Our Nursery School group is where most of our 2 to 3 year old children are based. Children of this age are quick learners and are rapidly developing language and cognitive skills. Activities are planned around the children’s interests & next steps and there is a careful balance between child led and adult led learning. Staff observe and assess children to make sure that their capabilities and interests are fully reflected in their environment ensuring that we have engaged and happy children. The child led activities are often open ended in nature and allow the children to explore, follow their own lines of enquiry and be imaginative. Staff participate in this play too, skilfully monitoring and joining in the children’s play to model key social and language skills and, when appropriate, extend their learning.

The adult led learning is delivered through focused activities, either one to one or in a small group. This is where our focus on early education really comes to the fore and we work to develop vital skills in a fun, play based way. We work hard to develop your child’s Literacy & Maths skills in a way that suits them; whether they learn best through a quiet one to one counting activity or through kicking footballs at named shapes on the wall or adding ingredients beginning with the letter ‘s’ into the mud kitchen potion – we will find a way to engage your child in their learning! Challenge and investigation are also an important part of what we do in this age group. We encourage children to observe and question their world through exciting science based activities. This allows children to develop their thinking skills and begin to link their knowledge and ideas together. We have found that this is something the children adore and it is always a popular activity full of awe, wonder and excitement!

The children enjoy an appropriate level of challenge in some of the open ended activities and we see a real healthy determination to succeed and independence develop throughout their time in this group. Circle times become a bigger feature in this group. Plenty of opportunity is given to share favourite stories and songs; children learn invaluable Literacy and Language skills through these activities and it is a fundamental part of a child’s early education – we can never have too many stories! Circle times are also used as a time to develop Phonics and Maths skills through fun interactive activities. We also use our circle times to develop their Personal, Social & Emotional Development skills by discussing important topics such as feelings, family and friends.

Children are generally very social by this age and it is a delight to see them begin to play together imaginatively. Their increased language skills allow them to hold conversations with each other and participate in shared play. This is encouraged and supported by all staff who ensure that friendly behaviour is nurtured and children begin to learn how to interact socially in a confident, secure and positive way. You will see a big change in the level of independence of the children in this age group. We support and encourage all of our children to ‘have a go’ when it comes to their self-help skills, even when it gets a little tricky! We work hard on teaching children how to put their own outdoor clothing on, helping where needed and giving lots of praise! We spend time at meal times developing excellent table manners, encouraging the children to eat with their knives and forks as well as using please and thank you.

All children are encouraged to begin to take control of their own hygiene through hand washing under careful supervision. This is also the time when most children go through the toilet training process and our toddler staff are able to work with parents in order to make this transition as smooth as possible. Our Nursery School group is a lively and energetic room with lots of chatter, fun and excitement. There is always laughter, spontaneity and a little randomness throughout the day ensuring that there is a funny story to take home at the end of it!