~ About our Pre-School ~
Our sessions
We are lucky enough at St Kew Pre-School to have lots and lots of lovely SPACE! This means there are always lots and lots of different activities on offer to keep your child interested, from craft activites, cooking, the home corner, dressing up and much much more.Throughout the session there are times for free play, adult-led small group activites and large group activities, all of which introduce the children to new experiences, help them to gain new skills, and develop their social skills.
We also have a brilliant and well-equipped outdoor area, which the children use regularly. Outdoor activities are great for your child's health, as well as aiding their physical development and their knowledge of the world around them. Thanks to the very kind donation of new all-weather coats and trousers by local building company Dingle & Way, we can enjoy the great outdoors even more now!
During the session, we are also very aware of individual childrens changing energy levels, and cater for each child's need for rest and quiet activities as appropriate.
The learning journey
We know that as parents, you want to be involved in your child's learning. We also know that a strong relationship between the pre-school and the parents and carers of the children that go there is not only good for the setting, but good for the children too. Each child at St Kew Pre School is assigned a key worker, and they are responsible for maintinging that child's Learning Journey - a record of things that child does whilst at pre-school, photos of them taking part in activities, observations on their learning and development, examples of work etc. Each term, your child's key worker will sit down with you and go through your child's Learning Journey, asking for your comments on our observations and assessments.
We believe that parents know their children best, and we ask them to contribute to the assessment by sharing information about what their children like to do at home and how they as parents are supporting development.Your child's Learning Journey helps us to celebrate together their achievements and to work together to provide what your child needs for their well-being and progress at St Kew Pre School.
Our timetable and routines
We believe that care and education are equally important in the experience which we offer children, as well as lots and lots of FUN! The routines and activities that make up the day are provided in ways that:
- Help each child to feel that they are a valued member of the pre-school
- Ensure the safety of each child
- Help children to gain from the social experience of being part of a group
- Provide children with opportunities to learn and help them to value learning
To see an example of our daily routine click here
Learning through play
Play helps young children to learn and develop through doing and talking, which research has shown to be the means by which young children learn to think. We use the Early Years Foundation Stage to plan and provide a range of play activities which help children to make progress in each of the areas of learning and development. In some of these activities children decide how they will use the activity and in others an adult takes the lead in helping the children to take part in the activity.
The Early Years Foundation Stage is made up of six areas of learning and development:
- Personal, Social ad Emotional Development
- Communication, Language and Literacy
- Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy
- Knowledge and Understanding of the World
- Physical Development
- Creative Development
To read more about The Early Years Foundation Stage, visit the government Early Years Foundation Stage Website.
If you would like any more information on how we do things, or why, please get in touch!