Parent News

Dear Parents and Carers

 

As it is nearing Christmas, the rooms will be having Christmas parties, please see your child’s room, further down in the blog to see the date of your child’s party. You are all welcome to attend the party, even if this is not your child’s usual day at the setting, however you will be asked to stay with them. Please see a member of staff within your child’s room if you would like to attend. The parties are from 3pm until 5pm.

 

I would like to inform you of the closures over the Christmas period. We are open as usual until Wednesday 24^th December when the nursery will close at 4pm. Please inform a member of staff within your child’s room if they will be attending. We are then closed until Monday 5^th January when we reopen as usual. This means the nursery will be closed an extra day over the Christmas period, however, we do hope this is not too much of an inconvenience for you and your childcare requirements but hopefully, by informing you now plans can be made.

 

On Friday 12^th December we will be having a Christmas jumper day. Please help us enjoy this day by dressing your child in a Christmas jumper.

 

Please can parents also see their child’s key worker to book in a review around your child’s development. These meetings will be placed during the working day, preferably before you pick your child up in the evening or afternoon.

 

Policies

Please find attached our equality and diversity policy.

 

Snails

The focus in the snails this week is physical development. The children will have the opportunity to play with pop up toys, sensory bottles, the activity table, treasure baskets, stacking cups and knocking them down and to explore the texture of cornflour play. Outdoor activities include, exploring puzzles, having cuddles with key people and explore the hide away cubes. The snails will also additionally be focusing on Christmas activities. The story of the week is ‘family books’.

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.

 

Christmas party – Thursday 18^th December.

 

Amy – Day off Monday. 

 

 

Caterpillars

This week the Caterpillars team will be focusing on positive play in the role play area. To do this the practitioners will be modelling positive behaviour, turn taking and experimenting with equipment. The children will have the opportunity to explore different activities such as, heuristic play, painting, exploring shape sorters, gluing and sticking activities, play dough and stacking cups. The caterpillars will also be focusing on carrying out Christmas activities. The story of the week is ‘little reindeer wants to 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 – Wednesday

Alisha – Friday

 

Christmas party – Thursday 18^th December.

 

Ladybirds

The current interest in the Ladybirds this week is role play. The children will explore real life experiences, making tea and dressing up babies. Activities this week include puddle splashing, bathing dollies, decorating a snow man, foot painting, creating clay hand prints, soft play and playing with cars in flour and water. The story of the week is ‘I’m a new big sister’.

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.

Christmas party – Thursday 18^th December.

 

Days off  

Abi – Thursday

Naomi – Friday

Kim – Training Tuesday

 

Bumblebees

This week the children will be focusing on winter, cooking and Christmas activities. The children will be encouraged to develop their mathematical skills by weighing different equipment in the weighing scales and begin to understand mathematical language, such as, more and a lot. A matching game activity will also be set out to encourage the children to learn about different sizes, small, big. To help the children develop their understanding of the world, the children shall use interstars to make different shapes and create a zoo by using wooden blocks and zoo animals. Activities to support creative development include gluing and sticking with tissue paper, creating and decorating Christmas decorations, hand painting, experiments with water and food colouring, making and playing with playdough and making snowflakes and decorating them. Literacy development shall be supported, this week by reading the story of the week ‘whoosh around the mulberry bush’ and practicing the alphabet, also filling in the missing words to familiar stories, talking about events that we have experienced or will be experiencing and discussing winter using open ended questions.

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.

Christmas party – Tuesday 16^th December.

 

Days off     

Jani – Friday

Jenni – Thursday and training Wednesday, in the office on Friday

 

Butterflies     

This week the butterflies will be focusing on animals who hibernate. The activities will include discussing which animals hibernate by showing the children pictures, creating animal masks of animals who hibernate and reading stories about hibernation. The children will also take part in cooking club in which the children will be making scones. The children will be encouraged to talk about living things and how we can care for them, talk about events that have happened or will be happening and to discuss different textures, what they feel like etc. The children will be focusing on the letter of the week, which is, ‘M’ and the number of the week, which is number 19.

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.

Christmas party – Wednesday 17^th December.

 

Days off   

Stani – Friday                 

Lee – Thursday Afternoon                 

Tara – Tuesday

Juan - Wednesday

 

Michelle is day off Monday and training 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, Alisha Beswick, Stani Zidekova and Naomi Shotter_