Welcome to the Goldfinches Class!
Staff
Teacher: Shazia Ahmed-Dunnighan
TAs: Allyce Firth, Gemma McDaid and Sam Broadbent
Mid Day Leader: Ellie O’Brien
Newsletter
Food Glorious Food
As part of our topic ‘Food Glorious Food’ we shared the story of ‘The Gingerbread Man’. The children particularly enjoyed munching on their own Gingerbread Man. They giggled with enjoyment at the repeated refrain ‘run, run, as fast as you can, you can’t catch me I’m the Gingerbread Man’ as the Gingerbread Man led the farm animals on a merry chase.
Sensory food play was a little different this half term, each week we were given a focus and two foods to explore. When exploring sweet foods, some of the children really enjoyed the liquorice others preferred the honey. The salty olives were an acquired taste, with one child devouring them all! It was interesting to see the look of surprise and sometimes disgust when the children tasted the bitter dark chocolate!
The children continue to develop their communication skills daily. When making Mother’s Day cards the children chose their preferred choice of paint colour using PECS to create their tulips. The children took part in a weekly light session selecting their own choice of fluorescent paint, pasta, or spaghetti. They have also used PECS to request motivating items including shaving foam and bubbles. The children are doing so well, especially travelling to request a preferred item.
We have had lots of special events this half term, we started with World Book Day, where we had Old McDonald and lots of animals from his farm, we also had a Fantastic Mr Fox. The children enjoyed acting out the song and exploring farm animals during a sensory play session. The ducks in the gloop were a favourite and the pigs in the sweet mud (chocolate powder and water). As part of Red Nose Day, the children really watched and anticipated during a Red Nose themed Attention Autism session. More recently the children have taken part in a pyjama day to collect chocolate for our Easter Raffle. Our Languages Day theme was Asia, in particular India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. The children danced using bells and ribbons to Bollywood music during our studio session. We had a spicy sensory play session, and enjoyed tasting traditional food including samosas, pakora’s, various rice, and breads.
Signalong
At Kingfisher we use Signalong as a part of a Total Communication Approach, we are constantly using core vocabulary with the children to support their language development and then through each of our topics we introduce new signs and language, which extends their vocabulary further. We also have two “Signs of the Week” which helps maintain and extend key knowledge and skills of everyday vocabulary.
Each half term we will be creating a short video showcasing and demonstrating signs relavent for the current term so that you can learn the signs and further this learning at home.
You can view this half terms signalong video below:
Lunchtime
If your child has a school dinner, the school menus can be accessed by clicking here. For children who bring a packed lunch, please remember to provide healthy and balanced options. We are a Healthy School and will be focusing on healthy eating and how children can make healthy lifestyle choices.
How You Can Help at Home
The following is a list of home learning activities you can enjoy with your child at home. The activities link closely to the activities we complete in school and our topic ‘Food Glorious Food’
- Offer me choices using real objects or photographs.
- Support my independence by encouraging me to dress/undress myself, complete fastenings such and zips and velcro and encourage me to carry my own belongings.
- Encourage me to use a spoon or fork at mealtimes.
- Sing songs and rhymes with me, using props if possible. Encourage me to join with action songs such as ‘wind the bobbin up’.
- Provide me with multisensory toys and everyday objects I can explore, e.g., Rainbow Hoops (Asda) and different sized bowls and containers so I can fill and empty. Model ways I can play also mirroring my play.
- Engage in ‘intensive interaction’ which includes copying my sounds, body language, and facial expressions.
- Provide different colourful materials to explore mark making and fine motor skills, e.g., coloured rice (adding colouring and dash of vinegar to rice and allowing it to dry) coloured sand with glitter, shaving foam, and flour/oats.
- Share picture books and stories with me, especially books with buttons, flaps and different textures, encouraging me to hold the book and turn the pages.
- Watch our class sensory story ‘The Gingerbread Man’ on YouTube with me, there are lots of versions to choose from, including songs.
- Why not take me on a visit to a farm to see some real-life farm animals from the story.
- During Sensory Food play we will be exploring foods using all of or senses, why not allow me to explore different foods during play, including smelly foods!
- As the weather is beginning to change, why not take me on a nature walk collecting natural materials to create a springtime collage. What do they smell, feel, and sound like?
- Plant some spring bulbs and watch them grow.
