Nursery
"We learn to play, we play to learn"
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Nursery Sessions:
Within the Nursery we offer the following sessions:
For 2 year olds that are eligible:
Morning session - 8:30am-11:30am
Afternoon session - 12:30pm-3:30pm
These sessions run in our Caterpillar Class. To find out if you are eligible for 2 year old funding, please check here https://www.gov.uk/find-free-early-education
For universal funded 3 year olds (15 hours):
Morning session - 8:30am-11:30am
Afternoon session - 12:15pm-3:15pm
These sessions run in our Ladybird Class.
For working parents of 3 year olds (30 hours):
All day provision - 8:30am-2:30pm
These sessions run in our Bumblebee Class.
To find out if you are eligible for this funding, please check here https://www.gov.uk/free-childcare-if-working/apply-for-free-childcare-if-youre-working
For these children, we provide the option for you to pay for your child to stay until the end of the school day (3:15pm) at a cost of £4.40 a day.
Welcome
In Nursery, we recognise the importance of play in a child’s development. It allows children time to experiment with language, relationships, movement, creativity, and to practise the skills they will need as they develop. Play allows children to use their imagination and engage with the world around them. The children in our Nursery range from 2-4 years of age.
2-3 years: Caterpillar Nursery
3-4 years: Bumblebee Nursery and Ladybird Nursery
We have 5 clear aims which are at the heart of our everyday learning.
We want our children to be:
● Ready to learn: Children have a positive, confident attitude to learning. They are both physically and emotionally ready to learn.
● Resourceful: Children show initiative, ask well thought out questions and are prepared to use a variety of strategies to learn.
● Reflective: Children are curious, able and willing to learn from their mistakes and can describe their progress.
● Resilient: Children are prepared to persevere and stay involved in their learning, even when the process is challenging.
● Reciprocal: Children are prepared to help each other and work as a team.
The four guiding principles of the EYFS:
1. Every child is unique.
2. Every child can learn to be strong and independent through positive relationships.
3. Children learn and develop best in enabling environments.
4. Children develop and learn in different ways and at different rates.
We understand and follow children’s interests and provide opportunities throughout our EYFS curriculum to support learning, consolidate and deepen knowledge and ensure children meet their next steps. This will enable them to develop the skills, attitudes and understanding that will form the basis of lifelong learning and encourage them to become well-rounded, happy individuals, ready to succeed.
Each child has a Special Book and evidence gathered supports all areas of the EYFS curriculum. Evidence includes both short and long written observations, photographs and samples of children’s work. We also welcome parents/carers contributions and love to see all the wonderful things that happen outside of school as a family. The Special books are always available to be seen by parents/carers.
The Characteristics of Effective Learning help us to see when children are learning. They tell us that children are learning when they are engaged, motivated and when they are thinking. Our Early Years Statutory Framework tells us more about the Characteristics of Effective Learning, defining the three key areas as:
● Playing and exploring – Children investigate and experience things, and ‘have a go’.
● Active learning – Children concentrate and keep on trying if they encounter difficulties, and enjoy achievements.
● Creating and thinking critically – Children have and develop their own ideas, make links between ideas, and develop strategies for doing things.
Three Prime areas:
Communication and language
Providing an environment for young children to express themselves and speak and listen in a range of situations allows them to develop their language and communication skills. We discreetly teach new language to support children to understand the meaning of words as well as how to include it in everyday speech.
Physical development
We all know that young children often love to be active, but they also need to understand that continued physical activity, as well as healthy food choices are important, and why. We have a focus on the children’s fine and gross motor skills and plan a range of activities to support this development.
Personal, social, and emotional development
This area helps to shape children’s social skills and develops respect and an understanding of their different feelings. The children are provided with many opportunities to develop their PSED through activities such as circle time and drama.
Four Specific areas:
Literacy
It is important for children to become aware of the sounds around them and to have the ability to notice the difference between sounds. We teach sound awareness through a range of strategies such as singing nursery rhymes; playing sound lotto; exploring musical instruments; and by beginning our phonics journey using the Read Write Inc. scheme. We learn new vocabulary in many ways, including using the Concept Cat approach. We have a positive reading culture in our setting and promote a love of reading through story time sessions, library and small world story time set ups.
Mathematics
We are immersed in maths daily through our routines and games. Children develop a sense of number, shape and position through hands-on, playful activities. We develop number sense and problem solving through the White Rose programme and, by enhancing their ‘small steps’ approach, we create a vibrant, maths-rich environment.
Understanding the world
We encourage children to explore the setting and the world around them. This helps children to make sense of the world and to know who is important to them and how they fit into the community.
Expressive arts and design
Activities such as drawing, playing with paint, instruments or technology all give the children the chance to express themselves and learn new things.
Core Values
As a school we have 11 Core Values that we believe are important to the ethos of our school. Each month we focus on a value, which provides a focus and a discussion point.
You can find out about our Core Values here:
Other Information
In our Foundation Stage we have a free flow approach to learning and the children in Nursery are able to explore their classroom and outdoor spaces.
We love to perform in Foundation Stage! Throughout the year we provide opportunities for the children to showcase their learning and invite parents/carers in to celebrate their achievements.
We believe that as parents/carers, you are your child’s first teacher. We love to invite you into Nursery to involve you in some of the special experiences we have. These include Family Cafés and also celebrations such as Mother’s Day and Father’s Day!
Foundation Stage is the start of your child’s educational journey and we look forward to being part of their first steps. Each child’s unique characteristics of learning and development is at the heart of the Early Years curriculum we provide.
Here are some wonderful pictures of our lovely setting!
Nursery
If you would like to know more please contact the school on 01603 426728 and they will arrange a member of staff to speak to you.
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