March Newsletter
Goodbye Beth
Beth, our Deputy Head of Toddlers has decided to leave us to start her new exciting journey somewhere else, as much as we are all going to miss her, we wish her the best! We hope to welcome Beth back one day.
Karolina, one of our qualified level three members of staff will be joining Ellie, Anais and Ellie in Elm over the upcoming weeks until we appoint a new Deputy Head of Toddlers. If you have any questions before then please feel free to email myself on sophie.binks@snapdragonsnursery.com or Suzanne (Toddler Room Head) on suzanne.atkinson@snapdragonsnursery.com.
UNICEF - Rights Respecting:
It is International Women’s Day on 8th March. This year the focus is imagining a gender equal world where difference is valued and celebrated. With a predominantly female workforce this is something we encourage everyday. The articles International Women’s Day promotes are: Article 2 - non discrimination, Article 12 - respect for the views of the child and Article 13 - freedom of expression.
What would we like you to do?
A short activity we would like you to carry out with your child (age-dependent) is to ask your child to collect 4 items they believe a girl would like. If your child picks up stereotypical items such as a pink doll, or princess story we would like you to challenge this by picking four items that are not stereotypical and having a short discussion about girls and boys all having different toys that they find fun to play with.
If you have time you can watch a short video called: “A Class That Turned Around Kids' Assumptions of Gender Roles!” Its about how gender stereotypes are formed in early childhood and how we should challenge these early on.
Dates for the diary:
Thursday 17th March - Purim and St Patrick’s Day: For these two special festivals we are asking that all children wear green in celebration of St Patrick’s day. The children will also be enjoying activities linked to both festivities.
Friday 18th March - Holi and Red Nose Day: Its going to be a busy day for us here at Snapdragons Shirehampton! To celebrate the Hindu festival ‘Holi’ the children will be taking part in activities linked to colour, love and spring, the three things the Holi festival is known for. For Red Nose Day the staff are all eager for a pyjama day so to keep them all happy we are inviting you to bring your child in in there most colourful pyjamas. We will be holding a bake sale outside the front door with an honesty box, please feel free to donate some change and help yourself to a cake (or two).
Friday 25th March - Our special Mothers Day picnic! We are inviting all you mummy’s to come and join your child for a picnic tea. The front preschool room will be set up for a buffet styled tea and you and your child can have tea together whilst creating some keepsakes!
Sunday 27th March - Mothering Sunday.
Special things we have done this month:
World Book Day:
Arguably some of the staff members favourite day of the year has just passed! The whole nursery dressed up as their favourite characters from different books and took part in some amazing inventive activities throughout the day. Babies embarked on a journey through three classic stories trying all the different foods. They had porridge from “Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” fruit salad from “Handa’s surprise” and gingerbread from “The Gingerbread Man.” Toddlers went on a hunt in the garden to try and relocate the butterflies from “The Hungry Caterpillar.” Preschool listened to a selection of their favourite stories and then used the home corner to try and recreate them. We also sent one of our dalmatians to the local Children’s Centre to donate some brand new books!
Isra and Mi’Raj
To honour the journey Prophet Muhhamed made this night we recreated our own journey around the world trying foods we might not have tried before. The children tried sushi, samosas, spring rolls, naan bread, pomegranate, lychee and lots more.
Trips:
Lots of children got to explore our local community in more depth last month. Babies took a long stroll to the local farm, the babies then got to explore the farm, seeing all the animals and even playing in the soft play. Babies also went to a local park. Toddlers and Preschool went to the park together and spent the afternoon playing in the winter sun.
What have we been up to this month?
Babies:
Babies have been busy as usual! They have been exploring their environments in depth and looking at the shape of different everyday items. Babies have concentrated on boosting their independence this month too. They have all tried using cups to drink from instead of bottles as well as trying to wash their own hands before carrying out some baking.
Toddlers:
Toddlers have been expressing their creative sides this month with some large scale art work. They have also been developing their gross and fine motor skills by using spray bottles to make marks on their paper. Puzzles seem popular in toddlers too, they have been working as teams to complete them. There have been lots of discussions around weather this month too. They have made their own sensory bottles as well representing the most common weather types.
Preschool:
Preschool have been looking at numbers, quantities and numerals this month trying to match up items. They have been further exploring colour in a number of different ways including using pipettes and food colouring to colour in some shaving foam and creating their own rainbow pictures. Preschool also showed their baking skills by having ago at flipping their own pancakes on pancake day.
January and February Newsletter 2022
Welcome to…
We want to wish a big warm welcome to Amanda, Ebony, Rebecca, Lisa, Fay, and Kelsey who have all embarked on their new journeys with us here at Snapdragons Shirehampton.
Amanda is our new advanced practitioner in preschool, she has years of experience in a local school working as a teaching assistant with a concentration on 1:1 interventions and speech and language. We are so excited to welcome Amanda into our team and her role will consist of providing all the preschool children with age appropriate support with speech and phonics.
Ebony is our new SEN 1:1 practitioner in preschool. She will be working alongside the team in preschool to further support a smaller group of children.
Rebecca and Lisa are our new lunch covers. Rebecca will be based in our preschool room and Lisa will be supporting our baby team. Both ladies are super excited to spend time getting to know your children!
Our new preschool room head, Fay, is starting this week and we are so excited for her to join our team permanently! Fay has years of experience leading a room at another nursery, we cannot wait to introduce you to her and see all the wonderful things she can bring to our preschool room.
Now some of you may remember Kelsey, she worked with us last year and has decided to return to us, we are so glad Kelsey is coming back and we know you’ve all missed her deeply!
As you can see we have lots of new faces and they have already started forming some amazing attachments with all your children. You will get a chance to meet all of these new faces over the next few week and we hope you love them all as much as we do!
If you have any questions please feel free to email me on sophie.binks@snapdragonsnursery.com.
UNICEF - Rights Respecting
The article of the week this week is Article 3 (best interests of the child). This article explains that children’s best interests should be top priority in all decisions and actions that affect children. As adults and duty bearers all of us make decisions that affect children on a daily basis, as part of a reflection activity we would love if you could think about these questions, and if possible have a short discussion with your children about the following questions:
What things matter to you most in life?
Who are the people who make decisions that affect you?
How do you make your voice heard when decisions are made that may affect you?
If this is a struggle sometimes, who could you go to for help?
At nursery we allow the children to make decisions themselves, this is why we adopt a child led approach. We want children to feel happy and confident to explore their environments freely and safely. Our staff undergo an extensive induction process with a concentration on children being independent and being empowered to make choices themselves.
Dates for the diary:
14th February: Valentines Day
17th February: Random Act of Kindness Day
1st March: Isra and Mi’raj, Shrove Tuesday and St David’s Day - To celebrate all three of these events we will be spending the day embarking on a journey around the world in honour of the journey Prophet Muhammad made during the night. Each room will be doing some food tasting of different cuisines, taking part in activities that have originated from different places around the world, it will be a day dedicated to discussing differences and similarities in culture and religion.
3rd March: World Book Day - By far our favourite day of the year, World Book Day! We are encouraging you to dress your child up as their favourite book characters whilst your child joins in some activities based on popular stories we read at nursery. We cant wait to see all the inventive costumes!
17th March: Purim and St Patrick’s Day - In honour of the Jewish holiday the children will be making the famous Hamantashchen cookies. We also invite you to get in the mood for St Patrick’s day by dressing your child in a green outfit!
18th March: Holi and Red Nose Day - Also known as the festival of love and colour the children of Snapdragons Shirehampton will be joining in a range of fun and colourful activities to celebrate this Hindu festival. For Red Nose Day you can dress your child in a red outfit, we will also be carrying out a bake sale during pick up times to raise money for Comic Relief.
27th March: Mothers Day.
What have we been up to this month?
Babies:
Babies have enjoyed exploring soft play throughout the month. They have worked on their gross motor skills, walking, climbing and crawling over obstacles. They have also explored our new sensory lights in their sensory den. We were also treated to some homemade pizza’s this month. The babies worked together to make the dough and then spread the sauce on and added some yummy toppings. We have also had a new rabbit run made for us, babies have loved watching the rabbits explore their new environment.
Toddlers:
Toddlers have been getting super messy this month! They have enjoyed painting with different resources including cars which proved to be very popular. They have explored some interesting materials and medias with cornflour slime being a favourite. Toddlers have also enjoyed getting their bake on this month too! I’m convinced we have some budding chefs on our hands, maybe we even have a future Great British Bake Off winner among us.
Preschool:
Preschool have been busy this month! They have been welcoming their new pets Stick and Man. Our Indian stick insects are settling in well and preschool are thoroughly enjoying this. Preschool have done some planting this month too, they discussed what plants need to grow in preparation for the allotment we are creating in our garden. They have practiced their letter formation in the sand this month too as well as matching quantities to numerals.
November Newsletter
Welcome to Ellie, Busra, and Reanna
A warm Snapdragons welcome to Ellie, Busra and Reanna. Ellie is a new level three apprentice working in our younger preschool room. She will continue working alongside Karolina in Elder like she has been for the last 4 weeks. Ellie will make sure she introduces herself over the next few weeks, she is so excited to meet you all and get to know all the preschoolers!
Busra is our new apprentice in older preschool, she has been with us for two weeks now and is settling in wonderfully. She has already made some lovely bonds with your children and she cannot wait to continue her journey with us at Snapdragons Shirehampton.
Reanna is our new housekeeper, she is a super star at helping keep the nursery nice and clean. Reanna currently works after the nursery has closed but she sure does makes her presence known by leaving the nursery gleaming.
UNICEF - RIGHTS RESPECTING
Articles we are concentrating on next month:
Article 2 - No discrimination: The Convention applies to everyone: whatever their race, religion or abilities, whatever they think or say, whatever type of family they come from.
Article 23 - Children with disabilities: A child with a disability has the right to live a full and decent life with dignity and independence, and to play an active part in the community. Governments must do all they can to provide support to disabled children.
On the 3rd December we are celebrating international Day of People with Disabilities. It is a global event which promotes equality for people with disabilities and celebrates their achievements. In nursery on this day we will be encouraging the children to engage in activities related to hidden disabilities.
December Dates for the Diary:
3rd December: International Day of People with Disabilities.
8th December: Preschool’s Christmas Show.
10th December: Christmas Jumper Day - We invite you to wear your Christmas jumpers and make a donation for Save the Children. We have a Just Giving page for you to donate if you wish. We have a nursery target of £100 that we would like to reach.
W/C 13th December: Christmas party week! All week we will be celebrating and partying away in preparation for Christmas. The children will all have the opportunity to sing and dance away to Christmas songs.
16th December: Christmas dinner day - The children will enjoy their Christmas dinner, I think the staff are more excited than the children!
24th December: Christmas Eve.
25th December: Christmas Day!
What have we been up to this month?
Babies:
Babies have been so busy this month! They enjoyed a trip up to the local War Memorial to lay a hand made wreath. They have also been trying to complete their favourite puzzles and exploring what its like when going through tunnels. Babies, as always, have also been feeling new sensory materials and walking over them so they can decide what they feel like. The staff in babies have tried hard to promote independence too, they are prompting and role modelling to the babies how to use their cutlery all by themselves! Its been a loud one this month too as babies have been eager to explore the musical instruments, I am sure all the girls have needed some extra paracetamol this month!
Toddlers:
Toddlers have had a really exciting month this month! They have enjoyed getting super messy and using their bodies to make marks. They have also done some baking, they made pizza toast, quiche and banana flapjack. Toddlers have also explored the garden thoroughly making potions and soups with the mud and water.
Preschool:
What a month it has been for preschool, they have been busy looking at and recreating shapes using lolly sticks. They have practiced their number recognition, planted cress seeds, made cement out of sand and shaving foam then used this to stick blocks together and made cups of kindness, all whilst practicing intensely for their Christmas performance coming up in a couple of weeks!
October Newsletter
Goodbye and good luck to Jenna!
Jenna our lovely nursery manager leave for Maternity leave on 3rd November. We are so excited to meet baby boy when he decides to come along. We would like to wish Jenna all the luck and we will welcome her back with open arms next year.
Jessica is stepping up!
We are so excited to announce that Jessica, our current preschool room head, will be stepping up to cover the nursery manager role whilst Jenna is away. We know she is going to be amazing within this role. If you have any questions please feel free to email her or Sophie.
UNICEF - Rights Respecting:
As some of you know we are currently working towards our Silver Award. We are really keen to get some parent ambassadors on board with this. If you are interested in becoming an ambassador for children’s rights then please pop us an email. We would also like to thank you all for your donations for our Shoe Share that took place earlier this month. We will now donate these to clarks shoes who will recycle them and donate to UNICEF.
Dates for the diary:
4th November - Diwali, we will be celebrating the Hindu festival of light with decorations and activities throughout the day.
5th November - Firework night: The children will celebrate Guy Fawkes with lots of arts and crafts activities on offer.
8th November - Regan’s Birthday.
11th November - Terri’s Birthday and Remembrance day, the children will hold a two minute silence out in the garden all together.
17th November - Natalie’s Birthday.
19th November - Children in Need: We will be trying to raise money for Children in Need, we invite you to dress your child up for a beloved pyjama day, I think the staff are more excited about this than anyone else! We will also be hosting a variety of games throughout the day such as ‘how many sweets in the jar,’ ‘guess the name of the teddy bear,’ and ‘can you match the staff members to their baby photos.’
25th November - Thanksgiving.
26th November - Jessica’s Birthday.
28th November - Alex’s Birthday.
30th November - St Andrews Day: To celebrate this we would love for you to dress up in blue.
What have we been up to this month?
Babies:
Babies have been so busy this month despite the disruption to their rooms with the air con being installed. Babies have been on a trip to a local park this month, they dressed up in the rain suits and adventured out. You can see just how much fun they had from the smiles on their faces. Babies have also been exploring with sensory play again this month. The staff team set up an amazing ‘we’re going on a bear hunt’ activity with the children. They had different materials such as fake grass to represent the long wavy grass, soil to represent the thick oozy mud, and shaving foam for the swirling whirling snowstorm. The children then walked over the materials experimenting with how they felt.
Toddlers:
Toddlers have really embraced the autumnal months this year. They have enjoyed making potions in their water tray, counting spiders and their legs and having glow stick raves for their spooktacular party. They have had so much fun continuing to explore the garden as the temperature gets colder. They have also taken a real interest in brushing their teeth and talking about oral hygeine.
Preschool:
In preschool this month they have been super busy. Preschool have also jumped into autumn, they have been reading stories such as ‘Room on the broom,’ and then acting this out in the garden. They have made pumpkin soups, potions and lots more. My favourite was the fruit smoothies they made for the whole nursery, what a delicious and nutritional treat! Preschool have also completed so many different art activities, including some big art where there was paper on the floor and the children used sticks, leaves and pumpkins to create their masterpieces.
September Newsletter
Welcome to Andy, Ellie and Maisie
Andy has started as our new preschool lunch cover. He is level three qualified and has been working in childcare for over 13 years. We are so happy to welcome Andy to our team and we know the children are going to love having him around!
Maisie is our new apprentice in babies, she joined us at the beginning of this month and is enjoying getting to know all of the babies. She will be based in yew but will be spending time in willow too.
Ellie has started this week and is our new toddler apprentice! Ellie will be spending time in both of the toddler rooms over the next few weeks.
We are so excited about Andy, Maisie and Ellie joining our Snapdragons team, as you can now enter the nursery when picking up your children you will be able to put faces to the names quicker than you have been able to over the last year. Please give them all a big hello and a friendly smile.
Dates for the diary:
1st October - 31st October:
Black History Month, throughout the month of October we will be discussing inspirational black people such as Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama, Usain Bolt, Ida Wells and Sojourner Truth. We will be using this to discuss that every child is different but every child still deserves to be treated equally and fairly.
6th October:
Our staff and parent meeting from 6pm-7pm with Hayley Fitton-Cook about UNICEF Rights Respecting and our journey to our silver award.
7th October:
National Poetry Day, we will be reading out some simple poems, discussing what makes a poem and have a go at writing our own.
8th October:
Molly’s birthday.
20th October:
Parents evening: this will now take place in the nursery building. Each parent will be allocated 10 minute slots with their child’s key person. You will see a table on the door of your child’s room when you come and collect over the next few weeks, please add your names on to the table. We ask that on the day you arrive on time for your meeting, wearing masks, and try not to over run your designated time slot. If you are unable to attend please feel free to email Sophie or Jenna and they will find a time for you to have a call with your child’s keyperson. There maybe some staff that are on annual leave, if this is the case we will arrange for the keyperson to give you a call the following week.
22nd October:
In line with us working towards our Silver Rights Respecting award, we are holding a ShoeShare event. We will be collecting old shoes and then donating these to Clarks in Cribbs Causeway. We will have a box ready in the reception area for you to donate any shoes that you have at home that you no longer need.
Sophie’s Birthday
27th October:
Shirehampton’s Spooktacular Party: This year we are so excited to dress up and get in the spooky spirit before the Halloween weekend. We have decided to hold our party the Wednesday before as this is our busiest day and we would like as many children to be able to participate as possible. You are free to dress your child up, I know the staff are eager to dress up too, I am sure there will be lots of cats, witches, and skeletons. The children will then take part in some spooky and engaging activities throughout the day such as pumpkin carving, apple bobbing and spider painting.
Snapdragon’s Roald Dahl Day:
As you can see the children had lots of fun dressing up and exploring activities based on Roald Dahl Day. There were so many activities such as making marvellous medicines like George, and looking at and exploring insects from James and the Giant Peach.
National Recycling Week
The children took part in lots of fun things last week for National Recycling Week, we used this opportunity to discuss how to look after our planet. Preschool helped rescue animals from plastic and tar in the water tray and also held a rally to “save the trees.”
What have we been up to this month?
Babies:
Babies have been exploring the garden loads this month. Last month they had some new equipment delivered, they have continued to explore this. The babies found some conkers in the garden too and then used this to do some painting. Babies have been on a trip to the children’s kitchen too and made some yummy flapjacks.
Toddlers:
The toddlers have enjoyed being back In the garden and exploring the balance beams and new logs. We have also been doing lots of cooking this month and all the Maple children enjoyed making there own sandwiches for there teddy bears picnic.
Preschool:
Preschool have been so busy this month. They have been getting into the autumnal feel by going for an autumn walk, and vegetable printing. You might have heard preschool also had a gingerbread man go missing recently! The children all made posters to help find him, you will be happy to know they did find him!
August Newsletter 2021
August Newsletter
Goodbye Isla!
Isla has been working for Snapdragons for the past couple of years, she recently received her level three qualification in Early Years and has decided to take the next step in her career. Isla is moving to another nursery as Deputy Room Head of Babies. Isla’s last day will be 16th September. We wish Isla all the best in her new role, even if it does mean we have to lose her!
Welcome Keira!
We are so excited to introduce you to Keira, she is a new Level three qualified member of staff who has started on our toddler floor. She will be based in Maple. We can’t wait for you all to get to know her. Please give her a friendly hello and smile when you get to meet her.
Dates for the diary:
Friday 3rd September: UNICEF - Soccer Aid: As a nursery we are trying to raise money for UNICEF. They are holding their annual soccer aid on Saturday 4th September. In honour of this we are arranging a football crazy day! We ask you to dress your children in their football kits and the staff will be arranging some fun activities throughout the day. We will also be holding a bake sale Friday afternoon from 12:30 - 5:45, so take your chance to grab some delicious goodies - any donations of cakes are highly appreciated! We ask that you donate any spare change you may have when you bring your child in on that day, or throughout the week.
Monday 13th September: Roald Dahl day - A day to celebrate the amazing children’s author Roald Dahl. We have decided this is a brilliant chance to get creative and wear fancy dress. We ask you to dress your child up in an outfit from one of Roald Dahl’s famous books. We can’t wait to see all your outfits!
Week commencing 20th September: Throughout the week the children will be carrying out activities to encourage recycling and to decrease the amount of waste we make. On Friday 24th September we will all be dressing up in green. We look forward to seeing a sea of green!
Thursday 30th September: Tayla’s birthday.
Snapdragons Summer Olympics
Preschool trip and picnic at Kingsweston House
Preschool Graduation
We had so much fun celebrating our Class of 2021 last week at our preschool graduation. We just want to take a moment to say a massive thank you to all the families and a special thank you to all the children. We will miss you all so much and we wish you the best on your next adventure!
What have we been up to this month?
Babies: As always, babies have enjoyed being messy, and taking part in lots of sensory activities, which this month have included cooking! Babies have practiced their independence and self-help skills by cutting up ingredients and making banana biscuits. They were delicious! Babies have recently had some new garden furniture delivered. There is a bridge, a tunnel, and a water tray. The babies have all had so much fun exploring these new additions to the garden!
Toddlers: This month Toddlers have been so busy preparing some budding bakers for the world. They have made shortbread, oat biscuits and cornflake explosions. Toddlers have also been looking at music and movement. They have been trying to express themselves through music and make their own music with instruments.
Preschool: Preschool have been up to so much this month! They have all tried their hand at acting out stories with props. My favourite to listen to has been the Three Little Pigs. Preschool have also released their inner Van Gogh with some spectacular self-portraits. As always preschool have been promoting their self-help skills and have been really concentrating on their scissor control.
July Newsletter
Welcome to Grace, Megan, Anais, Regan and Alex
We would like to give a warm welcome to our new Early Years Apprentices. We have Megan and Grace who will both be working in our toddler rooms. Anais who will be based in our baby room full time and Regan will be in our preschool rooms.
We also would like to welcome back Alex, some of you may remember Alex before she went on maternity leave, she will be joining us back two mornings a week. We are so happy that Alex has joined our Snapdragons team again!
Please give the girls a friendly hello when you see them.
Jenna is having a….
BOY!
Congratulations again Jenna!
Dates for the diary:
August:
6th - Jenna’s Birthday.
9th - Snapdragons’ summer Olympics: Please dress your child in their best sports kit and get them ready to compete in the biggest sporting event of the year! The children will compete in a variety of races and competitions throughout the day such as the classic egg and spoon race and who can stand on one leg the longest.
21st - Preschool Graduation (More information will be sent out nearer the time).
22nd - Isla’s Birthday.
30th - Lowenna’s Birthday.
What have we been up to this month?
Babies:
Babies have been concentrating on keeping cool this month! It has been extremely hot, so the staff have been offering lots of water play to keep the babies nice and cool. Babies have also had lots of sensory play on offer like usual, with shaving foam and paint being firm favourites. The babies have continued to look after the rabbits and are still loving spending time with them and getting lots of bunny cuddles.
Toddlers:
This month toddlers have really concentrated on their physical development, both gross and fine motor skills. They have been using the climbing frame and big loose parts to practice their climbing and they have taken part in lots of messy play to improve their fine motor skills. Toddlers have made a robot this month out of cardboard boxes and the toddlers have really taken an interest in butterflies and slugs, they had great fun looking at the slugs in the rain.
Preschool:
They have been super busy this month! Preschool created the most amazing obstacle course in the forest garden and then spent the rest of the month testing it out and making it easier or harder depending on what they wished. Preschool have discussed nocturnal animals this month too after reading the story ‘Owl Babies.’ The children also made owl pictures and oat cakes to go along with this. Preschool also enjoyed a story in the forest garden with warm milk too.
June Newsletter 2021
Welcome back Liv and hello Amelia!
Liv came back from Cribbs nursery earlier this month and has now decided to stay with us. Liv will be based in our Willow room and is our baby deputy room head.
Amelia has started with us too, she is our new preschool apprentice, she will be based in oak and elder, Amelia is doing her level three apprenticeship in Early Years. Please give her a big hello when you meet her.
We have babies on the way…
Big congratulations to two members of staff who are expecting babies! Daria from preschool is now 21 weeks pregnant and is due November 6th. We can’t wait to meet her little boy! Jenna, our nursery manager, is also pregnant. Jenna is 17 weeks and is due 10th December. Jenna does know what gender the baby is but is keeping it a secret for now.
We also have rabbits!
Tayla was so kind to buy us two rabbits as our new nursery pets! We have two rabbits named Nibbles and Munch, the children have absolutely adored getting to know the rabbits and are helping with taking care of them.
What have we been up to this month?
Babies:
This month we have been super busy, we have been to the park, and we have been super excited settling in our new rabbits. The babies have been so excited to meet their new friends and getting to see them every time they go to the garden. The staff have used this as a chance to teach the babies about gentle hands. The babies have made the most of the nice weather recently with lots of water play and messy activities. Puzzles seem to be a new favourite in babies too so the staff have been helping the children to complete simple puzzles.
Toddlers:
This month toddlers have enjoyed tasting different fruits and vegetables. Next month we are going to build on this by doing some cooking. We will be making some fruit kebabs and looking at what vegetables go in different soups. We have enjoyed reading some new stories this month such as “The kind little lion” and “Panda says please,” we used these stories to talk about our emotions and why we need to be kind to our friends. We have been talking a lot about health and self-care and have been washing our babies and taking care of them and talking about our routines at home. We have seen a massive increase in our toddler’s self-help skills.
Toddlers have also been as busy as ever with all their fun messy activities. Elm have really enjoyed exploring different textures. They have been mixing shaving foam with different coloured paints so the children can experiment with colours too.
What a busy month, we can’t wait to see what they get up to next month!
Elder (Younger preschool):
This month, younger preschool have been combining playdough with a range of resources such as: bamboo, pinecones, and acorns. They have also used both fresh and dried herbs. We have enjoyed lots of books including Chapatti Moon, Aliens Love Smelly Jelly, Oliver's Vegetables and more! We would love to know what stories your favourites at home are, please feel free to bring these in and they can be read at circle time. The children have shown an interest in volcanoes this month too, so we looked at eruptions on the iPad, painted some of our own using the colours of lava and even took part in a science experiment where we saw a real-life eruption! Next month we will continue to provide activities and experiences based on the children's interests, we're so excited to see where that will take us!
Oak (Older preschool):
This month pre school have been learning some number songs to help practise counting forwards and backwards. We have been continuing to develop our fine motor skills and have had fun practising our name writing. We have read several stories, including Handa’s surprise, Over the meadow, The Gruffalo and many more. We have been creating more cozy spaces for children to relax and read in and have been enjoying using these new spaces in our play. Next month we are hoping for a bit more sunshine so we can continue developing our forest school area. We would also like to do a bit more cooking so if anyone has any yummy healthy recipes please let us know, we would love to build up a recipe book of some of your favourite recipes!
May Newsletter 2021
Goodbye Becy!
We want to start off by saying a big goodbye to our current Manager Becy who has chosen to relocate. Becy has been with Snapdragon Shirehampton for two years and has been a valued team leader. We will miss Becy ever so much and wish her the best in her new adventure. Becy’s last day is June 3rd.
Hello Jenna
Jenna is going to be the new nursery manager. Jenna has been with Snapdragons since it opened, starting as Toddlers room head, and working her way up. We are excited for Jenna to start this new role and we know she is going to be amazing.
Welcome to Sophie, Jessica, Jade, Molly and Weronika
Sophie has started as our new Head of Early Years Practice and Deputy Manager. She has been in Early Years for the past 6 years and after recently relocating from London she has chosen to start her next journey with us here at Snapdragons Shirehampton.
Jessica is our new Preschool Room Head. Jessica has worked in Early Years for several years and has most recently been teaching in a local school. Jessica is excited to get stuck in and we can’t wait to see all the wonderful things preschool get up to over the next few months.
Jade and Molly are our two new Nursery Apprentices. Jade is based in babies, currently she works in both rooms but will be based in Yew and Molly is based in Elm.
Weronika is a new Nursery Assistant working on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays whilst she studies at university. She will be trialling and helping in all rooms with the intention to be based in one soon.
What’s been going on this month?
Babies:
In babies this month they have carried out lots of sensory activities. They have played with shaving foam, ice, flour, paint, gloop and water. Sensory play is so important for babies, they use their senses to explore different textures and materials. The babies have also done some baking, Yew made raisin biscuits and Willow made cranberry biscuits. Next month babies are going to continue concentrating on sensory development by creating new sensory bottles.
Toddlers:
May has proved to be a busy month for toddlers, they have explored outside, even going on a trip to the local park, they have enjoyed getting messy and developing their independence. Toddlers have really concentrated on following instructions and routines this month. The staff have been using lots of simple and positive language to encourage this. Next month toddlers plan to do lots of big art activities using their bodies to explore different colours and textures.
Preschool:
In preschool we have been learning how to give our friends compliments. We find starting our day like this makes everyone happy. We have enjoyed making lots of junk modelling creations and have practiced name writing in lots of inventive ways such as shaving foam, mud and magic paint. Preschool have also enjoyed exploring their new water wall. Next month preschool will be introducing a book of the week, we will be reading it throughout the week and carrying out activities linked to it.
Toddlers Trip to the Park
A Big Thank You
A big thank you to Terry Richards (Ezra’s daddy) for bringing in lots of new construction equipment for the children to use in the garden. We have a new wishing line in the entrance hall with equipment and resources we feel some of you may be able to help us source, please take a minute to have a look at this.
March Newsletter 2020
Welcome to our new monthly newsletter here at Snapdragons Shirehampton.
At the beginning of each month we would like to share with you what your children have been busy doing the previous month. We will also share important information, news and dates for the diary.
i just want to take this opportunity to say since taking over as manager here in October I have loved getting to know all of the families here at Snapdragons and I could not enjoy managing this nursery more. The children here at Snapdragons are a pleasure to look after and I look forward to watching them all grow in their time with us.
I look forward to sharing more nursery news with you next month.
Becy Allen (Nursery Manager)
Where The Wild Things Are…
The babies went on an exciting trip to the zoo this month. The children caught the train to Bristol zoo and went on safari in their zoo buggies. They saw lots of different animals including lions, flamingos, hippos and penguins. They especially loved watching the seals in the underwater tunnel swim above them. They also found going into the butterfly house fascinating. The babies were exhausted after a long day of animal sightseeing but they enjoyed reading their new book about visiting the zoo before they went home.
Lets Go Pancake Crazy…
All of the children had so much fun celebrating pancake day at the nursery. Zoe our forest school leader invited all of the children, in all age groups, to come down to the forest school area to make pancakes on the fire pit. The children made their own mixture, learnt about safety around the fire pit and of course enjoyed eating their pancakes after.
Sharing the Love…
The children got very creative for valentine’s day this year. Babies did bodypainting with lots of shades of red and pink. The babies loved painting their hands and making prints on the paper. Toddlers made their own valentines vanilla biscuits. They measured their ingredients, mixed it all together, rolled out the dough and used a heart shape cutter to cut the biscuits. Preschool made pictures using different mark making tools with red paint. They then tried to write their names on their creations.
Little Scientist’s…
The preschool children have been pretending to be scientist’s and have conducted their own experiment using water, food colouring and oil. The children mixed oil with lots of bright coloured food colouring and then used pipettes to drop droplets on to the water. The children discovered that the coloured oil would not mix with the water so they made lots of amazing pictures on top of the water. The children asked lots of questions and tried to explain what was happening.
Dates for the Diary…
Concept Photography - Monday 23rd March 2020
Parents Evening - Thursday 14th May 2020
Preschool Graduation - Saturday 1st August 2020
Parent Information…
Concept photography will be with us on Monday 23rd of March. If your child is not due in on this day we have some limited slots available for you to come in to have their photos taken. Please enquire at the front desk.
Please remember that the layby outside the front entrance is for passing traffic only and not a parking space. We appreciate your understanding with this matter.
If your child will receive preschool funding from September 2020 or January 2021 and you would like to increase their sessions please enquire by email as soon as possible as spaces do fill quickly.
February 2019 News
It’s been a busy start to the year here at Snapdragons Shirehampton, read on to find out what we’ve been up to and what we have planned for the coming weeks and months.
News from the nursery:
With some of the cold weather we had earlier in the month our babies took the opportunity to stay inside and enjoyed an afternoon of soft play.
You may have noticed our new recycling area at the bottom of the stairs, toddlers have been helping to sort some of our rubbish ready for it to be recycled. At nursery we all do our bit to help protect the environment.
During these long winter months some of our garden birds struggle to find all the food they need, so pre-school have been lending a helping hand by making bird feeders, complete with a string to hang in a tree.
Dates for your diary:
We’ve got lots of events and celebrations coming up during March and April, but sure to make a note of these key dates….
World Book Day 2019
On Thursday 7th March we will all be dressing up as our favourite characters for world book day, please join us in doing so, there may be a prize for the best dressed character! We’ve had everything from Harry Potter to Elmer the Patchwork Elephant before, so get your thinking caps on.
International Women’s Day 2019
Friday 8th March is International Women’s Day, please join us in celebrating the wonderful women of the world and the wonderful women who work at Snapdragons Shirehampton as well as all of the little women who attend. The staff will be wearing their fanciest hat’s so keep an eye out for these.
Concept Photography
Monday 11th March Concept Photography are due to return to Snapdragons Shirehampton. If your child does not normally attend on a Monday please feel free to book in a slot for them to have their photos taken. Siblings are also welcome to attend. The photographers from Concept take such lovely photos capturing all the different faces and personalities so don’t miss out!
Red Nose Day 2019
Friday 15th March is Red Nose Day and we will be joining in with the fundraising! Please wear as much red as you can, anything from trousers to socks to a hat would be great, we will have a collection pot on the desk and red noses for sale, please donate what you can to this brilliant cause.
Mothering Sunday
Pop in on Friday 29th March to collect your Mother’s Day goodie bag, we know you all deserve a little treat!
Easter Bonnet Parade
We will be having an Easter Parade at 9.45am on Thursday 18th April, please attend with your children for a morning of fun, Easter Bonnets are of course
Clothes bank donations
Over the coming weeks and months we will be collecting spare clothes for a clothes bank. Parents have always responded brilliantly when we have needed spare clothes for the nursery and now we would like pass on the favour. If you have any old spare clothes lying around at home, please bring them in.
Reminders:
Suitable clothing for all weathers, as at this time of year the weather can surprise us. Please can we remind all parents to bring in suitable clothing for their children. Raincoats and waterproofs if necessary, and as always spare clothes in case children get wet. Please also put your child’s name in their clothes, including wellies.
If your child is in nappies, please remember to bring in nappy cream as unfortunately we are not able to provide this. If you had already left a nappy cream here, the practitioners will be able to let you know if it needs replacing.
Drop off and pick up, please remember to wait with your child until the start of their session. If you would like a full handover at the end of the session please allow 10 minutes for this. Unfortunately we cannot give full handovers at 6pm.
Snappies Superstars - Have you noticed a practitioner going above and beyond, have you been impressed by a practitioners amazing story telling skills, does your child come home always talking about the same practitioner, do you love how well the team work together? Seen any of this going on? Why not share this on our Snappies Superstar page HERE and nominate an outstanding practitioner or team.
Your feedback is really important to us. We would appreciate it if you could take a few minutes of your time to complete a review for DayNurseries.co.uk, to tell them about your experience with us. Please follow this link to submit your review: https://www.daynurseries.co.uk/submitreview
August 2018 News
At the end of July we welcome Zoe to the team, she is our new room head in pre-school. She has made a big impact already and the children love her.
What a busy and eventful summer we've had here at Snapdragons Shirehampton.
Please take a look below to see what we have been up to, as well as finding useful information for the coming Autumn term.
Nursery News
Class of 2018 - we had a great day celebrating our pre-school leavers graduation, thank you to everyone who attended and best of luck to all the children starting school this September. We will miss you all very much and hope that you all have an amazing time at school. Here are a few photos from the day, the full gallery can be found: HERE
The final pre-school leavers celebration will be the leavers disco on Thursday 23rd August at 6pm. If your child is leaving us or has already left to go to school then you are welcome to join us for an evening of music, magic and dancing. Parents to please attend.
Snapdragons Shirehampton Team News
At the end of July we welcomed Zoe to the team, she is our new room head in pre-school. She brings with her years of brilliant experience and has made a big impact on the room already, the children love her.
Karolina has been promoted to deputy pre-school room head and will be supporting Zoe in her new role.
We also have a new head of toddlers, Victoria. She is a familiar face at Snapdragons Shirehampton and we look forward to seeing her develop into her new role.
I'm sure you will join us in congratulating Karolina and Victoria on their recent promotions.
Dates for Your Diary
Pyjama Party
Tuesday 21st August, wear your jim-jams to nursery and help us raise some money for the cappella foundation. Just bring £1 to join in the fun, there will be a collection tin on the desk.
Cake Sale
Thursday 30th August, our pre-school children will be getting their aprons on and will be running a charity cake sale. There may be some staff contributions too. We look forward to providing some sweet treats and baked goods at pick up times on the 30th.
Baby Stay and Play Sessions
We have some stay and play sessions coming up in our baby room. If you know someone who might be interested in a nursery place then send them our way! It's a chance for prospective parents to get to know the baby room team and explore some of the activities we offer, as well as having a bit of fun.
Friday 7th September 2018 - 9.30am - 11.30am - New families only, if your an existing parent and would like to come please just bring a friend along too.
Friday 19th October - 2pm - 4pm - All welcome, if you know someone who might be interested in a nursery place then send them our way for an afternoon of playing.
Our baby room team will be on hand to answer any questions you may have about starting nursery.
Concept Photography
Concept with will with us on Thursday 11th October, if your child is not due to attend nursery on this day you are welcome to pop along just for the photographs or if you would like to book in for an extra just let any member of the team know. The photos taken around this time of year make great Christmas presents!
Reminders
- Suitable clothing for all weathers, as the summer weather seems to have finally broken please can we remind all parents to bring in suitable clothing for their children. Raincoats and waterproofs if necessary, and as always spare clothes in case children get wet.
- If your child is in nappies, please remember to bring in nappy cream as unfortunately we are not able to provide this. If you had already left a nappy cream here, the practitioners will be able to let you know if it needs replacing.
- Drop off and pick up, please remember to wait with your child until the start of their session. If you would like a full handover at the end of the session please allow 10 minutes for this. Unfortunately we cannot give full handovers at 6pm.
- Snappies Superstars - Have you noticed a practitioner going above and beyond, have you been impressed by a practitioners amazing story telling skills, does your child come home always talking about the same practitioner, do you love how well the team work together? Seen any of this going on? Why not share this on our Snappies Superstar page HERE and nominate an outstanding practitioner or team.
- Your feedback is really important to us. We would appreciate it if you could take a few minutes of your time to complete a review for DayNurseries.co.uk, to tell them about your experience with us. Please follow this link to submit your review: https://www.daynurseries.co.uk/submitreview
Theraplay, Speech and Language
Speech and language drop in dates are displayed at the bottom of the stairs in the main hallway, we are just waiting on the new Autumn term session dates but will update our display as soon as we have these.
Sunshine circles will be resuming in September for our pre-school children, these small group sessions, focus on the children's personal, social and emotional skills as well as their communication and language. If you have any questions or would like to know more, please speak to Hannah.