In the garden we are noticing signs of spring and the changes as plants and trees grow buds and leaves, and flowers and blossom start to appear. We will be growing cress and planting and caring for beans and seeds. We can see how beans grow in this amazing video.

We will also be looking at baby photos and noticing how we have grown and changed. Thank you to everyone who has provided a photo. If you haven’t already sent your child’s baby photo, please email to [email protected]

We will be learning about life cycles of different plants and animals and hope to be able watch caterpillars grow and change into butterflies.

We Are Learning… To Notice Shapes, and Choose Items Based on Their Shape for a Particular Purpose

Our maths focus this term is SHAPES. We will be exploring and noticing shapes and pattern through placing and arranging activities, puzzles, loose parts play and building with construction resources.

We will also be creating pictures and patterns with paper shapes. In the garden we will be going on a shape hunt and noticing the shapes we find and beginning to learn their names and properties.

What shapes can you find around your home or on your journey to nursery?

We Are Learning… To Listen to and Re-Tell the Story of The Enormous Turnip

Linked to our activities around growing, our core book this term is The Enormous Turnip. We will be reading different versions and noticing the similarities and differences between the stories.

We will be using story maps (see over), props and pictures for re-telling and inventing our own versions.

The Enormous Turnip

Once upon a time there was on old man who planted a seed in the ground and it grew and grew and grew into an ENORMOUS TURNIP!

First, the old man pulled and pulled but he couldn’t pull it up!

Next, he asked the old woman. They pulled and pulled but they couldn’t pull it up!

Then, they asked a boy. They pulled and pulled but they couldn’t pull it up!

After that, they asked a girl. They pulled and pulled but they couldn’t pull it up!

Finally, they asked a dog. They pulled and pulled and pulled and suddenly…POP! Up popped the Enormous Turnip!

In the end, the old man, the old woman, the boy, the girl and the dog all had turnip soup for dinner!

The End.

Sun Safety Guidance

The NHS recommends that care is taken to protect children in the sun. Children should:

• Cover up with suitable clothing
• Spend time in the shade, particularly from 11am to 3pm
• Wear at least SPF30 sunscreen. Apply sunscreen to areas not protected by clothing, such as the face, ears, feet and backs of hands.

Please ensure that sun cream is applied each day before nursery and that children wear appropriate clothing for the weather. We can reapply as appropriate. If you have a specific sun cream to use, please label clearly with your child’s name and pass to your key person. We have a large selection of sun hats. Please clearly name all hats brought in to nursery.

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In the garden will be noticing signs of spring and growing cress and sunflower seeds. We will be reading Jasper’s Beanstalk to help the children understand about caring for plants and realising that they don’t grow instantly! Enjoy the story together here.

The children will be able to see a sped-up version of how beans grow in this amazing video here.

We would also like to look at baby photos with the children to help them notice how they have grown and changed. Please can you send your child’s baby photo to [email protected]

We Are Learning… To Listen To and Re-Tell the Story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Linked to our activities around growth and change, our core book this term is The Very Hungry Caterpillar. You can watch the story together here.

We will be using our counting skills to find out how many items are eaten and exploring the taste and texture of the different fruits. We would love to try lots of different fruits from all around the world and would be grateful for any donations.

We will also be joined by Kelly from The Children’s Kitchen who will be helping us to use knives and kitchen tools safely, introducing different foods and teaching us about healthy eating. We hope to be able to invite parents along to some after school food activities too.

We Are Learning… About Important People in the Community Who Help Us

The children will be able to dress up and explore role play resources linked to people who help us. We will be looking at non-fiction books about doctors, dentists, bus drivers, firefighters, hospital workers and many more, as well as reading stories and learning songs and rhymes.

We would love the children to be able to meet some of these extraordinary people.
Do you know a fight fighter, police officer or medical professional who would like to come for a visit?
Please let us know.

Home learning – Find out about The Walk and Talk Trail

The free walk and talk trail is a set of cards designed to support parents and carers of 0 to 5-year-olds to talk and play more with their children while they are out and about engaging in their daily routine. The cards have been produced by the National Literacy Trust to support the Start for Life campaign.

Designed to be used in an urban environment, the cards provide a range of tips and activities that can be completed anywhere outside. The aim being to increase the frequency of interactions and enhance the quality of interactions between parent or carer and child.

Find out more on the link below. Translated versions are also available.

Click here.

Free Online Learning

Families in Focus are excited to launch a new package of FREE online learning for every parent and carer in Bristol. The courses have been developed by the Solihull Approach, alongside the NHS and parents. The learning is for everyone, not only for when parents are struggling. The courses cover a whole range of topics including:

• Pregnancy and post-pregnancy support
• How to understand your child or teenager’s mental health
• Help for understanding relationships
• Support for children with additional needs
• Courses for teenagers to help them understand their mental health and feelings.

You can access the courses through this link Family Hubs virtual offer or by taking these 5 simple steps:

1. Go to the Solihull Approach
2. Go to inourplace tab on front page
3. Click on Apply Access Code tab
4. Enter code : GROWING
5. Answer the monitoring questions and add your Bristol postcode, and you ready to go.

The post In Willow Room We Are Learning… (April 2025) appeared first on Little Hayes and Speedwell Nursery Schools.

In the garden we are noticing signs of spring and the changes as plants and trees grow buds and leaves, and flowers and blossom start to appear. We will be planting a selection of fruit and veg seeds and caring for them in our nursery garden. This video shows how they will grow.

We will also be looking at baby photos and noticing how we have grown and changed. If you haven’t already sent your child’s baby photo, please email them to [email protected]

We Are Learning… To Listen to and Re-Tell the Story of The Enormous Turnip

Linked to our activities around growing, our core book this term is The Enormous Turnip. We will be reading lots of different versions of the story, noticing the similarities and differences between the stories.

We will be using story maps, props and story stones for re-telling, as well as creating our own stories using the Tales Toolkit.

Please turn over to see the story map for The Enormous Turnip.

The Enormous Turnip

Once upon a time there was on old man who planted a seed in the ground and it grew and grew and grew into an ENORMOUS TURNIP!

First, the old man pulled and pulled but he couldn’t pull it up!

Next, he asked the old woman. They pulled and pulled but they couldn’t pull it up!

Then, they asked a boy. They pulled and pulled but they couldn’t pull it up!

After that, they asked a girl. They pulled and pulled but they couldn’t pull it up!

Finally, they asked a dog. They pulled and pulled and pulled and suddenly…POP! Up popped the Enormous Turnip!

In the end, the old man, the old woman, the boy, the girl and the dog all had turnip soup for dinner!

The End.

We Are Learning… To Notice Shapes, and Choose Items Based on Their Shape for a Particular Purpose

Our maths focus this term is around SHAPES. We will be exploring and noticing shapes and pattern through placing and arranging activities, puzzles, loose parts play and building with construction resources.

We will also be creating pictures and patterns with paper shapes.

In the garden we will be going on a shape hunt and noticing the shapes we find and beginning to learn their names.

What shapes can you find around your home or on your journey to nursery?

Some Exciting Learning Opportunities Coming up This Term

We will continue to have regular visits from Elie who comes to make wonderful music with us each week.

The Children’s Kitchen will be returning for 3 sessions to work with the children around growing and exploring fresh food.

And we will be lucky enough to have a workshop with Travelling Light Theatre Company, helping to learn more about telling stories of our own.

You can find out more about them here.

The post In Owl Room We Are Learning… (April 2025) appeared first on Little Hayes and Speedwell Nursery Schools.

In the garden we are noticing signs of spring and the changes as plants and trees grow buds and leaves, and flowers and blossom start to appear. We will be planting a selection of fruit and veg seeds and caring for them in our nursery garden. This video shows how they will grow.

We will also be looking at baby photos and noticing how we have grown and changed. If you haven’t already sent your child’s baby photo, please email them to [email protected]

We Are Learning… To Listen To and Re-Tell the Story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Linked to our activities around growing and changing , our core book this term is The Very Hungry Caterpillar. We will be learning to tell the story in lots of different ways, using props and acting it out. You can watch it here.

We’ve even got some real, live caterpillars to watch as they grow and change into cocoons and then butterflies.

We Are Learning… To Learn and Use Vocabulary to Describe the Shape of Things we Find and Begin to Learn the Names of Shapes

Our maths focus this term is around SHAPES. We will be exploring and noticing shapes and pattern through placing and arranging activities, puzzles, loose parts play and building with construction resources. 

We will also be watching our seeds grow, and using mathematical language (such as big, bigger, biggest) to compare size and shape. We might even have a go at measuring them to find out how tall they get.

Some Exciting Learning Opportunities Coming up This Term

We will continue to have regular visits from Elie who comes to make wonderful music with us each week.

The Children’s Kitchen will be returning for 3 sessions to work with the children around growing and exploring fresh food.

And we will be lucky enough to have a workshop with Travelling Light Theatre Company, helping to learn more about telling stories of our own.

You can find out more about them here.

The post In Wren Room We Are Learning… (April 2025) appeared first on Little Hayes and Speedwell Nursery Schools.

Last week, we went to the park to practice our football skills. We took turns kicking the ball, aiming towards the goal net, and counting the number of goals scored.

This past week, we had a special picnic lunch on the nursery field. Everyone helped set out the blankets, and we sat together. We’ve been learning some new ring games to play together, such as Duck, Duck, Goose (a simple chasing game). To finish the term off, we held egg and spoon races, carefully balancing the eggs on our spoons while running and going over obstacles.

The post Owl Room’s Outdoor Learning (Spring 2025) appeared first on Little Hayes and Speedwell Nursery Schools.

We hope you all have a lovely break.

Letter Spotting

This term we have been learning about alliteration. We have been noticing the initial sound in our names and finding items beginning with the same sound. This holiday why not see if your child can find the initial letter in their name in the environment. It could be on a road sign, car registration, street sign, anywhere. Please take a photograph and email to us.

It would be great to create a display of the whole alphabet using the children’s photographs.

My Favourite Songs

Our curriculum focus this term has been Expressive Arts and Design. We have been exploring and creating with paint, colour, music, movement and drama. We learned about some different styles of music and dancing from around the world. Why not watch here and try out some moves together.

Lots of you have shared your child’s favourite songs and the types of music listened to at home. We have compiled an Oak room play list and the children are enjoying dancing and singing along. They are very excited when their tune comes on, shouting ‘This one’s mine!’

There is still time to share your child’s musical preferences.

Shapes Everywhere

We are continuing to learn a different shape each week. We have focused on triangles, circles, squares and rectangles, and this week it’s ovals. The children have been excited to spot shapes in the nursery environment and garden.

What shapes can you find this holiday? Please take a photo with your child spotting a shape and email to us. There will probably be lots of oval Easter eggs!

Growth and Change

Next term our curriculum focus is Understanding the World. We will be learning about growth and change and talking about how plants, animals and people change over time. To help us in our discussions, please forward a baby photo of your child. It has been lovely to see the photos that have already been sent in.

I wonder if the children will be able to recognise the staff from their baby pictures.

Please email photos and music choices to [email protected].

Gallery

Here are some lovely photos of Oak Room from this term, taking part in activities and learning.

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We will be exploring and noticing shapes in the environment, in books and in our creative exploration. Adults will be using informal language e.g. slanty, pointy, twisty, wiggly, bumpy as well as mathematical names e.g. triangle, rectangle, circle, square.

What shapes can you find around your home or on your journey to nursery?

We Are Learning… To Explore Colour and Notice how Colours can be Changed

We will be reading Colour and Me by Michaela Dias-Hayes and Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh to support our exploration of colour and how colours change when mixed.

We will also be creating with boxes and using them in our role play and storytelling. Boxes are a great starting point for creative and imaginative play. We can stack them, and climb in them, create cars, houses and space ships, the possibilities are infinite.

We welcome donations of boxes of all sizes, from small food boxes for the home corner and for junk modelling, to large boxes that the children can get inside and use in their story telling and imaginative play.

We can’t wait to see what they can create.

We Are Learning… To Join in with Dancing and Explore Moving in a Range of Ways

We will be listening and moving to music from around the world, as well as creating our own music through singing and exploring instruments. Karol will be teaching us some Columbian dancing.

If there are any parents/carers or family members with dancing or music skills that they would like to share with the children, please let us know.

We Are Learning… To Respond to Elements of Stories, Particularly Rhyme and Alliteration

We will be reading Fox’s Sock’s and noticing the different rhymes.

The children are loving our new Tales Toolkit area and joining in with creating stories using the props and resources.

Please remember to bring your book bag in every Wednesday to choose a different book to share at home. We have lots of new books available.

We Are Learning… To Explore and Experiment with a Range of Media and Materials

We will be offering a range of different materials and encouraging the children to explore and make marks in different ways e.g. fingers in cornflour gloop, sticks in mud, hands and feet in paint etc.

We always encourage the children to wear aprons and roll up their sleeves but sometimes they still get dirty. This usually means they are having a good time! We will be offering a range of different materials and encouraging the children to explore and make marks in different ways e.g. fingers in cornflour gloop, sticks in mud, hands and feet in paint etc.

We always encourage the children to wear aprons and roll up their sleeves but sometimes they still get dirty. This usually means they are having a good time!

Please remember to send your child to nursery in clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty.

Important Dates for Your Diary

INSET afternoon Wednesday 5th March
We are closed Wednesday afternoon from 11.30 am for staff training. We will be open as normal for the morning session 8.30-11.30am.

World Book Day 2025
Thursday 6th March is World Book Day. We will be celebrating on Tuesday 4th and Thursday 6th March.

The children (and staff) can dress up as their favourite story book character.

Who will they be?

The post In Willow Room We Are Learning… (February 2025) appeared first on Little Hayes and Speedwell Nursery Schools.

We will joining in games and activities that involve rolling a number dice, then finding the matching number of objects (e.g. selecting a number of bricks to build a tower) or completing a number of actions e.g. 6 claps, 3 jumps or 2 twirls. We will be reading some new number books, and as well as counting, will be comparing quantities using more, less, many, few, fewer, same, lots.

We are learning about a SHAPE OF THE WEEK. We will be exploring and noticing the properties of that shape, learning its name and trying to find examples of it in the environment. Our first shape is the triangle.

I’m a little triangle , look at me.

And count my side, 1,2,3.

Whichever way I turn you’ll always see.

My sides are always 1,2,3.

What shapes can you find around your home or on your journey to nursery?

We Are Learning… To use Simple Tools Safely and Effectively to Make Changes to Materials

We will be creating with boxes and loose parts and learning how to use different tools and resources safely to help us attach and join e.g. glue, tape, staplers, hole punches, string etc. Boxes are a great starting point for creative and imaginative play. We can stack them, and climb in them, create cars, houses and space ships, the possibilities are infinite.

We welcome donations of boxes of all sizes, from small food boxes for the home corner and for junk modelling, to large boxes that the children can get inside and use in their story telling and imaginative play. We can’t wait to see what they can create.

We Are Learning… To Imitate Movements and Begin to Make up Our Own when Joining in with Songs, Music and Rhymes

We will be exploring and moving to different genres and styles of music from around the world, as well as creating our own music through singing, exploring instruments and making our own instruments. Karol from Willow room will be demonstrating some Columbian dancing.

If there are any parents with dancing or music skills that they would like to share with the children, please let us know.

We Are Learning… To Hear and Notice the Initial Sounds in Words

We will be noticing the initial sounds in our names, and other objects, through songs, games and stories, such as B is for Baby by Atinuke.
We will be learning about alliteration, when words start with the same sound, and making up silly alliterative strings and tongue twisters—

Lovely Leo likes licking lollipops, ten terrible tigers try teaching tennis. Why not have a go.

Supertato

There has been lots of interest in superheroes this year.

We will be reading Supertato and re-telling the story using our story map.

Who is your favourite superhero?

Who would you help?

What would your super power be?

Dates for The Diary

INSET afternoon Wednesday 5th March
We are closed Wednesday afternoon from 11.30 am for staff training. We will be open as normal for the morning session 8.30-11.30am.

WORLD BOOK DAY 2025
Thursday 6th March is World Book Day. We will be celebrating on Tuesday 4th and Thursday 6th March. The children (and staff) can dress up as their favourite story book character. Who will they be?

Don’t forget to bring along your book bag every Wednesday and choose a book to read at home. We have lots of exciting new books available.

Staffing News

We are sad to be saying goodbye to Sally who is returning to Speedwell fulltime. We will all miss her.

Claire will be taking over Sally’s yellow group (Wed-Fri) and taking on a new role running communication, language, and literacy intervention groups (Mon-Wed). She’ll still be based in Oak room so the children will still get to see lots of her.

We also welcome Carmen as a new key person working alongside Jess and Elle in Blue group. She looks forward to introducing herself and getting to know the children and their families.

The post In Oak Room We Are Learning… (February 2025) appeared first on Little Hayes and Speedwell Nursery Schools.

Our maths focus this term is around counting and numerals. We will have lots of opportunities to practice counting and learning to link the count with the numeral. We will be learning lots of songs and games that involve counting too.
We have noticed that numerals are everywhere around us in the environment and we will be “number hunting” around the nursery.

Keep a look out for numbers when you are out and about– on doors, buses, supermarkets and lots more.

We Are Learning… The Story of Lima’s Red Hot Chilli

Lima has bitten a red hot chilli and now her mouth is on fire!!!! What can she do to cool it down?

We will be learning this story as our Core book this term. It will help us to learn about the sequence of a story, but also give us ideas for exploring different foods (not red hot chilli’s though).

Lima’s Red Hot Chilli

One day, there was a girl called Lima who was feeling very hungry.

So her Mum said, ‘Go to the kitchen for something to eat but don’t eat the red hot chilli!’

First, Lima found a big hairy coconut but it was too hairy.

Next, she found a tin of spaghetti but it was too difficult to open.

Then, she found samosas but they were too cold.

After that, she found some sweets but they were too high.

Finally, she saw the red hot chilli and popped it in her mouth. CRUNCH!

Her face got hotter and hotter and hotter! Until it felt like fireworks!

Water, water, try some water said Mum…but her mouth was still hot!

Ice cream, ice cream, try some ice cream said Dad…but her mouth was still hot!

Jelly, jelly, try some jelly said Auntie…but her mouth was still hot!

Mango, mango, try some mango said Grandpa…but her mouth was still hot!

Milk, milk, try some milk said Grandma.

Lima drank a big jug of cold milk. ‘Aaaah that’s better!’ she said.

‘I’m never eating a red hot chilli again!’

The End.

We Are Learning… To Listen to and Respond to Music with Movement, Dance and Instruments

We will be listening to lots of different types of music at nursery, thinking about the sounds we hear, how they make us feel and how we want to move to the music. Ellie will continue to visit us weekly for music sessions this term and we will be exploring the sounds we make with musical instruments as well as learning lots of new songs and games.

We would love to know what music you listen to as a family– at home, in the car or out and about. The children love to dance to familiar songs so it would be amazing to make a nursery playlist of songs they know from home. Let us know which songs to add, through Tapestry, or email ([email protected]) or tell your key person. We will then add them to our Spotify playlist to share.

We Are Learning… To Hear and Notice the Initial Sounds in Words

We will be noticing the initial sounds in our names, and other objects, through songs, games and stories, such as B is for Baby by Atinuke.

We will be learning about alliteration, when words start with the same sound, and making up silly alliterative strings and tongue twisters

Lovely Leo Likes Licking Lollipops.

Ten Terrible Tigers Try Teaching Tennis.

Why not have a go– they can be a bit of a tongue twister!

The post In Owl Room We Are Learning… (February 2025) appeared first on Little Hayes and Speedwell Nursery Schools.

We are introducing some new mathematical resources to explore pattern, shape, and size, as well as thinking about the pattern and sequence of the daily routine and in stories (using language such as first, now, next, after, and later).

Linked to our core book we are learning about size (small, medium, and large), length and height (short, shorter, shortest, long, longer, longest, tall, taller, tallest) the numbers 1,2,3, and ordering (first, second, third).

We Are Learning… To Be Independent

We will continue to explore the outdoors in all weathers. The children will be learning to be independent by changing their shoes and putting on their own coats and waterproofs. We are teaching them the coat flip method. Watch and learn together here. It really helps their independence if they wear shoes that are easy to put on and do up.

Please remember to name their shoes and clothes, so that they can find them at the end of the day and provide spare clothes each day in case they get wet or muddy. Thank you.

We Are Learning… To Create and Tell a Story of Our Own

Our core book is the traditional tale, Goldilocks and the Three Bears. We are reading different versions and noticing the similarities and differences between the versions. We are using story maps to re-tell the story and creating our own actions.

We will be continuing to think about characters, settings, problems, and solutions in our Tales Toolkit story sessions and adapting stories with our own characters and ideas.

We will be using our voice sounds, creating different voices for the characters—a deep, gruff voice for daddy bear, a high voice for mummy bear and a tiny, squeaky voice for baby bear. Why not use the story map attached to re-tell the story together at home.

Goldilocks and The Three Bears

Once upon a time there was a daddy bear, mummy baby and baby bear, who went for a walk in the forest. Goldilocks saw the door was open and went inside.

First, Goldilocks tasted the bowls of porridge.
The first bowl was too hot! The second was too cold!
But the last one was…just right! So, she ate it all up.

Next, Goldilocks sat on the chairs.
The first chair was too hard! The second chair was too soft!
But the last one was…just right! But she broke it!

Then, Goldilocks was tired and saw the beds. The first bed was too rough! The second was too smooth!
But the last one was…just right! And Goldilocks fell asleep!

Suddenly, the Bears came home!

Baby bear started to cry.
Who’s been eating my porridge? They ate it all up and left none!

Who’s been sitting in my chair? They sat in the chair and broke it!

Who’s been sleeping in my bed? They slept in my bed, and they are still in it!

Just then, Goldilocks woke up! Aaaagh! ‘A bear!’ screamed Goldilocks. Aaaaagh! ‘a girl!’ screamed the bears and they all ran away.

And the bears never forgot to lock their front door again!

The End.

Download the Story Map below.

Music Exploration

We are delighted to welcome back Ellie, an early year’s music specialist from Bristol Beacon who will join us for singing and musical exploration sessions.

We will be working together to explore different sounds and how we can move to the music.

Home Learning Links

We will be sharing a range of books linked to our core text and mathematical themes at nursery, as well as sending some books home to share as a family. If your child doesn’t have a book bag, please let us know.

The Words for Life website has some fantastic reading ideas and activities to support your child’s learning at home.

The Early Childhood Maths Group also has some great ideas to promote mathematical thinking at home.

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