H for hedgehog

There has been a hedgehog in the nursery garden and the children have built a house for it. Harry wants to write a sign to let people know what's happened to the hedgehog.

Good for looking at

• Literacy
• Writing
• Phonics
• Letter recognition
• Communication
• Language
• Learning outdoors
• Effective adult support

 

There has been a hedgehog in the nursery garden and the children have built a house for it. Harry wants to write a sign to let people know what’s happened to the hedgehog.

Notice

• How are the children learning? Which areas of development, engagement and characteristics of learning can you observe?
• In what ways does the adult support the children’s learning?
• How does the environment support the children’s learning?
• What is valuable about the materials provided as learning resources?

Reflect

What are your thoughts about:

• How and what was Harry was trying to communicate?
• How and what was Harry learning?
• Harry’s level of involvement? How engaged was he in this activity?
• The role of the adult in this interaction – how did she support Harry and Teddy?
• The value of this type of symbolic play for Harry?
• What role did the outdoor environment play in this interaction?

Respond

What would you do to:

• Support Harry’s interest in using writing to communicate messages to others?
• Encourage other children to join Harry’s game?
• Extend Harry’s learning – e.g. encourage his interest in the hedgehog in different ways?

What next:

• Do you need to encourage more of this kind of learning in nature and the outdoors for the children in your setting?