In the face of some wet and windy weather causing havoc in the outdoor area, children and staff at Centre Day Nursery worked together to design an indoor physical activity that would help children to develop their gross motor and expressive art skills.

They selected sponges soaked in paint and threw them at a large blank piece of paper on an easel to create their own unique artwork. This helped them practise their hand-eye coordination, problem-solving skills, listening skills, and gross motor (arm and wrist) skills. It also encouraged turn-taking and celebrations of one another’s successes by cheering, clapping their hands and jumping.

The children noticed how the colours mixed on the paper to create different colours as well as the different patterns and shapes that were created, adding again to their vocabulary with words such as splat, splosh, bop, dripping, crawling, squelch, squishy, squeeze, dip!

The children from Jellybabies Nursery & Pre-School have been learning about and celebrating the Lunar New Year. The children made animal-themed lanterns and acted out the story of Chinese zodiac, learning about each animal.

In the construction area, they had challenge cards to construct the Great Wall of China and, as a fun creative activity, the children got to perform their own dragon dance! Known as wǔ lóng in Mandarin, the Chinese dragon dance is a festive performance that’s most often seen during the Chinese New Year celebrations.

The children all received envelopes of ‘lucky’ pretend money (pictured with volunteer, Darren) – traditional gifts for children during the Chinese New Year period from their parents, older relatives, and married family members.

At The Woodlands, children enjoy an ‘awe and wonder’ approach to their learning.
Recently, they’ve been exploring all about different countries around the world via their ‘Safari stomp’. They climb into the ‘safari truck’, take off their own shoes and socks, and begin to use their whole bodies to ‘stomp’ and ‘bang’ their feet through the variety of sensory textures – including grass, mud, sand, and water.

The safari stomp involves exploring with all of the senses, with the children creating and talking about marks in different textures, making and mimicking sounds, and moving their bodies in different ways. They also use brushes to scoop and ‘draw’, developing their motor skills!

This play and exploration enhances a wide range of the children’s senses as they learn all about countries in Africa, discovering the range of sounds animals create in Safari Sessions and moving their bodies to music along the way! 🎶

At The Montessori Children’s House in Sutton, the children recently celebrated Pongal, the Tamil Harvest Festival that’s celebrated in January. Through making and tasting rice pudding with traditional Indian ingredients (including jaggery, lentils, and rice), the children immersed themselves in authentic Indian culture, learning about and appreciating the traditions of their peers.

Chinese New Year celebrations also took place, with children showing off their arts and crafts skills by making models of snakes for the Year of the Snake!

The children are also engaged in a unique activity known as ‘The Large Moveable Alphabet’. This involves using two different colours of wooden letters – separated into vowels (blue) and consonants (pink) – to form words. This develops children’s fine motor skills while helping them attain a strong understanding of letter sounds, word formation, and early phonics. It’s a fun way for them to discover reading and writing, sparking their curiosity and excitement about language.

At The Wendy House, the team is all about empowering little ones to make their own healthy choices – like mini superheroes! – planting the seeds of healthy eating early to help develop happy, thriving children.

Snack time is a rainbow of colourful fruits and veggies! Children get to channel their inner snack bosses, picking and serving their own goodies with dispensers alongside child-sized cups, plates, and cutlery. For the shy snackers, there are handy boards showcasing all the tasty options. Once they’ve made their delicious decisions, they gather around pint-sized tables and chairs, creating a chill and friendly vibe.

Snack time has never been so fun!

Lover & Redlynch pre-school, based on the edge of the New Forest has been having fun looking at fairy tales.  Children have donned hard hats and high-vis jackets to build the three little pigs’ houses, planted magic beans for Jack and the Beanstalk, and enjoyed making porridge for Goldilocks and the three bears. Staff said it was “fantastic to see how much the children have engaged in the stories, working together to design and build houses”. They’ve absolutely loved role-playing the stories and dressing up!

What have you been up to?
Under 5 wants to know! To share your own stories, please email editor.u5@eyalliance.org.uk with the subject line ‘My Under 5’.