Pirates digging for their treasure

As the children in Pre School Minors displayed an interest in pirates practitioners decided to focus the week around pirates. Resources were gathered and activities were planned. The first item the children noticed on entering the room were the pirate masks, they were very eager to transform themselves into pirates. The pirates were all dressed and ready to enjoy their journey "Ahoy there pirates"Around the room were different pirate themed activities ranging from messy play to dressing up. The children rolled up their sleeves and enjoyed digging for treasure in the sand, they used sieves and spades to dig through the sand and found lots of different coloured jewels and gold coins. Some children collected the treasure in small pots, others used them to decorate sandcastles they had made. The practitioner supporting this activity talked about how pirates would search for gold in treasure chests using a treasure map.Alongside the sand tray, the children also enjoyed exploring the water tray. The practitioner adding blue food colouring, bubbles and glitter to the water. The children then chose which pirate sea creatures they wanted to explore the water. The children were able to name most of the creatures (octopus, shark, dolphin, fish) but were able to learn some new ones too (crab, lobster, sea urchin, sea horse). The children created stories based around the creatures and used the resources to reflect this.Observations of this fun week were gathered and children were asked during circle time what they enjoyed most, some children reflected on finding lots of treasure and collecting it in their buckets, whereas others were fascinated in making treasures maps.