Nursery

Welcome back! It has been so lovely to see the children return to school so happily after the break. They came in full of smiles, excitement and ready to learn. I am sure they have all grown over the past two weeks because they looked so grown up when they came back.

The warmer and sometimes unpredictable weather has given us lots of wonderful opportunities for learning this week. We started by sharing the classic and much loved story The Very Hungry Caterpillar. The children were so pleased to read this familiar favourite again and joined in beautifully with the story. It led to lots of lovely discussions about the life cycle of a butterfly. We are now busy creating our own versions of the life cycle using a range of arts and craft materials in the classroom, and the children have shown so much creativity.

We then enjoyed another lovely story by Eric Carle, The Tiny Seed. This inspired us to create our very own greenhouse in the classroom, where the children have been able to plant their own seeds. Before we started, we talked together about what seeds need in order to grow. The children had some fantastic ideas, including water, sunlight, soil and plenty of care.

Once everything was ready, the children were very excited to begin planting. They have been taking their new job as gardeners very seriously, carefully spraying the seeds with fresh water each day and checking closely to see whose seed might sprout first. There have also been a few surprised and slightly disappointed faces when some children realised that seeds do not grow into plants in an hour. It has been a lovely way to learn about patience and how living things need time to grow.

In phonics, we learned how to recognise the grapheme k. The children enjoyed practising the sound and had great fun thinking of silly alliteration sentences using words that begin with k.

In maths, we were inspired by the beautiful symmetry of butterflies. The children experimented with paint to make their own symmetrical pictures and were delighted to open them up and see the patterns they had created. We also explored repeating patterns by making caterpillars inspired by the monarch butterfly.

It has been such a happy and busy start to the term, and we are so proud of how enthusiastically the children have come back to school and settled straight into their learning.

Here are three lovely ways to continue the learning at home this week:

Discuss the lifecycle of your child’s favourite animal, can they make their own depiction of their lifecycle.

Plant a seed at home and encourage your child to check on it each day and notice any changes.

Look for patterns and symmetry at home or outside, such as on flowers, leaves or butterflies.

This week in Nursery has been full of energy, excitement and wonderful learning. With the sun shining brightly, the children have brought an extra sparkle to their play and exploration. We have made the most of the beautiful weather by spending lots of time outdoors, where there have been plenty of opportunities to move, climb, ride and explore.

The children are already very familiar with the big playground and always enjoy using the large equipment. This week, we made a particular effort to use this space to help channel some of our extra energy in a positive way, while continuing to develop important physical skills. It has been fantastic to see the children climbing, balancing and exploring with growing confidence. Back in our own playground, the bikes have been a huge favourite. It has been lovely to see the children making their own choices, whether that is riding trikes, trying out balance bikes, or bravely having a go on the pedal bikes. Each child is developing at their own pace, and we are so proud of their determination and growing confidence.

All of this active play is not just fun, it plays a very important role in the children’s development. Gross motor skills, which involve the large muscles in the arms, legs and body, are essential foundations for many other areas of learning. When children climb, pedal, balance and steer, they are strengthening their core muscles, improving coordination and developing control over their movements. These skills are vital when it comes to writing. Before a child can hold a pencil with control, they need strong shoulders, arms and core stability. These larger movements support the smaller, more precise movements needed for handwriting.

Alongside our outdoor adventures, we have been very focused and diligent in practising our writing skills. The children have been working hard on recognising and forming the letters in their names, as well as the phonic sounds that they have learned so far. We have now learned the sounds s, a, t, p, i, n, m, d, g and o, and it has been wonderful to see the children becoming more confident in attempting to form these letters. We are also beginning to spot these sounds in our environment, which is a fantastic step in early reading and writing development. We have been encouraging correct pencil grip and giving lots of opportunities to practise mark making in fun and engaging ways.

One of our favourite activities this week has been making marks to the tempo and pitch of classical music. The children explored how their movements could change depending on what they heard. Some created slow, gentle lines to calm music, while others made fast, energetic marks to lively pieces. This activity not only supports early writing skills, but also encourages creativity, listening and expression.

In literacy, we have been listening to both fiction and non fiction books about people who help us. The children have had a great time exploring different occupations, including doctors, teachers, bakers and builders. There has been lots of imaginative play, and one of the highlights was dressing up and pretending to be fishermen on their boats, catching the fish that we enjoy for our lunch on Fridays. It has been a wonderful way to bring stories to life and deepen the children’s understanding of the world around them.

It has been a joyful and busy week, and it is wonderful to see the children growing in confidence, strength and independence.

How you can help at home:

Encourage your child to climb, balance, run and ride bikes or scooters. Even simple activities such as walking along a low wall or playing in the park help to build the strength needed for writing.

Play different types of music at home and invite your child to draw or paint what they hear. Talk about whether the music is fast, slow, loud or quiet, and how that changes

Practise recognising the sounds s, a, t, p, i, n, m, d, g and o in everyday life. You could look for them on signs, in books or on packaging. Encourage your child to have a go at writing these letters and the letters in their name using fun methods such as chalk, paint or forming them with toys.

We hope you have a lovely sunny weekend ☀️

Lots of love,

The Nursery Team xx

This week in Nursery has been full of curiosity, excitement, and a great deal of wonder as we celebrated Science Week. The children spent time thinking about what it means to be a scientist. We talked about how scientists ask questions, explore ideas, and carefully observe what happens. It turns out that Nursery children make wonderful scientists, especially when there are experiments to try and new things to discover.

Our classroom quickly became a busy little laboratory as we explored a wide range of experiments together. Some gave us immediate results, which led to many delighted reactions, while others encouraged us to watch carefully and notice small changes over time. The children were completely absorbed in the process of discovering what might happen next.

We investigated static electricity and were fascinated to see how it could move objects in surprising ways. Our walking rainbow experiment kept us watching closely as the colours slowly travelled and mixed together. The milk fireworks created beautiful swirling patterns that were quite magical to observe.

The children also enjoyed exploring planting and growing, learning about what plants need in order to thrive. During our floating and sinking investigation they carefully tested a variety of objects and shared their predictions with great enthusiasm. The skittles rainbow created a bright burst of colour that slowly spread across the plate, which was met with great delight. Magnets proved very popular as the children discovered which objects they could attract. One experiment that caused particular amazement involved pushing pencils through water filled sandwich bags and seeing that not a single drop of water leaked out. There were many impressed faces and some very thoughtful scientific conversations.

Alongside our experiments, we continued to observe the weather each day. The children enjoy looking closely at the sky and carefully marking the weather on our chart. During our time in the forest we also noticed many signs that spring is beginning to appear. The children were very excited to spot fresh growth and the bright green shoots appearing on the trees. It has been lovely to see them noticing these changes in the world around them.

In phonics the children have continued to learn new sounds and they are becoming increasingly confident in recognising them. They are also practising blending sounds together to hear words, which is an important step in their reading journey. The children are very proud when they can read decodable words and their enthusiasm is wonderful to see. It has been especially lovely to watch them using their phonic knowledge in their play when they write cards, notes, and lists for one another.

This week the children worked very hard to spot the letter d in their environment. Once we began looking carefully, we discovered it in many different places around the classroom. We also had great fun creating alliteration with Dante Duck, which led to some wonderfully imaginative ideas and plenty of smiles.

With another special day coming up on Sunday, the children have been thinking about the special person in their lives who does so much for them each day. They have worked incredibly hard to make a very special surprise for every mummy. A great deal of care, thought, and effort went into these creations and the children were very proud of their work. We hope the surprises bring many happy smiles at home.

Activities you might enjoy at home:

Fill a bowl with water and collect a few objects from around the house. Ask your child to predict whether each object will float or sink before testing it together.

Take a short walk together and see what signs of spring you can find. Look for buds on trees, tiny new shoots in the ground, and listen carefully for birds singing.

Choose a letter sound such as d and see how many things your child can find around the house that begin with that sound. You could also have fun making your own silly alliteration, just like Dante Duck.

We would like to wish all of our wonderful mothers a very happy Mother’s Day. We hope you are able to enjoy a lovely day and perhaps even a little peace and quiet. You certainly deserve to be celebrated.🌷

Lots of love, the Nursery Team x

Following on from last week’s learning and our growing love of stories, we had a very exciting time celebrating World Book Day at nursery!

The children arrived full of smiles and excitement, dressed as some wonderful story characters. It was such a joy to see everyone proudly showing off their costumes and talking about who they had come as. We spotted some fantastic characters during the day including Ms Trunchbull, Rinaldo, Stick Man and Fantastic Mr Fox, just to name a few!

The children loved sharing their costumes with their friends and staff, and it sparked lots of lovely conversations about their favourite stories and characters. We spent time reading together, looking through books and enjoying some of the stories that inspire our imaginations.

There was also plenty of playful acting throughout the day. Some children stomped around like the mighty Ms Trunchbull, others went on adventures like Stick Man, and a few were very sneaky just like Fantastic Mr Fox! It was wonderful to see the children bringing stories to life through their play.

World Book Day was a lovely opportunity to celebrate how much fun books can be. Thank you so much for all the amazing costumes and for helping the children take part. It truly made the day extra special!

We can’t wait to keep exploring more stories together and see where our imaginations take us next.

Have a lovely weekend!

Lots of love,

The NurseryTeam xxx

It was so lovely to see all the children again after half term. They came back full of smiles and excitement, bursting to share their holiday news with their friends. The classroom was buzzing with happy chatter as everyone caught up. We have started this term just as we finished the last one – happy, settled and ready to learn.

We began the week by celebrating Chinese New Year and the children absolutely threw themselves into it. We talked about some of the traditions and customs and how families celebrate. The children worked together to make a fantastic red dragon, which caused great excitement in the classroom. In our class café they practised using chopsticks, showing real determination and lots of giggles along the way. We also had a go at writing numbers using Chinese symbols and enjoyed dancing together to traditional music. It was such a fun way to learn about a different culture.

Our new topic has grown so naturally from last term. After learning about animals, we are now thinking about journeys and how we will travel to the bamboo forest to visit giant pandas 🐼 .

The children have loved exploring different types of transport and talking about where they might take us. The paper aeroplanes have been a big hit in the garden, with lots of experimenting to see whose could fly the furthest.

With a little bit of sunshine appearing, we made the most of our time outdoors. Using the large crates and wooden planks, the children worked together to build their own bus. They showed brilliant teamwork and imagination as they invited their friends on board for a magical ride. It was wonderful to see their ideas come to life.

We also enjoyed a walk through the field and into the forest to look for signs of spring. The children were so excited to spot blossom on the trees and were delighted to find beautiful snowdrops scattered across the forest floor. There was a real sense of wonder as we noticed the changes around us.

To top off what the children described as “the best week ever”, we had our sponsored slide. There was so much laughter and cheering as everyone took their turn. It really did turn an ordinary Friday into a proper Friyay.

How you can help at home:

Have a go at using chopsticks at home or try writing some numbers using Chinese symbols.

Talk about different types of transport you see when you are out and about. You could even make a model vehicle from boxes or recycled materials.

Look out for signs of spring on a family walk and chat about what you notice changing in nature.

We are so proud of how well the children have settled back in and we cannot wait for more adventures together this term.

Love,

The Nursery Team x

We have had such a happy and engaging week in nursery as we continued our topic all about animals. The children have been full of curiosity and enthusiasm, and it has been a real joy to watch their learning develop.

We shared many lovely animal stories this week and especially enjoyed Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Can You Hear? and Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Can You See? by Eric Carle. These stories sparked lots of excitement and discussion. We talked together about the different settings in each story and learned that the place an animal lives is called its habitat. The children were very keen to compare habitats and enjoyed matching animals to warm places, watery environments and very cold, icy areas. There were many thoughtful conversations as the children explained their ideas and listened carefully to their friends.

Inspired by these stories, the children enthusiastically decided that they could become authors themselves. They created their own books based on the pattern of the stories, carefully choosing which animals they wanted to include and thinking about what their animals could hear and see. Some very adventurous authors even designed their own front covers and proudly wrote their names on the front, just like authors do. The children showed fantastic creativity as well as confidence when they shared their stories with others.

In phonics this week, we focused on recognising and writing the letter p. We practised the letter formation using the rhyme down his body, around his face. The children worked brilliantly together to think of words that begin with the p sound and were extremely proud when we reached a list of twenty words. Their teamwork and enthusiasm were wonderful to see.

Our learning about animals and habitats led us to explore the work of artist Andy Goldsworthy. We learned how he uses natural materials such as stones, ice, leaves and twigs to create beautiful sculptures that only last for a moment in time.  We talked about how much patience and care is needed to balance the materials. Inspired by his work, the children created their own nature sculptures in class, taking their time and showing great concentration. The finished pieces were creative, thoughtful and truly impressive.

It has been a busy and joyful week filled with storytelling, imagination and creativity. We are very proud of the children and the wonderful learning they continue to share with us each day.

How you can help at home:

Read lots of animal stories together and talk about the habitats the animals live in, is it a big habitat like the jungle or is it a small one like a tree stump?

Practice writing the letter p with a range of tools like a paintbrush, their fingers, or playdough while saying the rhyme to support correct formation.

Go on a short walk to collect natural materials and creating a simple piece of nature inspired art together.

We hope you have a lovely, relaxing weekend – with at least a little glimpse of sunshine!

Lots of love,

The Nursery Team xxx

As we continue our exciting learning journey in Nursery, the children have once again amazed us with their enthusiasm, creativity and growing confidence. This week has built beautifully on recent learning, with lots of opportunities for the children to explore new ideas, share their thoughts and take pride in what they can do. It has been a pleasure to see them so engaged across all areas of the provision.

In our role play area, the children worked very hard to transform our dinosaur cave into an animal jungle. Together, they thought carefully about the animals we might find living there and shared some fantastic ideas. The children were full of enthusiasm as they made paper chain snakes and vibrant multi coloured parrots to decorate the space. Their creations have helped bring the jungle to life, and the children are thoroughly enjoying exploring the area through imaginative play.

Our animal theme continued in Literacy, where we shared a wide range of stories about animals and their adventures. The children listened attentively and enjoyed talking about how the characters might have felt at different points in the stories. They also thought about how they would like the stories to end, which encouraged thoughtful discussion and creative thinking.

To give the children more time to revisit and explore the stories, we introduced story baskets for each one. These baskets included toys and props linked to the characters and events. The children have loved retelling the stories during their play, and some even created their own alternative endings. This clearly shows how well they have been listening and how confident they are becoming when sharing their ideas.

We also had a very special visit from the Year 2 children this week, who came to Nursery to share the stories they have been writing in class. The Nursery children listened attentively and showed what a wonderful audience they can be. It was lovely to see the older and younger children learning together, and the visit helped to inspire even more excitement about stories and storytelling.

In maths, we have been playing lots of games using dice. The children are now becoming confident at recognising dice patterns and are beginning to subitise numbers to three. This means they can say how many objects they can see without counting them one by one, which is an important early maths skill.

The children have also worked very hard during phonics sessions. This week, they learned to recognise the letter “t” and practised how to write it using our letter formation rhyme: Down her body and cross her shoulders. The children showed great focus and effort as they practised both recognising and forming the letter.  Here is a short video showing the pure sounds we use to support phonics learning.  https://youtu.be/nBFnAcXHOUQ

How you can help at home:

Create a small jungle scene using toys, drawings or household items. Talk with your child about the animals that might live there, what they eat and where they sleep. This supports language development, imagination and understanding of the world.

Share a familiar story together and ask your child to retell it using toys or objects as props. Encourage them to change the ending or add a new character. This helps develop listening skills, memory and confidence in speaking.

Roll a dice and ask your child how many spots they can see without counting. Then count together to check. This supports number recognition and early subitising skills in a fun and relaxed way.

We have loved seeing the children’s excitement and curiosity grow as the week has unfolded, and it has been wonderful to watch them take ownership of their learning through play, discussion and creativity.

Have a lovely weekend,

The Nursery team xxx

Another week has absolutely whizzed by in Nursery, and as always, lots of fun was had by all! The children have been busy, curious and full of excitement as they played, explored and learned together.  It has been a joy to see their enthusiasm each day.

In Literacy, we continued to explore the features of both fiction and non-fiction books. The children are becoming very confident at spotting the differences and love talking about what they can see on the covers and inside the books. We also carried on with our phonics learning, focusing on the sound “a” and practising how to write it. The children approached this with such positivity and were very proud of their efforts.

The children have worked incredibly hard on developing their fine motor skills this week. Through a variety of fun, hands-on games and activities, they have been building the important muscle strength in their hands and fingers that supports early writing. Threading, squeezing, pinching, mark making and playing with small objects were all firm favourites!

This week we leaned more into mathematical learning, and what better way to do that than with dinosaurs! We sang counting songs, practised counting forwards and backwards, and learned how to form our numbers 1–5. During child-initiated learning, the children enjoyed interactive games that helped them match numerals to the correct number of objects. They loved taking part and were very keen to show off their fantastic number knowledge.

Our role-play cave continued to be a much-loved area. We have been busy caring for our baby triceratops and diplodocus dinosaurs, who according to the children have now grown up enough to start eating real food! This led to a lovely activity where we made herbivore salads together. Some of the children were even brave enough to taste the kale and lettuce leaves we used.

Throughout the week, the children also enjoyed creative activities, construction play, small world play and plenty of outdoor learning, helping to build confidence, independence and teamwork. It has been wonderful to see their imaginations come to life across all areas of the classroom.

How to help at home:

Share a story together, look at both fiction and non-fiction books and talk about how they are different.

Practise counting forwards and backwards using toys, snacks or everyday objects.

Strengthen little hands by playing with playdough, threading beads or using pegs to pick up small items.

Next week we will be moving on to a brand-new topic (I won’t spoil the surprise just yet!), and we’re sure the children are going to love it just as much. Thank you, as always, for your continued support, we can’t wait to see what the next week brings! 😊

The Nursery Team xxx