Parent News

Dear Parents and Carers

A polite reminder to all of our school leavers that we are holding our graduation party, this Wednesday, July 2^nd (3pm – 5pm).  There will be a ceremony where the children will be presented with their certificates, party games and a bouncy castle.  If your child does not normally attend you are more than welcome to join us, however your child will need to be accompanied by an adult.

Don’t forget that we are also holding our summer BBQ on Saturday July 12^th (2pm – 5pm).  This is an ideal opportunity for you busy parents to network and catch up with each other.  All proceeds shall be donated to the princess hair trust, a wig making charity for children suffering from the effects of cancer treatments.

Policies

Please find attached our settling in and transition policies.

Snails

The focus in the snails this week will be colours through sensory exploration. The children will have the opportunity to explore with the cars in green sand and experience the touch and feel of blue feathers on their toes, face and hands. Creative activities, this week, include red cornflour play and gluing and sticking, using feathers, for our older babies.

Planned activities within the Snails surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

 

Alisha –  Day off   Wednesday                          Leanne – Day off Friday

 

Caterpillars

This week the Caterpillars team will focus on exploring paint in different ways, including cling film, table, string and body painting.   The children will be encouraged to look at their own family books and those of their friends. The creative activities this week include, cornflour play, playdough and mark making.

Planned activities within the Caterpillars surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

Days off Jamie – Monday          Tara  - Tuesday      Tarnia Annual Leave all wk

Ladybirds

The current interests in the ladybirds continue to be dinosaurs, sand play, mark making and animals.  This week the children will be encouraged to use their imagination in the sand pit, playing with the safari animals, identify animals, using flash cards and paint using the dinosaur feet.   Creative activities this week include, mark making in damp soil. The book of the week is’ Harry and the dinosuar’s say “Raahh”. 

Planned activities within the ladybirds surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

Days off   Abi – Friday     Kim – Annual Leave Friday     

Bumblebees

This week the children will develop their creative skills through wax crayon painting, bubble painting and using the hole punches with adult support.   The role play area will be transformed into a train ticket office for the week. To help the children develop their understanding of the world, the team shall support the children to look for insects and then make a bug hotel for them. Activities to support mathematical development include drawing numbers with our fingers and counting how many spades of sand are needed to fill the buckets, an extension of this activity could be discussing the difference in numbers pertaining to the size of the spade or bucket.

 Planned activities within the Bumblebees surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning which is now displayed on the large notice board outside the Bumblebees room.

Days off      

Jani – Wednesday            Jenni – Thursday    Hannah – Annual leave all week

 

Butterflies                       

 This week the children’s interest is ‘going to school’ and our graduation party.   The children will make paper chains for the party and create their own display for the book corner. The children will play ‘Simon says’, practising their listening skills.  The children will be asked to think about the things that they are good at, promoting high self esteem during this transition period. Planned activities within the Butterflies surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

Days off   Stani – Friday   Tracy – Tuesday

Settling in policy

Aim of policy

 

At Castle Daycare & Preschool we want every child to thrive with us. Part of making this happen is having a high quality settling in procedure that supports the child and their family as they join us.

 

Points to consider

 

Through this policy and the appointment of professional staff, we aim to make parents/carers feel comfortable in the nursery and that the staff team are friendly, approachable and attentive to their needs and the needs of their children.

 

Castle Daycare and Preschool aim to do this by:

 

·         From the point of booking, the family become members of the nursery and should be informed of any major events, social activities and general news regarding the nursery, even if they have not yet started.

·         Once a booking is confirmed the Manager will contact the parent/carer 4-6 weeks prior to the start date to organise settling in visits for the child. 

·         We recommend an induction period of three settling in sessions, of one hour long, should take place prior to the start date.

·         We will hold an opportunity to welcome the family, address any issues or anxieties and take detailed information about the child.  The staff should be informed in advance of the settling visit to allow for the appropriate preparation and organisation.

·         The settling in sessions should be led by the child’s key person.

·         During the settling in sessions the key person will go through the registration form, terms and conditions and the “All about me pack” with the parents.

·         The key person will give the parents information about the nursery such as; activities, policies, events and newsletters.

·         The key person will answer any questions or concerns the parents have and will refer them to the manager if needed.

·         The key person will ensure that they know the child’s routine, care plans and needs during these sessions so that the child can be supported and cared for as best as possible from their first session with us.

 

 

Transition policy

 

Aim of policy

 

Moving rooms or going to school can be an exciting and stimulating time; however change can cause some anxieties and upset. At Castle Nursery we want to ensure every child’s transition is as smooth as possible.

 

Points to consider

 

The parents may be as anxious as the children regarding transitions but through our strong work with parents we aim to alleviate any worries and support the whole family. See the Parents as Partners policy.

 

Castle Daycare and Preschool aim to do this by:

 

·         6-8 weeks before the child is due to move rooms the parents will be sent a letter discussing the expected date of the move. This will be discussed by the child’s current key person with the parents.

·         The parents will be given the opportunity to visit the child’s next room at a convenient time. They will be introduced to their child’s next key person who will show them around the room, discussing routines and activities. They will also answer any other questions the parents have.

·         The child will start having visits into the next room prior to them moving up.

·         For the first few visits they will be accompanied by their key person, this key person will support the child and introduce the new key person and other staff.

·         Both key people will work together to ensure the child is confident and happy in the new room.

·         The parents will be kept informed of how the visits are progressing by both key people.

·         The child’s visits will be gradually increased so they can experience meals and rest times in their new rooms.

·         If the child is not settling as well as we would like, the current key person may spend longer helping the child to settle in or the settling in period may be extended.

·         Pegs, drawer names and other details will be already displayed before the child starts visits in order to help them feel a sense of belonging.

 

 

 

 

Parent News

Dear Parents and Carers

On Saturday July 12^th we will be holding our Summer BBQ.  There will be a bouncy castle, face painting, hook a duck, raffle and much more.  Please feel free to come along, join in the fun and get that rare opportunity for all of you busy parents to get together.  All proceeds shall be donated to The Little Princess Trust.  The charity provides real hair wigs to children across the UK and Ireland who have sadly lost their own hair through cancer treatment.

Policies

Please find attached our Inclusion policies on diversity and for talented and gifted children.

Snails

The focus in the snails this week will be the exploration of primary colours. The children will have the opportunity to explore with green balls in the sand and the water during water play will be coloured blue.  The soft red mats shall be put out for tummy time and the blue tent shall be available for the babies to crawl in and out of.    Creative activities, this week, include feet painting using primary colours and mark making, using red crayons for our older babies.

Planned activities within the Snails surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

 

Alisha –  Day off   Wednesday                          Leanne – Day off Friday

 

Caterpillars

This week the Caterpillars team will focus on building structures, sand play and the shape sorters.   The books of the week will focus on the prime areas of learning, those being, Personal, Social and Emotional development, Communication and language and Physical development.  Creative activities, this week include painting, using hands and bodies and heuristic play.

Planned activities within the Caterpillars surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

Days off Jamie – Monday          Tara  - Thursday    

Ladybirds

The current interests in the ladybirds continue to be dinosaurs, sand play, painting and singing.  This week the children will use the big trucks in the sand pit to practice tipping and pouring sand. They will also dance to action songs whilst using musical instruments and have the opportunity to ‘make tea’ in the role play area.  Creative activities this week include, table painting, cotton reel painting and mark making with coloured pencils, practising the tripod grip. The book of the week is’ The dance of the dinosaurs’. 

Planned activities within the ladybirds surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

Days off   Abi – Thursday  Kim A/L - Tuesday    

Bumblebees

This week the children will develop their creative skills through making ginger bread men, bin bag painting using cars, marble painting and making playdough.   Within the role play area, the children will have the opportunity to bathe the dolls in the water tray, make a ‘magic train’ using the chairs as a prop and they will be encouraged to have a teddy bears picnic. To help the children develop their understanding of the world, the team shall support the children to complete puzzles surrounding ‘people who help us’, draw people who are special to us and type on the computer, trying to recognise letters. Activities to support mathematical development include matching numbers to quantities, matching shapes around the room and using the number bean bags.The story of the week is ‘The Gingerbread man’.

 Planned activities within the Bumblebees surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning which is now displayed on the large notice board outside the Bumblebees room.

Days off    Jenni – Thursday and annual leave for the rest of the week    

Jani – Tuesday       Jade – Annual leave Friday

 

Butterflies                       

 This week the children’s interest is ‘school leavers’.   The children will be encouraged to try on the uniforms in the role play area, practising dressing themselves. Discussions will surround the different colours of uniforms and what happens at school.  The school leavers will be encouraged to tell their friends about the schools they are going to and group times will include ‘assembly times’ and ‘PE lessons’. Planned activities within the Butterflies surround each child’s current interest in conjunction with supporting and extending their development.  To find out what activities are planned for your child for this week, please see your child’s keyworker who will be happy to take you through the planning.

Days off   Stani – Friday   Tracy – Tuesday

 

Inclusion policy- diversity

 

Aim of policy

Castle Daycare & Preschool is committed to providing all children in our care every opportunity to achieve to the highest standards of their ability. This policy helps to ensure that this happens for all the children at our setting regardless of their age, gender, ethnicity, attainment or background.

 

Points to Consider

Our setting aims to be an inclusive setting. This means that equality of opportunity must be a reality for our children. We make this a reality through the attention we pay to the different groups of children within our setting:

·   girls and boys;

·   minority ethnic and faith groups;

·   children who need support to learn English as an additional language;

·   children with special educational needs;

·   gifted and talented children;

·   Any children who are at risk of disaffection or exclusion.

 

Castle Daycare and Preschool aims to achieve this by:

 

·   setting suitable challenges for children;

·   responding to children’s diverse needs;

·   overcoming potential barriers to the access to and development of individuals and groups of children within the setting;

·   Providing other support to meet the needs of individuals or groups of children. (This may include accepting advice from a range of professionals.)

·   Celebrating all children as individuals and ensuring a sense of belonging at Castle Daycare & Preschool.

 

We achieve inclusion by continually reviewing what we do, through asking ourselves these key questions:

§ Do all our children achieve as much as they can?

§ Are there differences in the achievement for different groups of children and if so what are the reasons for these differences?

§ What are we doing for those children who we know are not achieving their best?

§ Are our actions effective?

 

 

We aim to give all our children the opportunity to succeed and reach their full potential. When planning for them, practitioners take into account the abilities of and differences between all of their children.

 

For some children we use strategies that may normally be appropriate for children of a different age group dependent of the individual needs of the child. This is done to ensure that all children are able to make progress at their own level and at appropriate different rates of development.

 

When the attainment of a child falls significantly below the expected level practitioners will enable the child to succeed by planning work that is in line with that child’s individual needs.

Where we have these concerns they will be highlighted to our SENCO who is

 

                                                            Jennifer Smyth

 

 

Practitioners are familiar with the relevant equal opportunities legislation covering race, gender and disability discrimination.

 

All Practitioners ensure that children:

·   feel secure and know that their contributions are valued;

·   appreciate and value the differences they see in others;

·   take responsibility for their own actions;

·   participate safely in clothing that is appropriate to their religious beliefs;

·   are taught in groupings that allow them all to experience success;

·   use materials that reflect a range of social and cultural backgrounds, without stereotyping;

·   have a common curriculum experience that allows for a range of different learning styles;

·   have challenging targets that enable them to succeed;

·   Are encouraged to participate fully, regardless of disabilities or medical needs.

In our setting the play, learning, achievements, attitudes and well-being of every child is important. We follow the necessary regulations to ensure that we take the experiences and needs of all our children into account when planning activities for the children.

 

 

Inclusion policy – talented and gifted children

 

Aim of policy

Castle Daycare & Preschool is committed to providing all children in our care every opportunity to achieve to the highest standards of their ability. This policy helps to ensure that this happens for all the children at our setting including children who may be talented or gifted.

 

Points to consider

In order to be able to confidently identify talented or gifted children it is important to have a shared idea of what that means. Below is a definition of gifted, talented and more able children:

 

Gifted – The top 5% of age related intellectual or academic ability within the

setting.

 

Talented – The top 5% of age related practical or creative power or other

natural ability or tendency within the setting.

 

More able – children who have the potential to or who are working above age

related expectations in academic or practical subject areas within the setting.

 

Castle Daycare and Preschool aims to achieve this by:

 

·   Having regular, well thought out observations so that all children’s needs can be identified

·   Having a talented and gifted coordinator who will attend training and support the child, family and key person.

 

The talented and gifted coordinator in this setting is:

 

                                                            Michelle Smith

 

·   Where the attainment of a child significantly exceeds the expected level of attainment, practitioners may use materials designed for use with older children, or extend the opportunities for work within the area or areas for which the child shows particular aptitude.

·   Individual Education plans (IEP’s) may be used to identify areas to support and develop and well thought time scales put into place.

·   Balance must be found between stretching and challenging the child to develop them and ensuring they are still allowed to be a child.

 

 

Supporting children and families with English as an additional language (EAL)

 

Aim of policy

 

At Castle we welcome everyone into our settings. This includes children who speak languages other than English. To speak a language other than English will be celebrated and not seen as a disadvantage or deficit for the children or family. Our strategy to support these children will be implemented by all staff members. Staff members will be given support and information to enable them to promote these strategies. It is the responsibility of the staff to be flexible and creative to ensure that effective communication takes place.

 

Points to consider

 

It is important to identify the child’s first language before they start at the setting, and to establish whether the parents are able to converse in English or if they will need alternative support to understand the routines and learning environment their child will experience.

 

Children from different cultures may find our setting unfamiliar, it is important that we include pictures, in the environment, with which the children can identify. They may include a variety of houses, landscapes, families or children playing.

 

See the Inclusion policies.

 

Castle Daycare and Preschool aims to achieve this by:

 

The nursery environment strives to be multicultural with a variety of multi cultural books and resources. The displays around the settings also reflect multiculturalism.

 

Steps to support children with EAL

 

• On the settling in sessions, we ask parents for key words in the child’s first language to enable us to use these to communicate with the child.
• We will keep language simple and literal initially so the child has the best opportunity to understand.
• We will give instructions to the child individually and with eye contact as we understand generalised instructions may be hard to follow.
• We will give the child time to respond as we recognise it takes time to translate.
• We will have key words relevant to the child on display with pictures around the room, to help staff communicate with the child and for the child to tell us what they want.
• We will encourage the child and their family to teach children and staff the names of objects in their own language.
• We will model correct sentences, without correcting the child, when they have tried to communicate.

 

Working with Parents

 

Parents from other countries may have no personal experience of nursery as we know it. It is important that sufficient time is given to explain to them the key principles of our system and the routines their child will experience.

 

When completing the registration form we will take down the details of the country of origin, the religion, the language and key cultural needs of the child, these may include dietary restrictions which will be shared with all staff and our chef to ensure no misunderstandings.

 

All parents are encouraged to contribute to the learning of their child by visiting, sharing significant events/festivals and doing activities.