So much for families to do on the Fleurieu

Last weekend our family spent a glorious weekend in Goolwa/Victor Harbor only an hour drive from Adelaide. The weather was smiling on us and for the first time in 2.5 years, it felt like this weekend away was enjoyable for all. Our last few holidays have left us thinking to ourselves "Why did we do this?!?!", "Never again!".

We stayed at the Goolwa Camping/Tourist Park and Miss M would have been quite content to stay there for the whole weekend. Now there's a bit of a story to share with this photo...


Late last year we went to Mount Gambier and stayed at the Blue Lake Caravan Park...the highlight of this trip in Miss M's eyes was the jumping pillow. From this trip onwards whenever I would ask her what her favourite part of the day was she would reply "jump jump!" referring to the jumping pillow at Mount Gambier. So imagine her delight when we pulled into the Goolwa Tourist Park and saw one just the same! We weren't expecting it at all but it certainly made her day. And this time she was that bit older and more confident.

The Tourist Park also had a heated pool/spa, sandpit and playground for the kids. It was awesome - we'll definitely be back again.

Miss M and her dolly 'Lily' enjoying the playground

So here's a bit of a list of fun things to do if you're planning to visit Goolwa - known as the town where the Murray meets the sea.

Goolwa Beach - this photo was taken in 2010 when we got our puppy Archer

The river view from our table at Aqua Caf

The thing I love about staying in Goolwa is that it's about 5 minute drive away to the next seaside town Middleton (the Middleton Beach Huts are a very popular place to stay - so insta-worthy!). Another 10 minutes and you arrive at Pt Elliot (Horseshoe Bay is pretty much my favourite beach in SA), and then you're almost in Victor.

Hubby at Horsehoe Bay

Victor Harbor is a much bigger town than Goolwa - you'll find a McDonalds, KFC and many more shops. We happened to visit on the day of the Rock'n'Roll festival so it was really busy and there was lots happening!

  • I really wanted to take Miss M on the Horse Drawn Tram across to Granite Island and she really liked it. Under 3s are free, and hubby and I were $9 each return.
  • There are some fantastic kids playgrounds in and around Victor.
  • South Australian Whale Centre is great for families and school groups.
  • Greenhills Adventure Park is sadly closing in May 2016 - so if you'd like to go and revisit your childhood memories do it before it's too late!
  • We had a great lunch at Cafe Bavaria, even though it was super busy with the Rock'n'Roll festival but they took good care of us and the food came out quickly. The Anchorage is another favourite of ours.
  • I also stumbled upon the most beautiful kids/baby store on the main street called Eco Child - you can shop online too if you like organic & natural baby products/clothing and wooden toys. 
On the horse drawn tram across to Granite Island

On Granite Island

Eco Child - Victor Harbor

For more information - visit http://fleurieupeninsula.com.au/

And have you read these previous posts on Teacher Types?
A Family Day out at Semaphore
The Big Rocking Horse - A South Australian Icon.

We're planning to make the most of what SA has to offer for the next few months before our family of 3 becomes a family of 4 and holidays are going to get that bit more complicated... Carrickalinga, our family shack at the river and Mount Gambier again to visit my brother are all on the agenda. Oh and this weekend I'm a bridesmaid in my dear friend's wedding in the beautiful Barossa Valley! Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Insta for lots of updates on what we're up to!

Lauren
2

Alphabet Collages

I absolutely love sharing alphabet ideas that I've used in my classroom, and this is one of my favourites. We did this activity right at the start of the year as we worked our way through our Jolly Phonics sounds, and I only just recently took the display down giving me a chance to photograph these brilliant alphabet collages. If you look closely, you'll notice that each letter is filled with something beginning with that letter.


Here's what we used...

a - apples
b - blue buttons
c - colourful crayons
d - dots
e - eggs
f - feathers
g - gold glitter
h - hearts
i - insect stickers
j - jelly beans
k - kites
l - leaves
m - magazine m's
n - numbers
o - orange ovals
p - pink & purple pom poms
q - question marks
r - ribbon
s - smiley stickers
t - triangles
u - umbrellas
v - vegetables
w - washers
x - (we just coloured it in - x is always a tricky one for these kinds of things)
z - zebra stripes

These fantastic templates came from The Measured Mom. Click here to find the lower case letters like I used, and here to find the upper case letters along with a comprehensive list of ideas to fill each letter. 

School's here in Australia are half way through their year, and have most likely mastered the alphabet by now (so please pin this post for next year fellow Aussie early years teachers!!). But on the other side of the world - school is just going back, and I'm sure there would be some eager 5 year olds who would love this activity.

Here are some of my other alphabet posts that you may find useful

  • Alphabet Sorting Box - great when children have learnt all of the letters
  • Phonics Treasure Baskets - perfect as children begin identifying what letter simple words/objects start with
  • Alphabet Pebbles - great for introducing the alphabet, or making simple words
  • Twenty Six Letters - 26 hands on ways to learn the letters of the alphabet. Perfect for children just beginning to learn their letters.
Lauren x
5
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