Geocaching

We went on our first Geocaching experience today.  "What's Geocaching?" I hear you ask.  Well it's like a real life treasure hunt.  you log on to Geocaching.com, and using a GPS enabled device, you go to the destination to find the Geocache.  I've uploaded the app on my iPhone which is really handy.  There are over a million in the UK and you probably walk past them every day without even realising.

The first Geocache we tried to find was a small magnetic nano which was called "It's Electric".  The map pointed us in the direction of the grass area near to Harpers Brook on the edge of the road... It's Electric.... we assumed it would be the big green electric box on the corner, but after scanning it all over, we were disappointed that we couldn't find it.

...So on to the next one... "a stone's throw" this one was called.  It directed us to Cantle Close and was pretty easy to find.  It was a large cache containing a log book and some small toys.  Oliver added a dice to the cache, we wrote in the log book and put it all back in the exact location we found it.





We went on to find some more, but the children were getting tired and needed the toilet, so we headed home.
We passed the lakes where we saw lots of geese coming in to land on the water and a heron over the other side on the waters edge.

If you would like to find out more about Geocaching, please take a look at the video below and visit http://www.geocaching.com/

The Great Sunflower Race!

Our sunflowers are doing really well.  We have been busy measuring them today.  The children helped by holding the tape measure at the bottom of the stem. We read out the numbers as we measured them and logged the measurements of each sunflower on a chart I made.





Paul's sunflower is currently in the lead at 550mm!  I think I will have to start putting Miracle Grow on the rest of ours so that we beat him! Hehe.

Hot Hot Hot!

I can't believe how hot it has been today!  At one point the temperature was 32 degrees! It has been so horrible and sticky.  I'm so grateful to the parents who remembered to bring a sun hat and sun cream for their child.  I do have spare SPF 50 sun cream here in my setting for those who do forget.  However it is preferable that parents do provide their own in a named bottle.  This can be kept in your child's bag on their peg so that it is on hand at all times.  I am looking into getting some hats which can be kept here as spares in the event that children forget theirs however it is preferable that children please bring their own.

The children played out in the garden this morning in the lovely sunshine.  We got the tents and the tunnel out which the children had run running in and out of.  The sand and water table was popular with all the children as always and I kept refilling the water as they liked to cool off in it.  I may have to think about getting a paddling pool!

Drinks were always on hand to quench their thirsts. They sat at the picnic table for regular drinks and snacks and also ate their lunch outside..

We went to the park for an hour this afternoon. The wind started to whip up a bit which gave off a nice breeze.  When we got home we continued to play outside but had to come in when it started to rain.

New Window Clings

I thought it was about time I replaced the window clings that we had on the patio doors.  The old ones were very faded (I didn't realise just how bad until the new ones arrived) and several of them had gone missing after some of the little angels we look after peeled them off!  Especially Amelia!

The new ones are now up and really brightens the place up.  They are multicultural and also act as a safety measure so that children do not bump into the door when it is closed.

People Who Help Us

Our topic this month has been People Who Help Us.  We have been on outings this week to the shops, the library, the post office and hairdressers to see the sorts of people who help us in every day life.  We had a chat with the postman this morning who gave the children lots of post for me, and we also looked at the recycling lorries when they came to empty the bins this morning.  The children stood with their hands over their ears as the glass bottles and jars smashed and clanked into the dustbin lorry. We have also been looking at the emergency services.

We looked at pictures of firefighters and police officers and spoke about their headgear and why they wear it.  We discussed the dangers of their jobs and why it is necessary for them to wear hats and helmets.  We also looked at their uniforms and spoke about how it is special and will keep the firefighter safe from the heat of the flames, and also waterproof so they do not get wet from their hoses! The babies also looked at the pictures.  They were laminated ones I got off the internet, just right for little hands to hold.

At circle time we looked at pictures of people who help us.  The children took it in turns to say something about the pictures.  I asked them where the person worked and what they do.  I got some very clever responses;

"The fireman puts out fires and rescues cats from branches in big tall trees" 

"the librarian borrows books at the library"

"The police lady puts handcuffs on"

"The nurse feels your head if you're hot"

"The teacher works in a school."

I asked the children what they wanted to be when they grow up. A and L both said they want to work in a school like A's Daddy. 

We did some role play this afternoon where the children dressed up as people that help us.  








Drawing and colouring a fire engine

We have also been looking at the "Things People Do" book by Anne Civardi and Stephen Cartwright.  It is an old book that I have had for years, but the children love looking through it at all the different people.

Strawberries

We have had lots of strawberries off of our plants that we planted back in March.  I can't believe how juicy they are!  They really are delicious.  Amelia especially likes them and I have had a few problems with keeping her away from them.  She has picked several before they were ripe and ate a few of the red ones too!  The children picked some today and they had them for dessert.

Our other vegetables are coming along really well.  Our spring onions are getting tall, our carrots and tomato plants are getting nice and bushy and we have several courgettes growing from their flowers.  The broad beans, potatoes and lettuces are also doing very well.  My Dad visited at the weekend and commented that we would soon have a whole dinner in our garden with the chickens and their eggs aswell! I promised him we would NOT be eating the chickens though!

Happy Father's Day

To link to our topic of "People who help us", we thought about our Daddies on father's Day and how they help us.  The children came up with some wonderful ways in which their daddy's help them.  Here are some of the things they said...

"My Daddy helps me put on my shoes"

 "My Daddy makes me toast"

"My Daddy gets me dressed"

"My daddy reads me a story"

We read some books at circle time about Daddies; My Dad! by Chae Strathie and Jacqueline East and Just Like my Dad by David Melling.

  

The children all made some lovely gifts to take home.  They made some yummy biscuits and handmade cookie bags, cards and pictures.  We had some lovely feedback from our Dad's.  One of them even shed a little tear when he opened his card. Awwww...




 





  The toddlers made shirt cards and decorated them by colouring in ties.  Some also decorated them with scrunched up tissue paper. I gave them a choice of materials and they chose what they wanted to do.  The babies had their hands painted and printed onto cards for their Daddies.

We hope you had a very happy Father's Day

New Storage

Welcome back after our holiday last week.  We hope you didn't miss us too much! :-)  We had a lovely week.  It was nice just to be able to spend time with our family.  We took Amelia swimming which is something we haven't had time to do since she was a few months old and last wednesday we had a fantastic day in London where we saw Peter Kay at the O2.  My jaw was aching the next day from laughing so much!  He was hilarious and they were also filming the show for his DVD so look out for us in the audience!

I have been busy this evening ironing logos on to our new canvas bags.  I have had them for a few months now but have been so busy that I haven't had time to do them.  But this evening I finally got around to it!

Each child now has their own bag on their peg.  The idea behind them was so that parents could use them to keep their child's suncream and sun hat so that they know they are always here and to hand.  The bags will also be used on outings to hold drinks and snacks, etc.

Also we have some new storage in the living room which is now home to some of the toys. These will be rotated frequently.  The children now have an easier access to the toys they want to play with, giving them more choices.

Along the top of the storage units, the children also have a drawer each where their learning journal will be kept along with any pictures and things they have made ready to take home.  All the boxes are labelled. It's lovely being so organised! The only problem I have now is deterring Amelia from ripping them off which seems to be her new hobby!

National Childminding Week

National Childminding Week is taking place this year from 4th to 11th June 2011. This year’s theme is "aspiration," reflecting the fact that registered Childminders are uniquely placed to nurture interests and build on the future aspirations of the children in their care. 

We will be asking the children what they hope they will do or be in the future - and will use their ideas to plan some relevant activities to build on their interests. We would also like to ask parents about what they hope that their child will achieve over the coming year. Is there anything you would like our support with? Maybe help for your child to learn something new like cooking or mastering roller skates or riding a bike.

Not only could it help your child to grow in confidence but it is also a good way to work with the parents of our minded children, and get some inspiration for the year ahead.