Magnetic Fun

Magnetic Fun 

Over the last few weeks we have really noticed that the children have really enjoyed working in small groups and delving into the world of science, and wonder.  The children might have been inspired by the visit from the "science in the van" . 

Today we set up the magnets down stairs with various bits and bobs to let the children explore and understand how magnets work.  Some of our tamariki, knew that it had to be metal to connect to the magnet, but then a teachers ring wouldn't connect ? This bought a sense of wonder. 

The children are learning to ask open ended questions and are beginning to research and predict outcomes as well as learning new vocabulary. 

Lovely lava lamps!

Lovely lava lamps!

Friends were fizzing with fun the other day when we got to make our very own lava lamp! The teacher placed some baking soda in the bottom of the jar, and then filled two thirds of the way with oil. Children waited eagerly to drop small drops of different coloured vinegar. (vinegar with dye) They did this slowly and the magic began! Children "ooohed" and "ahhhhed" as they watched with awe and wonder! Coloured bubbles began rising and sinking, and in the end, the children wanted to stir the baking soda  into the mixture, and add plain vinegar...we watched it bubble and get super frothy! We are little scientists, exploring chemical reactions!

Cause and effect - Exploring rubber bands and paint

The Uxbridge tamariki are all about investigating and exploring.... 

Today at the art table we had set something up a little different - Rubber bands around a tray with paint, what to do?  There were some posing questions "What happens when you flick the rubber bands?"  "What happens when you add paint?.  We weren't completely sure but we were going to have fun finding out!!  Was it going to be messy?  Maybe?  We had art aprons on stand by!

"Do we have to paint the bands and then flick them? said Hudson.  So he gave it a go "It makes a noise" - he said with a smile, then started strumming it like a guitar.

"It does that" said Jack as he flicked his bands and the paint went splat on the paper.  "Hey, it makes Green" he discovered as the colours mixed

"The paint goes everywhere" said L.

"It's dripping" said Maya

Phoebe put her art apron on for this one as the paint flew up in the air

Zoe enjoyed the sensory experience as she used her fingers to paint in between the rubber bands

What a way to explore cause and effect.  This sort of art is called process art where it's all about the journey rather than the product. The tamariki enjoyed exploring this activity and we had some great conversations and sharing of idea's. 

Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori - Māori Language Week 2024

 This week we have been celebrating Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori - Māori Language Week here at Uxbridge.  

We have celebrated by using lots of Te Reo, which is also a wonderful way to be able to learn from one another. We have been using Te Reo words that we use daily here at Uxbridge and also learning lots of new words and songs too. We also talk a lot about manaakitanga (caring) how we can show respect and care towards one another at Uxbridge.

Tamariki have enjoyed doing a range of activities including beautiful koru art, drawing their whanau and talking about the importance of whanaungatanga (family connection), exploring Te Reo through the use of puzzles, reading pukapuka (books) and waiata (song).    Tamariki have also explored dance using poi which they have really enjoyed and did a fantastic job, Ka Pai!

From Farm to table!

We are so proud, our girls have started laying!!  We have been patiently watching, waiting, feeding, watering, cuddling and caring for our beautiful chickens in the anticipation of them laying and they finally have!!  It has been super exciting checking the nesting box each day to see if they have laid and at the moment we having been getting 3 a day!!  The children have each had the opportunity to take an egg home to cook and eat and we have loved sharing our pictures of what we made..... boiled, scrambled, fried, baked, cookies, French toast...… Watching them grow has been such a rewarding experience for everyone involved and a fantastic way to connect the farm-to-table process and understand where our food comes from.  With all these wonderful eggs we are getting each day, we may have to get our bake on!!

Swing painting - Process Art

 Swing Painting - A fabulous, active, process art - A little bit messy but a lot of fun!  What a different way to be creative and expressive!!

Swinging back and forth, the children got to experiment and explore how to paint on the cardboard.  As usual our idea's can often be different from the children's as they chose to do this experience and paint in different ways.  Some used the paint brushes as they swung back and forth and some decided to really have a sensory experience using their feet and hands.