Pre School Sessions and What to Expect
The Session
Our sessions are organised in such a way as to encourage child led/free flow play, however, alongside this are also adult supported group activities which are planned to introduce them to new experiences and skills. Our wide range of indoor and outdoor activities and resources are selected with the Early Years Foundation Stage in mind, and are chosen to ensure that children learn and develop well and are kept healthy and safe.
Weekly Focus Activity
Although children are supported to shape their own learning through free flow play, we also actively encourage them to participate in our weekly focus activity. These are activities which are planned by staff to be suitable for all ages and abilities; always taking into account the diverse needs and interests of the children, as well as particular events, for example, festivals and celebrations.
Cooking
We believe that cooking activities can be both enjoyable and beneficial to children’s learning in all aspects of the curriculum. We therefore try to encourage food preparation by the children on a regular basis. We implement a healthy eating policy and use wholesome and, where possible, organic ingredients to reinforce our commitment. On occasions we may ask for a parental donation towards this activity.
PE and Sport
The Department of Health recommends that children under five years of age who are walking should be physically active for at least three hours a day. This includes energetic physical activity such as running, climbing, and jumping as well as light intensity activity such as walking, active play and craft activities. We, therefore, take physical activity very seriously and encourage children to be as active as possible, indeed we consider it vital for their physical and mental health and development. With this in mind, we have developed our own PE program which includes dance, games, gymnastics and athletics in which children will participate on a daily basis.
Preparation for School
During the summer term, sessions are particularly geared to meeting the needs of children moving onto primary school in September. We focus on developing the independence skills needed in reception class, such as having confidence to undress and dress independently for P.E. We offer opportunities for children to attend ‘lunch club’ aimed at allowing children to experience bringing a lunch box and eating in a large group environment. We plan visits to the Primary Schools to promote a smooth transition and invite the reception teachers of all relevant schools to participate in some of our sessions. This allows the children to meet them on familiar territory and start the process of relationship building.
Tapestry and Learning Records
Your child’s key person will track your child’s progress through regular observations which are uploaded onto your child’s online Tapestry Learning Record. On starting at Pre School, you will be sent a link to your child’s individual record enabling you to access it from home. Not only will you be able to see what they have been up to at Pre School, but we actively encourage you to upload your own observations of your child at home which will help us to gain a full picture of your child’s achievements, needs and interests which we can feed into future planning. At the end of your time with us, you will be presented with your child’s Learning Record on a memory stick to keep as a memento of your child’s time with us.
GDPR
We are committed to ensuring that any personal data we hold about you and your child is protected in accordance with data protection laws and is used in line with your expectations. All parents will be issued with a Privacy Notice explaining what personal data we collect, why we collect it, how we use it and how we protect it.
The role of parents
We recognise parents as the first and most important educators of their young children. Our Pre-School aims to support parents.
Parents are welcome:
To stay and play with the children through the session.
To join the Voluntary Management Committee, who, with the staff, work together to shape the running of the Pre School.
Join the Fundraising Committee and help to raise vital funds for the Pre School along with making new friends.
Offer ideas or suggestions about ways they feel practice could be improved, or topics they would like to see covered.