The various elements of a typical day in one of our
Pre-School rooms are described below. The actual timings and
composition of the day varies with the weather, seasons and
between days of the week.
Arrival
–
when your child arrives they are welcomed by a member of
Pre-School staff and encouraged to play with their
friends. Parents
may speak to the staff if they have any questions or
information they wish to pass on. Please leave
lunchboxes in the kitchen so a member of staff can store them
in the fridge/cupboard as appropriate.
Free
play –
the tables are set up for different types of play i.e –
construction, small world / imaginative play, puzzles to help
develop fine motor skills and “free” pencil work and
colouring. There are also floor based activities such as cars
and garage, mega blocks.
During free play each child will have the opportunity
to carry out a one-to-one activity with a member of
staff. The
children’s work is displayed in the Pre-School Room.
The
themes vary from month to month but include ideas such as
food, healthy eating, pets, all about me, and different
cultural celebrations/festivals and seasons. Sensory play is also
encouraged and sand, water, play dough, jelly are just an
example of activities offered. Every day a different
activity is offered for the children to play with and enjoy.
Circle
time / singing –
children develop their spoken skills and build self esteem and
confidence by taking it in turns to speak or listen to others.
All children are encouraged to participate. During this time
children place their name on our Pre-School name board and
each day we focus on a different topic. Examples covered are
colours, numbers, shapes, counting, letters and
opposites. This
activity is helpful in preparing children for school where
they will be expected to sit in a group situation and listen
to other children or the teacher.
Story
time –
this helps to develop their imagination and the children are
particularly fond of stories with repetitive lines and rhymes
and those which use puppets. The
children are encouraged to think ahead and suggest what might
happen next, this enhances their story telling skills. Examples of favourite
stories are Don’t eat the Teacher and Peace at Last. Both encourage the
children to listen and join in which they love! Story time helps a
child develop their listening skills and improves their
attention span.
Mid-morning/afternoon
break –
children are taken to the toilet in a controlled manner,
walking there and back in a quiet and orderly fashion and are
encouraged to look after their own personal hygiene. During
snack time the children are expected to sit nicely and say
“please” and “ thank you” thereby improving manners and social
skills. A healthy
snack is provided by nursery, this includes fruit, veg, dried
fruit and rice cakes.
Outdoor
play –
weather permitting we go outside into the garden and the
children learn to become independent with fastening coats,
putting on boots etc. Outdoor
play allows the children to use their imagination and bond
with their peers without being “led” too much by
adults. However they are always supervised. If
the weather is poor this time would be spent indoors with
activities like music and movement, singing or circle games.
Lunchtime –
the children sit and eat at small tables where social skills
and manners are encouraged.
The
afternoon session is similar to the morning thus accommodating
the children who join us for the latter part of the
day.