Nursery Newsletter 09.10.26

🌧️ Splish, splash, splosh!

The miserable weather certainly hasn’t dampened our spirits! Dressed in our raincoats and wellies, we’ve been making the most of the rain, splashing in puddles and having lots of fun outdoors. Who says rainy days can’t be the best days?

🌿 Outdoor explorers

There’s always something exciting to discover outside! We’ve been digging and collecting bark from our mud kitchen to investigate on the tuff tray, climbing over tyres, practising our balancing skills and getting creative with chalk. So many ways to explore, move and create!

🏃‍♀️ Ready, steady, jump!

Our little engineers have been busy using the big green crates to design their very own obstacle courses. We’ve been experimenting with different ways to arrange them before enjoying the best bit, jumping off! Lots of problem-solving, physical development and fun along the way.

🎨 Colourful creations

Aprons on and creativity at the ready! We’ve been mixing paints and adding them to the water tray, watching with fascination as the water changes colour. We’ve been exploring colour mixing, making predictions and discovering what happens when different colours come together.

🏗️ How tall can we build?

We’ve been busy building tall towers using our tubes, carefully stacking them higher and higher. We love comparing the towers to our own height to see how tall we can make them and, of course, watching them tumble down! We’re developing our construction skills, spatial awareness and understanding of height, balance and stability.

💦 Water, wheels and wonderful discoveries!

Our outdoor guttering has inspired lots of experimenting! We’ve been joining the pieces together to create long channels, then sending water and cars down them to see what happens. We’ve been testing our ideas, solving problems and discovering how to make things flow, with plenty of excitement when our cars reach the bottom!

 

Reception Learning W.C 5.10.26

 

Year Reception: What We Are Learning 

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world,” said Mahatma Gandhi.

Our focus book was People Who Help Us:

Here is what we have been up to:

The children have also been working hard in Read, Write, Inc this week. The children have been learning the sounds v, y, w, z and x. Please continue to read with your children and work on these sounds with them. 

In Maths, we have been developing our subitising skills! Subitising is the ability to look at a small group of objects and recognise how many there are without needing to count each one. The children have been exploring the number 3 and learning to recognise what 3 looks like in different ways. We have been using our fingers, dots, objects and pictures to help us spot 3 quickly.

🌈 What We Are Learning Next Week

Next week, we will be exploring the wonderful story of Elmer the Elephant 🐘🌈 as part of our topic. We will be enjoying the story together and using it to support our learning and discussions.

🔤 Phonics: We will be revisiting some of the sounds that we have found tricky. Please continue to practise these sounds at home to help build confidence and secure our learning.

🔢 Maths: We will be learning the counting sequence to 5 and developing our understanding of numbers through practical activities.

Ways you can help at home:

• Practise counting to 5 together.

• Count everyday objects such as toys, stairs, socks or pieces of fruit.

• Sing counting songs and rhymes.

• Ask your child, “What comes next?” when counting.

• Keep practising those tricky sounds little and often. 💕

Thank you for your continued support with your child's learning! 🌟

Well done Reception for an amazing week - keep up all your brilliant work! 

Reception Learning W.C - 28.9.26

 

Reception: What We Are Learning 

Reception have been working really hard this week. This term our topic is Marvellous Me. Our focus book was Sharing A Shell.

Here is what we have been up to: We have been learning all about friendship and what it means to be a good friend, we made friendship bracelets to give to a class mate, we sequenced the story and designed our own shell in drawing club. 

The children have also been working hard in Read, Write, Inc this week. The children have been learning the sounds e, l, h, r, and j.  Please continue to read with your children and work on these sounds with them everyday. Practise Set 1 Sounds here. 

In Maths this week the children have been working hard to sort objects by colour, shape or size. They also found different ways to sort themselves such as into girls and boys, by height, or hair colour. In addition to this, they compared amounts using the language more or less.

Our Learning Next Week

Next week, we will be exploring the story 'People who help us'. We will speak about who helps us in the community, what to do in an emergency and drew fire fighter hats in drawing club.

In phonics, we will be learning the sounds v, y, w, z and x. At home, you could go on a little sound hunt and see what objects you can find beginning with these sounds!

In maths, we will be learning about subitising — this means recognising how many objects there are without having to count them one by one. For example, seeing 🍎🍎🍎 and knowing there are 3 straight away! Try using dice, fingers or small groups of objects and ask, “How many can you see?”

Thank you for supporting your child’s learning at home! 💛

Well done Reception for an amazing week - keep up all your brilliant work!

Nursery Newsletter- 02.10.26

A Little Reminder 👕

Please ensure that your child has a spare set of clothes in school, kept in a drawstring bag.

This week, the children have been busy exploring their creativity through painting and colour mixing. They have enjoyed experimenting with different colours, discovering what happens when they mix them together, and watching new colours appear.

The children have also been practising an important independence skill, putting on their own aprons before getting started. It has been lovely to see them becoming more confident as they learn to prepare themselves for creative activities.

The children have also been enjoying lots of fun outdoor water play. They have been rolling balls down the gutter and watching carefully as they travel into the water tank.

This activity has encouraged the children to explore movement, speed and cause and effect as they experimented with how the balls moved. They also enjoyed taking turns and repeating the activity, building their confidence and developing their coordination along the way.

The children have been busy in the construction area, using skewers and wheels to create their own cards. They have been exploring how different materials can be joined together and experimenting with how the wheels move.

It has been wonderful to see their imagination and problem-solving skills developing as they designed, built and adapted their creations. They have also been strengthening their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination as they carefully handled the materials.

The children have been enjoying lots of sensory fun outdoors, mixing foam in the tuff tray. They explored the different textures, scooped and stirred the foam, and enjoyed watching it change as they mixed it together.

This activity encouraged the children to use their senses, develop their fine motor skills and explore different ways of mixing and combining materials. Most importantly, they had lots of fun getting messy and experimenting together!

The children have been practising jumping safely from the equipment in the garden. They have been developing their balance, coordination and gross motor skills while learning how to jump, land safely and move with confidence.

It has been lovely to see the children encouraging one another and building their confidence as they challenge themselves through physical play. They have been learning to assess their movements, listen to safety guidance and enjoy being active outdoors.

 

Reception Learning - W.C 25.9.26

 

Our topic this term is Marvellous Me, and our focus book this week has been The Invisible String.

📚 Here is what we have been up to:

This week, we have been learning all about the important people in our lives, our families and our family members. We have made a special person book in class and drawn pictures of who lives in our homes. The children have enjoyed talking about their families and the people who are special to them.

✏️ Read Write Inc.

The children have also been working hard in Read Write Inc. this week. They have learnt the sounds c, k, u, b and f. Please continue to practise saying the Set 1 Sounds out loud at home.

We have also been practising writing these sounds in our Read Write Inc. books. Please encourage your child to practise writing the sounds we have been learning at home.

Here are our handwriting phrases to help with letter formation:

c – Curl around the caterpillar.

k – Down the kangaroo's body, draw the tail, then leg.

u – Down and under, up to the top, down and under.

b – Down the laces, around the toe.

f – Down the stem, around the flower, flick.

🔢 Maths

In Maths this week, the children have been learning to match and sort pictures and objects.

Matching means finding things that are the same or go together.

This can easily be practised at home through everyday activities, such as:

- Matching socks.

- Matching shoes.

-  Matching lids to containers.

-Matching pairs of playing cards.

Why not try this Matching Game at home?

🌟 Our Learning Next Week

Next week, we will be exploring the wonderful story Sharing a Shell by Julia Donaldson. We will learn about friendship, sharing and helping others as we follow the story of a hermit crab who finds a new shell and discovers the importance of working together.

In Read Write Inc., we will be learning the sounds e, l, h, r and j and practising our letter formation.

In Maths, we will be learning to compare different amounts. This means looking at groups of objects and identifying which group has more, fewer or the same number.

We encourage you to practise these skills at home through practising sounds and comparing everyday objects. 😊

Well done Reception for an amazing week - keep up all your brilliant work!

Nursery Newsletter- 18.9.26

 

📢 Important Information

• No more rucksacks, please. From now on, children should only bring a drawstring bag to nursery.

• Remember to send in a family photo to nursery@broadford.havering.sch.uk

• Please put a spare change of clothes in your child’s drawstring bag. This will be kept at nursery in case they need to get changed.

• You should all have received a login for Evidence Me. We will be using the app to send out important information and updates, so please check the app regularly.

• Little City Workshop will be visiting us on Thursday 15th October. We’re looking forward to a fun and exciting session! 

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Messy Play

Messy play is an important part of Nursery! Our children explore paint, crafts, mud and water every week. We provide aprons, but stains are sometimes unavoidable.

Please don’t worry if your child comes home with a mucky or stained uniform — we are happy for them to get messy and return in stained clothes! Messy play is an important part of our curriculum, giving children valuable opportunities to explore, create, develop skills and have fun. Thank you for your support! ❤️

Welcome to Our Nursery Family

We have been especially excited to welcome our new children and families to Nursery this week. They have had their settling-in sessions and have done brilliantly! It has been lovely to see their confidence grow as they become familiar with the Nursery, meet new friends and get to know the adults around them.

Exploring Our New Environment

There has been lots of excitement in the Nursery as the children have explored their newly organised environment. They have loved discovering new resources, investigating different areas and finding new things to play with.

It has been wonderful to watch their curiosity as they explore and make the environment their own. There has already been lots of imaginative play, building, creating, investigating and discovering!

Making the Most of the Outdoors

The lovely weather has meant that we have been able to spend lots of time outside this week. The children have enjoyed exploring our outdoor environment, playing with their friends and making the most of all the opportunities it offers.

There has been lots of running, climbing, investigating and imaginative play, with the children happily moving between indoor and outdoor learning throughout the day.

Lunchtime at Nursery

This week has also been a big milestone for many of our children as they have started staying for lunchtime. They have done so well!

It has been lovely to see the children sitting together with their friends, becoming familiar with the lunchtime routine and developing their independence. For some of our new starters, this is another big step in feeling comfortable and confident in their Nursery day — and they have taken it all in their stride!

What a Brilliant Start!

It has been such a lovely first week, and we are incredibly proud of all of the children. From settling into new routines and making friends to exploring their new environment and enjoying their first Nursery lunches, they have made a fantastic start.

We can’t wait to see their confidence continue to grow and to share all the exciting learning, friendships and adventures that the year ahead will bring.

Well done, everyone, you have been amazing! 

Reception Learning - W.C 14.9.26

 

Year Reception: What We Are Learning 

This term our topic is Marvellous Me. Our focus book this week was The Colour Monster.

Here is what we have been up to: we have been learning all about the different emotions and how to manage our emotions. We learnt about the Zones of Regulation and how we can use our toolbox to regulate ourselves. The Zones of Regulation is a framework that helps children understand and talk about their emotions, energy levels, and how they are feeling. It teaches children that all feelings are okay, while helping them learn strategies to manage their emotions and get ready to learn or cope with situations.

The framework uses four coloured zones:

🔵 Blue Zone — Low energy: The child may feel sad, tired, bored, lonely, or unwell. Their body and brain may need help becoming more alert or comfortable.

🟢 Green Zone — Ready to learn: The child feels calm, focused, happy, content, or in control. This is often the best state for learning, but being in the Green Zone isn't the goal all the time.

🟡 Yellow Zone — Elevated emotions: The child may feel worried, frustrated, excited, silly, nervous, or annoyed. Their energy is increasing and they may need support to stay in control.

🔴 Red Zone — Very high energy: The child may feel extremely angry, panicked, terrified, or overwhelmed. Their emotions and body are highly activated, making it harder to think clearly or make good choices.

The children have also been working hard in Read, Write, Inc this week. The children have learnt the sounds i, n, p, g, o and have worked hard to practise writing the sounds in their Read, Write, Inc books. Please practise the Set 1 Sounds at home. The reading folders have now gone home and we would like you to bring them in each week on your child's reading day. Remember to read and sign the record 5 times a week. 

In Maths this week the children have been working hard to practise their number formation. They have used the Ten Town number formation rhymes to help them to write their numbers from 0-10. Please practise these at home with your child. 

0 (Zero Pond): "Around and round and round we go..."

1 (King One): "Start at the top and down we run..."

2 (Tommy Two): "From top to toe..."

3 (Thelma Three): "Hands round to knees..."

4 (Freddie Four): "Over one hand..."

5 (Fiona Five): "Over the next..."

6 (Seal Six): "Down her back..."

7 (Sir Seven): "Slide down his tail..."

8 (Eric Eight): "Across his back..."

9 (Nina Nine): "All the way round..."

10 (Tia Ten): "Draw one, then a zero…

We were excited to welcome the award-nominated educational theatre group, The Drama Geezers, to our school for a special, interactive resilience project called Max and the Quest for the Rare Diamond.
This school-wide adventure uses the power of story and play to help children build life skills in a fun, energetic, and completely safe environment.

Well done Reception for an amazing week - keep up all your brilliant work!