A Jello Sensory Experience

Buried treasure in jello makes for a fun activity to keep the little one busy while dinner was being made.

 She has played with Jello once before but not this much and not with things buried in it.

She is intrigued by how it feels; wet and slippery!

She tries to taste it.

It's hard to grab.

She signs jello with one hand and the colour red with the other

than she digs in to it.

 She had a little success picking up just bits of the jello with her fingers I so gave her a spoon to make it easier.

She manages to get a bit more into her mouth.

The spider and other toys, are on the bottom.  Can she dig them out?

Yes, and the spider is coated with jello.

 She went on to dig out the rest.

When dinner was ready we put it all back in the container and put it back in the fridge for the next day.

Rainbow Bars

This week we made Rainbow Bars for snack.

I found the recipe at Bloom Designs.

 The recipe is just like rice krispie squares except you use Fruit Loops.

 There were several challenges for the children while making this recipe.

The first was NOT to eat the marshmallows.

 Second to be careful when stirring, being sure not to touch the hot pan.

 This is our science lesson for the morning; how a solid changes when heat 

is introduced.

 The third challenge was to get their hands slimy with the butter

 and spread it around in the pan.

 The final challenge was again not eating it as the sticky cereal

was being pressed into the pan.

 Finally, everyone got a piece

and gave it a thumbs up.

They all completed the challenges with enthusiasm and success.

A Nature Walk = Writing a Book

We went for a walk in the woods with our big buddies this week.  It started with this new book I was introduced to called On My Walk by Kari-Lyn Winters.
                 
                        The text is minimal but rich in it’s rhythm.
       
We read the book together then split our big group into two.  One group went into the woods behind the school and the other went to the small woods beside the school.  That allowed more space for the children to explore.
                      
Each visit I notice that more of the little buddies are becoming relaxed and comfortable with their big buddies and are willing to go a little farther apart from their grown up. 
           
The little buddies carried their nature bag that held a clip board with a book similar to the one we read. 
 
 
 
       They spent their time recording what they saw, heard and smelled.
     

30x30 Nature Challenge

All the StrongStart centres in our district are participating in the David Suzuki Foundation 30x30 Nature Challenge.  Every day this month we will spend a minimum of 30 minutes outdoors.  The following is what our centre did our first two days.

Day 1 we did some gardening.
         
    
We move our spuds out of the green house into the fresh air and sunshine. 
                       Then gave them a good watering.
                      
       
We worked in our Planting-a-Promise garden picking all the dead blossoms from the stems.  This will allow the bulb to store more energy for next year.
                    
When we arrived at our flower bed we noticed this hole dug in the ground.  Who would have dug it?  Is it still in there?  The children were quick to respond that a rabbit dug it.  We do have lots of rabbits that live all around the school and neighbourhood.  They are probably right.

Day 2
         
                 
                        We went on a listening walk. 
Before heading out I read the book called “The Listening Walk” by Paul Showers.
      
It’s a great book to kick off the walk.  The girl in the story describes what she hears from her dad’s shoes going ‘dop dup’ to the leaves whispering and the bees buzzing. 
         
We practiced making ‘deer ears’ before going out.  If you cup your hands behind your ears it will help the noise funnel in better.  If you switch your hands and they are blocking your ears from the front, noise will be muffled.  Give it a try when you’re talking and you will notice the difference.
         
   
After walking quietly through the woods, although some children had a difficult time of staying quiet, we took sometime to draw what we heard.  Birds was the common response.  Although a few heard something scary.  They couldn’t see the noise and when one child drew, her picture was a monster and a bird that she labeled ‘scared – bird’.

We’ll be practicing more quiet, listening times in nature again.