Tour of Nursery
In the Nursery we aim to provide a happy, caring and stimulating environment in which your child can learn, develop and play yet still achieve all the skills laid down by the DCFS. By covering these various skills, and going far beyond them at this early age, we endeavour to prepare a well-rounded individual ready for school life ahead. Within this department, there is a qualified early years practitioner and nursery nurse. The number of children is limited to ensure the time and attention for every child.
Daily Routines
These are broken down into activities, which are both motivating and readily accessible. They include aspects of development education, and a mixture of play, tasks, games and visits (where appropriate) to a dentist, a police station and other local environments.
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
These skills are developed to enable the child to recognise and appreciate the need to conform to accepted social standards by encouraging daily routines, sharing good manners and looking at how we deal with our feelings. This program is co-ordinated with the reception class.
Visits
These are undertaken throughout the year and are used to enhance the curriculum, as well as to further the understanding of an active young mind. Examples of these are: Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Blue Reef Centre, Butterfly World and Preston Park.
Knowledge and Understanding of the World
We encourage an interest and curiosity in our surroundings, reflected in greater analytical problem solving skills. Activities may take the format of directed exploration and play involving sand, water and modelling. Examples of the topics covered are: Pets/Minibeasts, Senses/Space, Transport/Growing Things or Jungle/Park.
Communication, Language and Literacy
This area will come through in most of the curriculum; specific are linking sounds and letters, final and medial phonemes in words and simple blends. The development of fine motor skills and pencil control, writing for different purposes, looking at elements of stories and developing reading skills are also advanced.
Mathematical Development
These skills are developed with the ability of the individual child. The children will look at counting, numeral recognition, ordering numbers, simple addition and subtraction, shapes, length, weight, height symmetry, money and patterns.
Creative Development
The various topics covered in other areas, allow for many independent creative activities, which are available to children all of the time. Music is covered within topics, where the children sing familiar songs, name and use instruments, look at rhythm and use songs to link stories from around the world.
Quotation from teacher
We aim to give a solid grounding in all aspects of communication, language, literacy, and mathematical development. Whilst supporting the individual child, we strive to nurture personal, social and emotional development and promote an interest in the world around us.
Miss Hunter