Reception
An Inquiry into How Celebrations are Important in our World
We started the term learning about Remembrance Day.
An Inquiry into Celebrations in our Community
The children began the inquiry by discussing Remembrance Day and what the poppy symbolises. They have enjoyed undertaking different art and craft activities to create their own poppies.
The children have had lots of fun discussing their own birthday celebrations and the different ways birthdays are celebrated around the world. They have created party planners, shopping lists and party invitations, as well as making bunting and paper balloon collages to decorate the classrooms. Cakes featured a lot in our learning and the children used birthday candles to do some problem solving in maths. They even baked their own birthday cakes. As part of their home learning, the children brought in some lovely photographs of their birthday celebrations at home with family and friends.
An Inquiry into an Exploration of Celebrations in Different Cultures
Next, the children explored the festival of Diwali and how this is celebrated across the world. The children used coloured rice to make Rangoli patterns and made some beautiful diva lamps with clay. The children enjoyed using Diwali themed resources in support of their mighty maths work and designed their own Mehndi patterns and firework art.
The next celebration the children explored was Hanukkah, which is also known as the "Festival of Light". They discussed the meaning of the Menorah and made their own from play dough and a variety of collage materials. Again they used candles in a lot of their maths activities and wrote a list of the different foods that are eaten in celebration of this festival.
An Inquiry into an Exploration of Special Times Around our World
The end of this term is exploring the Christmas celebration which, of course, the children are extremely excited about. They have heard the story of the Nativity and discussed the key characters and events. They have made salt dough Santas, reindeer paper chains and have printed and painted lots of Christmas tree pictures. There has been lots of lovely singing in the classrooms where the children have been practising for the Christmas singalong and they have been extremely busy writing lists to Santa.
