Dear
Parents and Carers,
Nursery
News:
Important
Dates
The
school term and term time only funding ends on the 19th December and
the school term starts again on Thursday the 3rd January with the
term time only funding starting on Monday 7th January.
The
nursery we will close on Friday the 21st December and re open on
Tuesday 2nd January for all Set Session children.
Phones/Photos
Due
to our Safeguarding policies, please can we ask you not to make phone calls,
take any photos or videos on phones or cameras within the nursery. I will take
photos and put them onto the ILD’s and print any off you would like to keep. If
you have any questions please just let me know.
Christmas
Party Next Week
Just
to confirm as the times have changed a little bit over the last couple of weeks
due to Father Christmas’s busy schedule!! The Christmas parties are Next Thursday 6th and Friday
7th. The party is from 3.00 to 4.30pm. Father
Christmas will be visiting Babies at 3.10 and Bluebells at 3.20 on Thursday and
he will be visiting Sunflowers at 3.15 on Friday. For children who are not
normally at nursery on these two days, parents are very welcome to bring them
in, however you will need to stay with them. Parents of children already
at nursery next Thursday and
Friday are very welcome to join us too! If any
siblings are coming please don’t forget a present for Santa.
Nativity and Carol Service
A reminder that Buttercups and Bluebells will
be holding two carol service’s on Monday 10th December at 3.00 and
4.30. The Sunflowers will be performing their nativity on Tuesday 11th
December at 9.45 and 4.15.
The 4.30 carol service is still full up, there is a
waiting list in place for this. There are still a couple of tickets for the
3.00 show, so if you have not booked or would like one extra ticket please let
us know. It will be a first come first served basis. Parent seats are
prioritised, however if they are not taken we will open them up for
Grandparents on a first come first served basis next week.
There are now a couple of tickets left on the 4.15
Nativity performance so if anyone missed out on this time and would like it
please let me know by Monday. Otherwise next week on a first come first serve
basis there will be a few extra tickets available for both performances. Again,
parent seats are prioritised, however if they are not taken we will open them
up for Grandparents on a first come first served basis next week.
If you need your performance times confirmed please
let Sammy or I know.
30
hours Funding
HMRC advise that
parents wanting their children to start the 30 hours funded childcare scheme in
January should register by 30 November.
This is to avoid
any peaks taking place similar to August when the website and helpline were
both experiencing problems due to high demand.
Parents
must reconfirm their eligibility every three months, so those nearing their
deadline need to also act as soon as possible.
Please
fill in the paperwork you have been given as promptly as you can so we can put
it through the system in time for invoicing for January to ensure your invoice
is correct.
Please can
we ask for this to be returned by Friday 7th.
Dates
for your diaries
6th
December – Babies and Bluebells Christmas Parties 3.00 – 4.30
7th
December – Pre-schools Christmas Party – 3.00 – 4.30
10th
December – Babies and Bluebells Carol Service – 3.00 and 4.30
11th
December – Pre-School Nativity Play – 9.45 and 4.15
19th
December – School term ends
21st
December – Close for Christmas
2nd
January – Nursery reopens
3rd
January –School term stars
7th
January – Term time only Funding starts
This
week’s activities and event-
In2
sports – At
in2sports this week the children warmed up moving around the garden in
different ways. They then built their hand eye co-ordination while throwing
bean bags onto discs while matching up different colours.
Forest
School–
During this week’s Forest School the children will be collecting resources to
make their own fire. They will toast marshmallows and have yummy hot chocolate!
Perfect for this weather J
Next
week’s activities:
Each
key person will be responsible for designing an activity based on their key
children’s needs; however, all children who are in on that day will have the
opportunity to access the activity too.
If
the key person is on holiday or off, another staff member will be able to lead
the activity in their place so that the children do not miss out.
For
more information on the Early Years Foundation stage, the guidance we use to
support our planning and practice, please visit:
This
week’s planned activities are also on the ILD’S.
Buttercups
Topic
of the month:
Christmas
Monday
– All children will be exploring media while making marks on one of their
Christmas crafts!
Tuesday
– Leanne’s group are developing their understanding of taking risks and
boundaries while finding different hidden objects around the room.
Wednesday
– Sammy’s group is discovering the shape sorters building their understanding
and shape awareness.
Thursday
– Jamie’s group will be operating the simple ICT toys supporting an interest in
ICT.
Friday
– Hannah’s group are making different marks in the sand pit with their hands
and tools.
Leanne
is off Wednesday, Sammy is off Thursday, Hannah is in all week and Jamie is on
holiday all week.
Bluebells
Topic
of the month:
Christmas
Monday
– Everyone in bluebells on Monday will be celebrating Hanukkah by reading
stories and trying bagels.
Monday
– Carla/Ruby’s group are discovering the marks they can make in the sand pit
building an interest in writing.
Tuesday
– Megan’s group is exploring their family books, recognising familiar
people.
Wednesday
– Ruby’s group will be taking party in a water play activity, playing role play
games and developing self-care skills.
Thursday
–Donna’s group are exploring the magnetic numbers and boards supporting their
number skills.
Friday
– Chloe’s group will be making their own snow globes with their friends
developing communication and language skills.
Donna
is off Monday, Chloe is off Monday and Tuesday, Megan is off Thursday and
Friday, Ruby is off Monday and Carla is in all week.
Sunflowers
In
the Sunflower room each Key Person plans and implements their own Key Group
activity, but the room works on the same area and aspect to ensure the activity
is individual to each Key Group and therefore meets the specific Key Group’s
individual needs.
This
will work alongside their weekly planned activity list which you can see in the
room and on the ILD’S.
Becci’s
group will be joining in with a role play game. The children will be encouraged
to build stories and to use available resources as props.
Ines’s
group are celebrating ‘Hanukkah’. The children will be reading a story in a
small group and talking about Jewish facts. They will also try some bagels for
snack.
Eva’s
group is will be building their number skills while counting and separating
small world animals.
Topic
of the month:
Christmas
The
letter of the week is: A
The
children will be:
Talking
about the letter a
Writing
the letter a
Enjoying
apple for snack
Exploring
the letter an alphabet shaker
Thinking
about names that begin with the letter a
Choosing
our favourite animals
The
Number of the week is: 10
The
children will be:
Counting
to number 10 on our fingers
Exploring
number puzzles
Grouping
together 10 objects together
Writing
the number 10 in the water tray
The
shape of the week is: Star
The
children will be:
Making
our own star shapes for the Nativity scene
Counting
the sides and corners
Making
the star shape with our hands
Looking
at the star shape on the Christmas tree
Talking
about when stars come out
Becci
if off Wednesday, Ines is off Tuesday and Eva is in all week.
Jenni and Ottilia are in all week.
I am in all week as Jamie is on
holiday.
Interactive
Learning Diary
Don’t
forget to check out all the exciting things your child has done this week, on
their ILD profile.
We
aim to put at least one observation up per week.
Follow
the link below: www.interactivelearningdiary.co.uk
Facebook
Castle
Nursery and Preschool Facebook page promotes the company, engages with parents
and team members across our nurseries.
If
you would be interested in following this page, here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/Castle-Nursery-and-Preschool-790319011138020/.
We will be regularly adding events and photos to the page.
Menus
There
are no planned changes to this week’s menu.
See
attached document for the weekly menu.
If
you would like to see a copy of our allergens menu at any time please ask!
Useful
websites
Here
are the links for the Surrey Family Information Service, Free Early Education
(the 15 hours funding), Free Early Education for Two year olds and Early Years
Pupil Premium (EYPP).
Our Policy of the Week:
Admissions procedure and policy for children with special needs and/or
disabilities
Aim
of the policy
To make clear how we follow admissions of children
with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) in a sensitive and
appropriate manner.
Points
to consider
The setting is expected to make reasonable
adjustments in order to cater for and accommodate students. If the needs of the
child are deemed as beyond reasonable, this may be a reason for non-admission.
Prior to a place being offered, all children and
their respective needs will be considered.
Our ability to provide appropriate facilities for the welfare of the
child will be taken into consideration. Also refer to our inclusion policies.
Parents will be able to see what we offer all
children including those with SEND on The Local Council’s Local Offer website.
The local offer puts all the information in one
place, about health and social services, education, leisure activities and
support groups available in the area for children and young people aged 0–25,
with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). It also explains the
additional or different provision provided for children who have SEND. The
local offer enables parents, carers, children, young people and
practitioners/professionals to see clearly which service(s) and support across
education, health and social care, are available locally for all children and
young people from birth to 25 years with SEND, and how and when they can be
accessed.
Childcare
and Learning Group will aim to do this by:
The setting manager will:
·
In consultation with the parent/carer of the child
jointly assess the extent of the additional support requirement to meet the
special need/ abilities of the child.
·
Work in partnership with the parents to best
support not only the child but the family.
·
Where external agencies are already engaged in the
care and development of that child, the setting manager will consult with those
agencies on the extent of the additional support requirement and the
appropriateness of the setting to meet those requirements.
·
When the setting manager does not feel able to
conclude her/his assessment of the setting’s ability to meet the needs of that
child, the manager will, with support from appropriate professionals, obtain
additional professional advice/guidance from the appropriate agencies.
·
When a child with special educational needs and/or
disabilities is admitted, the setting manager and Special Educational Needs
Co-ordinator (SENCO) will:
·
Agree a schedule of additional support with the parent/carer
of the child to be signed and dated by the manager and the parent/carer.
·
Allocate a suitably experienced key person.
·
Review on a regular basis (subject to the extent of
the additional support requirement but at least monthly) the setting’s performance
in meeting the needs of the child.
·
When a child with special educational needs and/or
disabilities is not admitted, the setting manager will:
·
Inform the parents of the decision and provide
valid reasons as to why the setting is unable to meet the additional support
requirements of the child.
Kind Regards,
Jess, Jamie and the South Hill Team
