Nature Walk @ Tmn Merdeka (July 2013)

We are very glad that we are able to bring our school children to the nearest park at Taman Merdeka this year. This is a very pleasant park with a variety of trees and plants that our children have learned before in school.



Auntie Chaz Yee explaining to the K1 and K2 children how to make the printing on the pebble-washed ground using crayon at the start of the walk.

Auntie Margaret explaining to the N1 and N2 children how to make the printing on the pebble-washed ground using crayon at the beginning of the walk.

We are all set to WALK! YEAH!

The children could recognize the bamboo trees, which we had explained the diet of a panda at the early part of this year cultural lessons. Then, the teachers also pointed out the coniferous trees, which they had learned about it as the habitat of some European animals. Many beautiful water-lilies, lily pads, dragonflies and butterflies were also in sight.

 
Teachers were explaining the pine trees as the coniferous trees, which are ever-green. The K1 and K2 students could say the fruit of the tree being the "pine cone". This shows they were attentive in Auntie Latifah's cultural class :)


Although some children have been to this park with their parents several times before, they seemed to have discovered something new at the park when we asked them to observe the texture of the ground and bark of trees by doing crayon-scrapping activity. They also discovered that the leaves come in various shapes and sizes and flowers come in different colours when we asked them to collect the fallen ones on the ground. They all seemed excited when they saw different types of fallen leaves and flowers on the ground, and could not wait to pick them up and put them in their little brown bags which they had brought from school.

 

 Look at our collections of twigs, leaves, flowers, dried fruit and tree barks!

 

 

Ee Tong was chasing two little brown butterflies. In the end, she was chased by the butterflies.

The children taking every opportunity to do crayon-scrapping activity to find out the effect of texture on paper. Some were crayon-scapping on the tree roots, some on the tree trunk.

Some did crayon-scrapping on the stone wall.

 

Some did crayon-scrapping on the tree trunk.

We also found something interesting...which insects or animals used the dried leaves to make a bundle like this? When we went back to the park in the afternoon with another group of children, this bundle shrunk to a smaller bundle.

 

The K1 and K2 discovered a millipede. They were in awe.

The K1 and K2 children saw this cotton-like fruit with its shell and seeds still attached. So amazing!

We also sang the "My Pigeon House" song while keeping our voices soft and gentle, peeping at the pigeon holes...

 

The heat and the long walk in the park (about 1.5 hours of walk) did not dampen any mood. The Nursery children, although with their short little legs, had spent the most effort in walking, none of them complained. In fact, they looked so happy and contented when they were departing the park. All children from as young as 3 years old to 6 years old asked when we are to bring them for a nature walk again. They are all good children who appreciate the nature.


The teachers also did a good job in extending their students’ classroom learning in the park. Auntie Chaz Yee and Auntie Latifah brought two different groups of children for the nature walk within a day at two different times, exhausting! Guess age is catching up. But the teachers felt as happy and contented as the children :)  .



Auntie Chaz Yee, Auntie Latifah, Auntie Shirin and the K1 and K2 children (on 22 July 2013 morning).

Auntie Latifah, Auntie Neva and the N1 and N2 second session children (on 22 July 2013).

Auntie Chaz Yee, Auntie Margaret, Auntie Liew, Auntie Neva, Auntie Mary and N1 and N2 first session children (on 17 July 2013).

On the way back to the car, we passed by a mango tree. Lots of mangoes were on the ground, Auntie Latifah and the children picked up the mangoes and...

Some of them brought the mangoes home...

some ate the mangoes at school....

Yum Yum...

K1 and K2 children enjoyed pasting their collections from the nature on the art paper.



Look at what I have got from the park!

We LOVE NATURE!

 

To view more photos of these nature walks, please CLICK HERE