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NURSERY SCHOOL The early years of your child’s life are commonly acknowledged to be the formative years. We aim to make these early years as joyful and productive as possible. In our nursery, children are taught in small groups by class teachers. Some of the nursery teachers are qualified in the Montessori method, which provides a carefully planned sequence of activities in a prepared environment for each child and for the class group, in order to build sound foundations for future development. We aim to make children aware of others and be both considerate and polite to each other, have the ability to co-operate, achieve individual independence, build up self-esteem and self-image, learn care and responsibility towards and for the environment and be able to organise themselves. The children are helped to develop their gross and fine motor control and co-ordination. We follow the child’s own developmental stages and introduce relevant apparatus when appropriate. The school provides an environment in which the child can experiment with and learn through, a rich variety of art and project work. We aim for children to be able to listen to and participate in group discussions and to be able to express themselves clearly, using a wide vocabulary. We make children aware of numbers and letters indirectly through everyday activities. Letters are taught phonetically; this process begins through indirect activities and is followed by introduction to sounds. Each child is given the opportunity to develop at their own pace. Interest in words is encouraged through stories, both told and read, poems and discussions and through the joint exploring of the environment by the teacher and child together. Letters and numbers are only a part of the daily routine. There is a whole range of other equally important activities in which the children are engaged. This includes both practical and social learning, in a prepared environment which can be both adult led and child initiated. The nursery children have a music/percussion lesson once a week and general singing every day. At the end of the Christmas term the nursery children perform a nativity play or concert. These are enjoyable social occasions when parents can meet the teachers and one another. Gatehouse has its own sports hall, which the nursery children use several times a week for PE and indoor play sessions. The nursery has its own roof garden/play area with plants, which is part of the learning environment. We also have access to the extensive Junior School playground. Written reports are sent to parents at the end of each term and a parents’ evening is held in the Autumn term. Children start full time in our nursery in the September after they have turned 3 years old.
Nursery Education Funding Grant
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