In February, we have been very busy as we explored all the different creatures that live under the sea.
We looked at the story Commotion in the Ocean, the children enjoyed sensory painting on cling film, using neon paints and photographs of sea creatures pegged onto the inside, to create a colourful masterpiece, we also chose a different sea creature to craft each day and had lots of fun getting creative. Our next book was Hooray for Fish, the children were amazed with all the bright colours in the story and were able to spot the differences between all the fish. We also used our math and physical skills as we went fishing in the water tray, using the big nets, the children were asked to fish out as many sea creatures as they could and then we counted them out together afterwards. Another activity that we enjoyed was baking biscuits, we had to measure out the ingredients to create so delicious fish shaped biscuits, we added all the ingredients into a bowl, rolled out the dough and then decorated afterwards, the children were encourage to use mathematical language throughout.
The following week, we looked at the stories Mister Seahorse, we decorated our own seahorses with bubble painting, the children needed to follow our instructions carefully to be able to master the bubbles and they did a really good job. Another activity we enjoyed was digging for shells in the sand pit, we explained how it was the same texture as the ocean floor and the children observed the change from dry to wet sand. They described how it felt as well as using different tools to find the seashells that were hiding in the sand.
The final story we looked at was Sharing a Shell, we spoke about friendship and being kind. The children agreed that sharing toys and using kind hands was a good way to be kind. We enjoyed a sand and sea, edible, sensory tray. We used crushed biscuits, gloop and whipped cream to create a beach scene with different creatures added in, the children used their senses to explore the different textures.