Activities - Having Fun

Learning through Play

Our activities are designed to encourage and stimulate children in all areas of their development, through the use of co-ordinated and structured play. There is a wide range of safe and well-maintained equipment and materials available for the children to use. We have a large range of toys, fun activities and learning resources designed to help your child's development in the following areas:

• Personal confidence, disposition and attitude, independence, initiative, self-care and social interaction.
• Language and literacy skills through discussion, conversation, listening, stories and imaginative play. Children are encouraged to recall experiences, reflect, connect ideas and explain what might happen next.
• Phonic activities and mark making, help children with early writing and reading skills and to recognise and write their name.
• Mathematics - understanding of concepts such as numbers for counting, calculating and shape through everyday situations.
• Knowledge and understanding of the world through the stimulation of their natural curiosity to explore and investigate, encouraging them to ask why things happen and how things work. Also through information and communication technology, designing and making, awareness of time and place and cultures and beliefs of the people around them.
• Physical, spatial and manipulative skills through eye/hand co-ordination and the use of a variety of tools, materials and equipment. Also through health and bodily awareness.
• Creativity through art and craft, music and drama and using their imagination and senses.

We have a large play area for the climbing frame, slide, see-saw, balancing beams, tunnel, tents, parachute, large construction bricks, PE activities, trampoline, ride-ons, cars, trikes and a bike with stabilisers. A fenced outdoor play area is available at the back of the hall.

Children are encouraged in role-play such as home corner, hospital, shop, vets, garage, office, space station and rainforest. We also arrange visits from a policeman/police-woman, dental nurse, doctor, health visitor, teacher, firefighter, Surrey Wildlife Warden etc.

The following activities and resources are provided either during each session or on a rotational basis.

• Sand/potting compost/birdseed
• Small worlds - farm/zoo/doll's house/Happy St
• Water
• Cars/garage/train set/etc
• Playdough/clay
• Construction toys - Duplo/Big Building/Popoids
• Painting/printing
• Music/musical instruments/singing
• Junk modelling
• Puzzles/threading/pegs/tools
• Collage, cutting out/sticking
• Interest table
• Drawing and mark making
• Observing living and growing things
• Book corner
• Matching/sorting games
• Nature walks and activities
• Compare bears Maths
• Gardening
• Science discovery
• Multi-cultural celebrations
• Cooking
• Dressing up
• Drama

Break-time

The children are given a drink of milk or water and fruit/healthy snack. We ask that you bring in one/two pieces of fruit or other healthy snack (no kiwi fruit, biscuits, cake or bread sticks with nuts in please) each week so that the children are encouraged to share the varied snacks that parents/carers provide. We suggest that you might like to provide a suitable cake or biscuits when it's your child's birthday (please check ingredients because of nut allergies).

Themes

Our activities are planned around a half or full term's theme. Each week a different, theme-related topic is introduced. The children are encouraged to bring in related items to display on the Interest Table and to 'show and tell' the other children. Some theme examples of themes include:

The Theme Plan is displayed on the notice board and each half term a newsletter and topic schedule is provided for parents/carers.

Learning about letters and numbers

The children learn about letters and numbers through play and everyday situations e.g. role-play activities, helping to make shop signs, shopping lists and 'write' letters. Emergent writing is encouraged and each child has a tray in which they keep their scrapbook entitled 'My Book' where they stick photographs, drawings and examples of their 'writing'.

Maths is taught through hands on activities especially through cooking, sand and water play, role-play involving money and price tags, and compare bear activities.

A personal computer with CD roms provides an introduction to the keyboard and mouse control. Programs are available to develop knowledge of simple numbers, shapes, colours, matching, language and literacy. Programmable toys are available e.g. robotic 'Pixie'.