The Beach Kinder Program at Kids House Cheltenham has officially kicked off for 2022 with the Kinder children (4-5yrs) heading off to Sandringham Beach for a day of adventure, learning and fun!
The Beach Kinder program is a weekly Wednesday excursion and part of the Neighbourhood Project which is an integral part of the philosophy and curriculum at the service. Kids House also has a Bush Kinder program which is equally as fun and adventurous. The service is really making the most of their proximity to luscious bushland and sandy beaches.
The kinder children, and their Educators, took the local bus to the beach, sightseeing along the way. It was exciting to see police cars, a guitar shop, book stores and the crowd favourite – an ice-cream shop! The children claim they will stopping off there next week :).
When the group arrived, some children went straight into the water, dipping their toes in and splashing about while others explored the sand to find shells, jelly fish, clams and seaweed. Children wrote their names in the sand and created sculptures that melted when the water came in. They watched people kayak and snorkel.
To get a better view of the ocean, the children climbed up a rock mountain and enjoyed a snack while taking in the gorgeous view and talking about all the amazing things they saw on the beach.
For some, the bus ride was the most exciting thing about their day since they’d never been on a public bus before. For others, the ocean was their inspiration and they are excited to get back to the beach to see what else there is to discover.
There are so many benefits to Beach Kinder:
- Beach Kinder fosters children’s love of learning through play-based experiences that enrich their learning by connecting them with a variety of environments like the coastal community.
- Children love collecting things like shells to take back to the service or home and use them in loose parts play, another way they can use their imaginations and creativity.
- Visits to the beach are also a wonderful opportunity for language development where, with the help of educators, children can identify and name what they find and what’s happening around them. Children are learning and saying new words and extending their vocabulary in meaningful ways.
Come to the beach where the sea is blue.And little white waves come crashing at you.A wave comes splashing over your toes.You just stand still and away it goes.We’ll build a castle down by the sea.And look for shells, if you’ll come with me.
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For information regarding our childcare and kindergarten service go to: Kids House Early Learning Cheltenham
