November 2023
Pre-school Nativity
We absolutely loved being able to welcome some of our pre-school parents to the Nativity at the end of this month. The children all performed so well and we are all very proud of them!
Jessie May - Wishing Tree
This festive period we are partnering with the Jessie May foundation to bring a smile to faces of children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions and their families. Jessie May provides vital emotional support, respite, end of life care and bereavement support to families throughout the South West. We would love your help to support this amazing charity and bring some joy and comfort to them over what can be a difficult time of year.
Instead of baubles, you will find gift tags hung on our Christmas Tree. We would love it if you could select a tag and purchase the gift labelled. If I can ask that we have these no later than Wednesday 20th December, Myself and Kayleigh will then ensure that these gifts are delivered to Jessie May before we close for Christmas.
Festive Recipes
If you fancy doing some baking over the coming weeks, this easy gingerbread dough is very forgiving if overworked. Why not try making some gingerbread stars to hang on the tree, or wrap up as gifts for loved ones.
Ingredients
100g salted butter
3 tbsp golden syrup
100g dark muscovardo sugar
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
225g plain flour
50g icing sugar
Method
Heat the butter, syrup and sugar together in a small pan until melted, stirring occasionally. Set aside to cool slightly.
Mix together the bicarb, ginger, cinnamon and flour in a large bowl. Pour in the buttery syrup mixture and stir to combine, then use your hands to bring together to form a dough. Add up to 1 tbsp of milk to combine if needed. The dough will be soft at this point, but it’ll firm up in the fridge.
Put the dough on a sheet of baking parchment, shape into a rectangle, and lay another sheet of parchment on top of it. Roll the dough out to a thickness of ½cm. Transfer to a baking sheet to keep it flat, leaving the parchment in place, then chill in the fridge for 1 hr.
Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and line a large baking sheet with more baking parchment. Remove the dough from the fridge and cut out shapes using a cookie cutter. Don’t forget to poke a hole in your design if you want to hang them from the tree!
Place the shapes, spread apart, on the lined baking sheet, and bake for 10-12 mins. (Depending on the size of the cutters you use, they might need a few minutes more or less cooking in the oven). Leave to cool completely on the baking sheet.
Meanwhile, mix the icing sugar with 1-2 tbsp water – you want to create a consistency that’s thick and pipeable, and not too thin or it will run. Decorate the cooled biscuits with the icing using a piping bag with a thin nozzle
Illness and Exclusions
Unfortunately, we are reaching the time of year where coughs, colds and viruses are becoming more prevalent. Snapdragons values each child's health and we do everything we can to prevent infection when children are at nursery. Children are encouraged to wash their hands regularly and practice good hygiene and toys and equipment are regularly sterilised and cleaned by members of the Snapdragons team.
Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, some children will pick up illnesses, many of which are contagious even before they display symptoms. Because of this we enforce strict exclusion periods for children suffering from certain illnesses or symptoms to reduce risk of cross-infection within the nursery, both towards other children and our parents and employees. In order to keep everyone at nursery as healthy as possible, please could you familiarise yourselves with our illness and exclusion policies, which can be found on our website.
If a child has been given medication prior to attending nursery, parents should complete the ‘Preexisting Medication Form,’ providing details of the medication, including the time and dosage given. If a child has been given any fever reducing medication (i.e., Calpol, Paracetamol, Nurofen) they must stay home for at least four hours prior to their nursery session starting.
Dates for your Diaries
We are ready to fully embrace Christmas here at Snapdragons! The staff will be wearing their festive jumpers and outfits every day in December, and invite the children to join in if they would like. We will also be hosting our Christmas parties next week, and everyone is welcome to join us!
Toddlers: 5th December 3pm-5pm
Pre-school: 6th December 3pm-5pm
Babies: 7th December 3pm-5pm
Joke of the Month
What did the big traffic light say to the little traffic light? - Don’t look now, I’m changing!
Nominate your Superstar
We love to hear from our families across Snapdragons about excellent service they have received. If someone at the nursery has impressed you, please fill in their details below and submit to the nursery. We run a rewards scheme for our teams and they can earn gifts by receiving nominations!