Moving, Shaking and Exploring

Music and Movement

The Music and Movement sessions we offer supports our children’s cognitive development. Music and movement also plays a role in physical and emotional well-being and encourages our children to express themselves safely and creatively. Children naturally love music whether it’s soft and soothing or a lively tune, children feel it both physically and emotionally. quiet, soothing music calms and relaxes children, while a lively marching tune rouses them for more energetic movements. Our music and movement sessions are social occasions that help our children feel part of the group. Throughout their early years children also learn that movement can communicate messages and represent actions. They begin to learn about the world by acting on objects and people, and they “think with their bodies” well before they think with words. This is why body movement is not only fun for children but also a good opportunity for them to solve problems. Skills our children develop through their music and movement sessions include:

Participating in a group
Social skills
Express emotions
Enhance self-concept by sharing music and dance of each other’s culture.
Refine listening skills-noticing changes in tempo or pitch.
Awareness of movement and body positions
Creativity and imagination
Learn new words and concepts.
Explore cause and effect.
Develop large motor skills.
Improve balance, coordination and rhythm through dance and movement

Creepy Crawlies

As part of Watermead Day Nurseries commitment to outdoor learning, and to help the children develop a strong, positive relationship with the natural environment and a better understanding of the surrounding world, the setting is home to a variety of creepy crawlies and animals which the children can handle and interact with. This helps to educate them on appropriate ways to interact with insects and spiders, and allows them observe, first-hand, the different characteristics of creepy crawlies. It also helps to build self-confidence and a better awareness of the surrounding environment through structured interactive sessions. Children also learn about responsibility through caring for the animal’s day-to-day needs such as feeding.

In the interactive sessions the children are introduced to such things as metamorphosis, where they can observe the changes some insects undertake as they grow, and they also learn such things as how insects view the world differently from us.

By giving the children in its care easy access to a variety of animals and creepy crawlies Watermead Day Nursery hopes to help instil a heathy regard and appreciation of nature in its children.

After all,

“Unless we are willing to encourage our children to reconnect with and appreciate the natural world. We can’t expect them to help protect and care for it.”

David Suzuki