Weekly Bulletin – Week 2; 22nd – 25th June 2020
This week’s topic is about ‘exploring the sun and being safe’. As summer is fast approaching it’s important that the children are aware about the dangers and the things which could keep them safe on a very hot day. We have selected a few activities to get you started but please extend them and introduce different ideas which fit in with your own family.
Activity 1: Exploring ice cubes and temperatures.
What you will need:
- Large Tub or tubs
- Water
- Small objects
- Ice cube trays
- Hammer or something to break up the ice
The Method:
In the large tub:
- Fill up the tub with water
- Place objects into the water
- Put into freezer and leave for 24 hours
- When frozen, take into the garden and allow your child to bash up the ice to find the objects.
Ice cube trays:
- Fill up the ice cube trays with water
- Place in the freezer and leave for 24 hours
- When frozen take some ice cubes out and take to the garden
- Place them in different places and watch how quickly or slowly they melt.
- You could place the ice cubes in different temperatures of water (cold & warm).
Things to talk about whilst creating:
- Changes to the water – liquid, solid etc. (Understanding the World)
- How fast or slow the ice melts in different conditions (Mathematics development; Understanding of the World)
- Use a timer to time how fast the ice melts and talk about this. You could also encourage the children to make a tally chart to record their findings (Literacy development; Mathematics development)
Extending the activity:
- Ice cube painting outside (Add crushed chalk, paint or food colouring into the water before freezing)
- Snow & Ice small world scene (using ice, arctic animals, boats etc.)
- Making your own ice lollies
Activity 2: Sun cream protection activity:
What you will need:
- Sun cream
- Minimum of 3 pieces of dark paper (black, blue etc.)
- A sunny day (!!!)
The Method:
- Choose one piece of paper to use the sun cream on.
- Decorate the paper with sun cream; you could put some sun cream on your hand and then print, or put some in a small pot and use a paintbrush to make patterns (The key here is to not apply the sun cream on the paper to thick)
- Place the sun cream picture in the sun
- Place a piece of ‘clean’ paper in the sun
- Keep one piece of ‘clean’ paper inside and away from the sun
- Keep checking the paper throughout the day and see if you notice anything (you may need to keep moving your paper so that it is always in the sun!)
- At the end of the day (approx. 6+ hours in the sun) bring all 3 pieces of paper together and see what has happened.
Things to talk about whilst creating:
- Texture of the sun cream (Expressive Arts & Design – Exploring and using media and materials)
- Predictions of what you think will happen (Characteristics of Effective Learning)
- Talk about the process of what is happening each time you check, you could ask:
What is the sun doing to the paper? Can you still see the sun cream? Is the paper lighter or darker than it was this morning? (Communication & Language - understanding; Understanding the World - ) - Talk about how the areas where sunscreen was applied remained darker because the sunscreen protected the dye in the paper from the sun’s UV rays.
- Explain that every time the children add sunscreen to their skin, they are adding another layer of protection from the sun. (Physical development – Health and Self-care)
Extending the activity:
- Colouring sheets; Slip, slop, slap and wrap poster, keeping cool and drinking water colouring. When colouring these sheets talk about the importance of being safe in the sun.
- Leaflet – Sun safety (a simple leaflet to talk through with your children)
- Song for Slip, slop, slap and wrap; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKPP8qqA7cY
Activity 3: Natural World Sun-catchers
What you will need:
- Sticky back plastic or a laminating pouch split in half – keep both halves (if using a laminating pouch you will need glue to!)
- Flowers and leaves
- Scissors
- Paper plate (optional)
- Hole punch
- Ribbon or string
The Method:
- If using a paper plate – cut out the centre of the plate
- Draw a circle on the sticky back plastic / laminating pouch that is slightly larger than the centre of the paper plate
- Remove the backing of the sticky back plastic or apply glue all over the laminating pouch (make sure the sticky side is facing up!)
- If using a paper plate – press the paper plate frame over the sticky paper and press it down
- Gather the flower petals and leaves you have collected from outside and press them down onto the sticky part.
- When you are happy with your design, cut a second circle from the sticky back plastic or laminating pouch and stick it over the top of your design.
- Use the hole punch to punch a hole at the top of your sun-catcher. Thread some string or ribbon through and hang the sun-catcher by the window and let the light shine through it.
Things to talk about whilst creating:
- How to use scissors safely and how to hold them correctly (Physical development – Moving and handling, health and self-care)
- Colours of the flowers and leaves (Expressive Arts & Designs)
- Look at the patterns on the flowers and leaves (Characteristics of Effective Learning)
- Talk about the way the sun shines through the sun-catcher (Understanding the World – technology; Communication and Language – understanding)
Extending the activity:
- Making sun-catchers from different materials – tissue paper, recycled plastics, permanent markers (colouring)
- Making a paper plate sun collage
Activity 4: Shadow pictures
What you will need:
- Paper (white)
- Pens, pencils, wax crayons or chalks
- A sunny day (!!!)
The Method:
- Put the paper down on a table or the floor where it is sunny
- Place the objects on the paper (you may need to reposition the paper or objects to give the best shadows)
- Draw around the shadow outlines
- Colour in the pictures
- You could repeat this activity at different times throughout the day to see if you notice anything, at the end of the day you could ask; what time of the day were the shadows the biggest/smallest?
Things to talk about whilst creating:
- Talk about the sun and how it creates shadows when things are in its way
- Talk about the safety of the shade
- Talk about the size of the shadows, you could ask: Are the shadows bigger or smaller than the real object?
Extending the activity:
- Draw around a person and add in the facial features – you could draw a few and add different emotions and talk about the different types of emotions.
Some extra ideas and activities:
- Sun safe certificate
- Design your own sunglasses or sunhat
- Pack for sun safety activity (Talk about the items – which ones keep you safe on a sunny day?)
- Drinking challenge (water of course!) to keep hydrated – who can drink the most water in your house (make a simple tally chart to record your answers)
- Song of the week; Slip, slop, slap and wrap; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKPP8qqA7cY
- Story of the week; George the Sun Safe Superstar; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7ghJsZug60&t=1s Or a PDF copy; https://www.skcin.org/downloads/georgeTheSunSafeSuperstar.pdf
Final note:
Don’t forget to have a look at our ‘Parents of Little Dolphins’ closed Facebook group, for more ideas, activities and stories for your child to see and do. If you are not part of this group just search for it on Facebook (our logo is a mosaic version of the Little Dolphins logo).
We hope you enjoy exploring these activities!