The toddlers at RisingOaks Early Learning | John Sweeney have been learning and exploring all the things relating to fall. The first thing that comes to mind when we think about fall are the leaves. On one of our walks we observed the different coloured leaves on the trees, collecting them to bring back to the classroom. The toddlers then used the leaves to paint with, creating colourful pictures with oranges, reds and yellows and creating texture and movement on the page. Further expanding on fall, we added pine-cones, sunflowers, scarecrows and some pumpkins to a fall sensory bin, exploring and labelling the different materials hidden throughout. Creating a scavenger hunt of materials to label and match together. “Pumpkin” Iris said “Halloween soon” she added; furthering her association with fall, pumpkins and Halloween. “A crow” was repeated by all trying to say the word scarecrow when exploring the sensory bin. The scarecrows seem to be some of the toddler’s favourite from the sensory bin, so we added some felt pieces to the felt board allowing the children to create their own special scarecrows. The toddlers labelled the scarecrows facial features and recognized that the scarecrow was “happy” creating an understanding of emotions. Through exploring fall and all the things related to the season, the children have further explored and learned about new topics and understanding of the changes that occur during the season. We look forward to seeing where else this learning takes us over the next few weeks as we being to discuss the pumpkin patch.
