Dear Parents and Carers s7

Walter Evans Nursery Newsletter Spring 2nd Half Term 2017 Dear Parents and Carers, Welcome back! What an exciting time we are having in Nursery! As we are sure you will have noticed we are making big changes to our Nursery environment. We have carried out a lot of research and have visited a number of outstanding nurseries to draw inspiration and we are delighted with the improvements we have made, (more still to come!) This is all thanks to our fabulous PTFA for funding these improvements. As a team we are extremely grateful and the children are really benefiting enormously already. Please note our open day in dates for your diary at the bottom of this letter as we would like you to help us to celebrate and thank the PTFA with an official opening.

A big thank you for those of you who have already given a £10 donation this term, this money has gone towards our craft resources, topic books and anything we may need to support your children’s ongoing learning. We need a lot of expendables to support our activities as you can imagine. We greatly appreciate this help and we are still accepting donations for this term.

This term we will all be explorers! Our learning question for the half term is, “Can we explore it? “ We will be very busy exploring anything and everything and our work will include opportunities across all 7 areas of Learning and Development. As always, much of our work will be based around stories. Week 1: The Great Explorer What does a great explorer need to take in his rucksack? We will be creating our own explorer’s rucksacks with the children to be used around our nursery environment and throughout the wider school grounds! What could we possibly put in them? We will see what the children come up with… Letters and Sounds- we will be consolidating our work on the sound “t”. Tallulah the tortoise who gets terribly tired has helped us here. When writing the letter” t” we say, down the tower and across the tower. Maths- positional language, sequencing events, matching numbers to quantities Week 2: Whatever Next! We will be so excited to explore the great unknown- Space! We will be building rockets, walking on the moon and baking delicious star biscuits, amongst many other things. Letters and sounds- we will be introducing “p”. Pitter patter potter, meet the Pan man, a character made entirely of pots and pans. When writing “p” we say, down the Pirate’s plait, back up and round his face. Maths-2D and 3D shapes, counting Week 3: We’re going on a Bear Hunt We will be doing a lot of work on listening and different sounds this week. The children will love helping us to develop a magical musical wall of wonder in our outdoor space! Letters and sounds- Consolidating “p”. Maths-ordering numbers, counting objects Week 4: Through the Magic Mirror Such an exciting story, we will have our very own magic mirror. Which painting would children like to “jump into”? Maybe Monet’s Poppies or Seurat’s La Grande Jatte? It all happens here in Walter Evans Nursery! Letters and sounds- we will be introducing “i”. Sound character yet to be created…. Maths-representing numbers, counting, shapes in the environment Week 5: Where’s Spot? We will be asking our children, can you build it? They will be joining cardboard boxes together to make their own tunnels and using them for an amazing game of Hide and Seek. Letters and sounds- Consolidating “i”. Maths-Ordering different sizes, understanding biggest and smallest, mathematical questions Week 6: We’re going on a Lion Hunt

We will be enjoying a Nursery safari, exploring African animals. We will be following a mysterious set of lion footprints, drawing maps of routes we take and making our own safari hats.

Letters and sounds- Introducing “n”

Maths- Counting, ordering, matching quantities to numbers

Week 7: The world is our oyster…we will be planning this final week developing our exploring work further, following the interests of the children. We may have a second week in space, or maybe the children will want us to explore another part of the world…

Areas of Learning and Development Prime Areas of Learning

Communication and Language Physical Development Personal, Social and Emotional Development Listening and attention Moving and Handling Making Relationships Listens to others Uses one-handled tools and equipment e.g. makes snips in Demonstrates friendly behaviour, initiating Listens to stories with increasing attention and recall. paper with child scissors. conversations and forming good relationships Joins in with repeated refrains and anticipates key events and Holds pencil between thumb and two fingers, no longer with peers and familiar adults phrases in rhymes and stories. using whole hand grasp. Plays in a group Follows directions Moves feely and with pleasure and confidence Initiates play Understanding Mounts climbing equipment using alternate feet Keeps play going by responding to others Responds to simple instructions e.g. to get or put away an Runs skilfully Self Confidence and self object. Stands momentarily on one foot awareness Can catch a large ball Begins to understand how and why questions Can select and use activities and resources Draws lines and circles using gross motor movements Shows understanding of prepositions with help. Holds pencil between thumb and two fingers near to point Understands use of objects Enjoys responsibility of carrying out small Copies some letters Speaking tasks. Beginning to use more complex sentences Children will practise writing letters from their Welcomes and values praise Uses vocabulary focused on objects and people that are of names. Confident in new social situations particular importance to them Health and Self Care Asks adults for help Builds up vocabulary that reflects the breadth of their Tells adults when hungry or tired Managing feelings and behaviour experiences Observes the effects of activity on their bodies Aware of own feelings and knows that some Can retell a simple past event Understands equipment and tools need to be used safely actions and words can hurt others’ feelings. Uses talk to connect ideas Attends to toileting needs most of the time themselves Begins to accept the needs of others and can Questions why things happen and gives explanations Can usually manage washing and drying hands. take turns to share resources, sometimes with Uses talk in pretending that objects stand for something else Dressing with help e.g. puts arms into open fronted coat or support from others. in play. shirt when held up, pulls up own trousers and pulls up Can tolerate delay when needs are not Uses a range of tenses zipper once it is fastened at the button. immediately met Can adapt behaviour to different events

Specific Areas of Learning Literacy Maths Understanding the World Expressive Arts and Design Listens to and joins in with stories and Uses some number names Comments and asks questions about Enjoys joining in with dancing and ring games. poems, one to one and also in small accurately in play. aspects of their familiar world such as Sings a few familiar songs. groups. Recite number in order to 10 the place where they live or the natural Imitates movement in response to music Describes main story setting, events and Sometimes matches numeral and world. Explores colour and how colour can be changed principle characters. quantity correctly. Can talk about some of the things they Interested in and describes the texture of things Holds books the correct way up and Knows that numbers identify have observed such as plants, animals, Beginning to construct, to build and balance turns pages. how many objects are in a set. natural and found objects. Uses various construction materials. Enjoys rhyming and rhythmic Compares two groups, saying Shows interest in different occupations Realises tools can be used for a purpose activities. when they have the same and ways of life Developing preferences for forms of expression Beginning to be aware of how stories number Knows some of the things that make Uses movement to express feelings are structured Shows an interest in them unique Sings to self and makes up simple songs representing numbers Talks about why things happen and Makes up rhythms Joins in with repeated refrains and Shows an interest in numbers in how things work Engages in imaginative roleplay anticipates key events the environment Knows how to operate simple Builds stories around toys Gives meaning to the marks they Realises not only objects, but equipment Captures experiences and responses with a range make anything can be counted Shows skill in making toys work of media, such as music, dance and paint Ascribe meaning to marks they see Shows an interest in shape in different places and space by playing with shapes or making arrangements with objects.

Dates for your diary:

Saturday 18th March– Nursery Celebration with official opening. 11am-1pm- Please bring your children along and help us celebrate! Friday 7th April– Break up for Easter holiday

Mrs Rachel Parke Mrs Ali Dobson Mrs Karen Hubbard Mrs Tracy Polson