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WEEK 1: Introduction to our Spring and Pets Project w/c 25.02.08

Discussion: Return to nursery. Welcome children back and introduce new children – learning names and discussing how we can help them settle in.

Familiarise ourselves again with classroom routines and principles and why they are so important. Where did we go in half term? What did we do? Who did we see? Encouraging the children to remember and describe their time either in circle time or individually.

This week we are going to be talking about the arrival of spring. What do we see in spring? How is it different to winter? What changes are there to the weather, plants, our clothes etc? We will also be starting to discuss pets. What pets do the children themselves have or know of. Can any animal be a pet? Why do lions or tigers not make good pets? Pets are animals that live with humans. What makes a good pet? What are common pets (dog, cat, hamster, guinea pig, rabbit, fish) and what are not so common (snake, lizard, spider, stick insects). There are two very special events happening in this half term, Mothers day which is at the end of the week and Easter. What is mother’s day and why do we have it? Is there a father’s day? What do our mummies do for us and how can we help them? How can we make her day special?


Language: Mothers Day, (maman),spring ( le printemps), rainbow (arc-en-ciel)names of pets and their offspring

Books/ songs:
Let’s Celebrate Spring, A Chick Called Saturday,
Signs of Spring
Are you spring?
I can sing a rainbow
My mum is fantastic
Guess how much I love you

Artwork: Blossom pictures, mother’s day cards

Cooking: Fairy cakes with pink icing

Letter of the week: u (as in umbrella)

Number of the week: 1 and 10 (un et dix)

Colour of the week: white/blanc

Shape of the week: rectangle

WEEK 2: Pets (dogs/chiens) w/c 03.03.08

Discussion: Who has a dog? Different breeds of dog, can we name some? What is a baby dog called? How many legs does a dog have? How many legs does he use to walk? Can we name the parts of a dog’s body? What noises does a dog make? (Bark, woof, growl, whimper and what do they mean?) What does a dog eat? How do you look after a dog (grooming, diet, exercise, the vet?). Where do dogs live?

Visit: If possible a visit from a friendly (!) dog. It will be necessary to check that the animal has the appropriate injections and that no child has an allergy to pet fur

Language: Dog, chien, tail, paws, tongue, fur

Books & songs:
Daft Dog
The New Puppy
If I were a dog
Watch me grow puppy
Fergus, Kipper, Scruff and Hairy Mc Clary books also
One man went to mow
The farmers dog’s at my back door
How much is that doggy in the window?
The Great pet Sale

Artwork: Dog paper bag puppets

Letter of the week: v (as in van)

Number of the week: 2 (deux)

Colour of the week: yellow/jaune

Shape of the week: kite (diamond)

WEEK 3: Cats (le chat) w/c 10.03.08

Discussion: Who has a cat? Different breeds of cat. Can we name some? What is a baby cat called? What noises does a cat make? (Purr, meow, hiss and spit and what do they mean?) Can we make these noises? Where do they live?
What do they eat?

Visit: If possible a visit from a friendly cat

Language: Cat, kitten paw, tail, fur

Books/songs:
Mog and the baby
Mog and the V.E.T.
The Black cat
Flabby Tabby
Watch me grow kitten
Slinky Malinki,
Pussy cat,pussy cat
The cat in the Hat

Art activity: Cat masks

Letter of the week: w (as in wig)

Number of the week: 3 (trois)

Colour of the week: green/vert

Shape of the week: circle

WEEK 4: Easter /Hamsters and guinea pigs w/c 17.03.08

Discussion: At the end of this week it is Easter. What is Easter? When is it? Is it always at the same time of the year? How do we celebrate Easter? Why do we have Easter Eggs? It is one of the Christian festivals and celebrates the arrival of spring. Read the Easter story. Continuing our discussion on pets we are going to look at hamsters and
Guinea pigs: different breeds – Syrian, Russian, dwarf. Where do they come from and what are their habits e.g. they are nocturnal animals, what does this mean? How do we look after hamsters and guinea pigs and what do they need? What are the differences between them? Hamsters like to live on their own but guinea pigs like to live together. Do they make any noises? As they are so small we must treat them very gently.

Visit: Delphine to bring in her guinea pigs if possible

Language: Easter (Paques), egg, chocolate, hamster, guinea pig (cochon d’inde)

Books/Songs:
The Easter Story
My Pet Guinea Pig
My Pet Hamster
I Love Guinea Pigs

Art activity/cooking:
Easter Cards
Easter nests
Hamster collage
Easter egg hunt

Letter of the week: x (as in fox)

Number of the week: 4(quatre)

Colour of the week: blue/bleu

Shape of the week: oval

WEEK 5: Rabbit (Lapin) w/c 24.03.08

Discussion: Different breeds of rabbit, length of hair and ears, looking after a rabbit, where do we keep them? What about grooming and exercise. Body parts of the rabbit and names of family members. How does a rabbit move? Can we move like that?

Visit: From a friendly rabbit if possible

Language: rabbit, lapin, ears, tail, lop, hop, dwarf, hutch, run, cage

Books/Songs:
My Pet rabbit
Peter Rabbit
Rabbits wish
Peter Rabbit had a fly upon his nose

Art activity:
Rabbit masks
Rabbit finger painting

Letter of the week: y (as in yak).

Number of the week: 5 (cinq)

Colour of the week: Brown/brun

Shape of the week: triangle

WEEK 6: Fish (Poisson) w/c 25.03.08

Discussion: Different breeds of fish, cold water fish (goldfish), tropical. Parts of a fish. Where do fish live? How do we keep fish and what do we have to do to look after them? What do fish eat? How do they breathe? Do fish make noises?
Can we swim like a fish does?

Language: fish, poisson, fin, tail, gills, tank, bowl

Artwork: Sparkly collage fish

Books/Songs:
The Rainbow Fish
The Fish Who Could Wish
Owning a Pet Fish
One Fish two fish

Letter of the week: z(as in zoo)

Number of the week: 6 (six)

Colour of the week: purple /violet

Shape of the week: square

Week 7 Review and project conclusion w/c 31.03.08

Discussion: What have we learned about this half term and what can we remember? We have learnt about pets, spring, mother’s day and Easter. Pets are animals that live with people.

Remember our numbers( 1,2,3,4,5,6,10), letters (u,v,w,x,y,z,), shapes ( rectangle, diamond, triangle, circle, oval and square) and colours ( white, yellow, green, blue, brown and purple) and their French names for the half term

Language: Pet, dog, cat, rabbit, guinea pig, hamster, fish, Easter, mothers day

Art activity: Any of the previous art activities that children may not have made during the half term 

Books/songs: Review all of our favourite books and songs from the last few weeks

Note to parents: if you have one of the above pets and would like your child to bring it in to see the children we would love to hear from you

And have a happy holiday