Our Nursery

Welcome to our Nursery. At St. Andrew's it is our mission to offer your child a warm and happy environment where they will grow in the love of God and our neighbour and be educated to the highest possible standard.

Christ is at the centre of all we do at St. Andrew's and our religion is practised in accordance with the rites, practises and observations of the Roman Catholic Faith. St. Andrew's is part of the parish of St. Osmund's.

To achieve the best for your child we must work as partners. The more closely we work together, the more your child will gain. We believe school, parents, governors and parish can work in harmony for the benefit of your child and our whole community.

You and your child are starting on a new part of your journey in life. We hope that this booklet will be a help as you and your child prepare for starting Nursery.

Please remember, you are always welcome to come in and discuss any aspect of your child's development. We need your help to achieve the best for your child.

Admissions to the Nursery

The Nursery has 52 part time places. Children are admitted the term after they turn 3. Children attend for either 5 mornings or 5 afternoon sessions. Each session is for 2 ½ hours.

Morning 9.00am - 11.30am

Afternoon 1.00pm - 3.30pm

You can put your child's name on the waiting list for Nursery and they will be entered on the list in order of age. Children are then admitted to nursery using the following criteria:

NURSERY ADMISSION CRITERIA

To give you due notice, the admission list will be drawn up approximately 9 weeks before the end of the previous term and you will be informed if your child has a place. We operate a staggered intake and several pre-start visits are arranged and you will be informed individually of the exact arrangement for your child.

Starting at Nursery

It is important that your child's start in Nursery is as happy and smooth as possible. To help with this the children are admitted gradually so that the staff can give them enough attention in their first days.

Talking to the Staff

Communication between parents and staff is the key to making sure your child settles well and is happy. Please do tell the staff if you have any concerns, for example, if your child is upset, staff will then know to give them some extra attention.

Before starting Nursery

Parents can help their child to become more independent. Please teach your child to use the toilet properly, wash their hands, blow their nose and put their coat on and off. These are all matters of personal care and make your child more independent and confident.

What will your child do in Nursery?

The Nursery curriculum is very broad. The children will experience all the following subjects:

Although this sounds a lot for a three-year old it is all presented in an enjoyable way. For example, Science involves water play, nature walks etc. Technology involves painting, junk modelling etc.

In English the children are made aware of books, they learn to write their name and there is a great emphasis on speaking and listening.

In Mathematics the children learn about the numbers 1 - 10, size and shape etc.

Homework

Yes, Nursery do get homework!

To help reinforce what goes on in Nursery parents are given a homework letter each week. This asks you to talk about and look out for things all around when you are with your child. The homework normally covers:

Nursery Rhyme

Colour of the week

Shape of the week

Number of the week

The Aims of the Nursery

Our aims are within our mission statement at the front of this booklet. It is in the Nursery that your child will begin building upon the experiences, skills and talents that you have helped them to develop.

In Nursery our priority is to:

Provide a happy, safe and stimulating environment where we can develop your childs confidence.

Foster self respect and respect of others.

Encourage the formation of relationships with other adults and children.

Develop co-ordination and body control.

Develop each childs abilities and talents in all areas.

How Can You Help?

You have already taught your child a great deal and you are still your child's most important teacher. Your interest and attitude has a very important effect on how well your child progresses in Nursery and then in school.

Education is a partnership and home and school must work together for the benefit of your child.

You can help by spending time with your child and below are some suggestions as to how you can help now and continue to help your child throughout their nursery and school life.

* Walk past the school. Talk encouragingly about the school. "This is your school" - "Won't it be exciting at school?" etc.

* Try to get your child used to having a short period away from Mum - an hour with a friend or relative whom he/she knows and likes. Encourage your child to make friends.

* Include your child in adult conversation. Discuss arrangements for shopping trips etc.

* Watch television occasionally with your child; talk about programme items. (Play School, Blue Peter for example are well worth watching).

* Read to your child often - every day if possible.

* Give your child books. Make a scrap book together using magazine pictures. If you write their name please do not write it all in capital letters. Only the first letter is a capital.

* Sing songs and nursery rhymes together.

* Let your child paint, crayon, cut out, help with baking etc. Make sure they help to clean up the mess!

* Be consistent in your discipline - don't correct them one day and let them get away with it on another. Children much prefer the stability of knowing exactly what they can and cannot do. Remember, you can say "No" to your child!

* Do the homework that is on the parents homework letter.

Once your child has started in our Nursery, regular attendance is important. Prolonged or unexplained absences may mean loss of your child's place in the Nursery.

Please don't - write your child's name using capital letters, only use a capital letter to begin the name.

Please do - use the phonic alphabet when saying letters, eg. g for gran - not g(ee)

Conclusion

This booklet cannot cover everything about our Nursery. If you have any questions or concerns or simply want to speak to us about your child please do so. You can speak to the nursery staff or the Head teacher.

We believe that our Nursery provides a happy, caring, safe, stimulating and learning environment for our children. We hope that you and your child will come to share that belief.