Ice Break Letter Match

This made me smile so much! We had fun and managed to talk about the science behind the observations Finn made.

Resources

Sand or water table
Letters and objects frozen in ice
Salt
Warm water
Tools to help break the letters and objects out of the ice (pipette, scoop, toy hammer and saw etc.)

Method

Finn started off by pouring salt on the ice: “Ooh it’s crackling, that’s really clever!”

After he got splashed, Finn decided the old skiing goggles from the dressing up box were good idea. Next he used the pipette to squeeze warm water on to the ice, observing that, “The warm water is making it melt.”

The next step he decided to take was to alternate sawing and bashing the ice with his hammer. He told me, “If I use mine hammer I’ll get my seal out.. We got one!”

As he started to release the objects and letters, Finn started to try and match them up.

” A w, w, w, who starts with w, w, w… Wallace.. and w, w, w, w, whale. W for whale. Where is whale? Where’s that whale? Oh he’s here!”

DfES Outcomes for EYFS (2013)

Literacy

Reading (40 to 60+ months)

• Hears and says the initial sound in words.

• Can segment the sounds in simple words and blend them together and knows which letters represent some of them.

• Links sounds to letters, naming and sounding the letters of the alphabet.

DfES Early Learning Goals (2017)

Communication and language

ELG 03 – Speaking:

Children express themselves effectively, showing awareness of listeners’ needs. They use past, present and future forms accurately when talking about events that have happened or are to happen in the future. They develop their own narratives and explanations by connecting ideas or events.