal identification and classification, like jaguars, toucans, sloths, and poison dart frogs.
They also practiced classifying animals by traits and understanding their roles within their habitats.
We also practiced through a variety of physical pretend games and dramatic movements, including children’s favourite spin-off, Sleepy Bunnies—the Sleepy Jungle Animals, when children could use their imagination to mimic some of the animals from the rainforest.
We also gave them many opportunities to creatively express what they’ve learned.
For example, they made crafts of rainforest animals like frogs, jaguars with their 'spotty' patterns, or snakes; they also used the play dough to print animals in or mould their own animals for a particular layer of the rainforest.
This month's geographical theme about South America and the rainforest activities introduced children to new vocabulary words, such as:
Learning these new words promoted their language skills and encouraged their curiosity.
Talking about, reading stories, and using these words during play helped our little explorers strengthen their descriptive abilities and confidence in communication skills.
This week, we also focused on helping children to begin to understand both their own feelings and those of others.
During these fun learning activities, we use our emotional sacks with flash cards. Children observed a variety of pictures displaying different emotions and triggers.
They also took turns to identify the emotions and to share their view on what makes them happy and sad, which helps our preschoolers develop empathy, social skills, and self-regulation.
As children talk and listen to others about what makes them happy or sad, they begin to recognise and label their emotions, which is a key step in managing them.
As we all shared our feelings during this group activity, which promotes a sense of belonging and creates connections.
Children also began to develop healthy emotional awareness and understanding that emotions are a natural part of life, so children can feel more secure in managing their feelings.
As an early years education and childcare institution, we put great value on helping children in need.
This is why we partnered with Little Village, an organization that helps babies and young children living in poverty all across London.
Want to help children in need? Donate to Little Village below!
This week, our babies embarked on a fascinating journey through South America!
They explored aspects of South American culture, specifically focusing on traditional music.
They learned about traditional musical instruments, such as panpipes, monkey drums, or a rainstick made from cactus.
They were curious about how the rainstick offers an amazing paradox: how does something made of a plant that comes from such dry conditions make a rain sound?
Following our learning about the South American instruments, children got their hands messy with a variety of materials as they created their own interpretation of South American guitar.
The Hatchlings and baby dragons also had an amazing time experiencing the Amazon rainforest through a variety of multi-sensory experiences.
These include listening to the sounds of rainforest, messy play, and learning about the rainforest animals.
Even without stepping foot into Amazon itself, they still truly had the genuine Amazon experience!
Our dragons from the baby room developed their physical skills this week!
They focused on gross motor skills as they engaged in a variety of physical games, including small ring games, running games, going on big walks, or encouraging tummy times.
For our extracurricular activities, we had our weekly visit from Coach Terry.
Our baby room and preschool were buzzing with excitement as they moved their bodies around, stretched, and had lots of fun working on their balance skills with bean bags.
Our children as always, were excited for our Wednesday afternoon session with Miss Molly. With her, they engaged in a variety of mindful exercises and stretching, breathing, and relaxing.
They're always thrilled when Miss Molly comes—to the point where they even prepare their yoga mats for the session in advance!
They all did an amazing job learning mindful movements and interactions, all while enjoying relaxing moments of stillness.
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