Welcome
Happy New Year!
We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all the very kind cards and gifts we received at Christmas.
Happy New Year! We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all the very kind cards and gifts we received at Christmas.
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Big Room
We are very pleased to report that the children returning to Big Room and those who have moved up from Little Room have all settled very quickly and are all very much enjoying being back at nursery.
A large group of children within this room are all expressing an interest in food and are keen to find out where it comes from etc. With this in mind we plan to incorporate this interest within the planning and extended the children’s learning regarding healthy eating and growth.
We very much appreciate parental input with the children’s learning and so if anybody has got any talents/hobbies relating to cooking or growing food we would very much like you to come in and share them with the children.
Little Room
The children in Little Room have all settled back in to nursery really well and are all enjoying telling the staff about the special visitor they all had over Christmas!
Dates for your diary
Term dates: Tue 3rd Jan – Fri 30th March
Half term: Mon 13th Feb – Fri 17th Feb
(ALL DATES ARE INCLUSIVE)
Walk to Nursery week
30th Jan - 3rd Feb
WOW at St Peter’s church, 2 pm
Wednesday 25th January
Wednesday 22nd February
EYFS & Phonics information afternoon/evening
Date to be confirmed
Letters and Sounds
A number of the staff have recently received training on how to deliver Letters and Sounds to the children. This is a National Strategies teaching programme which is designed to help early years practitioners and teachers teach children how letters and their sounds are linked to reading and spelling.
There are six phases within the programme which begins with Phase One, at the age of three, and continues to Phase Six throughout primary school and sometimes beyond. Although the document states that phase 1 begins at three, we are more than aware that language acquisition begins from birth, and so we implement Phase One with our youngest children too. This is done largely through stories, rhymes and songs as well as everyday conversations which provides a language rich environment for the children.
This work is of course carried on through to big class and then built on as, and when, the children are ready. The document stresses the importance of sound recognition in order for the children to gain a sound foundation to their phonological awareness, and so the children are exposed to each letter sound on a fortnightly basis through numerous multi sensory adult led experiences, as well as natural opportunities that arise throughout the day. Although we focus on the letter sounds we also foster the children's curiosity of letter shapes, and words, throughout Phase One to help them to make a smooth transition to Phase Two.
For further details on how we teach letters click here
The children will experience these letters in a fun, multi-sensory way, to accommodate all types of learners.
What you can do at home - Ask your child to find the letter in their favourite book or in the environment.
- Find objects beginning with the sound, to bring in for our Sound Table.
Number exploration
We will continue to introduce numbers using interactive songs, fun group games that involve number recognition and incorporating numbers into role play and snack time (known as "Snack Cafe" by the children).
For further details on how we teach numbers click here
What you can do - Point out numbers in the environment (- car registration plates, bus service numbers, house numbers)
- Find purposeful reasons for your child to help you count objects.