The activities i used to connect children to their outdoor world were: leaf rubbings, tree rubbings, natural collages and my natual sensory board that i made for the babies (this was bringing their outdoor world inside).
During my activities with the kindy children i got them outside to collect materials for their natural collage as well as the leaf rubbings. I had also prepared for the acitivities myself before hand by collecting some leaves, gumnuts and bark from a park. I talked to the children about the importance of looking after our world (without using scare tactics) i focused on the beauty of our yard and trees. I also used the tree rubbing experience as a completely outdoors experience and the children built on it themselves by moving on to other rubbings such as pathways and trikes.
I used natural and recycled materials in the following activities: Leaf rubbings, natural collage, natural sensory board, wooden toys, recycled shakers (one had natural materials inside) and glitter bottles.
I was very pleased with all of my experiences and intent to continue to incorporate them into my every day experiences. When i am a team leader and am creating programs i will incorporate the natural world. I enjoyed these experiences - at first i thought it would be a real challenge and 'too hard' to do with the under two's but once i thought about it i was able to brian storm some creative ideas. I will make another larger natural sensory board because my team leader really loved the small one i made. It is withstanding lots of curious little fingers very well.
Saturday 17 July 2010
worm farm policy draft and photos
There is also a photo of the gate that leads onto the childrens play yard. This is how staff access the worm farm with the children.
There is also a photo of the inside of the worm farm with some vegetable peelings and the worms eating it.
Worm Farm Policy DRAFT
We now have a Worm Farm at the centre which is located behind the Nursery which can be accessed either through the laundry or through the gate in the children’s main yard. Our Worm Farm is still being established and cannot handle a lot of scraps yet. The purpose of the Worm Farm is to work in conjunction with the corn starch bags (which can be disposed of in the green waste bin) to replace the gobbler as a more environmentally friendly method of disposing our centre’s food waste. The worm farm is also a great way of introducing environmental sustainability and the role that children play as global citizens. Below is a list of foods that cannot be fed to the worms because they will not eat them.
Foods that cannot be fed to the worms
Any Citrus foods
Meat
Dairy
Onion
When taking children out to the worm farm it is important that a few safe measures are taken. Only take a small group of children at a time (two or three).Talk to them before you go about the importance of staying together near the worm farm. Make sure both you and the children are wearing gloves and wash your hands thoroughly when you’re finished. Talk about what is happening – how the worms eat the food scraps and make compost that we can use to help our gardens grow. This can be a great leading point for other environmental research that you could do with the children.
If you ever notice the worm farm is getting a bit smelly it means they are being over fed and shouldn’t be fed again for a while.
Major project evaluation - food waste disposal
I have been very fortunate to have a supportive director and centre who also share my vision to be more environmentally sustainable. At a staff meeting we were brainstorming waste disposal methods because our 'gobbler' had stopped working as i previously mentioned. I talked about the corn starch bags that the council had mentioned to us at tafe. I said how they can go into a green waste bin but wasnt sure if they would be cost effective. My director later apporached me and asked if i could investigate the costs of the green waste bin, corn starch bags and the basket. I found out that the baskets were $18 each and you can purchase 75 corn starch bags for $17 from the HUB shop near subway. I went to the city council and found out that the green waste bins are $65 to purchase and $75 for a full years service.
I then passed on this information allong with a brouchure about the corn starch bags and baskets onto my director who took it to the management board. They were very happy with it and we decided to go ahead with it because our other alternative method was relying on people to take home scraps to their chickens, dogs and compost heaps - which is flawed because sometimes people are away or forget to take the scraps and then they have to go in the bin. I have established a worm farm but it is more of a method for educating the children because it will never handle all of our waste - especially not while it doesnt have many worms. We had an icecream container full of worms donated from a staff members Nan but we are in need of more. I intend to ask in our next newsletter if any parents have any at home and would like to donate some worms it would be much appreciated, this will also serve as informing the parents about the worm farm because im sure not many people read my display.
I went to the council earlier this week and paid for and ordered the green bin which was due to be delivered on friday. I purchased two lots of 75 corn starch bags and two baskets. So we are yet to fully implement our new waste disposal method but i believe it will be successful. Our cook said that she used these at the last centre she worked at and they were great.
I have mentioned how i intend to write a section in the newsletter to ask parents for help with getting some more worms. I also informed parents about it through my display out in the foyer. I have not introduced the worm farm to the children yet because i was waiting for it to become more established. As it is i have only had to feed them twice with vegetable peelings - getting more worms should speed up this process. I told the rest of staff about the worm farm at a staff meeting and have had several talks with my director about it and other waste disposal methods. She then talked the board who then decided they liked the corn starch bags.
Overall i have been very happy with my project. I have left an environmentally sustainable waste disposal method in place for the centre to use and it is so easy to use that im sure it will be continued long into the future.. I will continue to watch over the worm farm and once it is more established i will introduce it to the older children (this is more difficult for me because i am usually in the nursery four full days a week) i have drafted a worm farm policy which i will put on a separate blog entry - i have left with my director for her to edit and add to. One the cook left aside some scraps for the worm farm and they had some date slice that was leftover. I gave it to the worms but then took it out a week later when it was all mouldy. I learnt that the worms do not like processed foods and prefer fruit (non citrus) and vegetable scraps more. Ive learnt a lot through my research on worm farms. I didnt know much about the different layers and the things that they dont like to eat.
Although i havent talked to the children about my major project i used my natural experiences as an opportunity to talk to the kindy children about the environment. I talked to them about the trees and how we need to look after them, how they help clean the air that we breathe. We also talked about all the different things that we were gluing on our collages and how we need to look after our world.
I then passed on this information allong with a brouchure about the corn starch bags and baskets onto my director who took it to the management board. They were very happy with it and we decided to go ahead with it because our other alternative method was relying on people to take home scraps to their chickens, dogs and compost heaps - which is flawed because sometimes people are away or forget to take the scraps and then they have to go in the bin. I have established a worm farm but it is more of a method for educating the children because it will never handle all of our waste - especially not while it doesnt have many worms. We had an icecream container full of worms donated from a staff members Nan but we are in need of more. I intend to ask in our next newsletter if any parents have any at home and would like to donate some worms it would be much appreciated, this will also serve as informing the parents about the worm farm because im sure not many people read my display.
I went to the council earlier this week and paid for and ordered the green bin which was due to be delivered on friday. I purchased two lots of 75 corn starch bags and two baskets. So we are yet to fully implement our new waste disposal method but i believe it will be successful. Our cook said that she used these at the last centre she worked at and they were great.
I have mentioned how i intend to write a section in the newsletter to ask parents for help with getting some more worms. I also informed parents about it through my display out in the foyer. I have not introduced the worm farm to the children yet because i was waiting for it to become more established. As it is i have only had to feed them twice with vegetable peelings - getting more worms should speed up this process. I told the rest of staff about the worm farm at a staff meeting and have had several talks with my director about it and other waste disposal methods. She then talked the board who then decided they liked the corn starch bags.
Overall i have been very happy with my project. I have left an environmentally sustainable waste disposal method in place for the centre to use and it is so easy to use that im sure it will be continued long into the future.. I will continue to watch over the worm farm and once it is more established i will introduce it to the older children (this is more difficult for me because i am usually in the nursery four full days a week) i have drafted a worm farm policy which i will put on a separate blog entry - i have left with my director for her to edit and add to. One the cook left aside some scraps for the worm farm and they had some date slice that was leftover. I gave it to the worms but then took it out a week later when it was all mouldy. I learnt that the worms do not like processed foods and prefer fruit (non citrus) and vegetable scraps more. Ive learnt a lot through my research on worm farms. I didnt know much about the different layers and the things that they dont like to eat.
Although i havent talked to the children about my major project i used my natural experiences as an opportunity to talk to the kindy children about the environment. I talked to them about the trees and how we need to look after them, how they help clean the air that we breathe. We also talked about all the different things that we were gluing on our collages and how we need to look after our world.
Wednesday 14 July 2010
Wall display
Here is a copy of what i have put on my wall display at the centre. When researching my information i was unable to find anything in the QAIS principles about Environmental sustainability even in the dot points under the subheadings.
How is Environmental Sustainability relevant to Child Care?
Our new national Early Years Learning framework for Australia Belonging, Being & Becoming clearly states in it the importance of the natural environment and that children feel connected to it. In regards to learning environments the BBB states:
“Play spaces in natural environments include plants, trees, edible gardens, sand rocks, mud, water, and other elements from nature. These spaces invite open-ended interactions, spontaneity, risk-taking, exploration, discovery and connection with nature. They foster an appreciation of the natural environment, develop environmental awareness and provide a platform for ongoing environmental education.”
Outcome two in the BBB is Children are connected with and contribute to their world. One point under this outcome is that Children become socially responsible and show respect for the environment. Two ways the BB recommends that educators reinforce this point is by providing the children with access to a range of natural materials in their environment and share information and provide children with access to resources about the environment and the impact that human activities have on the environment. However when talking to young children about the environment it is important not to scare them about the future, it is important to focus on the positives and what difference they can make by doing simple things such as following the three R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle).
The Code of Ethics that all people working in Child Care must adhere to clearly states the importance of teaching children about their role in environmental sustainability. Under the section on what we must do in regards children (number 1.4) the code of ethics states “In relation to children i will: Work with children to help them understand that they are global citizens with shared responsibilities to the environment and
humanity.”
What am I doing in regards to environmental sustainability?
I have set up a worm farm to involve the children and help educate them in some sustainable practices. It will help take some of our food scraps and will eventually produce some fertilizer for our vegetable patches. We are no longer using a garbage disposal unit to dispose of our food scraps so we have purchased a green waste bin and some corn starch bags which sit in a basket and then get thrown into the green waste bin. When the green waste bin is collected it is then taken to create compost and potting mixes which is a much better alternative than a garbage disposal. I have also used a range of natural resources with the Kindy Room and the Nursery children. You may notice my natural colleague in the nursery, or the reused drink bottles with natural and recycled things inside them and a wooden truck and car my father made.
How is Environmental Sustainability relevant to Child Care?
Our new national Early Years Learning framework for Australia Belonging, Being & Becoming clearly states in it the importance of the natural environment and that children feel connected to it. In regards to learning environments the BBB states:
“Play spaces in natural environments include plants, trees, edible gardens, sand rocks, mud, water, and other elements from nature. These spaces invite open-ended interactions, spontaneity, risk-taking, exploration, discovery and connection with nature. They foster an appreciation of the natural environment, develop environmental awareness and provide a platform for ongoing environmental education.”
Outcome two in the BBB is Children are connected with and contribute to their world. One point under this outcome is that Children become socially responsible and show respect for the environment. Two ways the BB recommends that educators reinforce this point is by providing the children with access to a range of natural materials in their environment and share information and provide children with access to resources about the environment and the impact that human activities have on the environment. However when talking to young children about the environment it is important not to scare them about the future, it is important to focus on the positives and what difference they can make by doing simple things such as following the three R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle).
The Code of Ethics that all people working in Child Care must adhere to clearly states the importance of teaching children about their role in environmental sustainability. Under the section on what we must do in regards children (number 1.4) the code of ethics states “In relation to children i will: Work with children to help them understand that they are global citizens with shared responsibilities to the environment and
humanity.”
What am I doing in regards to environmental sustainability?
I have set up a worm farm to involve the children and help educate them in some sustainable practices. It will help take some of our food scraps and will eventually produce some fertilizer for our vegetable patches. We are no longer using a garbage disposal unit to dispose of our food scraps so we have purchased a green waste bin and some corn starch bags which sit in a basket and then get thrown into the green waste bin. When the green waste bin is collected it is then taken to create compost and potting mixes which is a much better alternative than a garbage disposal. I have also used a range of natural resources with the Kindy Room and the Nursery children. You may notice my natural colleague in the nursery, or the reused drink bottles with natural and recycled things inside them and a wooden truck and car my father made.
Monday 12 July 2010
Natural sensory board
I was inspired by the photos from New Zealand where they had walls covered with different smooth pebbles for the children to use their sense of touch and explore. I thought it would be a wonderful safe way to incorporate natural resources and part of the outdoor world into the nursery. I encountered a problem when i started making the board. I was using a hot glue gun to stick the small pebbles onto the canvas and they just werent sticking on strong enough. I was very aware that for this project to work the object had to be very secure to eleminate any risk of choaking. My ever handy father saw what i was doing and suggested using a hair dryer to heat the rocks after i had stuck them on to help it all set. So after my first attempt of them not sticking i had pulled some off needlessly, so i stuck them back on and used my hair dryer to heat them on. This really melted the glue and heated the rocks enough to bind them to the canvas.
I then used clear varnish to stick some sand on and also covered some of the pebbles to create a different feel. I was very happy with my finished product and i impressed other staff members with my board and have been asked to make some more for the centre. When i first introduced the sensory board to the children i put it on the floor next to me and encouraged them to come and explore it. I described the feel of the different textures. Each child tried their best to pull off the shells and pebbles but thankfull they are very secure. I have tied the board to the fence inside at each corner and it can be easily cut down again. I was very pleased with the finished product and the reaction i had from both the children and the staff. I intend to make another one that is larger and also one with recycled materials such as bubble wrap and ribbons.
Wooden Toys
They are a great way of reusing scraps of wood and introducing children to a natural resource. Most children now do not have any wooden toys and are surrounded by plastic commercial toys that are expensive and do not last very long.
The nursery children seem to enjoy pushing them backwards and forwards - some even make car noises while they do it. The truck especially is a little heavy so close supervision is required so that no one gets bumped on the head with them. They are sealed with bees wax so they are very natural and safe for the children. All surfaces are smooth and there are no gaps for little fingers to become stuck in. My father is trying to design some more toys to make.
Sunday 11 July 2010
Inspired at home
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