Nate and the Tadpoles!

Here is the update from Bear Park for November - Tadpoles!

The Tui room was recently gifted some tadpoles and Nate has been drawn to them! A few weeks ago Nate pulled me over to them and pointed up at the large bowl. I used Nate's core board and pointed to "you" and "look" and Nate nodded. Laura and I have been loving using Nate's core board as a means of communication and we are amazed with how we are all able to work collaboratively to have our messages understood. "Let's get a chair" I said to Nate, and pointed to a nearby chair. Nate helped me to pull the chair over and he held my hand as he took a large step up onto it. Now he was at eye level with the bowl and I stood back to watch. I was so amazed with Nate's initial reactions. The first thing he did was pop his mouth open and closed, making the sign for fish. "These are tadpoles" I told him, pointing. What Nate did next is what really astonished me: he gently placed his ear up against the bowl as a way of exploring the creatures living inside. I have not seen anyone else interact with the tadpoles this way and I was blown away! It actually made me wonder if Nate listened to baby Lola when she was in mum's tummy.

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"You're listening" I said to Nate. He then leaned away and pointed at one of the tadpoles who had swum right up to Nate's face. This made Nate giggle and it was so delightful to see the joy he was gaining from these strange animals. After a few more moments of quiet observation Nate hopped down from the chair and I brought him over to the mat to show him a book we have about the life cycle of frogs. I turned to the page with the tadpoles and told him, "tadpoles!" as I pointed to the ones in the book as well as back at the bowl. Nate looked back at the bowl and then at the pictures in the book. This was such a great way for him to make this connection. Nate turned the pages of the book and made his way to the end, where the tadpoles were now frogs. He quickly pointed to the frog and looked at me with a smile. "Frog!" I said, and hopped up and down. Nate giggled and then hopped up from the mat and ran back to the tadpoles. This time, Nate held onto the top of the lockers and pulled himself onto the chair. He was so determined to see those tadpoles again!

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It was neat to see Nate exploring this new addition to the Tui room and to communicate with him in a variety of ways. I think as the tadpoles evolve into frogs it will be great to spend more time with Nate introducing new language and seeing the wonder as he spots the changes taking place. Often, we bring the tadpoles down onto a lower table and I'd love to do this with Nate in the future. I wonder if he'd like to feed them?!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Meeting Santa!

This year, we went out to Westfield Albany to meet Santa, in a specially organised Sensory Santa session. Only white decorations, no queues of people (pre-assigned times), no roof covering, no Christmas music, and very early in the morning before the mall crowds arrived. Worked a treat with Nate! We were thrilled to get a few shots, followed by a cupcake treat in a mall cafe afterwards.

 

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A fun new game at Bear Park

Another update from Bear Park, and this one is about Nate pushing his boundaries with some balance, co-ordination and strength play. We are so thrilled at how he responds to his teachers, he really is blossoming under their guidance. Here is an update from Hayley....

 

A New Game!

Nate and I had so much fun today! After some fun with the tadpoles we ventured outside to play in the fresh air. Immediately, Nate wanted to walk along the lowest plank so together that's just what we did! Nate held my hand and used a great deal of strength to climb up onto the plank. He then showed balance and control as he slowly inched his way along the plank to the low box on the other side. When he got there he let out a big laugh and clapped his hands, showing how proud he was of himself. We had a little celebration and then Nate climbed back down and went straight back to the start to try again. This time, Nate used more of his strength to climb up onto the plank as I did less of the work. He made his way across the plank and then climbed back down and ran back to the start! This repetition is so great for children as it helps them to solidify their learning.

On the fourth or fifth time, Nate took a break when he reached the low box. He then spotted some of the older children on the monkey bars and pointed them out to me. "Should we climb up?" I asked him. Nate seemed to like this idea but it also seemed to be a bit daunting as the plank to get to the high box is on a slant. Nate reached for my hand and I helped him make his way up to the high box. This took a bit more concentration and a few different muscle sets but Nate did really well to keep both feet on the plank and carefully walk to the top. Although he held my hand quite tightly, he didn't really need to! Nate has great gross motor skills and doesn't shy away from a challenge.

Once at the top of the box, Nate spent a few minutes watching the other children on the monkey bars until he was ready for a turn. This is where he showed how great he is at following instructions. I asked Nate to sit down on the box and used the sign to go along. Straight away, he sat down and dangled his legs off the edge. He was so excited! "Hang on!" I then said, and tapped the bar to show Nate where to put his hands. Next, I told him to reach one arm out to grab the first rung. I used my hands to show him what to do and he quickly followed my lead. Finally, I helped Nate lower his body from the box so that he was hanging from the rung with both hands! Nate held on really tightly and managed to hang for three seconds independently, and then dropped to the ground laughing hysterically. As soon as he landed, Nate ran straight back to the beginning of the low plank, wanting to go again.

Each time Nate made his way across the planks he picked up speed, showing how confident and excited he was! Often, when he reached the top of the high box and was ready for a turn on the monkey bars, he had to wait while some of his friends had a turn. I signed for him to wait and he quickly knew just what to do, and repeated the sign back to me. As soon as there was room, Nate was ready to go and shuffled his way to the front of the box, wiggling with excitement.

Each time Nate hung from the monkey bars he seemed to gain strength and held on for longer and longer! He was really testing the muscles in his arms! He was also becoming more confident and was remembering the steps needed to reach his goal. After about twenty turns, Nate needed very little help from me and couldn't stop laughing!

I loved spending this time with Nate and seeing him have the time of his life! I am sure that he will remember this game and will want to re-visit it often. I love the way that through all this play and adventure, Nate was learning an incredible amount of things. First, he was doing a brilliant job of communicating with me, especially as this was quite a tricky time to use the core board. He followed instructions as well as my non-verbal cues and picked up on the signs I was using. It was also really neat to see that as Nate had more and more turns hanging from the monkey bars, he continued to drop faster. I wonder if this was because he was so excited to start again, or if perhaps he was becoming tired. Finally, after about thirty turns (!!!) Nate decided at the last second that he didn't want to hang anymore. He reached out for me and then stood back up and jumped straight into my arms. I think this was Nate's way of looking after his own well-being and realising that his body had had enough.

Not long after this game, Nate had lunch and then quickly fell asleep at rest time. I am sure that the fun and concentration of this game really tuckered him out! I can't wait to see if Nate would like to play this game again tomorrow and I am sure that if he does, he will know exactly what to do. Nate has a great memory, especially for something fun and silly! I am so excited to see Nate's progression as he continues to test his body on the preschool equipment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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LOLA - Laughing in lemon!

Facial expressions of a 14 week old Lola - dressed up for a lunch date with Claire and Ellie!

 

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