Week 5 - 4th May 2020

Weekly inspiration for you at home, this week brought to you by Bonnie

Exploring and Using Materials   

  • Make some mystery goo – pour 1 cup of water into a bowl. Add 3 cups of cornflour. Mix together with a spoon. Does it look more like a liquid or a solid? Does it feel more like a liquid or a solid? Slowly lower your hand into the mystery goo and quickly remove it – what happened? Hold a blob of mystery goo over the bowl – squeeze it, does it feel more like a solid or a liquid? Now open your hand and let the mystery goo fall between your fingers into the bowl – what happens to the goo?

  • Make some bubbles – pour 1 cup of water into a bowl, add 2 tablespoons of golden syrup and 4 tablespoons of washing up liquid. Stir and you have created your own bubble solution. Use a bubble wand (or make one with an adult out of thin wire) and have fun.




Literacy

    • Phonics Play usually charges a subscription for its services but, during the Coronavirus period, is offering all of its literacy activities free of charge. There will definitely be something on there for everyone and it can be used on a tablet or laptop so enjoy!

    • Easy Peasy is offering all of its services free until 31 May  with lots of games for children and families to play and other useful resources as well. 

    • This Reading Mama has lots of printable worksheets to offer. While worksheets have a limited appeal, some of these activities are great for getting started. If you’re finding the choice a bit overwhelming, drop us an email and we’d be happy to point out a few specific choices for your child.    

    Numeracy

    • Use different size spoons for this activity (measuring spoons for baking are ideal) – a tablespoon (15ml), a teaspoon (5ml), a half teaspoon (2.5ml) and some sugar or salt. Put some sugar in a bowl to use for this activity. Predict how many 2.5ml spoons of sugar will fill the 5ml spoon – try it. Now predict how many 5ml spoons of sugar will fill the 15ml spoon – did you predict correctly? For a challenge predict how many 2.5ml spoons of sugar will you need to fill the red spoon? Think about what you learned in the previous steps – a whole can be made of different size parts.
    • Make Trail Mix – you will need some kitchen weighing scales for this. Put a bowl on the scales and add 1 cup of cereal such as cheerios. How much does this weigh? Now add 1 cup of banana chips – watch the weight increase as you add extra ingredients. Now add half a cup of raisins – has the weight increased? Keep adding – how about some sunflower seeds or chocolate chips or anything else to make your trail mix. Now give everything a good stir or, if you have a lid, a good shake and share between bowls or cups for your family.
    • Weigh Station – If you have some ‘old school’ kitchen scales with a needle that moves round a dial you have have some fun predicting and weighing different items. Fill a cup with water and put it on the scales. Use a dry wipe pen to mark the scale where the arrow points. Empty the cup and make a prediction about the weight of a cup of cereal. Do you think it will weigh more, less or the same as the cup of water? Which one weighed more? Did you predict correctly? You can repeat the activity with other items – pasta, rice, sugar, coins etc. Be sure to predict whether a cup of each item will weigh more or less than a cup of water.


    Expressive Arts and Design

    Make three-day clay

    Day 1 – Put half a cup of salt into a bowl. Add half a cup plus two tablespoons of warm water to the salt and mix well. Add one and a half cups of flour to the bowl and mix again. Knead the mixture into a ball, seal in a plastic bag and put into the fridge overnight.

    Day 2 – Take the clay out of the fridge and sculpt into anything you want – how about a flower or a bird or a butterfly! If the clay feels dry or cracks, wet your hands before making your model. Put your creation on a baking tray to dry.

    Day 3 – Paint the clay once it dries and hardens. Let the paint dry for several hours before picking up your own super sculpture.





    Physical Development

    • I have seen some of you chalking rainbows and pictures on your drives and pavements. How about making a hopscotch game. This used to be Bonnie’s favourite game when she was little (a long time ago!) Chalk your numbers and then throw a small stone or beanbag gently into the number 1 square. You have to avoid the number 1 square and jump with both feet into the double square but you mustn’t hop or jump into the square with the stone in. You have to hop and jump up to number 10 and, on the way back, bend and pick your stone or beanbag up.