Autumn has arrived
We are very excited to be embracing the new season here at Snapdragons Nursery. Over the past few months, the children have enjoyed exploring a variety of festivals and celebrating diverse traditions, which has made for many wonderful learning moments. Our little adventurers have been on plenty of exciting journeys, discovering the world around them with curiosity and enthusiasm. We look forward to sharing these special experiences with you in the posts below, capturing the joy and creativity that each day brings.
The Autumn equinox, Harvest and so much more
We started October with a whole nursery big day out, filled with excitement and discovery. The children explored the fields, collecting sticks to build fires, and eagerly searched for the troll hiding under the bridge. There was plenty of walking, fresh air, and joyful chatter along the way.
Back at nursery, we brought the day’s treasures to life by getting the fire going with the sticks the children had found. We prepared some apples from our garden, sprinkling them with fragrant cinnamon, and made a warming spiced milk for everyone to enjoy. After lunch and a restful sleep time, the children gathered around the fire once more to bake the apples and savour our cosy, comforting snack together.
It was a truly lovely day, a perfect moment to appreciate all the wonderful things we have within our little nursery and community.
To celebrate the start of harvest and the equinox, the toddlers at enjoyed a delightful bread-making activity. They carefully measured and mixed the ingredients, experiencing hands-on learning through sensory play. The children took great pride as they watched their dough rise and then eagerly tasted the fresh, warm bread they had created.
We had a fantastic week celebrating the Autumn Equinox and exploring its various themes. Our pre-school children observed the changing season and the rich palette of colours that come with it. One of the highlights was using leftover cabbage leaves for printing, which offered a wonderful chance to explore patterns and observe how colours shift when mixed and the patterns on the leaves.
As the nights grow longer, we have been exploring the magic of the changing evenings. The children enjoyed making moon and star-shaped cheese biscuits, perfect for a cosy night snack. Using torches, we created our own glowing moons, lighting up the room with playful beams. To deepen our understanding, we also crafted our own total eclipse models, showing how the moon moves in front of the sun. These hands-on activities have brought the wonders of the night sky to life in a fun and engaging way for our little explorers.
A big thank you to all the parents who generously donated to our food bank collection. We truly appreciate your kindness in helping us support our local community. We spoke with the children about the importance of the harvest and the value of lending a hand to those in need. Your contributions make a real difference, and we are proud to teach the children the meaning of giving and sharing.
The toddlers enjoyed a delightful visit to the park, filled with plenty of opportunities to develop their gross motor skills. They eagerly climbed, jumped, and balanced, strengthening their muscles and coordination. The children explored the colourful fallen leaves, investigating their textures and sounds. Laughter and chatter flowed freely as they played together, forging friendships and sharing joyful moments in the fresh air. It was a wonderful afternoon of learning, discovery, and fun for all.
We have made the most of the last of the apples from our tree to make apple juice using our apple press. The children thoroughly enjoyed the whole process, from picking the apples to mulching them up to helping put them through the press. The best part, without a doubt, was tasting the fresh, sweet juice at the end – their smiles said it all!
Last week, the children were busy creating poppy wreaths for Remembrance Day. Once their wreaths were complete, they took them to the local war memorial. There, they joined the children from Churchfields Primary School to observe the two minutes silence, honouring and remembering those who have served. It was a meaningful and reflective experience for all involved.
Some Staffing updates-
Imogen will be changing to a lunch cover role working across all the age groups between the hours of 11-3 over five days. Imogens is really looking forward to working with all the children focusing on play and having fun!
Kim will be joining our toddler team moving forward. She has been an amazing support to our pre-school team since coming back from maternity leave and will be a great addition to the toddler team moving forward.
New Government Website Launched
Did you know about the new parent website designed to support you in all areas, including funding, children’s development, school readiness, and much more? Head over to Best Start in Life to explore valuable resources created to help you and your child thrive.
Do you know a Snappy Super Star?
Is there a member of my team that has stood out to you that you think deserves a special mention? It means the world to the ladies to receive a nomination so if there is someone who you would like to give a special mention to please follow the button below.
Christmas is coming
Dates for your diary-
10th December- Pre-school nativity to be held at the Church by the school at 2pm. The pre-school team will be letting you know your childs part so if you would like to provide their outfit please ensure it is at the nursery labelled from the 1st December. If you have any questions at all feel free to ask Ellie or the office.
16th December- Christmas dinner, we would love to see your little ones in their Christmas jumpers.
18th December- You are all invited to our Christmas Party! Come and enjoy some festive fun with us before the big day! 3pm-4.30pm, there will be plenty of festive activities, disco and food for everyone to enjoy. Sibling also welcome.
With it being such a busy time of year with people off visiting family or to have some festive fun, we know that this sometimes means your little one may not be at nursery, we really appreciate you letting us know in advance so we can plan ahead, if you could please just drop us an email it would be much appreciated.
Permissions-
As you may now notice we are putting together a monthly newsletter and I just wanted to reach out to check if you would like to change your childs permissions for photos to be included in these. The link is only sent to the parents who attend our nursery and these photos are not then included on social media. If this is something you would like to check or amend please feel free to email on in and we can get this changed for you. If you would also like to change your childs permissions for social media then again feel free to email in, this is a different permission to the one for our newsletter.
Dietaries-
If your child has a dietary and you have recently made any changes could you please contact the office so we can make amendments to our dietary lists.
Mobile Phones-
Can I kindly remind you of our Mobile phone policy here at the nursery- when dropping off or collecting your child could please leave your phone in your car in a pocket. You must not take any photos inside the nursery as this is against our safeguarding policy. Many thanks in advance for your co-operation with this.
Medication and Illness policies:
If your child has been prescribed medication then they will need to have had been taking it for 24hrs before returning to nursery.
Please do not leave any medication in your child’s bag, it must be handed to the office and a medication authorisation form must be filled out.
When Calpol or any temperature reducing medicine is given to your child prior to nursery, they are not able to attend nursery until they are 4 hours clear of the medication.
A little reminder about some of the more common illnesses and the exclusion periods:
Conjunctivitis - They have to have been treated for 24hours and the child has to be comfortable.
D&V - 48 hours clear of the last incident.
Chicken Pox - Children can’t return to nursery until the spots have all scabbed over and are completely dry.
Hand, Foot and Mouth - Children can return once all symptoms have subsided.
Thank you for your help and understanding. If you have any questions or are unsure of anything, please do get in touch with the office.