Autumn is such a beautiful time of year, where the leaves
start to fall off the trees and more importantly the temperature starts to cool
down to winter. These are exciting times for us at kindergarten as
we patiently wait for the weather to change and the temperature drop so we can
start our open fire for cooking.
There is certainly something special about sitting
around the fire on a cool winter’s day, cooking delicious food. That
is exactly what we do at Mairtown kindergarten; during our cool winter months
we hold our greatly anticipated ‘Fire Thursday’.
This is our eighth year of holding weekly fires every
Thursday morning during term two and three. Now it is truly a
well-loved tradition at kindergarten and our children fondly know Thursday as
‘Fire Thursday’.
The creation of fire is an essential factor of a
Nature programme. It is one of the four elements and provides
opportunities for children to experience success and self-accomplishment when
starting a fire from scratch that will ultimately cook food.
I love how our fire day provides our children with so much
valuable learning. Well before the first fire is lit, we engage with
our kindergarten community to discuss our plans to minimise risks associated
with having fire. During the build up to the first fire we engage
with our children to share and discuss thoughts of how to keep safe around
fire. It so lovely to see our children who have experienced ‘Fire Thursday’,
take on the role of leadership in sharing the rules and reflecting about what
they enjoy.
Whānau time provides an excellent opportunity to have
discussions and share ideas about how to be safe around the fire. We
actually bring our fire (not lit) inside onto our mat, where we get our
children to role model how to keep themselves safe around the fire. Keeping
everyone safe is our key priority, one of the many measures we have in place is
a safety bubble that is drawn around our fire.
Important rules that our children shared;
“No balls
or toys or they might go in the fire.” said Liam
“Walking
feet around the fire, cause if you run you might get burnt.” said Sullivan
“No
running past the fire.” said Amalia
“No
scarfs or capes, no floating stuff near the fire cause if it’s windy you might
get burnt.” said Taikura
“If you
be silly near the fire, the teachers will tell you to go away.” said Bella
“Two
teachers need to be at the fire if only one teacher you have to wait on the
sleep.” said Teddie
“Only the
teachers are allowed in the safety bubble children have to stay out.” said
Willow
I think it is brilliant how our children seem to have a
sense of responsibility for their own well-being and that of
others. I know that our children are excellent at remembering the
rules and are quick to point out if I am wearing a scarf on fire
day. Wisdom Commons describes responsibility as ownership and
committing ourselves to lead, to create, to solve problems and then following
through. It involves taking risks and working hard. Being
responsible can be daunting but also rewarding. (Wisdom Commons)
Our children are involved throughout the process of
preparing the fire, and all have great expertise and knowledge of what is
required to get the fire going. There are always keen helpers to
scrunch the newspaper, kindling to cut and lay ready for the teachers to
light. Of course there is the food to prepare too and our children
can choose to be involved with measuring the ingredients, working the dough and
picking the rosemary to cut it and add to the oil.
Cooking is all about people. Food is maybe
the only universal thing that really has the power to bring everyone
together. No matter what culture, everywhere around the world,
people get together to eat. Guy Fieri
The key purpose of our fire is to cook kai; so far this
season we have had a particular favourite of the homemade garlic and rosemary bread
(including gluten-free). Previously our menu has also included
cheese toasties, pikelets and delicious little sausages.
Sometimes once the fire is lit it can take a little while
for the fire to heat up enough to start cooking. These times can
provide the perfect opportunity for our children to practice their patient
muscles while they wait for their turn to cook. I believe it is a
valuable lifelong skill to learn patience and know that they will eventually
get to cook. Childspace explains Patience is about waiting
and having confidence in a positive outcome. When we are patient we
are able and willing to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with
delay. We work with quiet, steady perseverance and diligence.
One thing I love about winter is having a fire and I know Fire Thursday is very much looked forward to by many. It is wonderful to sit around the lovely warm fire on a cool winter’s day, to sit and chat or sing with each other and cook delicious kai, hopefully creating many new memories and skills for lifelong learning.
Everybody loves fire! Fire is amazing,
beautiful and warm. It has historically brought people
together. It’s where you come to make food and sing and tell
stories. (Eric Westervelt, April 3, 2015)
Ngā mihi, Susie
