Nursery

We aim to provide children with meaningful moments of learning that cover the statutory seven areas of learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage.

We work closely with parents to ensure that a child’s experience in our Nursery is warm, friendly and meets the needs of both the child and their family. We have a thriving Nursery which offers a range of places to support our local community.

We aim to provide children with meaningful moments of learning that cover the statutory seven areas of learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage.

Expressive arts and design 

We believe that children’s imaginations are extremely powerful and so we provide a range of resources that allow them to express their ideas.  Throughout a child’s time at our Nursery, they will use a range of resources including collage materials, clay, salt dough and plasticine as well as a wide variety of tools. We have specific art outcomes in adult-led sessions as well as a wide range of open-ended activities for the children to enjoy.  We always encourage our children to reflect on the great work they have done and talk about any changes they might make next time.

Our children have the opportunity to explore musical instruments both in class and in specific music sessions for performances to the rest of the school.  We love performance at Walnut Tree Walk and this starts with our very youngest children.  Nursery take part in a Christmas show as well as their very own assembly to other members of the school.

Understanding the world

Our children are taught to be active explorers and creative thinkers.  They have a wonderful learning environment which allows for exploration and the testing of new ideas.  We teach the children to notice similarities and differences, observe changes over time and reflect on the natural environment.

We have many resources that the children can use to conduct their own investigations; this could be using water and sand or shovels and trowels.  We believe that real life experiences are the most meaningful and therefore we have our own animals and growing garden to care for in the Nursery setting.

Mathematics

We make sure that our maths teaching in Nursery is multi-sensory and that children enter Reception with a deep understanding of number and shape.  We teach through practical resources, songs and action so that children become confident when using mathematical skills and vocabulary.

We have a daily maths lesson in which children learn the key early number and shape skills they need.  This includes concepts such as counting one object at a time to find the total in a set, or breaking up a quantity into two separate parts.  It could also include exploring the properties of different 2D shapes and how these can be used in real life situations.

Our environment enables our Nursery children to become confident young mathematicians.  There are always maths opportunities available in our setting, such as number hunts, shape hunts, number puzzles and magnetic numbers. We have lots of key routines which support mathematical vocabulary such as morning carpet time where we work out the date together.

Literacy

In Nursery, we absolutely love books, stories and getting our ideas out into the world!  We share stories with the children regularly throughout the day.  These can be stories the children have chosen from the book corner (out of their own interest) or our carefully sequenced class stories which are related to the half-termly topic.

Our environment enables children to develop early reading and writing skills. We ensure our children have consistent mark-making opportunities throughout the day in the indoor and outdoor environment.  Our book corner is easily accessible and children spend lots of time looking through stories with their friends and commenting on what might be happening.  We encourage lots of role-play, particularly related to key stories, so that children can use the new vocabulary they have acquired.

Personal, social and emotional development 

We teach our children to become responsible, independent members of our school community. Children in our Nursery know they are valued and trusted to make good decisions about themselves and their friends.

We explore and name emotions, giving the children the opportunity to be able to talk about how they feel.  We talk through situations wherever possible to help children reflect on their emotions and behaviours and the impact this can have on others.

As well as the continuous modelling of positive relationships and respect between adults and children, we teach specific lessons related to emotional development.  We do this through circle times, stories and allowing children to talk about their own experiences to their classmates.

Physical development 

The children have a great outdoor space where they are encouraged to move freely and climb the different apparatus. Our children are specifically taught to explore different movements and techniques including jumping, catching, throwing and hopping.

Our children take part in lots of practical activities which support fine motor skill development. We cook every week in Nursery which allows children to develop some real-life skills in meaningful contexts. Nursery really love cooking because it creates delicious results and often mirrors things they have seen adults do at home. As well as this, we provide many resources which allow children to thread, weave and manipulate objects.

Communication and language 

Communication is central to everything we do in Nursery.  Our children are supported to develop their vocabulary and understanding of the structure of language.  We provide high quality interactions with adults and an exciting environment.  We definitely encourage children to use their voices to express themselves at Walnut Tree Walk and this begins from the moment a child enters our Nursery! 

 The children take parts in lots of circle times and small group activities which stimulate exciting discussions.  The resources on offer around the classroom are designed to encourage children to play imaginatively with their friends and create narratives and stories themselves.  Everything that happens in Nursery can be turned into an opportunity for talk, from tidying up to putting our coats or shoes on.