Once again this year we have
began introducing fires into our programme. We hold the fires weekly on a
Thursday. This has fondly been renamed as 'Fire Thursday' by our children!
The fires provide warmth and food but perhaps most importantly are a time for social engagement. Children have been
known to sit around the fire for extended periods of time, gazing into the
flickering flames and chatting away.
One of the highlights of ‘Fire Thursday’
is preparing the fire. The children have become experts at knowing which
materials are needed to start a fire - scrunching paper, laying the paper and kindling
into the fire and adding some pine cones for a delicious scent – all ready for
one of the teachers to light.
Children work with purpose, direction and commitment; everyone is encouraged to make their contribution and to have their say (kotahitanga).
Sharing the task of building a fire. Being part of a group and working together
(Mana Tangata).
Developing leadership skills and learning from each other.
(Rangatiratanga/ako)
Over the course of this winter we
have cooked many different types of kai, from smores, toasted marshmallows and sausages
to delicious garlic bread (still a firm favourite!).
Sharing food together assists in building relationships with each other.
(Whanaungatanga)
Thanks to Jaimee's dad - Walter - for gifting us some tea tree for burning. Sharing resources from home enables our children to feel a sense of belonging at Kindergarten and enables them to be involved in, and guide our programme.
Fire Thursday is a day that is
very much looked forward to by all, and over the week the children often
reflect on their fire experiences.
This wonderful drawing by Emma, along with her words enables Emma, to make sense of and amalgamate her experiences and feelings on our Kindergarten fires.
"I am cooking bread. We just get paddles and put some dough on the paddles. We just put it over the fire and it tastes like pancakes."
"There's the smoke coming out. Oh and we have a safety bubble" (Marcus).
"I like the bread. Don't go in the safety bubble. I think I know why you don't go in the safety bubble, cause if you walk in you might get burnt" (Claudia)
Christine
2 comments:
Love this so much, we introduced a fire on Fridays for he first time this year & like your children ours came to value he whole process of sitting around chatting etc. So glad to have found your wonderful blog.
Child's Play Music - I've just found your Page and blog thanks to Flights of Whimsy sharing your Fire Thursday blog post - and I LOVE what I see! I've just shared your Hanging Bars post to my Page; it beautifully expresses the need for children to be able to manage their own risk assessments, as well as the importance of building close ties with your community. Love it! Alec.
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