It’s going to be a week of well-being here at The Children’s House, as we pause to slow down, take in our surroundings, & check in with our bodies. The children will be doing some mindful breathing and yoga, body scans & 5 senses grounding in the garden, & playing games like mirror twins, dressing up & musical chairs!

It’s a wonderful thing to try to help instil a sense of themselves in the children at this age, to be aware of what their bodies are feeling like & if they need to stretch/ calm down/ relax etc – & then to do that by deep slow breathing, or yoga poses, or mindfulness. If they start practising habits of well-being at this stage then hopefully these habits will stay with them as they get older, as self-help strategies & supports in life.

You Can Be Whatever You Want To Be (poem)

You can be whatever you want to be,
There are so many choices, let’s have a look & see –
A firefighter, a ballet dancer, a race car driver who likes to zoom,
Think about what’s interesting, the choice is up to you!
You can like any book, movie or toy,
Nothing in this world is just for a girl or boy!

We’re all about fruit & vegetables this week at The Children’s House!! The children will be introduced to the theme at the beginning of the week, & we will be discussing different fruit & vegetables that we eat and grow, then we will be tasting different & new types during the week. The children will be doing process art & painting with citrus fruit, as well as doing a science experiment with lemons, & finally planting apple seeds at the end of the week, to show how we can start growing our own foods from what we already have.

Strawberries, Oranges, Watermelon Too (tune: Twinkle Twinkle)

Strawberries, oranges, watermelon too,
Some for me & some for you,
They are tasty, they are sweet,
They are such a lovely treat.
Strawberries, oranges, watermelon too,
Some for me & some for you!

Well it’s a short but sweet week here at The Children’s House! We will be celebrating Pancake Tuesday, making art for Valentine’s Day & having our annual Valentine’s ball on Wednesday!!!  We will be focusing on emotions and talking about what love means to us all – who we love, who loves us, and most importantly, the necessity in life to love our own selves! ❤️❤️

We will then be closed on Thursday 15th & Friday 16th, back to school next Monday 19th February – have a great mid term break everyone!!

Lots of People in my Family (tune: Baa Baa Black Sheep)

Lots of people in my family,
Special people, dear to me,
Some who are near me, some far away,
These are special people that I love every day.
Lots of people in my family,
Special people, dear to me!

Gong Xi Fa Cai!! It’s the Chinese Lunar New Year on Saturday 10th February, so this week we will be learning a bit about China – looking at where it is in Asia, learning about some customs & superstitions, and looking at some photos and objects from China. It’s the Year of the Dragon, and the children will be making Chinese New Year craft and learning about the lucky Red Packets/Envelopes, and at the end of the week we will be dancing with streamers in the garden to a special Dragon dance!!

Dragon Dance (tune: London Bridge)

See the dragons dance & prance,
Dance & prance, dance & prance,
See the dragons dance & prance,
On Chinese New Year’s Day!

See the dragons shake their tails,
Shake their tails, shake their tails,
See the dragons shake their tails,
On Chinese New Year’s Day!

See the dragons turn around,
Turn around, turn around,
See the dragons turn around,
On Chinese New Year’s Day!

See the dragons go to sleep,
Go to sleep, go to sleep,
See the dragons go to sleep,
On Chinese New Year’s Day!