Dear
Parents and Carers,
Nursery
News:
Invoice
passwords
Just
to let you know as we receive your updated child detail forms back, your
accounts will be updated with your pick up password. This will also become your
invoice password. If you cannot remember yours or are struggling to access your
invoice please let me know.
Staff
news
Becci
is on SEND training on Monday morning.
Chinese
New Year
Next
week we are celebrating Chinese New Year. The children will be learning all
about the festival and share their experiences. The children will be explore
red creative trays, making lanterns and trying a variety of Chinese foods.
Annual
Parent Survey 2018
Survey
results
Thank
you to everyone who completed the survey at the end of last year. The results
have been invaluable and the results will go into our new focused improvement
plans.
Here
are the highlights of the feedback given:
Nursery
strengths:
The
staff are friendly and approachable.
Quality
of care.
Good
opportunities for outdoor play.
Small
independent setting.
The
nursery atmosphere.
Key
Person approach.
Nursery
areas to improve:
The
variety of the food within the tea menu.
Events
- Some rooms have more events than others.
How
to further enhance learning at home.
Location
of our parent noticeboard.
Further
feedback on development points.
Key
things we have taken from the feedback and are developing:
Parent
Notice board
We
currently have communication notice boards in all the rooms for parents to
refer to regarding menus, routines etc. We also had a parent noticeboard
opposite the kitchen in the lower hallway, this has now been moved to our upper
hallway by our front entrance for you all to easily see.
If
there is any particular information you would like to view on a parent
noticeboard please let me know your thoughts!
Feedback
on developmental points / enhancing learning at home
Currently
we offer two parent evenings a year, a six weekly review after children have
started the nursery and a 2 year check catch up. We want to find out more from
you when you would like further developmental feedback e.g. six weeks before a
child is due to move room or just after a child has started the next room.
Please have a think and let us know if there is a specific time.
From
receiving and reviewing your feedback we have decided to introduce shining star
moments. As each half term we plan individual next steps for all of your
children that come from all of our observations you get to view on the ILD’s.
Now each time your child meets their next step planned for them you will
receive a shining star that says the next step they have met and the newly
planned next step they will be working towards! This way you are able to
support with this at home too.
Also
we want to remind you we have an open door policy here, so anytime at all you
would like a catch up with myself or your child’s Key Person please do let us
know.
Events
We
celebrate lots of different festivals and events throughout the year that can
be seen on your annual parent diary’s. These are the events that all rooms take
part in.
Each
room also plans their own event each term around the children’s interest for
families to get involved with, this is when one room may do an event that
another doesn’t.
All
families and children are welcome to all our events though, so if there is an event
you want to get involved in but is not based in your room you are still welcome
to come along.
Also
we would like any recommendations on future events ideas!
Tea
menu
We
do love to hear your feedback on our menus, and when they are due to be updated
next we would love lots of different recommendations on teas to make our tea
menu more exciting.
Additionally,
if there are certain fillings or meals you would rather your child not have
here at nursery then please let us know as we can offer alternate fillings /
option.
Please
let me know your thoughts so I can communicate with the other Castle managers
and our chefs so we can introduce an exciting, varied spring tea menu.
We
also want to remind you we have our parent suggestion box at the front entrance
of the nursery so any suggestions you do have at any time, pop in there!
Dates
for your diaries
14th
March – Parents evening
15th
March – Red Nose Day
Forest
School – This
week the children in Forest School created their own fire, they collected
different resources and were really excited to find out how to light a fire.
They then played a fun game of owl hide and seek. They finished off by making
their own collage from different items they had collected.
Music
and Movement – The
children were singing ‘Twinkle twinkle little star’ with finger cymbals. They
then sang the animal fare song in groups, rhyming different parts. They
finished of doing line dancing.
Nature
Club – During
Nature club this week the children had a warm drink of milk while reading
‘Stick Man’. They then created their very own Stick Man!
French
– This
week in French the children practiced all their colours they have previously
learnt. They then continued to build their knowledge of their body parts.
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:
Animals
Monday
– Leanne’s group are looking at a selection of books with a familiar adult and
friends.
Tuesday
– All children will be celebrating Chinese New Year making crafts and trying
spring rolls and fortune cookies for snack.
Wednesday
– Sammy’s group is building an awareness of body parts and rhyme while singing
‘Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes’.
Thursday
– Hannah’s group will be exploring the rooms family books building curiosity
about family and friends.
Friday
– Jamie’s group is developing an interest in self-care and routines while role
playing with the toy babies.
Jamie
is off Monday, Leanne is in mornings next week, Sammy is off Thursday and
Hannah is in all week.
Bluebells
Topic
of the month:
Farm Animals
Monday
– Megan’s group is making their own lunar sand, throughout they will be
encouraged to describe what is happening.
Tuesday
– Donna’s group are celebrating Chinese New Year trying different foods for
snack.
Wednesday
– Ruby’s group will be exploring media while making their own animal masks.
Thursday
– Carla’s group are making their own mountain out of media such as cornflour
gloop and paint.
Friday
– Chloe’s will be playing with fish, numbers and letters in the water
tray building their number and letter awareness.
Donna
is off Friday, Chloe is off Monday and Tuesday, Megan is off Thursday and
Friday, Ruby is off Thursday 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 are celebrating Chinese New Year by creating red pictures, trying spring
rolls for snack and making their own biscuit.
Ines’s
group will be building their ICT skills while operating a simple game on
the computer.
Eva’s
group is creating their own dragon mask celebrating Chinese New Year.
Topic
of the month:
Family
The
letter of the week is: Ff
The
children will be:
Talking
about the letter f
Naming
things that begin with the letter f
Exploring
the letter f alphabet shaker
Writing
the letter f in the air
The
Number of the week is: 6
The
children will be:
Counting
to number 6
Exploring
number puzzles
Hopping
6 times
Writing
the number 6 in the water tray
The
shape of the week is: Hexagon
The
children will be:
Counting
the sides and corners of the Hexagon shape
Finding
Hexagons around the room
Comparing
octagons and hexagons
Becci
is off Thursday, Ines is on holiday Tuesday – Friday and Eva is in all week.
Ottilia and Jenni are in all week.
I work all day on a Monday, early
shifts Tuesdays and Thursdays, late shifts on Wednesdays and a middle shift on
Fridays.
If you have any queries when I am not
here please speak to your child’s Room Leader or Jamie.
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:
Settling in
policy
Aim of policy
At Childcare and Learning Group 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
setting and that the staff team are friendly, approachable and attentive to
their needs and the needs of their children.
The key person has great responsibility in
helping a family settle into the setting and has the lead role in working with
the family to support the settling process.
If either the key person or the family feel
that the child is not settling as expected, they need to discuss this with the
manager so that an action plan can be put into place to further support the
child and family. This may include changing key person if thought best.
Childcare and Learning
Group aim to do this by:
·
From the point of booking, the family become
members of the setting and should be informed of any major events, social
activities and general news regarding the setting, 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 over a week
·
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 setting 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.
Kind Regards,
Jess, Jamie and the South Hill Team
Castle
Nursery & Pre-School
Childcare
and Learning Ltd
14 South Hill | Guildford | Surrey |
GU1 3SY
Tel: 01483 533344 | Fax:
01293 772971 | Email: southhill@castledaycare.co.uk | Web: www.castledaycare.co.uk | Blog: www.castlenursery-southhill.blogspot.co.uk
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