Kewarra Kids Family Day Care

Today we had so much fun with sensory play at Erin’s.
We’ve been saying that we need to do more cutting with scissors practice… SO… Erin cooked up a big batch of spaghetti, and we got busy cutting it into tiny pieces! Kept them all engaged for a good while, and, unlike paper, the kids get a positive outcome with every snip!
We then headed to the backyard and got busy making towers with shaving foam and pool noodles! Great hand/eye coordination, patience and persistence!
We read stories, played dressups and airports. We took a look at Atlas and Piper’s holiday so far. We saw Atlas at the real airport, and Piper was visiting an aeronautical science museum!! A perfect extension to our last couple of weeks of talking about planes and airports.
Atlas’ Mummy pointed out that we skipped one important thing we may see at an airport …. Sniffer dogs! Atlas had an on the spot lesson at the airport! We will add it into our program next time!🤣

Following on from the children’s interest in making icecreams, we set up an icecream parlour!
So much fun and learning, as the kids took turns to be the customer and the shopkeeper. We practised using our manners, we did some counting, as we paid with play money, and did some colour naming and matching.
At the playdough table we had lots of fun squishing the dough to make lovely swirly soft serve icecream.
We added beads etc to decorate (and Samuel made a few sausages on the side!)
At the collage table we decorated some cardboard icecreams. We then made our very own real icecreams with sprinkles, smarties and toppings!
Erin read us a lovely story called Alpaca Picnic Panic, and Bowie brought in a story photo album about his holiday to an Alpaca farm. We then printed off some Alpacas for the children to decorate.
A busy busy morning! Now it’s time to rest our minds and bodies ….

Today we spent a morning at home, enjoying each other’s company, strengthening connections and friendships.
We started off with a story about a fire in a barn, where the fire brigade attended, only to discover some campers and a campfire. We also read a story about a sausage dog (as Patrick loves his plush sausage dog!) It too ended with a fire ;the sausage dog saved the day!)
We then discussed what we need to do if there’s a fire in the house - we looked at the smoke alarms on the ceiling, then we found the sound on the phone, and had a fire drill.
As it was this group of children’s fire drill, we did it this way. Next time, we will do a random one, without warning.
Patrick and Benny worked really well together at the Duplo - they shared the blocks, and chatted to each other about their creations, and shared ideas. They put the airport bag check to good use, using it as a ramp.
Meanwhile, Frankie was very busy at the art table, drawing, cutting and gluing.
Lots of fun was had in the ice cream shop and bakery… serving each other, counting money and cooking. Next week we will make some real ice cream cones and fruit smoothies We’ve added the ingredients to this weekend’s click n collect!

Today we had lots of fun at Erin’s house.
We read a lovely story, called Paper Chase, by one of our favourite authors, Julia Donaldson. It was a story about friendship, as well as a lesson in how paper is made. The children all enjoyed listening to it, as we ate our morning tea.
Next up we set off for lots of fun on the giant water slide.
Erin explained the rules, to keep us safe, and we all did a great job of listening. We had more practice of forming lines and waiting turns.
We also had lots of playful fun with the brightly coloured balls! At the end of the morning, we played a fun game to reinforce our knowledge of colours, picking up all the BLUE balls, then YELLOW, GREEN, PINK etc.
🎶Blue, blue, the colour is Blue, can you find the balls that are blue?🎶
We then used our hand/eye coordination to get them into the big bin.
We then had a yummy cool icy treat!
It was a lovely cool, fun filled morning, with lots of fun and learning through play.

Today is Atlas and Piper’s last day before they set off on their holidays.
We got busy making a baggage checkpoint this morning, then put our morning tea into “Jetstar” bags, all ready for our special morning tea onboard our plane.
Erin brought along her trolley, which we filled with drinks and snacks for the flight.
Erin also brought colouring in for some onboard flight entertainment.
Before we boarded, we had to line up and wait to be called (great practice of forming a queue for when we get to school)
There was so much social learning, as we had to tell the flight attendant our name to receive our morning tea bag, we used our manners, saying please and Thankyou. We also took turns of being pilot and passenger.
We then went off to the playroom, where we did some cutting with scissors activities - choosing what we would like to take in our suitcase on our holiday.
All of the children have thoroughly enjoyed this airport and aeroplane play - they’ve all been on a plane , and could relate so well, each adding their past experiences to our play! Hopefully this last week of airport role play prepares Atlas and Piper as they navigate the airport and plane journey on their holidays! We wish them both a safe trip, and can’t wait to hear all about Japan and New Zealand when they return!

We began our morning with a Fire Drill.

Following on from our interest in airports, planes and holidays, we continued on with our aircraft set up, along with a small world airport.
We extended by making our own passports - drawing a self portrait and adding our DOB etc. We then printed off some boarding passes, ready to board the plane. (Which we set up in the loungeroom)
Our pilots, Atlas and Klaus, decided we were going to South Africa today.
We listened to the sound of a plane taking off on Erin’s phone, then as we landed, we listened to South African music!
We all had our passports checked to enter into “South Africa”, where we did some African dancing, before lunch and rest time. During the morning, we read stories about planes and airports, we talked about having to line up at airports, security checks, bag drop, and staying close to Mummy and Daddy.
Tomorrow we are going to serve morning tea snacks on the plane!
So much fun and learning through PLAY! ✈️

We had a lovely relaxed morning at home, with lots of time to play and create.
We set up a Japanese restaurant ready for next week, as Piper is off to Japan for a holiday!
Atlas is also going on a holiday, so we started to set up an airport, which Patrick and Benny had lots of fun with! We made some hangers for for planes, then printed out some signs so the kids could match the planes to the hangers. (Pre-reading skills)
Both boys helped to cut out the logos, then continued on cutting paper independently.
After morning tea, we headed outdoors, where Frankie blew lots of bubbles, Patrick got busy with the construction sensory table, and Ben asked to go on a bug hunt! He wasn’t too sure what to make of the giant brown grasshopper once we caught it! His facial expressions were priceless!
We enjoyed reading the Green Sheep book again, accompanied by some coloured sheep finger puppets.
Frankie was very excited to be picked up early by her Poppy and Nanna, and Benny and Patrick are resting their bodies in ac comfort!
I think it’s time for a cup of tea! ☕️

We began our morning with cuddles on the couch and a story called ….
Where is the Green Sheep?
This is a great story to reinforce our colour recognition, as well as learning about opposites.
We then did a collage using scrunched up paper balls to create our own individual sheep. We had an orange sheep, a blue sheep, a red sheep with one purple spot, and a rainbow sheep!
We then set off to the library, where we had time for a quick morning tea picnic before story time. The story of the day at the library was also,
Where is the green sheep?We also enjoyed another one of our favourites written by Mem Fox… Possum Magic.
We all sat fully engaged with the storyteller, and joined in with the songs, rhymes and finger plays.
I was very proud, as everyone did exceptionally well for their first and second time at the library!
Way to go Kewarra Kids!

Just a reminder to keep cutting those grapes!

Grapes seem harmless… until you realize they’re one of the top choking hazards for kids under 4.

Not candy.
Not toys.
Grapes.

They’re smooth.
They’re round.
And they’re almost the exact size of a toddler’s airway, which means they can create a tight seal that’s incredibly hard to break.

Toddlers don’t chew well enough to make them safe.

One wrong bite.
One laugh mid-chew.
One whole grape.

Right now, your child’s airway is about the size of your finger.

Cut grapes lengthwise into quarters. Every time.

Following on from the children’s interest in cutting with scissors (and an upcoming haircut for some) I decided to set up a hairdresser’s salon. I set out a scissor cutting activity away from the actual role play area, (which has no scissors!) Atlas and Samuel both enjoyed snipping at the wool to give their little guys shorter hair. They then added eyes and a face, to complete their little people.
Piper had asked for dot painting with the dobbers, so I set that up with some indigenous artwork and artefacts for inspiration. Harper and Piper both enjoyed this activitywhile the boys did some painting at the easels.
We then got ready to head off to Erin’s place! It was lovely to see Erin and our friends. We enjoyed a picnic morning tea together before heading out to play in Erin’s beautiful outdoor environment.
So much on offer for the children to explore and create at a relaxed, calm and unhurried pace.
Piper really enjoyed the art room… creating a rainbow painting and a collage to bring home. Samuel and Atlas got busy in the sandpit, making and selling icecreams. Harper joined in at this play too, then had lots of fun riding bikes and cooking up a storm in home corner with Grace.
Before we knew it, it was time to head home to rest our bodies.