Each spring, the children look forward to the arrival of a clutch of eggs in an incubator that we have on loan from an ex-staff member. We are told in advance the day they are likely to hatch, so we plan activities across all six areas of learning before, during and after this important day.
Forward planning is vital because the eggs have to be returned 24 hours after they have all hatched.
These are some of the learning experiences the children enjoy: Personal, social and emotional
* Being motivated when the eggs arrive, and showing great excitement when the eggs crack and the chicks emerge.
* Learning about how to care for and handle the developing chicks and showing concern for their needs.
Communication, language and literacy
* Exploring books to find out about changes in the lives of the chicks.
* Enjoying related stories such as 'The Little Red Hen', and rhymes such as 'Chick, chick, chick, chick, chicken'.
* Keeping diaries of their observations.
* Learning new words such as 'incubator' and 'temperature'.
Mathematical development
* Counting the eggs and the chicks.
* Using the words 'more' and 'less' and adding up the numbers of hatched and unhatched eggs to find the total.
* Learning about the meaning of 'oval' and finding other things that are oval.
Knowledge and understanding of the world
* Using magnifying glasses to observe similarities and differences in the newly hatched chicks.
* Finding out about how an incubator supports the life of the developing chick.
* Using technology by taking photographs with a digital camera.
Physical development
* Pretending to move like chicks emerging from eggs.
* Handling objects and equipment safely.
Creative development
* Making constructions, collages and drawings of the eggs and chicks.
* Creating eggs and chicks from malleable materials.
* Making chick puppets and using these to re-enact stories and rhymes.
Judith Cowley is the nursery teacher at Cockfield Primary School, County Durham. She spoke to Jean Evans.
