Whilst going on a big holiday might be less likely this year, we know that everyone loves a trip to the seaside. This week’s story is another of Julia Donaldson’s popular books, it’s called ‘Sharing a shell’.
You can also listen to Julia Donaldson singing the ‘Sharing a Shell’ song here.
Talk about the story with your child. Have you ever visited the seaside and had a look in the rockpools? You may have some photos that you could look at and talk about what you saw whilst at the seaside.
Here are some activities that you could try that are linked to the story.
Listening skills – We might not be able to visit the seaside as much as we’d like to at the moment, but we can still listen to some seaside sounds. Listen to the beginning of the recording and see if you can guess what some of the sounds are.
Fiddly fingers – Can you make a snail out of playdough? Roll a really long sausage shape and then carefully curl it back around to make a snail shell.
If you want to make some shells or sea creatures that you can keep, you could make a batch of salt dough and when it’s dry you can paint them too.
Make a sandcastle – Don’t worry if you don’t have any sand! Have you ever made cloud dough at home? Whilst it can be messy, it’s great fun and very easy to make. All you need is some flour and oil (vegetable oil or baby oil) and to mix them together in a bowl. There’s a recipe here, but you don’t have to add the extras like oranges or cinnamon. Once you’ve made your cloud dough, you can use small pots and spoons (yogurt pots or small containers) to scoop and mould it.
Creative – Have a go at making a flag to go in your sandcastle. You could use a bamboo skewer or find a small stick when you go for a walk. Cut out some paper to make the flag and decorate it with a picture. Will it be a triangle or rectangle shaped flag? Make sure that you keep it somewhere safe so that you can take it to the seaside, the next time you go. You’ll be able to look forward to building a giant sandcastle!
Lego challenge – Build a lighthouse using your Lego/Duplo bricks. How tall can you make it? Is it stable or does it fall over? Here’s a very short clip of Maddie learning about lighthouses.
Role play – Do you like to eat fish and chips at the seaside? You could have a go at creating your own fish and chip shop. Cut out a circle to make a cone and use some dry penne pasta for chips. You could make a fish using some brown cardboard. If you have an old newspaper or magazine, you could use that to wrap them up. Add a note pad to take orders and some money for the customers to pay. Have fun!
Watch – Join Barnaby Bear on his visit to the seaside.
Health and self care – What would you wear to go to the seaside? Being able to get undressed and dressed independently is a really important skill. Encourage your child to get dressed by themselves when you’re not in a rush. Can they put their own shorts and t-shirt on? How about tricky socks?
Sports Week
This week, children’s learning will include lots of health and sports related activities across school. If you’d like to join in as well, we’ve posted a few activities to get you started. Also, watch out for a new post about a fun sports event for the whole school later today.
- We love making obstacle courses at Nursery and we often count how many times children can go around in a set amount of time. Can you make one at home? You could include something to balance along (like our walk the plank activity last week), markers to create a slalom course for children to run in between, a bucket/hoop to throw balls into (or similar items – like rolled up socks!) and try to create something to crawl under or through. Be creative and have fun setting it up! Take a photo of your course and let us know how you get on.
- Get active! Have a go at some activities to raise your heart rate. Try some games involving running, jumping, hopping and star jumps. How does your body feel before the exercise? How about afterwards? What happens to your breathing/heart beat/temperature?
- Talk about other activities that you can do to keep fit and healthy. We know lots of you love to ride on your bikes and scooters. Put your helmets on and go for a ride/scoot!
- As well as exercise, what other things do we do to keep a healthy body and mind? Talk about all of the things we do to stay healthy. You could think about the foods we need to eat to have a healthy, balanced diet. Given the current situation, it’s always a good idea to revisit the importance of hand washing and general good hygiene habits, including looking after our teeth. These are important things to begin to teach young children.