What’s in the Box?
Cardboard boxes are great aren’t they.
The simplest and bestest resource!
Boxes are really good mathematical tools – helping children develop their spatial reasoning.
Spatial reasoning is all about how things fit together.
Including ourselves!
It’s that “embodied learning” of feeling our bodies so we can act upon them.
“Do I fit in here?” we see children “asking” themselves as they climb and crawl into the box, closing lids or covering the space with material.
Children have loved
going in and out
hiding and revealing
exploring sizes and shapes
making links to circle time – finding own resources to put in the boxes
testing the strength of the boxes – sitting and lying down on top of them
using maths language – big, small, little, on, off, in, out
Spatial reasoning is all about shape, space, measure – about developing a sense of how objects relate to each other, how we navigate and manipulate and manoeuvre.
It’s also about how we visualise and imagine in our “minds-eye” the shape and position of things.
Our St. Paul’s Curriculum “Apply understanding of shape, space and measure” helps children recognise and represent spatial relations and shape properties. It helps children navigate direction, position and routes.
Our Research Question is all about early maths
“Maths is Movement!” What mathematical learning are we seeing and supporting?
How are we supporting children’s Spatial Reasoning?
So, you may see documentation and display, photographs and words all about the physicallity of maths.
Maths is movement!
We are Artists!
We have been
Painting
Claying
Designing
Making
Building
Constructing
We have been using our howl bodies to immerse ourselves and wallow in experiences.
We have been collaborative artists, sharing space and resources to create together.
We have been exploring so many different materials and mediums.
We have been expressing our creativity in so many different ways.
Did you know creativity is one of our fundamental five values?
We celebrate the process of learning, making connections, imagining and problem solving.
Everyone is a unique thinker and artist.
Our St. Paul’ Curriculum “Expressive Art and Design” helps children express themselves in all their many creative languages, to be creative thinkers, to have skills to explore, design and make.
Out and About: Babies as Active Citizens
We love to be outside, out in the garden, out in the world.
Using all our senses to explore the world around us.
One of our sayings is “the curriculum is inside the child and outside the window”.
And it’s so so important that the babies are out in the world, as active citizens in their many communities.
As part of the Baby Practice Network, we have been championing the work of Bristol Baby Rights, making sure their voice and mean-making is part of the wider community.
We have been curious, watching and waving to cars, trucks, vans and bikes and all sorts of wheeled-wonders!
Here children have been making links to their Core Book “Dig Dig Digging”.
The world is such a curious place isn’t it?
And children’s noticing and talk, vocalising and commentary is really ignited by going out into the city.
Our St. Paul’s Promise “I can connect to the wider world” helps us “reach out” to connect with spaces and resources at Nursery, connect with our local community and to visit and revisit our city-wide-world.
