Happy New Year Mini Rangers. The new year presents us with opportunities of looking back and appreciating what has gone and then looking forward and as Alison Chapman has recently written in the EYE (Jan2015) this suits children brilliantly as they are natural optimists with a 'can do' attitude. For Mini Rangers this is exactly what I try to capture by providing an enabling environment full of independent choices, interested adults and plenty to inspire and motivate.
We have had wonderful term pulling the phonic sounds out of our phonic box, s, a, t, p, i, n. in the first half term with activities like seed collecting, apple eating, teddy bears pic nics, pirate ships, ink making and looking for and making nests. Then we moved on to the next term take on the sounds m, d, g, o, c, k, with activities like the maze, dinosaurs, gruffalo, oranges, cats and kittens! With our weekly story and activities, the sounds really came to life.
Looking back over the pictures I am so impressed with the environment we have created on a Monday morning. Our mud kitchen which has been so popular with everyone, the bug hotel (may be in need of some care and attention) and our lovely log circle. With the help of Ranger Steve and his lovely outdoor fire building, his outdoor games, the lovely Marina and Sam who help out with our snack shack and administration and of course Neil and Paul who help set everything up. The most impressive of all is the Mini Rangers themselves, who engage with activities set out for them with gusto, who are brave and fearless in the face of the English weather, lucky for us we have had exceptionally good weather and haven't really had to rely on the shelter that is put up every week, or the warmth of the fire that Steve has made, but lets see what January brings.
Looking forward, this term we are about to embark upon the phonic sounds e, u, r, h, b, f. So to start with let the elephants enter etherow park! I am talking about that lovely Elmer the elephant.
If you can all bring one empty, washed out milk bottle I will bring some tissue paper and we will make an elmer the elephant, we will then follow that with the Elmer story and perhaps a quick snack of boiled eggs hopefully on our outdoor fire! Coffee, juice and biscuits as always available.
As every the mud kitchen will be open and all we need is you!
As every the mud kitchen will be open and all we need is you!
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