By Guest

• June 23, 2011
Juliet Mickelburgh More ideas and downloadable focus activities together with a booklist and mindmap - this time on the subject of night and day! These are ideas only: ANY CURRICULUM LINKS DO NOT RELATE TO THE CURRENT (2012) EYFS REQUIREMENTS

This topic brings together the mysterious (night) and the routine (day). It can be used to introduce clocks and time, outer space and opposites. There is also plenty of scope for lots of story work and book making, as there are so many children’s texts that relate to the idea of night and day. The turning of the day to night is a part of the rhythm of everyone’s lives, and this enables young children to really take ownership of this topic.

Overview

In this section you will find a mind map and a list of the areas of learning with some quick suggestions and ideas. These also include some activity plans for each area, linked to the EYFS. There is an extensive book list to accompany the topic, including non fiction books and rhymes.

Personal Social and Emotional Development (PSED)

Communication, language and literacy (CLL)

Knowledge and understanding of the world (KUW)

Mathematical Development (MD)

Physical Development (PD)

Creative Development (CD)

Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED)

Ideas and Suggestions

• Bathing Babies in the water tray, night time routines
• Small world nocturnal animals in the sand tray, or large tray with natural objects to create nests and ‘beds’
• Role play area – bedtime things, dressing gowns, slippers, mugs for warm milk, story books, dim lighting, blankets, toothbrushes/daytime things – kitchen equipment, outdoor shoes, coats, bags, toys, bright lighting
• Discuss daily routines – cleaning, washing, looking after yourself
• Dress dolls for a day out
• Read a bedtime story to Teddy
• Circle time – opportunities to discuss dreams, fear of the dark
• Listening games

Activities

Catch a dream /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

Taking care of Teddy /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

(Back to contents list )

Communication, language and literacy (CLL)

Ideas and Suggestions:

• Collect night time words and day time words – display as opposites, or word mobiles
• Book making - a day time and night time book/own versions of well known story books or rhymes
• Collect star words and sun words
• Day and night sounds – listening games
• Non-fiction books
• Circle time
• Words that rhyme
• Story making and telling – dreams
• Play writing opportunities – write letters to the man in the moon
• Construction – rocket building
• Glitter pens to draw stars and moon

Activities

Word collection /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

Twinkle, twinkle /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

(Back to contents list)

Knowledge and understanding of the world (KUW)

Ideas and Suggestions:

• Doll’s House – setting up rooms for night and day
• Role play area – a clock menders/ a night time cave for animals
• Telescopes and stars
• Clocks – take apart an old one
• Tray with small world nocturnal animals
• Water tray – bathing babies – bubble bath, soap, essential oil, towels/black food colouring and glitter in water
• Invite a parent/carer with a small baby to bath them with a group of children
• Working the night shift – invite a parent who works nights to come and talk about their job
• Look at animal’s sleeping places
• Story making – going to bed and getting up
• Non fiction books
• Moths (night) and Butterflies (day)

Activities

Who's in the cave? /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

What's in a clock? /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

Display example

(Back to contents list)

Problem solving, reasoning and numeracy (PSRN)

Ideas and Suggestions:

• Sequencing - routines of the day, the changes of the moon, puzzles
• Sorting – objects to do with day and night sorted into large hoops
• Opposites – different opposites sorted into pairs (e.g. sun and moon)
• Use timers/stop watches – e.g. at tidy up time, outside
• Time – toy clocks, alarm clocks, clock stamps, circle shapes
• Size and shape – stars of different sizes, moon and sun shapes
• Tessellation – star shapes, diamond shapes
• Number – countdown for a rocket launch, ten in the Bed

Activites

In a minute! /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

Sorting night from day /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

(Back to contents list)

Physical Development (PD)

Ideas and Suggestions:

• Outside - What’s the time Mr Wolf?
• 1 minute jumping/running/balancing etc. – using a one minute timer
• Star jumps
• Pretend to be a clock – arms are hands of a clock, or a swinging pendulum
• Awake/asleep games – replace ‘stop’/’go’ with ‘awake’/’asleep’
• Construction materials – make clock models with wheels and cogs
• Be a nocturnal animal – bat/moth/badger/hedgehog/owl etc.
• Mime day and night routines and guess what they are
• Dreamy dances

Activites

The early shift /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

Day and night dance /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

(Back to contents list)

Creative Development (CD)

Ideas and Suggestions:

• Sun and moon mobiles
• Glitter stars
• Chalking on blackboard
• Printing with mechanical objects, e.g. wheels/cogs like the inside of a clock
• Wax resist pictures using candles
• Make night and day sounds using musical instruments
• Make clock chimes using appropriate instruments
• Make paper plate clocks
• Star stamps/stickers on black paper
• Listen to lullaby music to represent night time/busy music to represent day time
• Making candles
• Book making

Activities

Wish upon a star /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

Daytime sounds /forums/uploads/word.gif /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif

(Back to contents list)

 




Top of Page

Other Resources

• A booklist is available here:

  /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif /forums/uploads/word.gif

• 'mindmap' document here:

  /forums/uploads/pdficon.gif /forums/uploads/word.gif