My Autumn schedule
- art, nature & care
Schedule of classes and sessions for September 2010
- Morning nature kindergarten sessions – this is a session which will run daily Monday to Thursday, from 9am to 1pm. It is aimed at the 1 to 3 age group and will incorporate a rhythm of outdoor play, arts and crafts, baking, sharing a meal and a rest time. Children may attend for one or all mornings.
- Saturday sessions – From Saturday September 25th I will be offering Saturday sessions, from 10am to 12.30pm for 1 to 3’s and from 3pm to 5.30pm for school age children. This will be similar to the nature kindergarten or our very popular art camps, emphasising rhythms of activity and rest, with outdoor time and arts and crafts.
All sessions incorporate a shared meal so children should bring a small healthy snack.
Morning kindergarten is €20 per morning or €65 for a four day week.
All Saturday sessions are €15 per session.
Contact Deirdre:
086 2626525
061 374100
info@anfeirmbeag.com
www.anfeirmbeag.com
Deirdre has worked as a teacher and childminder for the past 12 years, she holds an honours degree in Fine art, Fetac level 6 in childcare as well as many other relevant qualifications. Deirdre has worked previously in national schools as an art teacher and in Raheenwood Steiner national school as the afternoon care leader.
What a busy summer!
I don’t know where the summer has gone! With a new baby settling in, a little pre-schooler art camp in July and another coming up next week, the months have flown.
I’m enjoying being so busy, each day is filled with so much action though, its hard to get time for ‘me’ things!
Every day we take a walk,either here in the hills near my home,
or we go to the beautiful lake beach and forest we are blessed to have only four miles away. We feed the ducks and swans and check out whats growing, my daughter is particularly interested in what is edible!
I have started to get up every morning between 5 and 6 to fit in a bit of writing time before the children wake, this seems the best way to fit it in and the silence at that time makes a nice change of pace!
The art camps are fun, I do felt bag making, collage, painting, gardening and baking, its wonderful to see their excitement as a project unfolds.
So this is how I end my days, exhausted but happy, loading the dishwasher before collapsing in the corner with a book, because it all begins again in a few hours!
my long post break and wild strawberry picking
I have taken quiet a long break from posting to this blog. This was partly because I have recently welcomed a baby to my home for full time care, and as I’m sure you know if you are a childminder who cares for babies, I’ve been busy! It’s not that I didn’t have a moment to myself, it is more accurate to say that my head was (and still is to a lesser extent) in a different place to that needed for reflective writing.
When a new child starts in my home, it is important to me how that relationship begins and how everyone involved, the baby, my children and myself experiences that transition. In this case, my youngest and the new child are only five months apart. Although in the future this will result in a close friendship for them, for now it creates confusing emotions for a child used to the undivided attention of the primary carer. But I think that we have begun to turn the corner on this and I have in recent days been able to enjoy moments of happy screeching as the babies begin to interact comfortably with each other.
I take the children outside daily and today was the first day in quite some time that we did so in rain. So all wrapped up in rain gear and plastic buggy covers, we set off down the road. We had the happy experience to find that a nearby crop of wild strawberries was ready for picking and small though they are, when we set off for home, we had a good handful for dessert. My daughter led the foraging, informing me that I should ask the grasshopper who was watching us, where the strawberries were hidden. Needless to say, we found the best ones…under some straw and also right down on the bottom of the bushes, near the ground. This was a learning opportunity for me, I needed to get to my daughters height to find the best of the fruit. A lesson in slowness and perspective!
When we came home the children supervised the baking of some meringues which were enjoyed with the fruit after dinner.
Now offering…art and minding sessions!
In the past I always found it popular to offer flexible sessions which incorporated a little arts, crafts, gardening or baking just as part of the normal routine in my home so I am going to begin to offer these again. In fairness to the children who are here full-time (both my own and others) this is going to be at times that fit around the rhythm of our normal day of daily care, naps, and feeding.
The sessions are going to run from 9.30am to 11 am and from 3.30pm to 5pm. These sessions are ideal for parents who have an errand to run but do not need to avail of full time care. These are times when other children can take part in some of our activities in the company of the full time children, and part take in a snack.(10.30am and 4.30pm)
A session costs €8 and includes art materials and snack.
In line with other RIE services(and a family home!), as they say ‘the curriculum is what happens!’ so activities are not set and often child led, but always fun!
Contact me for further details.