Parent News

Dear Parents and Carers

 

Policies

Please find attached our procedure for the Equality and Diversity procedure.

Snails

The focus in the snails this week will be garden time and settling in with new children. The children will have the opportunity to explore the treasure baskets in the garden, mirror play, peek-a-boo in the garden, using the walkers, playing with the dinosaurs in the sand pit. Tummy time will also be a focus in physical development this week, using soft play and the sensory dome. The older children will have the opportunities to play and balance using the standing beam and the musical piano. Creative activities this week include cornflour play, painting, and coloured water. 

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.

 

Amy – Day off   Monday            

 

Caterpillars

This week the Caterpillars team will focus on mark making. The children will have the opportunity to play and explore using their hands and tools, using paint, cornflour, gluing and sticking. The children will also be encouraged to explore heuristic play, to build towers and structures and to explore play dough. The book of the week is continuing from last week; ‘Family books’, the children will be able to explore their family books around the room.

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 – Friday                    Alisha – Tuesday – Friday Annual leave

Stacy – Annual leave - Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.

 

Ladybirds

The current interest in the Ladybirds is autumn and safari animals.  The children will be encouraged to make and play with a safari animal jungle, to paint conkers, leaf printing, water and sand play with safari animals and gluing and sticking on Hedgehogs and Squirrels. In the garden the children will be able to play with the soft play, building a train track and singing action rhyme songs. The book of the week is ‘owl babies’.   

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 – Tuesday

Naomi is covering at one of our other nurseries Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. 

 

Bumblebees

This week the children will be exploring the new room layout and settling in children. The children will be encouraged to develop their mathematic skills by transferring compare bears into separate bowls using tweezers, identifying colours,  matching number to quantity using number cards and cars, shape puzzles, pouring water from one jug to another focusing on mathematical language. To help the children develop their understanding of the world, the children shall engage in den making, using a computer programme to draw pictures gaining mouse control, identifying animal sounds using the CD player and a car wash in the garden. Activities to support creative development include painting on the easel using spray bottles, mark making in the sand tray, practicing the letter of our names, and drawing using stencils and pencils. Literacy development shall be supported, this week, through, reading the story of the week ‘Dry bones’, activities will also be available for the children to participate in around this story. This week we also have a song of the week, this is to welcome the children who have recently started with us, learning the children’s and key workers names. The song is called ‘Welcome Song’.

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 – Friday           Jenni – Tuesday         Alba – Wednesday

Jade – Annual leave Thursday and Friday

 

Butterflies                       

 This week the butterflies will be learning about seasons, autumn. The children will explore leaf printing, learning about descriptive words that can describe autumn, conker counting and sorting. The children will also be focusing on the letter of the week, which is, t. They will also be focusing on a number of the week, this is number 5.

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 – Annual leave Monday, Day off Friday                    Tracy – Tuesday      

  Lee – Thursday Afternoon                             Tara - Friday

 

 

 

Equality and diversity policy

 

Aim of policy

 

Castle Daycare & Preschool equality & diversity policy recognises that all people have a right to their distinctive and diverse identities and that all people are different and must be treated as individuals. 

 

Points to consider

 

We provide a supportive, open environment where all children and employees have the opportunity to reach their full potential.  Castle Daycare & Preschool will manage the provision of and access to - high quality affordable childcare.  We will promote equality and diversity through our relationships with children, parents, families and carers.

 

Castle Daycare and Preschool aim to achieve this by:

 

• Following the Disability Act 2006, the Equality Act 2010 and the Early Years Foundation Stage 2012.

 

·               Ensuring all children can be included.

        

·               Providing children with activities and learning opportunities to acknowledge promote and respect diversity in local communities.

 

·               Providing positive images and role models which illustrate non-stereotypical roles, racial, cultural and religious diversity and disability in a way that has real meaning to the children and their families.

 

·               Encouraging an understanding of spiritual development by reflecting all faiths and encouraging the tolerance of all faiths including the promotion and celebration of religious festivals and their meaning.  Each individual Castle Daycare & Preschool will aim to enjoy and celebrate religious events personal/relevant to the community they serve.

 

·               Having in place policy and/or procedures to deal with inappropriate practices and attitudes, action to be taken should discrimination occur.

 

·               Inviting parents in the reviewing of our policies.

 

·               Ensuring all our publicity will demonstrate an understanding of equality and diversity.

 

·               Using language which is easily understood.

 

·               Wherever there is a widely shared specific need or where individuals have common needs, Castle Daycare & Preschool will address these through a specific strategy.

 

·               Recognising the need to monitor and review our policies and welcome challenges from, and the involvement of, our employees and customers in this process.

 

·               Actively consulting with different individuals and communities to ensure that the services which are provided are responsive and reflect the diversity of needs.

 

·               Valuing the diversity of all communities, and making our services, facilities and resources accessible and useful to every individual.

 

·               Recognising that our ability to meet these diverse needs is improved by having a diverse workforce which generally reflects local populations and which has the skill and understanding to achieve our service objectives.

 

·               Committing to valuing diversity in our workforce and to developing and training our employees to improve their ability to meet our goals; within an overall framework of equality.

 

 

Castle Daycare & Preschool:

 

·               Believe that our employees have an important part to play in making this happen.

 

·               Require every employee to recognise and discharge their own responsibility.

 

·               Undertake to listen to our customers and to involve them in the development of services which recognise and value their diversity.

 

 

To ensure that we meet this policy at all times each nursery has dedicated Equality Officers who support all members of staff by:

 

•  Ensuring their team, room and garden area are promoting equal opportunities in their practice and environment.
• Ensuring cultures and festivals are equally celebrated and promoted.
• Ensuring the team has a good understanding of cultures and festivals and therefore can promote them correctly.
• Attending training on equal opportunities, promoting inclusion, and cascade this back to the rest of the team.
• Working together with the other Equality Officers and manager to create:

o   A nursery that ensures every child is given the same opportunities regardless of their abilities.

o   A nursery that positively promotes equality through the genders and cultures.

o   A nursery that gives every child an open and accepting knowledge of the world around them. 

 

The Equality Officers for this nursery are:

 

 

Amy Pickering, Stani Zidekova, Naomi Shotter, Alisha Beswick, Alba Barrera Palma