New sand pit

Dear Parents and Carers

We’ve had a busy old week at the nursery, resulting in a fantastic new sandpit in the garden which the children are making full use of in this muggy weather.

Next week sees the return of our assistant cook, Wendy, who has been recuperating after a major operation.  It will be lovely to have her back on board again.

Leanne is on annual leave until Wednesday July 3^rd, however if any parent has any queries regarding invoicing/monies, please do not hesitate to talk to me and I shall endeavour to answer any questions you may have.

Snails

For the next few weeks, the babies shall be concentrating on their gross motor skills through encouragement to practice large movements such as climbing and moving to music.  This shall be achieved by using the soft play for the children to climb over, whilst tunnels and hoops will provide opportunities for the children to crawl and roll.

Days off Jenni – Thursday     

Caterpillars

Continuing with physical development, this week the children shall experience body painting, exploring the texture of the paint on their skin.

Buggies and push along toys shall be available to encourage the non walkers onto their feet, whilst the children shall be given large open spaces to roll, stretch and crawl around the room.

Jamie – Day off Tuesday                                               

Ladybirds

Physical development will also be centred around the theme of activities this week, for the Ladybirds. The children will practice throwing and catching balls, in the garden.  They will also use the soft play to explore their gross motor skills.

Art activities, such as football painting shall be carried out this week whilst fine motor skills shall be encouraged within the role play area, using the small kitchen utensils, such as bowls, whisks and spoons within their play.

 Days off   Julie – Monday   Abi - Thursday

Bumblebees

This week, in the Bumblebees, ‘Emotions’ shall be the focus of activities planned.  Different emotions shall be discussed at circle time and the possible catalysts for certain feelings.

Group times shall focus on the ‘emotion cards’ where children will be encouraged to remember when they were happy, sad, cross etc.

During creative play, the children will have the opportunity to draw faces showing different emotions whilst books read at story time will concentrate on emotions, such as the ‘First experience’ books by Dorsley and Kingsley and ‘When I feel sad’.

Tash – Day off, Friday      Krissi – Monday       

Butterflies

Continuing with the theme of the farm, this week, the role play area in the pre school shall be turned into a farm shop.  The children will use playdough to duplicate models of food that they like to eat.  Building blocks can be used to create farm yards with outhouses for the animals and tasting sessions shall take place surrounding dairy foods.

Discussions during the tasting sessions will focus on the differences in taste from different alternatives such as goats/cows/sheep’s/rice/soya milk, for example.

Days Off: Jo – Tuesday   Stani – Friday

Lee Annual Leave: June 17^th – June 28^th.  There will be no Forest School on these 2 weeks due to Lee’s absence, however this has been planned for within the time frame for each set of sessions and therefore will not impact on the 6 week blocks.