Nursery

Hello
Welcome to Nursery!

We are happy to now offer 30 hours at our nursery. We would love to show you around. Please contact the office on 01274 731693 to book a visit.

Our nursery is open from 8:45am-3:30pm during term time.
All 3 year old children are entitled to 15 hours free childcare.

Morning Session: 8:45- 11:45 am
Lunch Session: 11:45am-12:30pm (at a cost of £2.50 per day for supervision)
Afternoon Session: 12:30pm-3:30pm

The adults working in our classroom are Mrs Grimshaw, Early Years Lead and class teacher, Miss Horner, Early Years Practitioner and Mr Hudson, Early Years Apprentice.

What childcare am I entitled to?
15 hours
All 3 and 4 year old children in England are entitled to this.

At St Matthew's we offer this as: Monday- Friday 8:45-11:45AM

We do offer paid sessions for an afternoon if you would like your child to stay for a full day at nursery. This is at a cost of £4.50 per hour (12:30pm-3:30pm) and £2.50 for lunch time supervision (11:45am-12:30pm)
The cost of 8:45am-3:30pm for one child for one day would be £16.00.

This can be booked as specific days each week or on an ad-hoc basis. Please contact the office 01274 731693 to book your child onto this.

30 hours
This is a funded government scheme for working parents.

If you live and work in England you may be entitled to 30 hours funded childcare support from the term after your child turns 9 months old, until they start school.

You can usually get funded childcare for working parents if you (and your partner, if you have one) are:

in work or starting a new job
on sick leave or annual leave
on shared parental, maternity, paternity or adoption leave

The amount of funded childcare you can get depends on:

your child’s age and circumstances
your income (and your partner’s income, if you have one)
your immigration status
Find out if you are eligible here

If you need to you can talk to us at drop off or pick up, or via email on
nursery@stmatthewsce.bradford.sch.uk

Thank you,
Nursery Team

What is a typical session in nursery like?

Children arrive, are greeted by staff and place their belongings away. Parents are always welcome to chat to us at drop off and pick up.
The children have a turn at mark making to practice their writing their name.
We have a wake up, shake up session.
We complete the register and count how many children are here today.
There is a short teacher lead session of either; maths, phonics, story, my happy mind, understanding the world, expressive arts and design.
We have focus activities within the classroom and our snack area is open, this is always with a pediatric first aider; children have milk and a fruit or vegetable.

We then have a free flow session between outdoor and indoor learning and children are able to chose where they learn. Staff all have access to the children's next steps and we support this throughout their learning both indoors and outdoors.

Just before the end of the session, we have another short teacher led session of either; maths, phonics, story, my happy mind, understanding the world, expressive arts and design.

We get ready for home time (or lunch time if children complete the full day) and get cosy for a story together!

Parents and Carers
We know how crucial the relationship is with everyone involved in a child's life. We plan our transition into nursery to start this relationship and to support the child and family. We complete a home visit and ask questions about your child. We have a session in nursery for the parent or carer and their child, then the child will complete short sessions independently. This is planned to be over two days however, all children are different and we adjust settling in to support your child and your family.

Working with parents and carers
We pride ourselves on building a great relationship with our parents and carers. We have a stay and play session each half term and we love to listen to feedback and ideas from parents. We have a learning journey displayed in our entrance area so parents can see photos of their child and what they have been busy learning at nursery. There are lots of photographs up for children to see and talk to parents about what they have learnt. There is a parents notice board with the focus of learning at the moment and ideas to support your child at home.

Reading
We love to read at nursery! Reading a story a day to children has shown to have a huge impact on their speech and development. We have a lending library at nursery, where children are able to chose a book each week and take this home and share with their family.

Toilet Training

Toilet training is one of those major topics that can make parents feel very anxious. It is not surprising that many parents seek the advice, support and reassurance of their child's nursery about this issue which is normally any time between the ages of 18 months and three years, depending on a child's physical and psychological development.

Look out for these signs:

· Is your child's nappy dry after a nap?

· Does your child tell you when they are dirty?

· Does your child try to pull off their nappy?

· Is your child interested in sitting on a potty or toilet?

Also research has shown that another sign is if your child is able to go upstairs using alternate feet rather than putting two feet on each stair. In France, this is used as sign that a child has sufficient physical control, and it may explain why early walkers are often earlier to be potty trained.

Tips to help with toilet training

Introduce the toilet

Toilet training typically starts between 18 and 30 months. Initially we would suggest you start talking about toilet training occasionally around your child's first birthday to encourage interest. Keep a few children's books about potty training, such as (I Want My Potty, Once upon a potty, Princess Polly’s potty and Pirate Pete’s) around your house to read along with your child. And bring up the topic of the toilet in conversation; saying things like, "I wonder if teddy (your child's favourite stuffed toy) needs to go toilet or "I have to go pee-pee." The idea is to raise awareness about going toilet and make your child comfortable with the overall idea before he/she is ready to toilet train.

Look for Signs of Readiness

If your child is staying dry for at least two hours during the day and is dry after naps, this could mean she/he's ready to give the toilet a try. Before you head to the bathroom, know that she/he can follow simple instructions, like a request to walk to the bathroom, sit down, and remove her/his clothes. Also make sure she/he is interested in wearing big girl or boy underwear. Then consider if she/he is aware when she's wet: If they cry, fuss, or show other signs of obvious discomfort when his/her nappy is soiled and indicates through facial expression, posture, or language that it's time to use the toilet, then she/he is ready to start the process.

Potty seat and stepstool

Some children are afraid of falling in the toilet or just hearing it flush, If your child is comfortable in the bathroom, try a potty seat that goes on top of your toilet to reduce the size of the bowl's opening. If not, you can also get a stepstool—if he/she is using a potty seat, they will need it to reach the toilet and also to give their feet support while they are going to the toilet. People can't empty their bowels and bladders completely unless their feet are pressing down on the floor.

Choose the Right Time Carefully

Even if your child seems ready, experts say to avoid potty training during transitional or stressful times. If you're moving, going on holiday, adding a new baby to the family, postpone the toilet training until about a month after the transitional time. Children trying to learn this new skill will do best if they're relaxed and on a regular routine. You might prefer to get toilet training over with as soon as possible—That's fine, experts say, but not if it becomes too frustrating. Dr. Goldstein says. "I often see parents who boast that they trained their 2-year-old in a weekend, and then say that the child has accidents four times a day," "This is not the same as being toilet trained. When children are truly ready, they often will just start going on the toilet on their own."

When you do decide it's time to start toilet training, you will want your child to go to the bathroom independently, during the day, so make sure he/she has access to a toilet all the time if they are toilet training so they can reach it on their own when they need it. There is no harm in keeping them in nappies at night for a while longer. Talk to our experienced staff about the best time to toilet train your child; most children should be out of nappies during the day by age 3.

Great training tips on the following from baby centre online – before you start, the power of pants, no more nappies, minimise mess and stress, sitting solution, put your child in charge, toys and treats, make it fun, musical motivation

http://www.babycentre.co.uk/a548951/parents-top-potty-training-tips

Great advice from the NCT particularly on specific tips for girls and boys separately!

https://www.nct.org.uk/parenting/potty-training

Advice from the NHS on potty training with a great film about when is your child ready to go to the toilet.

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/potty-training-tips.aspx

Nursery Newsletters

spring 1 nursery newsletter.pdf

Academic Year 2024/2025

Please find our home learning document here.

home learning spring 2.pdf