There is so much to discover in nature!
Mark-making using what we have!
Materials
- Various types of leaves
- Paper or fabric
- Paint brushes and paint (use primary colours)
Learning Goals
- Engage, explore and experiment in their environment and use new physical skills including skills to manipulate objects and materials
- Learn about the natural environment and its features, materials, animals, and plants, and their own responsibility as carers
- Experiment with colours and colour mixing
- Nature awareness: collecting, sorting and grappling with natural materials
- Sensorial Stimulation: experience various textures
Process Description
Step 1
Children can collect various natural resources from their environment or ask family members and friends to contribute to this project.
Step 2
After painting the natural resources children can create flower/leaft-prints on paper or fabric.
Step 3
Create a booklet with the flowers and leaves, name the flowers used and any other details the children would like to add to their prints
Adaptation
Read the book, Flowers to Spot by Sam Smith, to introduce children to the different types of flowers, where they can be found. What shapes and colours do they see?
Reflective questions
- What could have been better?
- How did I scaffold children’s learning?
- Could I have adapted the learning opportunity to reflect all children’s needs, abilities and interests
Looking and responding
Start by asking the children to describe what they see. Draw attention to details. What shapes are they making? What colours do they see? Can we create new colours using the colours we have?
Bibliography
- Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education (CECDE) (2006) Síolta: The National Quality Framework for Early Childhood Education. Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education.
- National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) (2009a) Aistear: The Early Childhood Curriculum Framework. Dublin: NCCA.
Author Bio
TeachKloud is a management childcare app used by thousands of educators and parents every day! See how it works here!
