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New to Nursery |
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HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL MERRY HILL INFANT SCHOOL & NURSERY
School Lane, Bushey, Herts WD23 1ST Telephone: 020 8950 2166 Fax: 020 8950 6338 Email: head@merryhill.herts.sch.uk Website: www.merryhill.org.uk Headteacher: Mrs Pauline Hannibal
Dear Parents and Carers
Welcome to Merry Hill Nursery. We do hope your child will enjoy
being in our Nursery. Starting Nursery is a very big step for
children and parents and carers, so we have prepared this
booklet to ease the way for you. We hope you find it useful.
If you have any further queries or problems, please do not
hesitate to speak to either the Nursery staff or the
Yours sincerely Mrs Pauline Hannibal
AIMS OF THE NURSERY
ü
To encourage positive attitudes to learning and increase
independence and self-confidence
To give the child a sense of self value and of the value of
others
ü
To give the child the social skills necessary to co-operate with
others and form friendships
ü To develop the child’s
use of language, thought and communication
ü
To develop the child's creative abilities through the use of a
variety of materials
ü To encourage the child’s
natural curiosity about how the world works
ü
To develop the child’s ability to work as an independent, active
learner by encouraging them to plan, implement and reflect on
experiences
To promote the child’s
physical development
ü
To develop the child's abilities and skills in ways which
provide a sound basis for later learning
BEFORE STARTING NURSERY
Here are some ways you can help your child to feel more
confident when they start Nursery.
Please teach your child:
ü
To dress themselves - make the job easier with zips instead of
buttons, jumpers instead of cardigans, loose fitting clothes and
no shoe laces
ü To hang up their coat
ü To drink through a straw
ü To take themselves to the
toilet and cope on their own
ü To wash and dry their
hands
ü To recognise their name
in upper and lower case
(e.g. Mary not
ü To know and repeat
clearly their name
Children need plenty of chances to play with other children so
they can get used to sharing. Leaving your child for an hour or
so with friends or relatives will accustom them to cope without
you and help make the transition from home to Nursery a smooth
one.
Your child needs you to listen to them, talk to them and watch
them, they will learn from you. Children make sense of their
world by talking and listening. Talk about what you are doing,
what you have seen and done and where you have been. Answer
questions carefully and honestly.
Sing nursery rhymes and action songs together. Encourage your
child to listen to music, songs and stories. Read stories
together and make this an enjoyable experience. Look at the
pictures in the book and discuss the story.
Increase your child's memory and concentration by playing board
and card games as often as possible. Also do jigsaws and play
lotto and domino games.
Children learn from their experiences, so please take your child
out and about as much as possible.
Allow your child to help around the house and garden: using
water at the sink, measuring, cooking, setting the table,
sorting the washing, digging and planting. These activities
offer a wide range of learning experiences.
NURSERY HOURS
The Nursery is open for two sessions each day:
Morning session
Afternoon session
Children attend for five morning sessions or five afternoon
sessions per week. The younger half joins the morning session
and the older half joins the afternoon session. We regret it is
not possible to mix attendance between the two sessions, or
change sessions from one term to another. In the best interest
of your child, they should not attend another Nursery or
playgroup whilst attending Merry Hill.
Starting Nursery is a big step for children; for some this may
be their first time away from home on a regular basis. To enable
your child to settle into the daily routine as quickly as
possible we encourage them to come in to Nursery on their own.
Please always remember to say ‘Goodbye’ to your child at the
door before leaving.
Please bring your child to
the classroom at the start of each session and collect them from
the classroom at the end of the session. Please let us know if
someone other than you is collecting your child. Punctuality
helps your child understand the importance of time keeping at an
early age. Being on time helps your child to settle into the
Nursery routines, socialise with their peers and sets them up
for the session. To avoid tears at hometime, if you are
unavoidably delayed, please telephone the office so we can
explain to your child.
PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT
Parents are always welcome in the Nursery, but they do need to
have had a Criminal Records Bureau (
FRIENDS OF MERRY HILL
(FOMH)
We are fortunate in having an active group of staff and parents
who organise fetes and social events to raise funds for the
school.
THE NURSERY CURRICULUM
The children all follow the Foundation Stage Curriculum, which
is based on the national ‘Early Learning Goals’. A wide range of
activities is carefully planned to help the children develop
early skills in the following six areas of learning:
Personal, Social & Emotional Development The children are given
opportunities to work, play and co-operate with others in a
variety of settings. Many activities are provided to enable them
to become more independent and gain in confidence. They will be
encouraged to concentrate, to persevere, to initiate ideas, to
solve simple problems and to ask for help when needed.
The children are expected to be sensitive to the needs and
feelings of others and to show respect for people of other
cultures and beliefs. They learn to take turns, express their
own feelings and behave in an appropriate way, gradually
developing their sense of right and wrong.
Communication, Language and Literacy
In small and large groups, the children are encouraged to listen
to each other and talk about their experiences, thoughts and
feelings. Great value is put on reciting rhymes and singing
songs. Through regular story sessions they develop an enjoyment
of books and an awareness of print. Matching and sequencing
games are played to develop concentration, discrimination and
memory as an aid to learning to read. As finger muscles develop,
the children will learn to write their name with appropriate use
of upper and lower case letters.
Mathematical Development
The children use number rhymes, songs and stories to gain
mathematical language and early number concepts. Through a
variety of activities the children learn to compare, sort,
match, order, sequence and count everyday objects. They will
investigate shape and pattern.
Knowledge & Understanding of the World The children are
encouraged to talk about where they live and their environment.
They are given opportunities to observe and explore, to be
curious and to ask questions about why things happen and how
they work. Cookery sessions are much enjoyed, as are the
computers.
Physical Development
The Nursery children are fortunate in having a safe outside play
area and use of the School Hall for music and movement and
gymnastics. Through the use of bicycles, wheeled toys, climbing
equipment etc. the children are able to develop large muscle
control, co-operative play and turn-taking skills. They also
have the opportunity to use the climbing equipment on the main
playground and school field. In the classroom, the children use
a variety of tools and equipment to develop small muscle control
and hand/eye co-ordination.
Creative Development
Through art, music, dance, stories and imaginative play, the
children gain an increasing ability to use their imagination, to
express ideas and to communicate their feelings.
The Nursery session has a carefully structured routine and
includes daily adult-directed activities and a sustained period
of child-initiated play. Play is children's work and it is
through this that they develop into self reliant, reasoning,
questioning, independent children who will be able to transfer
into a Reception Class with confidence.
The Nursery uniform consists of:
·
Black elasticated waist jogging trousers
(Not trousers with buttons or zips, and for the girls, not
skirts or dresses)
·
Any colour T-Shirt
(Not shirts or blouses)
·
Any colour jumper or cardigan
·
Sensible shoes – preferably with velcro, not laces or buckles,
or shoes with open toes or heels and not ‘Crocs’ or fashion
boots
·
·
Coat with a hood
For PE
·
Black shorts
·
White T-Shirt
·
Elastic fronted or velcro plimsolls
A drawstring bag will be provided free of charge by the Friends
of Merry Hill.
Please ensure that all clothing is clearly labelled.
The Nursery uniform is based on the following criteria:
1.
It allows your child to be dressed for an active, fun and safe
session at Nursery where they can use sand, water, play dough,
glue and paint etc without worrying about getting their clothes
messy.
2.
It aids independence when getting changed for PE and using the
toilet.
3.
It allows your child to play outside throughout the year.
Jewellery is not permitted in the Nursery.
Pierced earrings must be plain studs.
We do have some extra
clothing in case of accidents. However, if your child is happier
to change into clothing they recognise, a spare set kept in
their yellow bookbag would be useful. If we do provide your
child with clean clothing, please return this to us as soon as
it has been washed.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
If your child has been unwell overnight the Health Protection
Agency guidelines are that children should not return to school
for a full 48 hours from the last episode of diarrhoea or
vomiting.
The staff are not permitted to administer medicines so please do
not send these to Nursery. If your child has a specific health
problem please inform the Nursery Staff. If there are any
changes in your home circumstances please let us know as this
can often affect a child's performance, attitude and behaviour
in Nursery. Please try to ensure that your child can go to the
toilet unaided and no longer wears nappies.
The school site and buildings have been designated as ‘No
Smoking’ areas. Please note that as some children are wary of
dogs, dogs are not allowed on site at any time.
HEALTHY EATING
In line with our healthy eating policy, the children are
supplied with fruit or vegetables every day. This is shared at
Small Group Time. Milk or water is also available. Parents
wishing their children to have milk should order this before
the start of each term. There is no charge for children under 5
years of age. Please do not send sweets, biscuits or fruit
drinks to have at this time.
NURSERY FUND
There is no charge for the Nursery but we welcome donations of
50p per week to buy cookery ingredients and small pieces of
equipment.
TRANSFER TO THE RECEPTION CLASS
Transfer to our Reception Class is not automatic.
Hertfordshire County Council will send you a booklet containing
a Reception Place Application Form at the beginning of the
Autumn Term. If you do not receive this please let me know, as
you will not be able to apply without it.
Parents are notified as to the success of their application
during March.
The criteria for entry to the Reception Class are the same as
those for entry to the Nursery. |