“Rain is falling down 

Rain is falling down 

Pitter, patter, pitter patter, 

Rain is falling down” 

We had our first rainy outside play time in a while last week, and the children were delighted that the heavy downpour created a good flow of water down the waterway.  At the end of last year our much loved “trolls bridge” collapsed and had to be dismantled.  The wood was piled up in a roped off area, but  the children were curious about it, so we worked on removing the nails, and left it piled up. 

On that rainy morning some of the children began using the wood to build a new “bridge” across the waterway, with great excitement.  So that pile of old wood, that had been languishing all term became a resource for creative play.  This was a reminder to me that the objects and spaces that look most attractive to adults are not always those that inspire creative play (I had been wanting that old pile of wood removed from the Kindergarten altogether!).  Many skills were being practiced that day; problem-solving, co-operation, simple engineering.... 

As is always the case, children’s play is changeable and the “bridge” has since been dismantled and moved by the children to another part of the garden.  I watch with interest to see what it might become next! 

Another object that had made it’s way into our garden but didn’t really seem to have a purpose (yet) is a pallet.  It was moved from place to place a few times during last term but wasn’t really used until, with the addition of a second-hand play tent, it became a “house- boat”.  

Of course, we do want to re-build our bridge, and as we would like it to be curved like the original structure, we are searching for some suitable wood.  So if anyone in our school community has access to some pieces that might work, please do let us know. 

Warm wishes,  

Denise