Nursery Lambs

Welcome to Nursery Lambs!

We are a morning Nursery class taking children from the term after they turn three years old.  At the beginning of each term we welcome new children to our school.  Whilst here the children have access to a lovely learning environment and are able to explore numerous areas inside the classroom and also in the outdoor space.  Children can explore and learn using sand, water, paint and natural materials.  They will build their imagination and role play skills using a plethora of small world toys such as dinosaurs and vehicles and also a home corner with dressing up box.

Children will hone their personal self-care skills and practise being sociable in a range of situations including snack time. Over the course of Nursery the children’s attention span grows and more verbal skills develop.  They will become better able to follow instructions and express their own needs and thoughts.  We foster a ‘growth mindset’ philosophy.  This is the belief that our abilities and intelligence can change and grow with effort and sees failures as attempts at future successes, considers challenges as motivation and a chance to develop new skills, and it builds confidence through effort. All of these exciting things and more you will hear and see over the course of your time with us.

Mr Nickolds

I have been teaching Early Years children for a decade now and thoroughly enjoy it.  I live about a thirty minute drive away from school with my wife, five children, two dogs, three guinea pigs and one rabbit!  In school I enjoy everything especially if it has glitter involved!  Out of school I enjoy trying hard to complete the Rubik's cube and my eldest daughter beating me at Sudoku.  Mostly I drive to school but some days you will see a white motor bike in the car park which is mine.

Wellbeing

Wellbeing in Nursery is a key part of Nursery life.  Children in Nursery are celebrated for being the unique and precious individuals that they are.  Children have a Key Worker who is a special person each child can go to who is extremely familiar to them – (however children can come to either myself or Mrs Brown).  We help to ensure the children know how much they are loved and wanted.

We always pay particular attention to how we interact with children and the words we use and this starts from the moment they walk up the ramp in the morning.  We will always try to come down to their level showing our warmth and a smile, greet them with enthusiasm and say something nice about them and how lovely it is to see them today.  We will notice how they look – maybe they have a Batman scarf or a new hair bobble in their hair. By noticing these things that are important to the children and telling them how delighted we are to see them, helps them arrive feeling wanted and loved.

Children love being outside and so we will always take opportunities to explore, discover, climb and run whenever we can.  We will support their play where needed helping them to build dens and obstacle courses and anything else they can think of.  Life in a Nursery classroom is very busy but children are given time to calm and become restful using yoga and mindfulness exercises which often focus on breathing and can help children find stillness and calm.

During our interactions we try to help children understand their feelings.  We try and use emotional language to help build the vocabulary they need to begin to understand their own feelings and frustrations. If a child is upset because their parent has left them at nursery, we can say: “I can see that you are really sad that Mummy has gone. She will be back later but I am here for you now.”

We love to be creative and this is an essential part of wellbeing. Children have the space to be creative and more than often the adults are joining in the process with them! We love to sing and dance with children, as well as sing nursery rhymes. Children are also given the opportunity to experiment with a wide range of materials and mark-making tools. Creativity is about enjoying the activity and not about having a finished product.

Children have a passion for learning and discovering and the Nursery and all Early Years staff want to learn and explore with them. It is so rewarding to go on an adventure with the children as they learn or experience something new.  We are focused on meeting the wellbeing needs of all children and do this through children’s fascination and following their interests, learning alongside them, allowing their natural interests to shape our daily activities.

To find out more about your child's learning, please see our Curriculum Page.