Walter Evans Reception Newsletter
Walter Evans Nursery Newsletter Spring Term January 2015
Dear Parents and Carers,
Welcome back and a Happy New Year to you and your families. We hope you had an enjoyable Christmas break and we would like to thank you all for your Christmas cards and gifts. They are very much appreciated. We are expecting there will be quite a bit of wintry weather over the next few weeks and would like to take this opportunity to remind you that we do spend some time each day outdoors in the Nursery garden. Can you please make sure your child has suitable outdoor clothing and all coats, hats, gloves and scarves are named?
Wellies can be left and stored in school and the children can change into them each day as we go out to play. Please could you help us by practising putting on shoes and taking them off as independently as possible? Laces are particularly difficult at this age and need practise!
For this half term our topic is -Who Lives in a Castle? We will have an exciting time ahead, learning all about knights and princesses, each week our work in nursery will be based around a story. If you have any books at home that fit in with this topic we will be most grateful to receive them in school.
We have a packed half term ahead of us and our work will include learning opportunities across all 7 areas of Learning and Development.
Here is a brief outline of the work we will be covering although our plans may change to fit in with the interests of the children!
Week 1 – In the Castle The children will be enthralled as they follow the imaginative adventures of a little boy who is whisked back in time as he plays in the ruins of a castle, only to find himself transported to the hustle and bustle of the building in its heyday - complete with jousts, banquets and valiant deeds.
Week 2 – The Pizza Princess A story that reminds children to say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ as we read about the princess who finds her maid and cook have gone to work in a nearby pizza palace. We will be putting toppings on our own pizza and cooking them this week!
Week 3 – Zog Zog is the keenest dragon in school. He's also the most accident-prone. Luckily, a mysterious little girl always comes by and patches up his bumps and bruises. But will she be able to help him with his toughest test: capturing a princess?
Week 4 – I Want my Potty A little princess, tired of nappies, learns to use the potty, although it's not always easy. This week we will be reminding the children to wash their hands thoroughly after using the toilet. The baby dolls will be washed, dressed, changed and fed too!
Week 5 – The Knights of the Round Table This week we will learn about the legend of King Arthur and his knights. We will have lots of role play and will finish this topic with a Knights and Princess party.
The children will be making Knights helmets and Princess hats or tiaras and there will be lots of opportunities to dress up this half term.
We hope you find these newsletters useful, we know your children do not always want to tell you what they have been doing in Nursery! Rest assured they have been busy ‘learning’. Finally, thank you for all your help and support last term.
Sheila Farrar Karen Hubbard Clare Tatham
Areas of Learning and Development Knights and Princess’ Spring first half term 2015
Prime Areas of Learning
Communication and Language / Physical Development / Personal, Social and Emotional DevelopmentListening and attention
Most of the children are now able to focus their attention for longer periods of time and can join in with stories and discussions. This work will continue in small groups and whole class situations.
Understanding
Listening and following simple instructions is the main aim of our work here. We will ask and answer questions to develop the children’s understanding.
Speaking
The children will learn new vocabulary about castles. We will ask the children to explain what happens next or why it happened? / Moving and Handling
Outside the children are becoming expert at confidently moving in a range of ways. We encourage them to balance and make their own tracks using balancing equipment.
Children will practise writing letters or patterns using a correct pencil grip with control.
Health and Self Care
We will encourage correct behaviour after using the toilet and before eating.
Getting ready to play outdoors can be a challenge for some children. Please help us by encouraging your child to dress as independently as possible. / Making Relationships
The children are learning to keep their play going by responding to what other children are saying and doing.
Self Confidence and self awareness
We want all our children to be confident and talk to other children whilst they are playing.
Managing feelings and behaviour
The children are learning in nursery how to tolerate delay when their wishes are not immediately met.
Specific Areas of Learning
Literacy / Maths / Understanding the World / Expressive Arts and DesignThrough reading stories we will be
Also be teaching the children to:
Recognises familiar words and signs such as own names and advertising logos.
Beginning to be aware of the way stories are structured.
Suggests how the story might end.
Listens to stories with increasing attention and recall.
Handles books carefully. / Our work in number will continue in addition to the following:
Beginning to talk about the shapes of everyday objects, eg ‘round’ and ‘tall’.
Uses positional language
Shows awareness of similarities of shapes in the environment. / Shows interest in the lives of people who are familiar to them.
Remembers and talks about significant events in their own experience.
Talks about why things happen and how things work.
Shows an interest in technical toys with knobs or pulleys, or real objects such as cameras or mobile phones. / Uses various construction materials.
Joins construction pieces together to build and balance.
Realises tools can be used for a purpose.
Uses available resources to create props to support play
Notices what adults do, imitating what is observed and then doing it spontaneously when the adult is not there.