Activity 1
Cat call
Arrange for a pet cat to visit your nursery.
Planned learning intentions
To respond to what they see
To explore shape, form colour, texture, and pattern in 2D To use a range of mark-making tools Adult to child ratio: 1:6 Resources
A real cat, Nursery World poster of Franz Marc's 'Three Cats', mark- making tools, for example, coloured pencils, fibre tipped pens, charcoal, pastels, graphite sticks, Conte sticks and oil pastels, paper in a range of sizes
Step by step
* Ask a cat owner (perhaps a parent) to bring their pet into the classroom. Make sure it is used to being with children. Before the visit, check for cat allergies and talk to the children about how to treat the cat. How will it feel if they shout or rush at it? Why must they treat it gently?
* Encourage the children to observe as much detail of the cat as possible and to then discuss their observations. What colours are in its coat? What colour and shape are the eyes? How many whiskers can they see? Can they see its claws? How long is the tail? Is it straight or does it curl? Now ask the children to observe the cat moving. How does it move? What does it look like when it is resting, playing or drinking?
* If possible, photograph the cat in as many different positions as possible.
* After letting cat and children have a break, get the children to make some observational drawings. Urge them to use a range of mark-making tools to depict the cat's movement and character.
* Ask the children to compare their drawings with Franz Marc's 'Three Cats'. What is the same or similar? How are they different?
* Make a display of the observational drawings. Place the photographs of the cat alongside the children's work.
Stepping stones
* Describe experiences using a range of materials
* Make drawings.
* Understand what different media can be combined
* Work creatively on a large or small scale
* Make comparisons
(Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage, pages 120 and 126)
Extension activity
* Franz Marc loved animals and used colour to express how he felt about them, using yellow to represent happiness, red for liveliness and blue for quiet. Ask the children to paint their favourite animal. What colour will they paint it and why? Have a range of pictures available for reference - internet sites and The Blue Rider, Adventures in Art (Prestel, 9.95) are good sources of Marc's animal paintings (see the back of Nursery World poster, 13 September).
Activity 2
Six of everything
Read Six Dinner Sid about a cat with six owners, beds, dinners...
Planned learning intentions
To use number in a familiar context
To recognise numerals
Adult to child ratio: 1:6
Resources
Six Dinner Sid by Inga Moore (Simon and Schuster Young Books, 3.99), six large grocery boxes, white or brown wrapping paper, glue or masking tape, paint
Step by step
* Read the story to the children and discuss the relevance in it of the number six.
* Cover six grocery boxes with wrapping paper to give a neutral basis on which to paint. Get the children to paint house features on to the boxes, such as doors and window boxes with flowers. Use the story illustrations for reference. Don't worry about the roofs! Number the house doors one to six.
* Using story props, ask the children to retell the story or their version of it.
* Get the children to make zigzag books of eight pages, including the cover and back page, about their favourite part of the story, for example, six meals or six owners.
* Make a display about the number six. Include things to handle as well as pictures and numerals to look at and, of course, the children's zigzag books.
Stepping stones
* Use mathematical language in play.
* Recognise numerals.
* Count up to six objects.
* Begin to represent numbers.
(Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage, page 74)
Extension activity
* Use boxes to make a street with nine, ten, 12 or 20 houses. Number the houses and explore odd and even numbers. Count on and count back. What comes after the number 7, or before the number 10?
Activity 3
Cat collage
Make a colossal cat collage.
Planned learning intentions
To express and communicate their ideas using a range of materials
To explore colour, texture, shape, form and space in two dimensions
Adult to child ratio: 1:6
Resources
Large collection of cat pictures (include pictures from other cultures and story illustrations. The internet provides much source material - see the back of the Nursery World poster for suggested sites), any books illustrated by Eric Carle, various kinds of paper, paints, inks, etc, mark-making tools, scissors, glue
Step by step
* Show children how Eric Carle uses decorated papers to make collages for his books.
* Use the picture collection to look at the colours, textures and patterns of cats.
* Ask each child to make a collection of papers - some commercially produced and others coloured by the children.
* Next get them to chalk the outline of a cat on a piece of paper, then to cut and glue the various papers to the surface to make their cat. When dry, cut out the cat.
* Finally assemble all the cats on a chosen background (sponged, diffused, etc) to make a colossal collage.
Stepping stones
* Understand what different media can be combined
* Use ideas involving fitting, overlapping
* Work creatively on a large scale
* Choose certain colours for a purpose
* Experiment to create different textures
(Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage, page 120)
Extension activity
* Use the paper to create a collaged land-, sea-or skyscape. Add animals or birds.
Activity 4
Cat poems
Explore cat stories and poems.
Planned learning intentions
To enjoy listening to and using language
To extend their vocabulary
To write for various purposes
Adult to child ratio: 1:6
Resources
Slinky Malinki by Lynley Dodd (Puffin 4.99), a collection of cat stories, a collection of cat poems (see the back of the Nursery World poster, 13 September)
Step by step
* Read Slinky Malinki and discuss what's special about the story, drawing attention to the rhythm and rhyme.
* Read other cat poems that rhyme.
* Ask the children if they can think of any words that rhyme with cat. Give some examples. Act as a scribe so they can see the words as well as hear the rhyme.
* Make a display of words and objects. Get the children to make matching pairs. Can they match the card 'bat' with the cricket bat on the display?
Stepping stones
* Listen with increasing attention
* Show awareness of rhyme
* Recognise rhythm in spoken words
* Continue a rhyming string
(Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage, pages 50 and 60)
Extension activities
* Read a simple story like Fur by Jan Mark (Walker, 4.99) and have children make up their own versions. (See the back of the Nursery World poster, 13 September, for more story suggestions).
* Share the poem, 'A Cat's Week', on the back of the Nursery World poster.
Andrea Durrant is an early years and primary education consultant