Adult-led activity
Top slice
Prepare the food for your picnic.
Key learning intentions
To use talk to plan, organise and sequence
To share ideas with others
To recognise that it is important to eat food that helps to keep us healthy
Adult:child ratio 1: 4
Resources
* Bread, butter and healthy fillings to make sandwiches * fruit and vegetables * fruit juices to dilute * jugs * aprons * round-ended knives * forks * spoons * plates * a bowl * tea towels * greaseproof paper * sticky labels * pencils * plastic tubs * food reference books * recipe card Preparation
* Read a story involving a picnic to familiarise the children with the subject (see box).
* Check if any of the children have any particular allergy, cultural or dietary requirements.
* Set out all the food. Retain all of the packaging to refer to in discussions. Cut the greaseproof paper into 30cm squares.
Activity content
* Talk about the picnic story and any picnics that the children have attended. Explain to the children that they are going on a picnic.
* Model how to make a sandwich. Confirm the name and demonstrate the use of each utensil. Explain each step and cut the finished sandwich in half or into quarters. Wrap the sandwich in greaseproof paper, sealed with a sticky label with the person's name written on it.
* Let the children taste the different fillings. Support them in making their sandwiches, and talk to them about the food, its origins, hygiene and healthy eating as they prepare the picnic.
* Ask the children to put their sandwiches in the fridge and explain why.
* Prepare the drinks, fruit and vegetables. Supervise this part of the activity carefully.
Extended learning
Key vocabulary
Picnic, sandwich, names of food, filling, knife, chop, cut, slice, spread, top, bottom, inside, over, half, quarter, fold, store, cool, fresh.
Questions to ask
What do we need to make a sandwich? What do we put on the bread first? How will you spread the butter? What have you chosen to put inside your sandwich? Do we need to wash the vegetables? Why do we wrap our sandwich in greaseproof paper? Where is a good place to store it?
Extension ideas
* Provide pretend food, greaseproof paper and plastic tubs for the children to 'prepare' different snacks. Encourage the correct use of language.
* Let the children create their own coloured 'juices' in the water tray by mixing jugs of water of different colours. Discourage any tasting that may occur!
* Organise a Teddy Bears Picnic. Repeat the sandwich-making activity and cut with bear-shaped pastry cutters.
We're off!
Plan a nature hunt as part of your picnic.
Key learning intention
To investigate and explore, observing nature and inhabitants in their natural surroundings Adult:child ratio 1:2 Resources
* Backpacks * plastic cups * picnic blanket * magnifying glasses * tissues * camera * carrier bags * reference books
Preparation
* Visit the area where you will have your picnic beforehand and seek parents' consent.
* Arrange a back-up indoor location if the weather is bad.
* Brief volunteers who will be accompanying you on the picnic.
* Prepare a nature hunt activity sheet, with simple questions, such as, 'What can you see/find under a tree? What can you hear?' or instructions such as 'Find a brown leaf, a smooth stone and a feather.'
Activity content
* The children will probably be excited, so explain calmly what the day's events will be and that on the nature hunt they must collect only fallen objects, and not pull any from trees or plants.
* On the picnic, encourage the children to look at plants, trees and wildlife, to close their eyes and talk about the sounds they hear, and to look up into a tree and observe the leaves, branches and the light.
* Give the children the activity sheet.
* When the hunt is completed, sit with the children on the blanket and discuss their finds.
* Back at the setting, display the found objects on an interest table.
Extended learning
Key vocabulary
Leaf, tree names, branch, twig, bark, seed, nut, cone, rough, smooth, soft, wet, dry, any wildlife/insect names observed.
Questions to ask What can you find under a tree? What does bark feel like? Can you find a yellow leaf? What can you hear?
Extension idea
* Invite the children to make observational drawings of their found objects and scribe what each child says about them.
Child-initiated learning
Construction area
Additional resources
* Sets of cards with pictures on how to make a sandwich and piece of Velcro on the back of each * a set of boards with instructions on how to make a sandwich along the bottom and pieces of Velcro above them for attaching the cards Possible learning experiences
* Sequencing an activity, using talk and pictures to clarify ideas and thinking.
* Recognising that print carries meaning.
* To create and construct for a purpose.
* To respond to others, sharing likes and dislikes of food.
The practitioner role
* Explain to the children what instructions for how to do things are and what is written on the boards.
* Give each child an instruction board and place the cards in the middle of the table.
* Model how to complete a board and encourage the children to construct and reconstruct boards.
Home corner
Additional resources
* Picnic blanket * plastic cups * plates * cutlery * jugs * play food * dressing-up clothes Possible learning experiences
* Using language and conversation to imagine and recreate picnic experiences.
* Working as part of a group to play co-operatively, sharing out crockery and play food.
* Demonstrating an awareness of healthy food, using correct names.
* Sorting coloured cups, plates and cutlery into matching sets.
The practitioner role
* Place the picnic equipment in the centre of the blanket and arrange the dressing-up clothes around it.
* Allow the children to decide where the picnic will be, for example, at the seaside. Have them dress up for the picnic.
* Model how to colour-match a place setting.
* Encourage the children to share out the food.
Creative area
Additional resources
* Items collected from the nature hunt suitable for printing * paints * paint trays/tins * paint brushes * large paper
Possible learning experiences
* Demonstrating fine motor skills by handling tools and objects with control.
* Expressing ideas using a range of natural resources.
* Exploring colour and form in two and three dimensions.
The practitioner role
* Allow the children to choose one of the found objects to print with.
* Model different ways of painting with an item.
* State that the children can fill the paper with different colours and effects, but stress that they must use the same item each time.
* Save the work to show all of the children and ask them to guess which item was used in each case.
Wendy E Scott is a nursery nurse at Cheviot Primary School, Newcastle
Books
* This is the Bear and The Picnic Lunch by Sarah Hayes (Walker Books, Pounds 4.99 each)
* Spot's Walk to the Woods by Eric Hill (Puffin, 4.99)
* First Experiences - Going to the Park, (Priddy Books, 4.99), a board book with lovely pictures
* Peel and Play Fruit and Vegetables (Early Learning Centre, 6.00 per set) - plastic food that can be peeled and sliced.