What's Happening in the Butterfly room

Butterfly Room

At the beginning of June, the boys and girls in the Butterfly room were continuing to learn and investigate space and the planets that can be found within the solar system. We began June by learning about gravity and how once we pass through the hemisphere, there is no gravitational pull. The children investigated this further by using water buoyancy to investigate what sinks and floats, as opposed to how items would float in space, but be pulled downwards when on earth.  We used our technology skills to research many different aspects of space including how to train to become an Astronaut, how Rockets are built and released into space, where and what NASA is and what the other planets names are, look like, and if there is life on any other planet like there is on planet earth. As our learning about space came to an end, we finished by looking at planet earth and the different ways on which we can protect and help our planet. This included recycling, looking after animals and being kind to one another.

(Sciences, Social Studies, Mathematics, Literacy, Technologies, Expressive Arts, Health and Well-Being)

Recently the children have been showing a keen interest in different bugs and minibeast we have been finding at home / out and about, and in the nursery garden. The children have slowly been learning about different mini beats each day, and as we find mini beasts in the garden. So far, we have learned about the life cycles of frogs, butterflies, slugs / snails, and bumble bees. The children have enjoyed building bug houses for the mini beasts they have found in the garden and learning what types of habitats the bugs and beasties need to have to survive. Our favourite bug to look after is our very own slug Garvey. Garvey is the slug which the children found in our back gardens mud kitchen, who they have built a bug home for using loose parts, pots / pans, mud and various leaves / greenery.

(Sciences, Social Studies, Mathematics, Literacy, Technologies, Health and Well-Being)

Other topics of interest we covered over the course of a couple of days in June have included Road Safety. We used the Ziggy books to work in pairs / small teams to find the risks within the story books and make solutions to how we could keep ourselves safe in those situations, and how to minimise risks when exploring our wider community.

(Health and Well-Being, Social Studies)

Within the last week of June, we also looked at how to care and nurture babies. This became a topic of interest to many of the children after we re-introduced the role play babies back into the home corner. The children learned and practiced bathing and dressing the role play babies, learning what babies eat, and how they cannot digest foods the same way we can, and what daily chores they can mimic to look after the role play babies which we do and see every day. 

(Health and Well-Being, Religious and Moral Education)

The children have picked up Makaton fantastically, they are now using Makaton fluently at snack and lunch times as they ask for milk or water to drink and say their please and thank you. As the weeks go on, we are teaching the children how to sign some of the different foods they are eating, and how to ask for more etc. Other areas of Makaton the children have been learning has included different animals, activities, and basic language such as the alphabet and family members.

(Literacy and English)

Within the garden the children have been learning to nurture and care for their plants which are all growing rapidly. The children know that for their plants to grow they must water the planet and ensure they have enough soil and room to grow. Our pots of sunflowers were getting too big for their small pots so in pairs we worked together to take them from the pots and transfer them into the larger soil patch where they are now growing up canes.