Kornmehl

Terry Aizen – Director of Kornmehl

STEM discoveries

There has been a keen interest in science experiments in both the Starfish and Dolphin groups these past few weeks. The children are curious and creative thinkers and are constantly challenging us with their deep and thought provoking questions and hypothesis.

In response to this interest, both groups have been investigating and experimenting.

Some of the projects they have been involved in are:

Sinking and floating experiment. The materials we used for this experience included a tub of blue water (for the boat and river) and small marbles (which represented the people). The intention was to see how many marbles or stones would fit into the boat before it sank. The children learnt the word prediction. When we had 21 marbles in the boat, we asked the children how many more marbles we would need to get to 31.

Koben: 10! Because 21 and 10 makes 31. But I think it’ll sink.

We added 10 more each time.

Liam suggested: “You can ask Google!”

It took 172 marbles for the boat to sink!

Magnet play – we wondered why two magnets were attracted to each other in one position but repelled in the opposite position.

Phoebe: Maybe there’s an invisible bowl inside it.
Kayla: I see something in it. It’s a silver thing.

We introduced the words ‘attract ‘and ‘repel’ to the children.

Liam: Because I think it’s the wrong way. If you flick two, they both stick. It’s the flection (sic). It’s like ourselves in the mirror.
Phoebe: And it’s like the sun because suns can reflect things.

Magnetic forces that create movement through repelling – we made cork boats and floated them in water and passed the magnet under the water. They learnt that the magnetic force can travel through water and also that it can move things. The children are very interested in the words “invisible force.”
Absorbency of different papers using a pipette – the children wanted to discover which papers absorb and which repel the coloured water when it is dropped from the pipette onto brown paper, wax paper and paper towel. They were fascinated by how the wax paper repelled the droplets whilst the paper towel absorbed the droplets and the colours spread creating beautiful patterns.

Care Packs

Our Care Pack project is progressing very well. We have had a fabulous response from both the Pre-school and Emanuel School families. We are hoping to reach our target of 500 Care Packs to support the children in Aboriginal Pre-schools in New South Wales. We still have another 10 days for Care Packs to come in. Emanuel School families can drop their Care Packs at the main reception office and Kornmehl families can give them to me. Your support of this worthwhile project is greatly appreciated.

School readiness

This is the time of the year when parents and teachers begin to think about whether the children are ready for school. One particular issue frequently asked is “how do you prepare my child for school?” It is always useful to think about this issue at varying stages of young children’s development. Here is what we often say:

Childhood is an extraordinary period in a human being’s life. All stages of our lives bring with them certain characteristics, limitations and special challenges. The relationships and opportunities offered to a child at any time must be responsive to the child they are now. Readiness for school translates into a child who is a capable learner, who is confident, flexible, open to possibilities, sufficiently resilient to take risks, sufficiently secure to be confident – in short, a child who goes off to school and is comfortable with challenge. The central concept when working with children in the present is that we develop relationships and promote personal development rather than teach facts. Our aim is to support children to:

become effective as contributors within our Pre-school community;
be valued as unique and powerful human beings;
engage in relationships of caring and respect;
be involved in positive relationships with their peers;
feel a sense of belonging.

We ask parents to reorient themselves to look at children, no matter how young, as people with certain characteristics who are growing, becoming, developing and adding new knowledge, skills and understandings all the time. In this way, each child in our Pre-school has been assisted to become responsible for themselves, for others and for the physical world.

We hope that this will give you something to think about as we draw closer to our Parent Teacher interviews, the time where we think about your child’s progress, strengths, development and readiness for school in all areas – socially, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually.

Other aspects to consider when it comes to school readiness:

Fine motor skills

Children need to have an established hand-dominance before starting school.

A mixed dominance at this age will impact negatively on:
- handwriting (letter formations, reversals)
- reading (scanning from left to right)
- left/right discrimination
- all bilateral skills (catching, cutting, supporting page when writing, construction toys, tying laces)

Gross-motor skills

To develop bilateral integration for:
- crossing the midline to develop a dominant hand
- all motor planning
- ball skills
- scissor/pencil tasks
- reciprocal arm/leg movements
- riding a bicycle
To develop balance skills in preparation for: hopping, skipping, climbing, galloping and marching
Examples of gross-motor activities – completing a puzzle or drawing while lying on their tummy, negotiating stairs with alternating feet, catching a ball and balancing for 5-10 seconds.

Visual motor skills

To develop visual motor control to be able to: trace, cut, colour in, copy, thread with accuracy
To be able to copy all shapes, especially diagonal lines (/ \ x) in preparation for early letter and number formation
Examples of activities: colouring in, lacing, weaving, stringing beads, peg board patterns, cutting out shapes, copying a design of three steps using cubes, joining up dots, tracing around your own hand and copying shapes or sequences.

Play/social skills and self-care skills

To develop confidence/self-esteem in their ability to perform or attempt all tasks
To understand social cues, rules and limitations
To initiate new friendships and interactions with peers
Eating and dressing independently for:
- school excursions
- changing for sport
- sleeping at friends
Other examples include dressing and undressing independently, toileting independently, understanding rules of games and being able to participate in games meaningfully, taking turns and sharing.

Cognition is important

To develop pre-academic skills for reading/writing
To organise themselves and their belongings
To develop visual perceptual skills (especially memory) for:
- Spelling, reading and writing
To develop sequencing skills for:
- Following instructions
- Early mathematics

Sensory processing is how we interpret incoming sensory information.

Sensory Processing Disorder is the inefficiency in our central nervous system to process incoming information or stimuli. Difficulties in processing can lead to numerous problems such as disrupted motor co-ordination, sleeping, eating, concentration, learning, behaviour and social/emotional functioning.

Self-regulation is a person’s ability to adjust or control their energy level, emotions, behaviours and attention.

Appropriate self-regulation means adjustment and control is conducted in socially acceptable ways.

Behaviours to look out for include:

Fidgeting
Restless/rocking in chair
Knocking into people/objects
Difficulty sitting upright during floor time
“On the move,” easily distracted.
Seeking/avoiding touch
Wrapping legs around legs of chair
Hating change
Disliking music time
Unpredictable behaviours,
Feeling overwhelmed during outdoor play
Sucking on clothes or objects

Points to remember in preparing your child for school

Provide your child with spontaneous learning experiences (colours, shapes, how ‘things’ work)
Look for opportunities to teach in everyday experiences
Make school exciting – talk positively about school and this new adventure that they are embarking on
Minimise after-school activities especially in Term 1
Make reading, writing and other homework tasks an enjoyable experience
Give your child positive reinforcement and praise for effort
Encourage independence (dressings, eating, bathing, packing their bags, putting on school shoes, opening lunch containers, looking after their belongings etc.)

Other points:

When children are bored it allows them to use other parts of their brain as well as their imagination.
Try to get back to how we all grew up, with no screen time available during the week.
Put your toys at home on rotation, don’t have them all out at once as this gets overwhelming for children.
Encourage your children not to sit with their legs in a “W” shape, as this is not good for their knees and hips, but most importantly it weakens their core muscles and postural tone and limits their ability to interact in the environment.
Children tend to avoid activities they find difficult. Be positive, give them lots of praise and encouragement to build up their confidence to try things that might be challenging for them.
Teaching your child to breathe deeply is a great strategy for helping them to calm down.
Early intervention is important to address any issues or concerns.
Don’t be afraid to give your child a steady dose of Vitamin N – saying NO. Children are suffering from over-indulgence and are expecting to get everything for nothing. Children need protection, affection and direction. Children need to hear their parents say NO more often. In the process of trying to protect children from frustration, parents have turned reality upside down.