GENERAL INFORMATION

Preschool Garden

We are fortunate to have a fantastic private garden for our children to play in, as well as a secure patio area allowing free-flow indoor outdoor play. As a preschool we spend time outside every day, and have waterproof clothing and wellington boots to ensure children are wrapped up for inclement weather. We are also situated at the heart of the village, close to the recreation ground, shop and church, which comes in handy for nature walks and short trips out.

The First Days

We place a lot of importance on new parents and our pre-school staff working together to help all new children to feel confident and secure when they are with us, particularly in the early days. Some children skip in, excited to explore all the toys and activities. Others take a little longer to become familiar and confident in their new surroundings and staff. All children develop at their own pace, and preschool staff will take their lead from you, after all you know your child best. 

Rising Fives

We run Rising Fives activities over the course of the week specifically for the older pre-school children who will join Primary School the following September. By building on the skills already achieved in pre-school, these sessions are designed to help each child to develop as fully as possible in all seven desirable learning outcomes. We are aware that each child’s progress will be at a different rate and individual achievements will vary. In consultation with Foxton Primary School’s Reception Teacher, our aim is that, upon entering compulsory education, all children will be well on their way to being able to:

• Recognise their own written name;

• Write their own name;

• Understand that words and pictures carry meaning;

• Recognise and use numbers 1 - 10, and is familiar with larger numbers from their everyday lives;

• Begin to use mathematical language, such as circle and other mathematical names for 2D and 3D shapes, in front of, bigger than and more than;

• Handle appropriate tools, objects, construction and malleable materials safely and with increasing control;

• Can talk about their environment, their families, and past and present events in their own lives;

• Show an increasing ability to use their imagination, to listen and to observe;

• Change themselves ready for P.E. and back again.

• This will be achievable through stage appropriate games, songs, activities and stories.

When children leave pre-school to join ‘big’ school, we provide parents with a personal report and a record of their child’s development, a copy of which is also passed to the reception teacher of the school they will be joining. The more frequently your child attends, the more comprehensive your child’s developmental record will be.

Foxton Primary School

We have very close links with Foxton Primary School, and are regularly invited to join in any special celebrations, or assemblies. In their final months at pre-school, our Rising 5s are welcomed into Foxton Primary for weekly sessions, to get them ready for starting in Reception in September. We also have the Year 5 children visiting us for about half an hour each week, this especially helps the children who are starting school in September but do not already have a sibling there. 

Minimum number of Preschool Sessions

We do not have a set number of session but we strongly advise that your child attends a minimum of 2 sessions per week. This will help your child to settle more easily and continue to feel secure at Pre-school. In a child’s mind, coming just once a week makes it a long time between sessions.

Maximum number of Preschool sessions

There is no recommended maximum: all children are welcome to attend all available sessions. Children who require a rest or mid-day nap can be accommodated if they are attending all day.

What To Wear

In order to feel free to explore and experiment with all kinds of materials, including messy ones, it is best to send children dressed in clothes that are easily washable or not too new. Overalls are provided however if the child strongly objected to wearing one we would not exclude them from craftwork.  Simple clothing, which they can handle themselves, will help them when visiting the toilet and putting on and taking off their outdoor clothes without being too dependent on other people’s help. 

In hot sunny weather we require you to provide a sun hat and sun blocking cream for outdoor play. 

Please ensure that your children's clothes are named. 

Lunches and Daily Fruit/Mid-morning snack

Children are invited to bring in a packed lunch, or can choose to have a hot lunch provided by Foxton Primary School (£2.50 per meal). 

We provide our children with a mid morning snack and water to encourage the children to enjoy a wide variety of fruits and vegetables in their diet. As you are probably aware it has been recommended that 5 pieces of fruit/vegetable should be consumed each day for a balanced diet, so by introducing children to as many varieties as possible, and regularly, we believe this helps encourage future tastes and health.  

Please do not send in nuts (in any form) or kiwi fruit due to possible allergies, in lunch boxes.