Newsletter March 2011

Dear Parents/Carers,

NEWSLETTER
We hope you enjoyed the half-term break.  Our Planning until Easter is as follows:-

1.3.11 – 11.3.11 OLD MACDONALD HAD A FARM – Letter q then k
Listening to a range of farm stories.  Grouping farm animals.  Constructing enclosures.

15.3.11 – 18.3.11  BOATS AND FLOATING – Letter p
Problem solving.  Working out what floats and what sinks. Experimentation.

21.3.11 – 25.3.11  MUSIC – Letter x
Enjoying songs, music and rhymes.  Using a wide range of musical instruments.

28.3.11 – 8.4.11   SPRING AND EASTER – Letter g then j
Spring planting, spring and Easter crafts.  Understanding the Seasons and their regularity.

We are glad that the Full Days now available are proving so popular.  Having children with us all day does mean that we have had/or are having to make a few changes.  A new ‘Medication Policy’ will shortly be adopted by us.  This will mean that if children stay all day and need to take a prescribed medication we will be able to administer this.  There are a number of important criteria:-
1        Medication must have been taken for at least 48 hours before returning to Pre-school, due to the high number of allergies that arise as a result of taking new medications.
2    Medication must be handed to the Manager at the door at the start of the session.
Consent Forms must be signed at this time.
3        It is the responsibility of the parent/carer to seek collection of medication at the end      of the session.  You will be asked to sign the ‘Administration of Medication Book’ if medication has been administered.
4        Under no circumstances must medicine of any type be left in your child’s bag.

Quite a few parents/carers are also taking advantage of the facility to pay for sessions weekly/daily.  We are glad to help in this way but would please ask that money for sessions is placed in a named and dated envelope. If you also wish your child to stay for lunch this can be paid for separately by placing £1.50 in cash in the pot provided.  We are hoping this will avoid confusion and enable receipts to be issued more promptly.

As part of our Inclusion Policy, staff will be increasing the use of signing (or gesture) to support communication within our setting. We currently use signing while singing songs/rhymes at circle time. This encourages many children to join in, increasing children’s enjoyment and participation when they might otherwise be unsure of the words or too shy to join in.

We invite you to share the signs of “EARLY YEARS –  EVERYDAY THINGS WE DO” (see attached) with your child. We all use signing and gesture in our day to day living for example, to greet someone or say goodbye. They are a great source of communication when spoken words can’t be heard or understood.
If you would like more information please talk to our Senco Jenny Willmott.

GROVE PRE-SCHOOL.