There are two Early Years classes at St David’s: Nursery and Reception.
Nursery enter following their third birthdays and attend every morning. Children are invited to attend a gradually increasing number of afternoon sessions in preparation for full-time school in Reception class.
The Nursery is accommodated in a happy and secure setting which is both stimulating and nurturing. The small class size allows for that crucial individual attention that children of this age need. Children are looked after in a caring and supportive environment, with the emphasis on learning through play and activities which lay down the foundations for numeracy and literacy skills.
Reception children attend every day for the full morning and afternoon sessions. In Reception there is still plenty of learning through play and the children are given the opportunity to flourish and extend their learning through well-planned activities. Numeracy, language development, music, craft, science and physical activity contribute to the extensive and balanced curriculum.
We share children’s learning during Nursery and Reception through an online Learning Journal called Tapestry. Parents and carers are provided with log in details so that they can access, and comment on, a range of photographs, videos and written observations of activities achieved by their child at school. Please follow the link to read more about our online Learning Journal.
Both Nursery and Reception are registered for appropriate early years funding and are located on the ground floor. In this friendly and secure environment the children are taught by well-qualified and experienced teachers, supported by nursery nurses/class assistants.
MORNING/AFTERNOON SESSIONS
Nursery children attend every morning and for at least one full day in the summer term. In addition, parents can opt for any number of afternoon sessions if required. Reception children attend five full days.
ARRIVAL AT SCHOOL
Children may come into School from 8.10am when they will be looked after by staff. The school day officially begins at 8.30am. All children are expected to be in School by this time for registration.
| Timetable |
| 8.30am – 9am | Morning Registration / Assembly / Circle Time |
| 9.05am – 10.30am | Session 1 |
| 10:30am – 10.55am | Break |
| 11am – 12pm | Session 2 |
| 12pm | Nursery Finish Time |
| 12pm – 12.30pm | Lunch |
| 12.30pm – 1.30pm | Playtime |
| 1.30pm – 1.40pm | Afternoon Registration |
| 1.40pm – 3.10pm | Session 3 |
| 3.15pm | Nursery & Reception Finish |
BREAK TIMES
Children are offered a healthy snack and a drink of either milk or water during the morning session. The Nursery and Reception children are encouraged to play together in our Upper Playground area and they are well supervised at all times.
LUNCH TIME
At lunch, children sit together in class groups, with members of staff from the EYFS team, and it is regarded as a social occasion. Children have a choice between two hot meals, meat or vegetarian, and there is also a salad bar. Freshly baked bread and soup is provided on a daily basis. Children with allergies or special dietary requirements are catered for whenever possible.
THE END OF DAY
Children are dismissed by staff from their respective classroom dismissal areas. A child will only be allowed to go with someone other than their parent, if the teacher has been notified in writing beforehand, stating the name of the ‘collector’ and who they are. Children who are not collected directly after school go into the optional after school care if they are registered.
AFTER SCHOOL CARE
We have an After School Club, called Daffodils, which is run by Jancett Playsafe. There is provision from 3.15pm until 6.30pm and children need to be registered to attend. Please refer to the leaflet on our Daffodils club which provides information on how to register for this service.
At St David’s we aim to deliver the curriculum in a positive and exciting way and follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), covering the following three prime areas of learning:
- Personal, Social and Emotional Development
- Physical Development
- Communication and Language
And four specific areas of learning:
- Literacy
- Mathematical Development
- Understanding the World
- Expressive Arts and Design
To read more about the Early Years Foundation Stage(EYFS), please click here.
At St David’s, we place a great emphasis on learning how to read. In Nursery we begin by providing a variety of activities specifically planned to develop the very basic skills of language and literacy. In Reception discussion books are introduced from the start, to help build a love for books, encourage the looking after and respect of books and to focus the children’s attention towards picure clues. In each class we have daily phonics sessions and cosy book corners to help foster a love of reading.
Learning through play is incredibly important for developing confidence and social skills at this age. We therefore have different role-play areas which are changed regularly and have lots of indoor and outdoor play equipment for the children to use.
Our broad curriculum covers a wide range of different subjects and wherever possible, visitors, including firemen, nurses, dentists and authors are often invited in to enrich the childrens’ learning. Sample topics studied in our curriculum include: Autumn & Harvest, Superheros, Healthy Eating, Chinese New Year and Diwali, Winter and Christmas, Dinosaurs, Spring and Easter and Water and Pirates.
