NURSERY

Our team understands the importance of a successful drop off and we recognise that mornings can be challenging. Therefore, it is our aim to do everything we can to ensure a smooth handover each morning.

Our management team will welcome you at our main reception while you and your child sign yourselves in using our online registers. You will then be shown to your child’s classroom, where an educator or playworker will greet you. While you handover your child, you can update your key worker or another member of the team with anything important or just share anything you would like the team to know.

Your child will then be offered breakfast before being invited to join in with the morning activities.

Educator-led learning

Every morning, after breakfast our Educators will deliver a group session that we refer to as ‘circle time’. This will be a pre-planned activity that links to either the children’s next steps or to achieve a specific learning outcome.

Educators will sit together with the children for an appropriate period of time and lead the session. This could be Spanish, nursery rhymes or a counting activity.

Educators may use circle time to practice for a play or an upcoming event. They may also explore a new topic with the children.

Child-led play

Children are encouraged to explore and play. The classrooms are set up by the Educators to ensure the activities and resources on offer feel stimulating and inviting.

Key Worker’s will set out specific activities, resources and equipment during free play that are based on their knowing of their key children’s interests and next steps.

During free play, Educators will be available to engage in activities with the children. Educators will often use these moments to extend the child’s play and knowledge where it is suitable to do so.

Our meals are prepared and delivered each day by our wonderful food provider, Slice of Pie. The meals are prepared each day, from scratch before they are delivered in time for service. The meals are well balanced and packed with flavour.

We encourage a ‘family’ style eating experience. Educators join the children in small group sittings. The children are encouraged to serve themselves and each other if they like. During meals, the children will socialise with their friends and Educators

Colet’s is set on huge, private grounds and our children have full access to the space during their day. In addition, our purpose-built children’s garden offers an outdoor space where children can climb on our climbing frames, role play in our play house and ride on toys.

The children also have access to gardening equipment such as watering cans, plant beds, spades and forks that support them to understand how to plant and grow flowers and vegetables.

Our outdoor spaces are set up in advance so that the children can play as imaginatively as they do in their classrooms. Educators will often use the outdoor space to deliver Educator-led experiences like hunting for conkers or finding leaves & sticks for collages.

The children will visit the outdoor spaces every day.

Our tea is supplied by Slice of Pie and delivered in time for tea service. Our tea is a hot meal option that is equally as wholesome as our lunch meal.

Our tea experience is the same as our lunch experience. The children sit together with Educators and enjoy a social, ‘family’ meal.

We know that sleep and rest is essential for our children. We convert our classrooms into calm and restful spaces by using quiet music and individual sleeping mats/cots.

Our babies will follow their home sleep routines. While our older children tend to sleep within a similar time frame.

Every child is different, particularly when it comes to sleep and so your Key Worker will ask you the best ways to get your child to sleep. We welcome pacifiers, comforters, beakers and bottles as you see necessary and these will be stored in your child’s individual sleep bag.

Children who do not sleep will be encouraged to either have a rest with their friends or will be invited to do a quiet activity with an Educator and other friends who are not sleeping.

Collection time is just as important as drop off time. Our Educators understand that transitioning from nursery to their parents needs to be a smooth and positive experience.

Our Educators will ‘hand over’ your child with a full description of what your child has been up to that day. They will involve the child in the discussion and encourage your child to share any moments they have particularly enjoyed.

During collection, your key classroom Educators will be available to answer any questions that you might have and will use this time to get to know you. We welcome you to talk freely with the Educators and get to know them as much possible.