This week at Mucky Pups we have been taking risks and have been using hammers to create our own art, using the flowers, berries and leaves we found in the garden. We chose a couple of these, which we then put in between material, we folded this and then (with supervision) hammered the flowers and berries bringing out the natural colour onto the material. We enjoyed guessing what colour it would turn the material and also encouraging our peers to use the hammer safely and remembering to keep our fingers away from it. The weather has been lovely outside but very hot! We have enjoyed some yoghurt ice-lollies to keep us cool, which we made using yoghurt pots and wooden lolly sticks these went down a treat.
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 Inside nursery, we have been looking at shapes and arrangements we have had lots of fun with our loose parts making our own patterns and using our imagination to create pictures with the shapes.  We have enjoyed making lots of different things with the play-dough too this week, using our fine motor skills to roll, pinch and squeeze the dough into pizza, lots of delicious cakes and peas.
In circle time this week, Dalmatians have been talking about school as a lot of them have had a play session at their new school, it’s a very exciting time and a little scary and we talked about all of our feelings about our new adventure. Some of the Dalmatians will also be attending Dallas road kids club after school, so we went to have a nosey around to see what exciting things there are to do.
Chihuahua’s have been focusing on making marks and counting this week in circle time we have all done some very good counting aloud this week. Well done!!! 

​This week we have been making pizzas, using lots of different toppings all chosen by the children.  They got to use the knives and (under close supervision) were able to cut the topping themselves.  We then cooked them in the oven and brought them down for snack in the afternoon.
In the mud kitchen we were making lots of flower and grass soups using the daisies and the long grass from around the trees.  We’ve also been using large sponges and bubbles in the water tray to wash the babies which was a big hit.
We’ve been making Father’s Day cards with the children ready for Sunday, (sorry if you’ve not collected yours) during this, we’ve been talking about what the children’s daddies look like and what we like about them, and also for those people who are special to us.
We have still been talking about being Kind and how to fill our kindness jar.  We’ve had lots of pebbles added to it this week which is great to see.
The pre school children during circle time have been looking at prepositions, such as under, on top, behind etc.  This is using some important language and will help the children in their social interactions.  Try giving them challenges around the house to find a hidden object you’ve place somewhere and give them clues as to how to find it.
The other children have been building towers in circle time, working together, taking turns and trying to build the tallest tower.  We were able to get to 14 bricks I think which was our best.
In the playdough area, we’ve been using the gingerbread cutters to make gingerbread men different sizes then putting them in order.  We also coupled up with reading the Gingerbread man story in the snug.
We have also been out in the rain a lot! It doesn’t stop the children having fun especially in the huge puddles we had today.  Some of the children were pretty much swimming!  This has also been a good opportunity to look for worms to fill out wormery! The children have been helping search the mud for worms and then collecting them.  We’ve had lots of discussions about what worms are useful for and have added some leaves to the womery to see that they eat them.

This week in Mucky Pups we have been amazingly busy!
There have been so many little activities going on and just general fun that I’m bound to miss something.  Here we go!
Circle times – We have been looking at grouping in the younger children’s group, using different objects such as coloured counters, animals and dinosaurs and even the children themselves!  This is something that some children do without even thinking about, usually something like putting the same colour pieces together. We have been looking at something more difficult, such as farm and zoo animals, or items of clothing that the children are wearing.
The preschool children have been looking at Kindness and what it means to be kind.  We have been reading a story about being kind, which is the one we linked in the newsletter. If you want your own copy, follow the link here!
This story has led to many different discussions about how to be kind to each other and has given us the idea of a kindness jar. 
We are looking out for special acts of kindness and making a big deal about how good this is.  That child then gets to add a pebble into the Kindness Jar.  Once full, we will give the children a special surprise. 
Why not reward your children with your own kindness jar at home, or, tell a member of staff about what they have done and we’ll add it to ours!
We started this week with talking about our holidays and if we had done anything, and also have been discussing things that they like to do at home.  This helps us plan activities around your children’s interests which then boosts their learning when they are super interested.  Please use the Capture Online system to share things with us, especially photos; children love to look at photos of themselves and it helps open up a conversation. We have been doing this a lot over lunch times, really discussing home life around the lunch table and talking about the type of things they have in their lunch box.  This type of conversation is really important in helping them develop more words in their vocabulary and better social skills.
This week we have been trialling having cereal for snack.  We give the children a choice of three cereals and a bowl of fruit.  So far, this is a big hit!
As you will see from the photos, the children have been really interested in shapes this week, using them to make pictures and patterns. This has also been outside as well, with children looking for chalk marks to wash off with a wet paintbrush.  Joe and Jean added ‘X’ in many different places for the children to find.
Outside, the children have enjoyed some great role play with Steph playing Three Little Pigs, and we have also had small world set up on a new platform at the bottom of the garden. 
We also made some bird feeders using cheerios on string.  Until a Duck came in through the gate and started eating everything!
The mud kitchen has had lots of use as usual, with the children using grass and some daisy heads to make flower soup.
Inside, some of the children have been making wands by decorating star shapes with lots of colourful bits and pieces then putting them on a stick. We have also done some baking, and sprinkled some edible glitter on the top to make them really special!
And, lastly, we finished the week by all wearing our Pajamas, and reading lots of stories in our giant bed full of duvets.
Have a lovely weekend everyone! Please comment!