Welcome to Nursery!
Mrs Kerrie Wood Doyle Nursery Teacher
Mrs Rachael Kennington Nursery Teaching and Learning Assistant
Mrs Hazel Walmsley Nursery Teaching and Learning Assistant
Miss Zara Rowbottom Nursery Teaching and Learning Assistant
Our children join Gamesley school in the term after they are two, their first class is Catkins and after that they move into Conker’s class Although following different curriculums, the children are overseen by the class teacher and three very experienced Teaching assistants.
Before starting Catkins class, we hold Meet and Greet evenings, during which families and children can meet the staff and look around our lovely learning environments. This helps prepare the children for their new start and allows for any queries that families may have.
We have a very flexible approach to starting Nursery and recognise that settling in will be different for each child. With this in mind we work at your child’s pace and always keep you informed how the children are after you have left. Starting Nursery is a key time in a child’s life, and we want them to feel secure and happy, above anything else.
During their first term the children learn about their immediate environment and investigate what they like to play with. They also start building relationships with the staff and with their peers. We have a play-based philosophy, but thread through careful planning to develop their communication, physical and personal and social skills. A more detailed plan of this first year can be found in the Curriculum area of this website.
As the children progress into Conker’s class, the structure of the day is still very play based and much time spent exploring indoors and outside. There is also a shift towards some small and larger group sessions during which they develop their pre literacy, mathematics and topic understanding. These sessions encourage a readiness to learn, listening, remembering, speaking to partners and developing their interests. During the Summer term, Conker’s class start the phonics scheme, Read, Write, Ink and this is then followed up during their next class. Again, a more detailed plan of the Conker’s curriculum can be found in the curriculum area of the website.
Nursery Key Information
Our daily routine in Catkin’s Class
8.40am arrive and settle
8.45am until 10.00 playing and adult led choice activities, inside and outside
10.00am snack time
10.15am until 11.30 play and adult led choice activities
11.30am Story and singing
11.45am home time or dinner
Nappies and toilet training is done throughout the morning
Our daily routine in Conker’s Class
8.40am arrive, settle and hang up coats and bags
8.45am carpet time to register and discuss our learning project
8.55am/9.00am adult led activities connected to our project and free choice of play
9.40am tidy and then Literacy time on the carpet
10.00am snack time
10.15am small outdoor area
10.30am maths input on the carpet
10.45am free choice, indoors or outside
11.30am storytime
11.45am home or dinner
Dates for the diary
18th September Forest school trip
3rd October Library visit
18th October Stay and Play
24th October Halloween Party
14th November library visit
12th December Pantomime visits school
13thDecember Stay and play
16th December Christmas Sing a Long
19th December Christmas Party
7th February Stay and Play
March Pony Patch trip
3rd April Easter Party
July Formby beach trip
11th July Stay and Play
17th July Summer party
Here’s what topics we are covering throughout the year…
Autumn 1
Let’s Explore and Build it up projects
During this half term the children settle into their new room, explore their immediate surroundings, gaining confidence and independence.
The project entitled Let’s Explore teaches about the environments that they share with others, including their homes, school and places in the local community. They follow their own interests, playing and investigating a well facilitated class environment. They also start to learn in small groups, sharing ideas and making links with things that they already know.
The wider school environment is used throughout this project, taking walks around the field to observe the Autumnal weather, plants and even the school chickens! A highlight is also a trip to local Forest school during which the children gain a fantastic experience of exploring a woodland environment.
Build it Up is a shorter project and gives the children opportunities and skills for building structures using a wide range of materials, working individually or collaboratively.
Key texts this half term include We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and The Three Little Pigs.
Spring 1
Long Ago and Stories and Rhymes
The project Long Ago teaches children about how they have grown and changed since they were babies and how life in the past was different from today.
Stories and Rhymes
This project teaches children about traditional stories and rhymes and gives them the opportunity to play with words and learn new vocabulary.
Summer 1
Animal Safari and Creep, Wriggle and Crawl
This project teaches children about the animals that live around the world, how to look after animals and the importance of caring for our local and global environments.
The mini project of Creep, Wriggle and Crawl teaches children about invertebrates that live in their gardens and local environment.
The children always love hunting for mini beasts as well as learning about animals that live across the globe.
Autumn 2
Marvellous Machines and Puppets and Pop ups and projects
This interest-led project teaches children about the technology that is part of their daily lives and how machines help us. The project gives children the opportunity to build and create marvellous machines.
Starting with a tour of the school. Looking for machines that help us, we aim to make links between home and school. The children develop their knowledge through play, such as pretend shops and a hairdresser. We use everyday machines such as a toaster and take the opportunity to talk about safety around household machines.
As Christmas approaches, we have a mini topic, during which we make pop up cards, puppets and enjoy a visit from a Pantomime.
Spring 2
Ready Steady Grow and Signs of Spring
This project teaches children about food and farming and explores themes, including where food comes from, what plants and animals need to grow and survive and what constitutes a healthy lifestyle.
Highlights of this half term are a trip to Pony Patch and to The Easter Experience at the local church hall.
Summer 2
On the Beach and Move it
This project teaches children about the plants and animals that live at the seaside. It also explores holidays in the past and the importance of keeping safe in the sun. Planning a teddy bear’s picnic is a great activity on the school field and the term is ended with a very exciting trip to Formby beach. The mini project Move it teaches children about the importance of exercise, sleep and a balanced diet, and explores outdoor, summer games and activities.
Reading
In Nursery we encourage a love of books, often sharing books during the day and helping the children to choose books to share at home. We change their books with them on a Monday and encourage adults to share this book repeatedly, enjoying the familiarity, talking about the pictures and the story. The children receive a free book of their choice once they have shared fifty books at home.
In Conker’s class we also award a reader of the week certificate and for this they also receive a free book to choose and keep.
In Catkin’s class there are core books connected to each project and the children get to know these high quality texts, enjoying them with puppets, props and songs as well as the book itself. they learn key Nursery rhymes, starting their literacy journey through listening to the rhythm and rhyme.
This approach continues in Conker’s class. In this class we have pre literacy sessions, during which we teach good listening skills, a focus on rhythm and rhyme and during the Summer term, we start the Read Write, Ink scheme
To find out more from the Read, Write Inc Parent Guide, click here
Click here to enjoy different stories with your child using the CBeebies website.
Home and School
We hold regular meetings, two years settling in and then parents evenings in line with the rest of the school. However, it is the day-to-day correspondence and sharing of information that we believe supports our children the most, so please ask your child’s teaching staff any questions you may have!