Nursery

Hello and Welcome to the Nursery web page!

We are the ladies who work in the Nursery.

We also have fantastic students from Sutton College who work as part of our team.

A Day in the Life of our Nursery

Whitehouse Common Nursery offers;

Fulltime sessions 9:00am until 3:00pm
Morning session: 9:00am until 12:00pm
Afternoon session: 12.00pm until 3.00pm

Once all the children are settled into Nursery the sessions will take on a regular daily routine:

9.00am

Start of Session Activity – children will be welcomed into nursery and will access activities on our outdoor deck.

9.15am

Family Group Time –this is where the children will be split into two family groups and registered. During this 10 minute session the children will practise recognising their name, talking about the weather, singing the day of the week song, discussing the letter of the week and numbers. Also each session a special person is chosen.

9.30am

Outdoor Play – weather permitting the children will be able to use the climbing frames or bikes, trikes, cars and scooters or will take part in circle songs and games.

10.00am

Washing hands – the children will go to the toilet and wash their hands ready for snack.

Snack Time – the children will sit in small groups to eat fruit, drink milk and socialise. Snack is usually taken outside under the shelter regardless of weather.

10.15am

Morning Focus – during this time the children will be introduced to the day’s theme and activities on offer during the session.

10.30am

Activity Time – the children will be able to access a variety of both child and teacher directed activities based around the daily focus and weekly theme.

Tidy Up Time – the children will be alerted to tidy up time by the tambourine and then will tidy up to music.

11.30am

Story and Singing – The children enjoy stories and songs related to the theme of the week.

11.45am

Lunch for the fulltime children

Goodbye to the morning session children – sing goodbye song, pack bags and go ot on deck to chat and reflect on the morning session.

12.00pm

Afternoon session children arrive

Start of Session Activity – children will be welcomed into nursery and will access a activities on our outdoor deck.

12.15pm

Outdoor Play – weather permitting the children will be able to use the climbing frames or bikes, trikes, cars and scooters or will take part in circle songs and games.

12.45pm

1.00pm

Afternoon Focus – during this time the children will be introduced to the day’s theme and activities on offer during the session.

1.15pm

Activity Time – the children will be able to access a variety of both child and teacher directed activities based around the daily focus and weekly theme.

Tidy Up Time – the children will be alerted to tidy up time by the tambourine and then will tidy up to music.

2.10pm

Quiet Time – the children have a quiet time whilst listening to quiet calming music.

2.20pm

Washing hands – the children will go to the toilet and wash their hands ready for snack.

Snack Time – the children will sit in small groups to eat fruit, drink milk and socialise. Snack is usually taken outside under the shelter regardless of weather.

2.40pm

Story and Singing – The children enjoy stories and songs related to the theme of the week.

Group Goodbye – the children will have the opportunity to sing songs, read stories and talk about what they have enjoyed during the session. The session will end with the children sitting in a circle singing the ‘goodbye song’

3.00pm

Pick-Up Time – a member of staff will be monitoring the door and will send children out as carers arrive in the playground.

The only alterations made to this routine takes place on the day that the children visit the library and use the hall for P.E.

Useful Information

What your child will need to wear to Nursery

All clothing worn to Nursery must be easily accessible for the children and all removable items need to be clearly labelled with your child’s full name. We ask that on wet days you send your child in Wellington boots and a raincoat so that they are still able to access the outdoor areas. Please do not send your child to Nursery in anything you are not happy to get messy!

School uniform is not compulsory in Nursery but some parents do prefer this option. Please speak to office staff to obtain details of suppliers.

What your child will need to bring to Nursery

You will need to send your child each day with a clearly labelled drinks bottle containing only water. We ask that your child bring a small (labelled) backpack to Nursery daily, as a day does not go by without them needing to bring something home! If you are worried that your child may need a change of clothing during the session, please be assured that we have spare clothes to hand.

Settling the children in

This year we will once again follow our successful induction process for settling the children into Nursery. We operate a staggered intake at the start of the Nursery year with the oldest children coming into nursery first. Over the first few weeks all the children will attend nursery for reduced hours whilst they are getting used to their new surroundings and daily routines. Please see your child’s individual induction plan for further details.

Start and end of sessions

Please drop off and pick up your child via the Nursery playground using the outdoor shelter on wet days. It is important that you have your child at Nursery in good time for the start of the session as late arrival can upset your child and disrupt Family Group time.

We ask for your support in ensuring that your child does not access any equipment or resources before or after the session that may have been set up in the playground.

In order to safe guard all children in our care you must inform us if someone different is collecting your child at the end of a session.

Absences

Ring the school in case of absence prior to the start of the session where possible. Please note if your child has a tummy bug they must remain off Nursery until 48 hours after the last bout of sickness or diarrhoea. In cases of taking holiday during term time please ensure to let staff know in advance and fill in a holiday request form from the office.

Medication

Staff must be made aware of any medical needs that your child may have including any allergies. If your child is prescribed medicines regularly for an ongoing medical need, such as asthma, it is important that you obtain additional medication to be kept in Nursery, the doctor must prescribe this as we cannot keep medication in school that has been bought over the counter. When bringing such medication into Nursery you will also need to complete a medication form from the office. Temporary medicines such as antibiotics cannot be administered during the Nursery session.

Partnership with parents

Building a strong partnership with parents is a very important part of our ethos. You will receive a half-termly newsletter letting you know what is going on in the Nursery and giving you ideas of how to support your child at home. We hold a Curriculum Evening early in the autumn term and three further parent consultation evenings throughout.

Parents are always invited to celebrate key events during the school year with us including: the Easter Bonnet Parade, Christmas Performance and Sports’ Day, not forgetting the grand finale of the year – The Nursery Graduation Show! You will see that each week we place a poster in the Nursery window giving you an overview of what will be happening in Nursery that week.

We are very fortunate in the Nursery as we get daily contact with most of our parents at the start and end of each session. We ask that any worries or concerns that you may have be brought to our attention immediately no matter how small. You are welcome to speak to any member of staff at the end of the session or request to see us at a more convenient time.

Assessment procedures

Your child will be continually assessed throughout their time in Nursery in many different informal ways. We use these assessments to help us make judgements about how your child is progressing, how your child needs to be supported and challenged next and to inform our planning and teaching. We share our assessments with you at parent consultation evenings and ask for your opinions on how you feel your child is progressing. If at any time you would like to know how your child is progressing or would like advice on ways in which you can support your child’s learning at home, then please get in contact.

Ways in which to help your child prepare for Nursery

We are always being asked about ways in which parents can help to support their children in coming to Nursery. Please find a list below of ideas of activities you can help your child to practise at home:

Recognising and writing their first name
Practising putting on and taking off a coat, shoes and socks including doing up and undoing the fastenings
Managing their own personal hygiene regarding toileting including hand washing
Using scissors to cut straight and curved lines
Holding a pencil correctly to follow different lines, trace pictures and draw
Recognising colours and simple shapes
Asking and answering questions about what they see
Practising counting to ten
Singing familiar rhymes and songs from memory
Looking at pictures in stories and talking about what is happening

Whitehouse Common Nursery offers;
Fulltime sessions 9:00am until 3:00pm
Morning session: 9:00am until 12:00pm
Afternoon session: 12.00pm until 3.00pm