Our Nursery Class

Welcome to Nursery

Our Early Years Unit is a welcoming and stimulating environment consisting of a Nursery class and a Reception class.

The children are taught by Mrs Stafford-Grimes and supported by  experienced Teaching Assistants, Miss Stafford and Mrs Casey 

As a team, we work closely together to ensure every child is nurtured, supported and challenged to achieve their very best.

Communication and Language is a key priority across our provision. We provide tailored interventions to support children in developing their speaking, listening and understanding skills across all areas of learning. On entry to the unit, children are assessed using the WellComm language framework. This enables us to plan targeted support and fast-track children’s communication development through small, structured group sessions.

These groups take place during provision time and are carefully planned to support children’s use of the learning environment while building vocabulary, sentence structure and confidence in communication. Our skilled practitioners engage in purposeful play alongside children, modelling language, extending learning and ensuring that all children make good progress.

Our bespoke curriculum is rooted in the EYFS framework and shaped by children’s interests, experiences and developmental needs. This approach enables our children to thrive, reach their full potential and develop a genuine love of learning.

Children are supported and challenged in their learning by Objective-Led Planning. Objective-Led Planning enables the children to learn through their interests. Our experienced practitioners engage in play and enhance the learning and outcomes by knowing where each child is working at and their next steps

8.50- Classroom doors open- independent task on the carpet whilst we wait for all our friends.
8.55- Register and welcome, days of the week and prayers
9.05- Physical development/ squiggle while you wiggle
9.20- Phonics
9.30- Continuous provision
10.45- Maths
11.15- Prayer, Lunch, then continuous provision
1.00- Topic/ RE/ RSE/ My Happy Mind
1.15- Continuous provision
2.30- Tidy
2.45- Dough Disco, story
3.20- Prayer, Home time

Learning This Term:  Growing and Change

This term in nursery we are exploring Growing and Change by observing the life cycle of the Caterpillar as it transforms into a Butterfly. The children are carefully watching how the caterpillars grow, build their chrysalis, and eventually change. We are also planting and caring for Sunflower seeds, watching them grow taller each week as we water them and give them sunlight. Through these experiences we support all seven areas of learning: Communication and Language as children talk about what they notice; Physical Development through planting seeds, watering plants and creating drawings; Personal, Social and Emotional Development by learning to care for living things; Literacy through stories and new vocabulary; Mathematics by counting caterpillars, seeds and measuring plant growth; Understanding the World as children explore life cycles and how plants grow; and Expressive Arts and Design by creating butterfly and sunflower art and role-play. These hands-on experiences help children develop curiosity and understanding about how living things grow and change. 🐛🦋🌻🌱

Phonics

Phonics will be taught through a range of nursery rhymes and songs, helping children to develop their listening skills, rhythm, rhyme and early sound awareness. Children will explore alliteration, environmental sounds and oral blending through fun, engaging activities that support early reading skills in line with the EYFS and early phonics expectations.

Maths

In Mathematics, children will explore size, comparison and number through the stories, including ordering objects (small, medium and large), counting bears and sequencing key events.

Reading

In Nursery reading is at the very centre of all we do. We love reading lots of different books each day and using puppets, teddies and other resources to act them out. We encourage the children to read daily with an adult at home, enjoying a special story time together. You can visit the local library for free books and enjoy the different activities on offer there.
We send home a shared reading book each week. This is for the adult to read to their child. It is a chance for you to share in some time with your child to talk about their interests and introduce them to new and exciting stories. Please note down what you have enjoyed about the book in your child’s reading record.
Books will be changed on a Thursday.

Understanding the World will be developed as children explore the seasons, noticing changes in weather, the natural environment and how these changes link to the stories and their own experiences.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development will be supported as children discuss characters’ choices, explore themes of right and wrong, and develop turn-taking, confidence and independence through collaborative play.

Through Expressive Arts and Design, children will create art-work, engage in role play, small-world play, music and movement inspired by the traditional tales. Physical Development will be enhanced through fine motor activities such as cutting, drawing and model making, as well as outdoor imaginative and physical play.

We are looking forward to a fun, engaging and language-rich term full of storytelling, rhyme and learning through play.

My Happy Mind:

Our focus this term is ‘Meet your Brain’. The module is focused on teaching children the following key concepts :Our brains help us with lots of different jobs. We need to look after our brains for us to be at our best. When we learn something new our brain remembers it for next time.

We have met Bertie and Betty. They will help us to remember the key concepts of this topic through stories and activities.

We love to know what the children have been doing at home. If you have any photographs of your child enjoying a particular family event, special day out or toy/ book at home, please send them in for us to celebrate with their friends.

Email your pictures to ann-marie.grimes@holyfamily.oldham.sch.uk