Friendship and personal boundaries at preschool

This week our 3 to 6 year olds learned how to be a good friend and how to keep themselves and others safe. Here is what the week of 12 to 16 October looked like.

Friendship and personal boundaries

The children practised including others, taking turns, asking for help and respecting the words “please stop”. These are simple ideas, but they help children make friends, solve problems and speak up when something does not feel right. We also talked about good manners and how they make others feel.

The laundry shop

Our laundry shop role play was a big hit. The children collected clothes, sorted them, ran the “machines” and told everyone when the shop was closing. Pretend play like this builds language, counting and cooperation.

A mini beast hunt after the rain

When the rain stopped, we went on a mini beast hunt and found millipedes and earthworms. The children were proud to show their discoveries to friends and educators.

Concentration and fine motor skills

At the threading table, children worked carefully to thread string through holes to make patterns, building concentration and hand control. With Miss Laila they also painted shapes in shaving cream and food colouring, and put together a human body puzzle.

School Readiness in small groups

This week our School Readiness Program used five stations where children worked in pairs or groups of three or four towards a shared goal, building literacy, numeracy and teamwork.

Our walking visit to St Bernadette’s Primary School was postponed because of the rain. The children’s safety always comes first, and we rescheduled for the following week.

Try this at home

• Practise the words “please stop” together, and praise your child when they listen to them.
• Let your child help sort the washing into colours or family members.
• Thread pasta onto a shoelace to make a necklace.

Visit Sophie’s Cottage

Sophie’s Cottage Kindergarten is a small, family-run preschool for children aged 3 to 6 at 9 Sophie Street, Telopea, open 8:30am to 4:30pm, Monday to Friday. Families join us from Oatlands, Telopea and the suburbs around us.

Most families with a 4-year-old coming 3 days a week pay $0 to $60 a week after government funding. Check your cost with our fees calculator, or book a tour to see our School Readiness Program in action.