The chill in the air this morning was very apparent, and it was wonderful to spend a few minutes as a staff team standing around enjoying the warmth of our fire while discussing our upcoming day.

We have been really lucky to have not only Lee, Katie, Janice and myself for all four days of this week, but also our student teacher Jane and the lovely Genevieve who is doing work experience with us this week.

After a few minutes of laughter and some planning of our day, a sudden rush of excited children and parents began arriving.  It was a relaxed start to the day with many parents and siblings joining us by the fire for a chat.

Todays group was a small one with a few of our usuals on holidays and another couple unwell.  What they lacked in numbers, they made up for in energy, enthusiasm and an innate desire to immerse themselves in every experience that outdoor kindy could offer them.

Some choose to spend time in solitary play, deeply engaged in exploring the muddy puddles kitchen and all it had to offer.

Others shared the experience with friends…

Ramps and tunnels were built, tested, rebuilt and celebrated as their suitability was assessed for rolling lemons, gumnuts, foil and paper balls.

Concepts such as distance, speed and trajectory and how these are affected by different weights were all being explored as children created a simple game of throwing their lemons, foil and paper balls into a bucket from varying distances….

Another group had a great exploration of volume as they checked out the muddy puddles oven built by yesterdays group.  They were fascinated about finding out how many children they could squish into the top shelf!!!!….

If you couldn’t fit in the oven, well you just found somewhere else to squeeze yourself into….

There was so many amazing social interactions occurring as all the children engaged at their own level in these projects and had to consider not only themselves and their needs, but also those of their friends who also had their own agendas.  There was turn taking, negotiating, discussing, talking, listening, co-operating and making choices about what to do, and who would to do it with.

The rough branches of the apple tree and bottlebrush proved irresistable to todays group of children as they skillfully and effortlessly climbed amongst the branches and enjoyed the sweeping views from their bird’s eye vantage points…

There were still a huge pile of bark chips to be moved across the yard, so this morning everyone that could be convinced about how much fun it would be lent a hand and got the job done.  There was shoveling, and filling, and pushing and lifting, negotiating all the challenges of the outdoor environment including ramps, hills and various obstacles to get the wheelbarrows safely across the yard.

Eventually, with a lot of teamwork the job was completed, and we all enjoyed a pig plate of toast that had been cooked on the fire.

This group had many grand ideas for things to cook on the fire.  Hot milo was one request. We used the fire to warm some milk, whisked the milo through it and served it to all our friends.

Watching the chooks until they each laid their daily egg was a very satisfying experience for one boy.  He spent quite some time sitting patiently by a very trusting Dottie who had fluffed her feathers and sat clucking away on her nest as she readied herself to lay her egg.

He emerged very pleased with himself, the fresh warm egg cradled gently in his hands.

Together we turned it into a yummy treat for him to share around with everyone…it was definitely all about the process for him as he doesn’t even like eating eggs!

Once again we began the process of making the stock for tomorrows soup.  Bones were cooked off and a variety of vegetables chopped and added to the pot which simmered away on the fire for the day.

Potatoes were wrapped in foil and baked in the heat beneath the fire pit.

And the smell of sausages sizzling away on the bbq plate made our mouths water.  We enjoyed them wrapped in bread with sauce drizzled on top…

One of our beautiful Mummies from last year popped in and delivered us a delicious tray of muffins to enjoy with our coffee after work – thank you Bernie!

A group of children worked to give our fairy garden a makeover.  They used the hot glue guns to create some special fairy playground equipment.  Of course the addition of copious amounts of glitter were required to make it a proper fairy garden.

Hammers, nails, drills, and screws were used in abundance at the woodwork table as children honed their skills with these tools…

Children relaxed as they swung in the hammock that had been strung under the tree….

Rosie and Dottie roamed around the yard, clucking, scratching, and enjoying the sunshine, company, and all the delicious treats provided by both the children and nature….

The children asked if we could put ropes for their hands and feet across the empty swing frame, obviously recalling the experience we had with them in outdoor kindy week last term…

Children tried their hand at tiling a table top to add to the muddy puddles kitchen…

There were willing little helpers to fill the kettle and carefully carry it to the fire to be boiled…

Children sat quietly by the fire and became engrossed in the repetitive patterning involved in helping to extend the work on the small weaving loom…..

Children explored sound and pattern as they used stones to tap on different items and create their own music…

The repetitive pattern of a railway track was seen forging its way relentlessly along the concrete path…

Plans were drawn up for projects that were to soon be under construction….

There was singing and music making around the campfire…

And who can resist a few selfies by the fire when you are surrounded by gorgeous little people…

There was also time for chilling out, or just being a little crazy…

Two budding little artists gave Genevieves pants a make over by using water to paint a rainbow and a unicorn up her legs….

Water was splashed in, scooped, funnelled and poured…

And of course there was the marshmallow cook up to finish our very busy day….

Sadly tomorrow is the final day of this terms outdoor kindy week.  Although our day to day programme is becoming closer and closer to what we experience during our outdoor weeks, it is still a much anticipated experience for us all.

Written by Nic