This lovely week brought a welcome respite as we enjoyed breezy days in the sun, beneath our tarps and under the leafy canopies. We became summer explorers wearing our sun hats and favourite caps. With the familiar scent of sunscreen on our skin and sparkly fresh grass beneath our feet, this week we transformed Fulham Palace Gardens into our very own seaside escape. From imaginative play to collective discoveries, we proved that the forest, our friends and our endless imagination are all we need for the best start to the summer!
One of the week’s favourite activities was our beach-inspired sand tray, where the children became ice cream makers for the day! Using a variety of tubs, cones and moulds, they carefully scooped, shaped and served the most delicious-looking sand ice creams. Some children creatively used pieces of bark as chocolate flakes, pebbles turned into crunchy toppings and round rocks worked as chewing gum! Some of our explorers identified their initials hidden in the sand and personalised their summer treats, while others challenged themselves to create the tallest ice cream with more than three scoops!
Continuing to support our literacy intent, we explored tracing and mark-making through different engaging activities. Our older children practised tracing their names each day, choosing their favourite coloured markers to make their writing uniquely their own. Meanwhile, our younger learners developed their early pre-writing skills by completing a variety of tracing patterns. We also strengthened our hand control and motor skills while moulding clay. We used different shapes and letter moulds to practise letter identification while enjoying sticky fingers and messy play!
This week, we continued our World Cup celebrations with a focus on fair play and understanding that it’s not about winning - it’s about having fun together. We transformed our camp into a stadium with goals, while the ground became our scoreboard. Every time a team scored, we practised number recognition by writing down the score. We also developed our counting skills by placing the corresponding number of sticks next to each numeral. What a fantastic way to combine teamwork, movement and learning!
This week’s adventure walk was a Forest School activity led by Vasiliki - we went on a summer flower hunt in the Walled Garden! Our little explorers were given two different types of worksheets according to their age. While the older children worked on identifying different flowers by carefully matching them to the pictures, the younger ones used a zoomed-in version of some of our most beautiful local flowers to help them spot them more easily. We practised our observational skills by exploring different types of leaves, shapes, colours and scents, comparing what we could see and smell. It was a truly nose-on exploration!
Little Forest Folk
Fulham