Nursery Information

Our expectation is that children are toilet trained by the time they start our Nursery, unless they have particular special needs or a medical problem.

Admission to Bearwood Nursery does not guarantee automatic entry into Bearwood Primary School. However, most children from our Nursery do go on to Bearwood Primary School.    Applications to the Reception class are done through the Wokingham Local Authority Admissions Department as children are then officially part of the school.

If you are interested in making an application for our Nursery, please contact the school office for an application form. You can phone the school office on (0118) 978 4628 or by email at admin@bearwood-pri.wokingham.sch.uk.

Wokingham Borough Council have produced helpful information on preparing your child for starting school:

https://wsh.wokingham.gov.uk/early-years-childcare-and-play/ready-for-school/

Once you have been offered a place at Bearwood our Nursery teacher will have a phone call with you before your child starts in our Nursery.  This will be an opportunity for us to discuss any concerns that, as a parent, you may have.  You and your child will be invited to visit the Nursery prior to starting, so that we can get to know each other better.  You will be informed of the date by letter.

Bearwood offers 15 hours and 30 hours provision. Please speak to the School Office for further information.

 Nursery Times  

It is important that children are brought to school by a responsible adult and handed over directly to Foundation Stage Nursery staff. Please let staff know if someone other than yourself will be collecting your child. If they are unknown to staff you will need to supply a password to allow them to take your child.

30-hour eligibility

If you are eligible for a 30 hours’ free nursery place you will need to provide the code provided to you

to the school office. You will be required to use the Nursery Lunch club for your child.

Nursery Lunch Club

The Nursery operates a Nursery Lunch Club for all children attending 30 hours.  The charge is £3 per session per child.

Packed Lunches

Children using the Nursery Lunch Club should bring a packed lunch. Please ensure the lunch is nutritionally balanced and does not include sweets, fizzy drinks or other very sweet items. We are a nut aware school and children must NOT bring in food items that contain nuts – this includes peanut butter and chocolate spreads such as Nutella. This is because some of our children are allergic to nuts.

Please ensure that grapes are cut in half lengthwise to avoid a choking hazard.

Milk and Fruit

Dairy milk is provided free for children under the age of five years.  We automatically register your child for free milk, please let us know if your child has a milk intolerance or you do not wish for your child to receive.

Children are also eligible for a piece of fruit each day.

Clothing

Children do not wear the school uniform until they transfer into Reception. Whilst in Nursery they need to wear clothes they can manage themselves when using the toilet. They will at times get messy as there are many sessions outside. Please do not send your children in best dresses or footwear that is not fit for purpose. High heeled footwear or party type footwear is not appropriate. We request that no jewellery be worn at any time as it poses a Health and Safety risk due to the physical nature of many of our activities.

Illness

If your child is unable to come to Nursery because they are unwell, please contact the School Office on 0118 978 4628. If your child has sickness and/or diarrhea they should be kept at home for 48 hours after the last bout. 

Parent Helpers

We would be delighted if you are able to help in Nursery either on a regular basis or occasionally, but we like to ensure that your child has settled first. Please see the Nursery staff if you would like to help. It is a requirement that anyone working with children has a valid DBS check and this is arranged through the School Office. 

Library Books

Your child may borrow a book from the Nursery each day.  Please encourage your child to make use of this service and enjoy the books with him/her at home.  Books must be returned before choosing a new reading book.

Tissues and Wet Wipes

We would be grateful if each child could bring a box of tissues and wet wipes when they start. This saves you sending in hankies/tissues, etc. and enables the children to have access to them throughout the year.

The Curriculum

We follow the Early Years Statutory Framework which set standards for the learning development and care of children from birth to five years old.

The areas of learning and development:

There are seven areas of learning and development that shape educational programmes in early years settings. All areas of learning and development are important and inter-connected. Three areas are particularly crucial for igniting children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, and for building their capacity to learn, form relationships and thrive. These three areas, the prime areas, are:

• Communication and Language development involves giving children opportunities to experience a rich language environment; to develop their confidence and skills in expressing themselves; and to speak and listen in a range of situations.
• Physical Development involves providing opportunities for young children to be active and interactive; and to develop their co-ordination, control, and movement. Children must also be helped to understand the importance of physical activity, and to make healthy choices in relation to food.
• Personal, Social and Emotional Development involves helping children to develop a positive sense of themselves, and others; to form positive relationships and develop respect for others; to develop social skills and learn how to manage their feelings; to understand appropriate behaviour in groups; and to have confidence in their own abilities.

We also support children in four specific areas, through which the three prime areas are strengthened and applied. The specific areas are:

• Literacy development involves encouraging children to link sounds and letters and to begin to explore mark making. In Nursery, children are building a firm foundation on which to further develop their literacy skills in Reception. Children must be given access to a wide range of reading materials (books, poems, and other written materials) to ignite their interest. It is important for parents to read regularly to their children, and discuss what they have read.
• Mathematics involves providing children with opportunities to develop and improve their skills in counting, understanding and using numbers, calculating simple addition and subtraction problems; and to describe shapes, spaces, and measures.  In Nursery, this involves very practical, hands-on tasks.
• Understanding the world involves guiding children to make sense of their physical world and their community through opportunities to explore, observe and find out about people, places and the environment.  Also, to start talking about the past in relation to their own lives.
• Expressive arts and design involves enabling children to explore and play with a wide range of media and materials, as well as providing opportunities and encouragement for sharing their thoughts, ideas and feelings through a variety of activities in art, music, movement, dance, role- play, and design and technology.

Characteristics of Effective Learning

Another aspect of our curriculum is how children develop as learners. The characteristics of Effective Learning are broken down into three areas: Playing and Exploring (engagement), Active Learning (motivation) and Creating and Thinking Critically (thinking).

We encourage our Nursery children to become independent and resilient learners as these are lifelong skills. We also encourage children to feel positive about making mistakes and ‘having a go’, and use play and stories to develop these skills. Our environment is set up to support independent learning choices.

Behaviour

We encourage the children to develop positive relationships with others and use play and stories to support this development. We role model social skills such as sharing and turn taking, and reward positive behaviours with praise and stamps.

We plan activities linked to the Personal, Social and Emotional Development part of the Early Years Curriculum, which incorporates children developing a positive sense of themselves and understanding what is appropriate behaviour.

Foundation Stage Nursery Assessment

We assess the children through observations which take place on a regular basis as part of daily routines. Observing what the children choose to do, what their interests are, and who and what resources they enjoy playing with provides our staff with reliable information about children as individuals. Observations also provide opportunities to gauge children’s needs and so more accurately plan next steps in their learning. We use an App called ‘Tapestry,’ where we will record highlights of your child’s learning. We also encourage parents to access this and add your observations from home to help us build a more holistic picture of your child and their progress outside of Nursery.

Formal opportunities are given during the school year for you to come and discuss your child’s progress, however we recommend that if you are concerned at any time you should speak to the Nursery Teacher.