Little Wonderings Family Day Care | Nursery

Little Wonderings Family Day Care

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21.01.2022 Thank you to whoever nominated me! It was a lovely surprise! Finished off my submission now, so cross your fingers for me! #educatoroftheyearnominee #fdcaustralia

18.01.2022 MAGIC PAINTING using watercolour paint and lemon juice. Such a fun art and science exploration, watching how the acidic lemon juice interacted with the wet watercolour paint. The children loved watching how the lemon juice made drops that spread out and changed the colours. There was a lot of experimenting going on as they tested out the technique in many ways - but it definitely was more effective with the use of strong colours applied generously! #earlychildhoodeducation #learningthroughart #artandscience #familydaycareaustralia #bmfamilydaycare #holisticlearning #artofwonder #magicpainting #littlewonderingsfdc

17.01.2022 Sometimes, we just enjoy being together and laughing, and that’s perfect. #relationships #letthembe #sociallearning #togetherness #belongingbeingbecoming #friendships #socialemotionaldevelopment #familydaycare

17.01.2022 ICE PAINTING a step further from yesterday’s experience of painting with frozen watercolour, today we swapped it around and painted large blocks of ice with watercolours. The children were all very curious to see what would happen as they painted the ice. Again there was a lot of scientific thinking as they predicted what may happen, made observations about what changes they saw and experimented with how materials react together. After awhile we decided to add salt as well... to see what would happen to the ice - wow! Look at that! said one, and was echoed by other exclamations of look look!. The salt melted the ice differently, leaving a very interesting texture as it dissolved. Following our curiosity, as always, some of the children decided to try making prints of their paintings on the ice by placing paper over the top. Adding another little element of touch as they felt the ice through the paper - it’s so freezing on my hands like snow! Ruby said. Later, they also decided to sprinkle salt on top of their watercolour paintings to see how the salt would react with the paint, another opportunity to observe and notice changes occurring. See more

16.01.2022 Introducing mandalas during our ‘slow down’ time... the candle was a request they made and it was a beautiful invitation for them to work around. I love that they quickly created their own interpretation though and began designing different arrangements and creatures - this one is a spider Loose parts are such an amazing resource. I’m reminding myself that they don’t have to be fancy - ANYTHING. Reuse bottle tops and lids and collect stones, seed pods, leaves, flower petals, sticks, and whatever else you can find! Children find so many ways to use these open ended materials. They create endless opportunities for learning. #earlychildhoodeducation #looseparts #mindfulteaching #holisticlearning #relaxation #naturalmaterials #learningfromnature #familydaycare #familydaycareaustralia

13.01.2022 Last week in the garden... so much experimenting! Offering different tools, rocks and natural materials with ice and ice paint again was still very inviting to all the children. They loved exploring their strength and their capabilities using different materials as well as the freezing cold sensation on their hands - which was promptly followed by washing hands in warm water!

12.01.2022 To have space to wonder and to direct their own learning is so valuable. Today I consciously stepped back to observe the children outside. I find it fascinating to notice the stages of play that seem to happen when uninterrupted. For example, sometimes there seems to be a few moments of challenge or even frustration, as they consider which direction their play might take and navigate the uncertainty around that. What followed today, was a beautiful and authentic encounter bet...ween these two at the fairy garden. They engaged one another here, without being interrupted by me, for a long time (over half an hour at least). I wonder what would have happened if I’d stepped in that moment of their uncertainty rather than quietly watching? I feel like the meaningful play that happened could easily have been lost. From this moment the children not only shared their own thoughts, ideas and imaginations as they created stories and took on different roles, but they also learnt that they are capable of directing their own learning. This is such a powerful and important learning attribute for children to develop, one that will follow them through life! See more

11.01.2022 A BEAUTIFUL MESS. Last week, I looked around and I admit there was a general feeling of overwhelm... Every box was out and items scattered everywhere - all the little pieces of every game or resource - there was paint EVERYWHERE... but then, I managed to reframe what I saw. It was a BEAUTIFUL mess (thanks to my friend Sarah for helping me reframe this!). So much had happened. So much learning. So much joy and wonder. So much being and doing and enjoying each other in play. It... wasn’t a lack of care for things (actually the children are really SO great at looking after resources). It was just one of those days where so much happened (and so so so many paintings!!!). I’m really glad that I have a space where children feel comfortable to make a beautiful mess. Not to mention the comment of a 4 year old sibling at pick up, who whispered to his mum why is Mem’s house so beautiful? (). So I will do my best to keep looking at things through their eyes, and we will keep making beautiful messes every day! (*I actually wrote this last week and then accidentally deleted it as I went to post - where’s the auto save!! ). What’s your fav kind of mess? Mine will always be paint

10.01.2022 POTION MAKING a beautifully intriguing and wonder filled experience. An opportunity for collaboration, making observations, manipulating materials (look at those tiny spoons and pipettes), questioning, hypothesising, problem solving, experimenting and testing out ideas and theories. Pure magic

09.01.2022 Literacy is embedded in so many daily experiences and play because it’s all about making meaning, after all. This week I offered the children their names written on clear plastic (I just used laminating sheets) as a prompt with the play dough, as they have had more and more interest in their names, with some beginning to write them as well - I wanted to offer more possibilities for exploring that curiosity. I used plastic so we can use them for all kinds of experiences and ca...n keep them for a long time, but you could also do the same by writing on mirrors, wooden boards, cardboard. The sensory element of using dough or other materials to make the shapes of their names invites them to explore the angles and lines that make up letters and make connections between these and sounds (letter-sound relationships/ phonetic awareness). #literacylearning #holisticlearning #learningthroughthesenses #familydaycareaustralia #familydaycare #littlewonderingsfdc

09.01.2022 Preserving the last days of Autumn in clay. We decided the leaves looked too beautiful in the clay to pull them all off! Once the clay is dry I will try to seal them to hopefully keep the colours (any suggestion? Good ol’ PVA?)! Thankful for the leaf collection brought in by one of our families today!

08.01.2022 WINTER TREES So far this week we’ve been having lots of conversations about the beginning of winter. The children have been commenting on what they have noticed changing - including comments about how the red leaves have fallen off the trees now. They were also making a few predictions about what might happen over this season (I think it will snow! has been a common prediction!). To explore some of the ideas from our conversations, today the children created winter l...andscapes using wax and frozen watercolour paints. One of the children has been repeatedly drawing lines so this was a really nice way to recreate those marks! They did need a little help because it was hard to see where they were drawing with the magic crayon (simple tea light candle!). The magic and delight was all in revealing the winter trees as they moved the melting ice around the page. The children were fascinated with the whole process, including the cold wintery feeling of the ice on their hands! #earlychikdhoodeducation #holisticlearning #languageofart #reggioinspiredteacher #winterart #learningthroughart #scientificthinking #makingthinkingvisible See more

06.01.2022 We used the REAL hammer today! This comment reveals so much about how children perceive the materials we offer them. Giving them real materials, tools and objects gives them an opportunity to engage with things with a sense of authenticity and gives them the message that they are trusted and capable. Whether tools like a hammer (we were careful!) or quality art materials that work properly (have you ever tried using scissors that don’t actually cut? Frustrating! Or crayon...s that don’t make marks easily?! It lacks a sense of satisfaction and success!).... it all helps to create opportunities for children to explore their potential and leads to feelings of competency and success. Meeting a challenge or exploring a safe risk is such a satisfying experience - don’t you think? #holisticlearning #childrenascapable #authenticlearning #saferisks #imageofthechild See more

02.01.2022 Continuation of exploring the differences in landscape during winter with more ‘winter trees’. This time the children drew the trunk and branches with black glue and then once that was dry added watercolour. This was a different form of watercolour resist, which offered a different texture and effect. It also offered an opportunity for focus, patience and perseverance as it was very much an experience of following steps and having to wait between each one!