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Nursery News 31st October 2022

NURSERY NEWS

31st October 2022 – Edition 276

Find out About

1. Welcome back after Half Term
2.  School Photographer Visit.
3. Walk in the Dark.
4. BBC Children in Need.
5. End of Term Arrangements
6. Open School Activities.
7. Local Visits
8. Doing up their own coats.
9. What are the children learning about this week?

1. Welcome back after Half Term

I hope everyone enjoyed their break from school. It is important that our young pupils have a chance to rest a little and recharge their batteries! Now we arrive back, we have just seven school weeks before we break up for Christmas. We have quite a few things going on in school this half term, so I thought I would share with you dates and times that might be of interest to you.

2. School Photographer Visit.

A school photographer will be here on Wednesday 2^nd November, for Big Nursery children, and Thursday 3^rd November for Little Nursery children. If your child is in Little Nursery but does not attend on a Thursday, and you would like your child to come in just for a photograph, please arrive on Thursday at around 9:30am, sign in as a visitor, and be prepared to stay and play for a short time with your child, until staff can organise for your child to be photographed by the photographer. Our photographers name is Victoria Mitchell and she is based in Dunstable. She uses colourful backdrops and props within her photography.

3. Walk in the Dark.

Miss Howe is organising a ‘Walk in the dark’, an activity for children and their parents to attend together, after school, on Thursday 17^th November at 5:00pm. Children will need to arrive, wrapped up warmly, ready to search the Nursery Garden for hidden soft toy animals. Children will need to bring a torch, because the garden is very dark in places! We will provide for refreshments for everyone who attends. Brothers and sisters are very welcome too. If you plan to come, please send an email to Mrs Selth  cselth@willownursery.co.uk entitled ‘Walk in the dark’ detailing your child’s name and how many adults and children will be coming, so we can buy enough food….

4. BBC Children in Need.

Friday 18^th November is Children in Need. Parents often ask us what we are doing for Children in Need. –So as in previous years, we will collect money in Charity buckets, should anyone wish to donate. We do organise activities with a Pudsey Bear theme, and we try to share with the children that we are fundraising to help other children. Sometimes the Nursery children want to dress up because they see their older brothers and sisters dressing up for their school’s event. We are happy for children to dress up, or not to dress up. We do not wish any family to feel under pressure.

5. End of Term Arrangements

The last day of regular Big Nursery and Little Nursery will be on Thursday 15^th December. Friday 16^th December will be our Christmas Party Day. The School will be open for the Christmas Parties only on this day.  Much fuller information will be given nearer the time, but we are aware that parents need notice to organise childcare etc. Especially if they are working parents.

So as an outline:

Little Nursery’s party will be from 9:00am to 10:00am.

Parents do not need to stay.

Big Nursery’s party will be from 11:15am to 1:00pm

Again, parents do not need to stay.

6. Open School Activities.

We would like parents to come in to school and see how we teach your children. Parents hear about the activities that take place during choosing time through our newsletter, but often parents are unaware of the quality of Grouptimes that we offer towards the end of each session. So, throughout the Year we are going to invite parents in to school to join in/observe our grouptimes.

So to begin, we would like to invite all Big Nursery parents to join us for ‘Music’ time. Each parent of a child in Big Nursery will receive an email today detailing the date and time of the Music session that you can choose to attend. If you would like to join your child to participate in our Music Activity ‘Pigs on Holiday’ then please just turn up at the date and time specified and you will be made very welcome. There is no need to book. Sessions last 25 minutes.

Little Nursery want to be involved too. On the week beginning Monday 12^th December Little Nursery Parents are welcome to join their child for a Stay and Play session. Parents are welcome to stay and play with their child during one of their child’s normal booked morning sessions (between 8:45am and 11:45am) on Monday 12^th, Tuesday 13^th, Wednesday 14^th or Thursday 15^th December. You are welcome to stay for the whole morning, or just stay for a short time. We hope that the children will be settled well by then, and this will give you an opportunity to see what your children do whilst at nursery, and give you the opportunity to join in with them too.

Mrs Patterson teaches Big Nursery Green Group children ‘Basic Skills’ on a Wednesday morning. The children move to a quiet space in Room 5 where they work in small groups (approx. 8 children) to learn reading, writing, mathematical skills and problem solving. We would like to invite Mrs Patterson’s Green group parents in to observe a 30 minute reading/writing activity on Wednesday 23^rd November. A further invitation letter will follow to Green Group parents so that we can match up time slots, so parent can join their child’s small group. Red Group have Basic Skills in the Spring Term and Yellow Group have Basic skills in the Summer Term. Eventually all parents will be invited to observe Basic skills sessions when their child is being taught.

7. Local Visits

All main Nursery Children will be going out of school in very small groups (max 8 children) during week beginning Monday 14^th November to explore their local environment, from Goldstone Crescent to the postbox at the junction of Wilbury drive. Staff to child ratio will be 1 adult to every 2 children more information will follow in next weeks’s newsletter.

8. Doing up their own coats.

We try to help children to learn a whole range of skills in school, including Self Care skills. The weather is getting colder now. The children continue to have the choice to play outside every day should they wish to. In Big Nursery we have been focussing on teaching the children to put on and fasten their own coats. Please encourage this at home too. It is important that you show your child what to do if the sleeves on their coat are inside out. If a coat has a hood, it helps to show your child to put their hood on their head first, then the sleeves are in the right place for your child to find the arm holes to their sleeves by themselves. At this age, children will often say ‘I can’t do it’ and expect their parent or teacher to do this for them. Putting their own coat on moves them further towards independence with their self-care skills. We ask all children to ensure that their coats are fastened before they go outside to ensure they keep warm.

9. What are the children learning about this week?

The theme in Little Nursery is the Bakers Shop. In Catkins the children will be creating some Halloween artwork. They will drizzle glue across paper to make spider webs and then they will sprinkle glitter over their glue to make their spider webs very sparkly. The children will learn the difference between big and little as they use sponges to paint pumpkins of different sizes.

In Room three, the children will be making and tasting toast with Miss Gaffney. They will choose white or brown bread and when it has been toasted, they will choose to spread either butter or jam on their toast. Miss Gaffney will be making cardboard cookies with the children and adding chocolate chips to them, they will count the chips as they are added.

Outside, the children will be making dens with Mrs. Brinkley. They will have tunnels to crawl through and sheets to sit under.

In the link, Mrs. Watson will have the baker shop role play set up for the children to play as the baker and the customer. There will be bread, cakes and rolls as well as tills, baskets and trolleys for the children to use.

The theme in Big Nursery is Colour and Light

In Room one, Miss Howe will be playing the ladybird game with the children. The game requires the children to match and count the spots on the ladybirds as they play. Children will be encouraged to wait patiently for their turn. The children will be working towards fast recognition of up to three objects without counting them.

Mrs. Cashmore will be supporting the children in following the rules in school. The dark tent will be set up for the children to explore colour and light but the children will be asked to enter the tent two children at a time. Mrs. Cashmore will explain to the children that this is to keep the children safe in the tent and that they will have to take it in turns so that everyone is able to play.

In Room two, Mrs. Patterson will be supporting the children with spinner painting and box modelling. She will follow the children’s ideas on box modelling and help them to find and use any resources that they may need. Mrs. Patterson will fill the tough tray with dyed spaghetti for the children to play with.

Outside, Miss Skai will be playing a hungry bird game with the children and they will be looking for coloured ‘worms’ (pipe cleaners) to wrap around their sticks. Children will widen their vocabulary by talking about where they found their ‘worms’ and the colours that they have collected. Children will be encouraged to support each other in spotting ‘worms’ hidden around the garden.

Nursery News 17th October 2022

NURSERY NEWS

17th October 2022 – Edition 275

Find out About:

A. Parent Consultations for Little Nursery.- A reminder

B. School Closed- a reminder

C. 3+ Offer letters for all children in Little Nursery are ready today.

C.What are the children learning about this week?

A. Parent Consultations for Little Nursery.

These consultations will be on the telephone, will last 5 mins and will be at the following times:

Monday 17th October Miss Tyler’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone Consultations between 3:15pm and 3:55pm

Tuesday 18th October Mrs Field’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultation between 12:20pm and 12:45pm

Wednesday 19th October Mrs McGrath’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone Consultations between 1:00pm and 1:20pm

Wednesday 19th October Mrs Brinkley’s Orange Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:10pm

Tuesday 18th October Mrs Watson’s Blue Group consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 1:00pm and 1:30pm

Tuesday 18th October Miss Gaffney’s Blue Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 3:50pm

B. School Closed –A reminder.

Willow Nursery School will be closed on Friday 21st October for a teacher training day. Staff will be having input from a Local Authority Early Years Specialist teacher regarding Special Needs.

Willow Nursery School will be closed for the Autumn Half term break from Monday 24th October 2022 to Friday 28th October 2022.

C.3+ Offer letters for all children in Little Nursery are ready today.

I have written offer letters to the parents of all our current Little Nursery pupils. Children who attend Little Nursery should have the opportunity to continue their education seamlessly at Willow Nursery School when they become 3+age and entitled to 15 or 30 hours of funded education.

Each child has a letter which the office staff will try to give to parents as soon as possible, bearing in mind all children have individual attendance patterns. You may come and collect your offer letter from the school office if you wish to.

Please read your offer letter carefully and choose from the attendance offers shown. We would ask that you return your completed form WITH YOUR CHILD’S NAME ON IT as soon as possible, and at the very latest by Monday 31st October, 2022.

Once all parents of current Little Nursery pupils have made their choices I can then begin to offer spaces to families on our waiting list regarding starting in January, April and September 2023.

So, please help me, and other parents by replying swiftly.

C. What are the children learning about this week?

The theme in little nursery is Transport

In Catkins the children will be going on a transport hunt. They will look high and low in Catkins garden for pictures of different modes of transport. Mrs. McGrath will help the children look and when they spot each transport picture, she will name the mode of transport and praise the children.

In room three, the children will be creating pictures of trains made from different shapes. The children will focus on squares, triangles, rectangles and circles. Mrs. Watson will encourage the children to look for shapes that they can see around the classroom.

In the link area, Mrs. Brinkley will assist the children with box modelling. Together, they will use a range of recycled materials to create their own vehicles. The children will use tape and glue to join the materials together.

Outside, Miss Gaffney will promote good listening and safety. The children will listen to the instructions of stop, get ready and go, while riding on their bikes. The children will learn the meaning of the instructions ‘stop’ and ‘go’ and how to play safely on their bikes.

The theme in big nursery is who’s who in school

In room one, Miss Skai will be talking to the children about who is who in school. She will provide the children with clipboards and pictures of all staff members. The children will then search the school for each member of staff on their paper. When they find the staff members the children will tick the box next to them and once all pictures have ticks the children can put their work away. Miss Skai will also be talking to the children about Diwali and making cards to celebrate.

In room two, Miss Howe will be helping the children to understand the differences between people and building positive attitudes towards each other. She will show the children pictures of hands decorated with henna for Diwali. The children will draw around their own hands and decorate their hand pictures with beautiful patterns just like those they have seen.

Mrs. Cashmore will support the children in painting portraits of staff from big nursery. They will choose which member of staff they would like to paint and use appropriate colours for their work. The children will focus on details such as eye and hair colour and will discuss this as they work.

Outside, Mrs. Patterson will be showing the children how to create rangoli patterns on the floor using chalks. There will also be lots of conkers available for the children to transport around the garden using digger trucks and tippers.

Nursery News 10th October 2022

NURSERY NEWS

10th October 2022 – Edition 274

Find out About:

1. Parent consultations for Big Nursery- A reminder
2. Parent Consultations for Little Nursery.

3. What are the children learning about this week?

1. Parent consultations for Big Nursery- A reminder

These consultations will be on the telephone, will last 5 mins and will be at the following times:

Monday 10^th October Miss Howe’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultation between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Tuesday 11^th October Mrs Patterson’s Green Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Thursday 13^th October Mrs Cashmore’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Friday 14^th October Miss Skai’s Red Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

2. Parent Consultations for Little Nursery.

We are offering Parent Consultations to parents of children in Little Nursery during the week beginning 17/10/22. These consultations are to talk about how your child is settling into Little Nursery. They are not compulsory, but if you would like an appointment please arrange this with your child’s keyworker when they are outside before morning sessions.  Please note, some of our Little Nursery staff work part-time, so consultations have to be scheduled for when they are in work. So look carefully at the appointment times.

These consultations will be on the telephone, will last 5 mins and will be at the following times:

Monday 17^th October Miss Tyler’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone Consultations between 3:15pm and 3:55pm

Tuesday 18^th October Mrs Field’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultation between 12:20pm and 12:45pm

Wednesday 19^th October Mrs McGrath’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone Consultations between 1:00pm and 1:20pm

Wednesday 19^th October Mrs Brinkley’s Orange Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:10pm

Tuesday 18^th October Mrs Watson’s Blue Group consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 1:00pm and 1:30pm

Tuesday 18^th October Miss Gaffney’s Blue Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 3:50pm

3. What are the children learning about this week?

The theme in little nursery is Autumn watch

In Catkins, the children will be exploring nature with an assortment of resources such as conkers, leaves and sticks. Staff will talk to children about these items and their textures, they will model descriptive language for the children to learn.

In room 3, Mrs. Watson will be sharing stories with the children and she will focus on building a love of books. The children will read ‘Spot Goes to the Farm’ and will chat about the noises that the animals in this story make.

In the link, Mrs. Brinkley will be showing the children how to paint using their fingers and other tools. Children will paint leaves and then use the painted leaves to make leaf prints on paper. The children will learn that they can paint with tools other than a paintbrush.

Outside, Miss Gaffney will have an area set up for investigating items found in the natural environment such as conkers and fallen leaves. She will talk to the children about where these items can be found in the autumn. This will be a sensory area and the children can use their sense of touch and sight to study the materials.

The theme in big nursery is Maisy Mouse

In room one, Miss Skai will complete shared reads of ‘Maisy’s Bus’ and ‘Happy Birthday Maisy’. She will encourage the children to read along with her and look at the pictures on each page as they read. Miss Skai will also focus on number recognition, using the numbers 1-5.

In room two, Miss Howe will be talking about using glue and sellotape to join materials together. She will support the children in using 2D and 3D shapes to make an image of Maisy Mouse. Miss Howe will encourage the children to be independent as they work and will model mathematical language by naming the shapes as they use them.

Mrs. Cashmore will provide reference pictures of characters from the Maisy Mouse story books and paints for the children to create their own Maisy character portraits. The children will discuss why they chose specific characters to paint and what they look like.

Outside, Mrs. Patterson will ask the children to help her find the different Maisy characters that will be placed around the garden. The children will use a tick sheet to prove that they have found all of the hidden characters.

Nursery News 3rd October 2022

NURSERY NEWS

3^rd October 2022 – Edition 273

Find out About:

1. Parent consultations for Big Nursery- A reminder
2. What are the children learning about this week?
3. Government advice regarding respiratory infections including Covid-19

1. Parent consultations for Big Nursery

We are offering Parent Consultations to parents of children in Big Nursery during the week beginning 10/10/22. These consultations are to talk about how your child is settling in to Big Nursery. They are not compulsory, but if you would like an appointment please arrange this with your child’s keyworker when they are outside before morning sessions.

These consultations will be on the telephone, will last 5 mins and will be at the following times:

Monday 10^th October Miss Howe’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultation between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Tuesday 11^th October Mrs Patterson’s Green Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Thursday 13^th October Mrs Cashmore’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Friday 14^th October Miss Skai’s Red Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm (Please note change of date as to what was advertised in last week’s newsletter.)

Parent Consultations for Catkins children will follow later in the term: more details will follow nearer the time.

2. What are the children learning about this week?

The theme in little nursery is cleaning and tidying toys away

The staff in Catkins will make corn flour for the children to play with. It is a sensory activity where everyone can explore different textures and how consistencies change. The children will be working with Miss Tyler to return toys to the place where they belong and helping to sweep the leaves outside as she explains why we must keep our environment clean and tidy.

In room three, Mrs. Brinkley will be showing the children how to use different instruments and toys that make interesting sounds. She will encourage the children to be careful when they use these resources and show them where to put them when they have finished playing.

In the link, Miss Gaffney will be using paint and various resources such as rollers and tubes to make marks. Miss Gaffney will talk to the children about the marks that they are making and explain that they can use a range of resources to paint rather than just brushes.

Outside, Mrs. Watson will be focusing on improving the children’s ball skills. She will work with the children on catching, throwing and kicking balls to each other.

The theme in big nursery is All about me

In room one, Mrs. Patterson will have the light box set up with a range of accessories to use with it. She will support the children with turn taking and taking care of the light box so that it everyone gets a turn. Mrs. Patterson will also be extending the work she has been doing about families by talking to the children about their families and the people they share their homes with.

In room two, Miss Skai will be creating natural artwork by using leaves to make hedgehog pictures. Miss Skai will talk to the children about what hedgehogs look and feel like as well as where they live. There will be pictures and books for the children to look at as they work.

Outside, Miss Howe will set up an obstacle course using hoops, blocks and balancing beams. The children will focus on developing movement and balancing skills.

Mrs. Cashmore will provide the children with lots of coloured chalk and encourage them to use gross motor skills to draw self-portraits.

3. Government advice regarding respiratory infections including Covid-19

I have found this guidance on Gov.uk which gives quite a lot of information about how we as a society should live with Covid-19 and other respiratory infections.

People with symptoms of a respiratory infection including COVID-19

Guidance for people with symptoms of a respiratory infection including COVID-19, or a positive test result for COVID-19.

From:

UK Health Security Agency

Published

1 April 2022

Last updated

10 June 2022

The guidance is very full and detailed, but I have included one part which describes action to be taken with children. It describes that children with temperatures should not attend school:

Children and young people (aged 18 years and under) who have symptoms of a respiratory infection, including COVID-19

Respiratory infections are common in children and young people, particularly during the winter months. Symptoms can be caused by several respiratory infections including the common cold, COVID-19 and RSV.

For most children and young people, these illnesses will not be serious, and they will soon recover following rest and plenty of fluids.

Very few children and young people with respiratory infections become seriously unwell. This is also true for children and young people with long-term conditions. Some children under 2, especially those born prematurely or with a heart condition, can be more seriously unwell from RSV.

Attending education is hugely important for children and young people’s health and their future.

When children and young people with symptoms should stay at home and when they can return to education

Children and young people with mild symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, or slight cough, who are otherwise well, can continue to attend their education setting.

Children and young people who are unwell and have a high temperature should stay at home and avoid contact with other people, where they can. They can go back to school, college or childcare, and resume normal activities when they no longer have a high temperature and they are well enough to attend.

All children and young people with respiratory symptoms should be encouraged to cover their mouth and nose with a disposable tissue when coughing and/or sneezing and to wash their hands after using or disposing of tissues.

It can be difficult to know when to seek help if your child is unwell. If you are worried about your child, especially if they are aged under 2 years old, then you should seek medical help.

Nursery News 26th September 2022

NURSERY NEWS

26th September 2021 – Edition 272

Find out About:

A: Big Nursery and Little Nursery.

B. No changes to sessions for children attending Big Nursery

C. Applying for Primary School.

D. Parent consultations for Big Nursery

E. What are the children learning about this week?

F. Lunchtime in Big Nursery

A. Big Nursery and Little Nursery

We have everyone here now, well almost, we are just waiting for a few more two year olds to start in the coming weeks. I can now begin explaining things about Nursery to all parents.

There were some government requirements we had to follow in order to keep children safe during the Covid pandemic. One requirement was to keep different year groups in separate bubbles. We found some real positives in the practice of keeping year groups separate, so this is something that the staff chose to continue with.

We needed to find language that everybody could understand when describing particular groups of children/ physical areas of the building.

We decided to use terms that the children can understand.

Big Nursery is for the children in their final academic year at Nursery. So, current Big Nursery children are Mrs Patterson’s Green Group, Miss Skai’s Red group, Miss Howe’s and Mrs Cashmore’s Yellow Group. All the children in Big Nursery are entitled to 15 hours Universal funding because they are 3 or 4 years old. Some are entitled to 30 hours funding if both parents are working.

Big Nursery children all queue outside the school on the pavement between the front gate and the school car park. All these children will leave Willow Nursery School in July 2023 to join their chosen Primary School in September 2023. The physical areas of school used for this age group are Room’s 1, 2 and 5 and part of the outside area.

No additional children will be added to Big Nursery once the year begins. Big Nursery becomes very settled and we can really move the children forward as the year progresses.

Little Nursery is for all the children younger than the Big Nursery children. The children in Little Nursery will leave Willow Nursery School in July 2024, or for the very youngest two year olds, July 2025. At the moment all the children in Little Nursery are Catkins age children. Children who are Catkins age are not yet entitled to the universal 15/30 hour funding that children receive in the term after they turn 3 years old. The oldest children in Little Nursery turn 3 years old in September 2022.

Some Catkins age children are entitled to 15 hours funding for two year olds. Parents entitled to this funding are usually informed by the Local Authority- Central Beds Council. (This funding is based on parents with a low income or in receipt of certain benefits).

Little Nursery will have additional children added to it as the year goes along.

Little Nursery children who turn 3 years old between the 1st September 2022 and 31st December 2022 will be entitled to Universal 15 hours or 30 hours funding in January 2023. They will stay in little Nursery until July 2023 In January 2023 they will cease to be known as Catkins children, and will become known as Blue Group. Blue Group’s Keyworkers will be Miss Gaffney and Mrs Watson. Some children from our waitlist who are Blue Group age will join Little Nursery in January too.

Little Nursery children who turn 3 years old between the 1st January 2023 and the 31st March 2023 will be entitled to universal 15 hours funding or 30 hours funding after the Easter Break from the 17th April 2023. They will stay in Little Nursery until July 2023. In April 2023 they will cease to be known as Catkins children, and will become known as Orange Group. Orange Group’s Keyworker will be Mrs Brinkley. Some children from our waitlist who are Orange Group age will join Little Nursery in April too.

Little Nursery children who turn 3 years old after 1st April 2023 will remain as Catkins age children for the entire academic year from September 2022 to July 2023.

B. No changes to sessions for children attending Big Nursery.

We have had a few enquiries from families in September regarding having additional sessions either now or perhaps in January. When I make offers to families I try to offer a choice of 15 or 30 hours to as many families as possible. When you make your choice of sessions, I add this to a big timetable. I then ensure we have enough staff on duty to meet ofsted adult to child ratio’s in every session. We cap the number of children in lunch due to the space we have available. Within two weeks of the start of term I begin looking at the next intake of children, and these will join Little Nursery in January.

At this time, we are unable to offer any additional sessions in Big Nursery. If we decide to offer additional spaces in January, I will let you know through the newsletter.

C. Applying for Primary School.

Apply for a lower or primary school place in Central Bedfordshire

When to apply for starting school in 2023

Children born between 1 September 2018 and 31 August 2019 are due to start school in September 2023.

You need to apply before 15 January 2023, even if your child already attends a nursery or pre-school on the school site.

How to apply

· if Central Bedfordshire is your council, you need to apply through them

· if Central Bedfordshire is not your council, you’ll need to apply through your home Local Authority.

You will need to look on your Local Authority Council’s website for further information on how to apply.

This applies to all children in Big Nursery.

Hadrian Academy has organised some visit days to their Early Years Foundation Stage. Please see the flyer attached for more information.

D. Parent consultations for Big Nursery

We plan to offer Parent Consultations to parents of children in Big Nursery during the week beginning 10/10/22. These consultations are offered to talk about how your child is settling in to Big Nursery. They are not compulsory, but if you would like an appointment please arrange this with your child’s keyworker when they are outside before morning sessions.

These consultations will be on the telephone, will last 5 mins and will be at the following times:

Monday 10th October Miss Howe’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultation between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Tuesday 11th October Mrs Patterson’s Green Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Wednesday 12th October Miss Skai’s Red Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Thursday 13th October Mrs Cashmore’s Yellow Group Consultations, 5 minute telephone consultations between 3:15pm and 4:20pm

Parent Consultations for Catkins children will follow later in the term: more details will follow nearer the time.

E. What are the children learning about this week?

The theme throughout nursery this week is ‘All about me’.

In Catkins, the children will be looking at pictures of themselves and people that are special to them. The children will talk to staff about who they can see in their pictures and what is happening. Children will then be provided with face templates and can draw pictures of themselves using mirrors and appropriate colours.

In room 3, Mrs. Brinkley will be sharing the story of ‘My Day’ with the children. The story is all about routines and what happens in a typical day. Mrs. Brinkley will then talk to the children about their own daily routines and who helps them through their daily tasks.

In the link, Miss Gaffney will be looking at personal pictures brought in by the children, she will model lots of descriptive language for the children and encourage them to talk about what they can see in their picture.

Outside, Mrs. Watson will be looking for pictures of people, that are hidden around the garden. When the children spot all of the pictures, they will try to talk about the similarities and differences that they can see between themselves and the people in the pictures. Mrs. Watson will use descriptive language to talk about the pictures and praise the children for joining in with her discussion.

The theme in big nursery this week is ‘All about me’.

In room 1, Mrs. Patterson will be looking at family pictures that the children have brought in. she will ask the children to share their memories and talk about what is happening in the picture. Mrs. Patterson will support the children with language If they are unable to express themselves or are too shy. Celebrating the similarities and differences between the children will help them to establish a sense of self and pride.

In room 2, Miss Skai will have the easels set up for the children to use. They will be painting self-portraits using mirrors to help them remember details such as hair and

eye colour. Miss Skai will ask the children to think about details when they are painting, including hair type and any prominent features.

Outside, Miss Howe and Mrs. Cashmore will be teaching the children about the importance of sharing and taking care of nursery resources. They will explain to the children that it is important to share and take turns, but that it is equally important to respect our equipment and replace it after use.

F. Lunchtime in Big Nursery

Lunchtime at Willow is a busy part of the school day. Assisting up to 36 children aged 3-4 years to eat a packed lunch is quite a challenging task. I (Mrs Davies) choose to lead the lunchtime session myself, to ensure the 30 minutes or so for lunch runs as smoothly as possible.

The purpose of this letter is to:

· Remind you to label lunchboxes, drinks bottles and food containers with your child’s name

· Inform you about how lunchtime is organised in Big Nursery.

· Suggest contents of an appropriate lunch.

· Ask you to consider Health and Safety of foods provided.

Organisation We ask that lunchboxes are placed on the lunchbox trolleys at the front gate when your child first arrives at Nursery. All children need access to drinking water throughout the day. All children will need to bring their own drinking bottle to school, filled with clean water each day. This bottle should be labelled with your child’s name. Their drinking bottle should be placed in the boxes on the top shelf of the lunchbox trolley. Children will be able to access their water bottle throughout the day. Children will only have access to the food in their lunchbox at lunchtime.

At lunchtime we rearrange Room 2 and Room 5 to provide seating for 36 children. At the end of morning all children staying for lunch are invited to use the toilet, then wash their hands. Children then sit at a table for 6 children. One adult supports two tables. Children then collect their lunchbox and their drinks bottle from the trolleys. They are asked to open the lunchbox themselves, take out the contents and return the lunchbox to the trolley. Staff then assist children to open their packaging and ensure all children have a drink. We encourage children to eat their lunches, preferably savoury foods first. At the end of lunch, children are asked to dispose of their own rubbish, pack their own lunchboxes with any food to return home, used spoons and empty tubs and then place them back on the trolley. Drinks bottles are returned to the boxes on the top shelf of the lunchbox trolley, ready for the afternoon session. Please name all containers.

Suggested contents of an appropriate lunch. You know your child best. Whilst as a school we encourage all parents to provide a Healthy Diet for your children, we do understand young children can be fussy about what they choose to eat. We are not ‘food police’, and we accept that you provide a lunch suitable for your child. Here are some suggestions of what you might like to put in your child’s lunchbox: Savoury ideas: A small sandwich- For most children one slice of bread is enough. Some cheese.

Savoury crackers, cocktail sausages, chicken nuggets, carrot sticks. Sweet ideas: A yogurt. A jelly. A piece of fruit. A small cake or biscuit. Malt loaf. Please, No Sweets!

Parents may choose to provide an additional drink, such as a carton of fruit juice, in your child’s lunchbox for them to consume with their lunch (nothing fizzy please). Please provide a spoon if your child needs one. This list is not meant to be prescriptive, there are lots of other ideas parents have, but please remember not to send in too much food. It is better to send in a small amount of food that you expect your child to finish, rather than providing lots of items from your child to choose from. Three or four items of food are generally enough for most children.

Health and Safety of foods provided. Please consider the size of individual pieces of food. Grapes must be cut lengthways as these are a choking hazard. Consider the size of other foods- Cherry tomatoes can be large too. Do not provide any foods containing nuts or nut products. We have a child with a nut allergy who stays for lunch. So please be careful as some chocolate spreads contain nuts,or European style chocolate biscuits contain hazlenuts in their chocolate coating or wafer filling.