Author: Amy Dunnett

Building Relationships In Room 16

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Since the start of term, Room 16 have been busy building our relationships and routines together. We had lots of fun in the hot weather using the paddling pool and water guns to help us all cool down in the heat. We discovered that spraying each other with water was a great way to build friendships and trust with others as we asked for permission first. All pupils loved the chance to engage in water play.

We have also been engaging in Bucket Time which has really helped to capture everyone’s attention. We have done a great job learning the songs and have already been joining in singing loudly. We have enjoyed the exciting Part 2 activities, shown excellent turn taking in Part 3 and already shown great effort in the independent tasks of Part 4. 

Literacy In Room 9

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We’ve had a busy start to the year in Room 9!  We started the term with lots of time to explore our new class and friends, using the story “The Pigeon HAS to go to School” as our story focus for the start of term.  As part of this we have been able to build relationships and establish routines, including lots of movement activities throughout the day and diverse communication opportunities.  We’ve had lots of fun with our daily communication games, water play and messy play have supported some fab interactions!

Since then we’ve started to explore our Disney theme for the term, starting with “Toy Story”.  We’ve added sound effects to our own rocket launch, created space art, played along to music from the film, spotted our photos in “space” on the interactive board, sung space themed songs, and more.  In numeracy we counted “Ten Little Aliens” as we read the story of the same name.  A particular favourite was our space themed bucket time where we were able to launch a rocket for stage three – we’re loving bucket time at the moment in Room 9!

Last week we explored “Finding Nemo” (with lots of water play and a very wet bucket time!), this week we’re looking at “The Lion King”.  We’ll be continuing to explore a different Disney story every week or two.

Cycling!

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In Room 5 we have lots of fun riding our bikes around the playground. Cycling trikes is really good for us to learn the reciprocal movement of our legs which helps with our coordination and balance. It also strengthens our leg muscles. At Orchard Brae we also have a trike which wheelchairs can be fastened onto so all the children can take part in cycling activities.

Outdoor Education Fun! 

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The primary 1’s have been enjoying Outdoor Education the past few weeks. They have been exploring the Winter Gardens at Duthie Park and the play park at Seaton Park. They had great fun looking at all the different flowers and plants in the Winter Gardens and playing on the different equipment at the play park. Watching the waterfall was definitely a favourite by all. 

Welcome To Room 4

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Room 4 has enjoyed settling into the new school year and our new classroom. We have particularly enjoyed exploring the school’s new sensory room. The switch activated bubble tube and the sensory light curtains are a hit with our young learners. Our focus on “Disney” this term has allowed us to create some fantastic Mickey Mouse themed art. We used rollers, sponges and paint splats with a Mickey silhouette to create a display for our classroom. Following the Disney theme we have been using Disney song massage for relaxation time. 

Tidying Up In Howes Hoose

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The pupils of Howes Hoose have been sprucing up their outdoor environment since returning to school. One of our first tasks was to wash and paint  our garden furniture. Running out of paint called for a trip to the shops which gave us the chance to practise our life skills out and  about in the community. We also helped tidy up the school sensory garden to make it a welcoming place for our peers as well as some litter picks along the farm track to care for our local area. 

Exploring Movement In Nursery

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The children at our Howes Road Nursery have been busy settling back into Nursery after the summer break and have done a fantastic job of doing so. We have been making the most of the beautiful sunny days with children engaging in their favourite activities both indoors and out thanks to the wonderful donations of parasols and a swing for our outdoor area. The children have been showing an interest in things that move and how we can make that happen. We used salad spinners, vehicles and tall flowers that were blowing in our nursery garden to create some lovely artwork and have taken part in baking activities making yummy round biscuits, round pizzas and cheese swirls. Some children enjoyed using a switch to activate the foot spa, splashing their feet in the bubbles they created. 

Sensory Exploration In Room 10

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Since returning to school after the summer holidays, we have been lucky enough to be able to enjoy the extended period of warm weather as we have reflected on our Summer holidays and some of the different activities we may have done. In particular we have thought about going to the seaside and have enjoyed exploring different themes alongside the Julia Donaldson story “What the Ladybird Heard at the Seaside”. We have engaged in a variety of sensory activities, including exploring sand (some ground up cereal), enjoyed feeling slimy seaweed (leaves collected from the playground and fresh runner beans) and of course enjoyed some water play whilst thinking about the different creatures that live in the sea. We have demonstrated our attention and listening skills, as well as communication (we especially liked when the whale splashed its grey tail!)