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Nursery

Nursery

Welcome to Twinkling Stars Nursery!

Our nursery is a part of Newington Community Primary School and you will find us on the school grounds. Our stimulating and welcoming nursery provides a purposeful environment for all children to learn and explore. We have full access to the main school and the surrounding areas, as well as our own outside space. We work closely with reception and towards the summer term, the children can access the reception garden and mix with their older peers. Providing close links with the school enables children to see and spend time with siblings or relatives and join in with whole-school events.

Our nursery is led by a qualified teacher and supported by an experienced team of nursery nurses and teaching assistants.

We offer 15 hours of funded pre-school provision for children over the age of three (this is the term following their third birthday). Parents do not need to apply for funding, the nursery will do this on their behalf.

Places are offered to children, according to set criteria, for them to attend either five morning or five afternoon sessions, or two and a half days per week, dependent upon availability of places. Access to our school is not guaranteed by the nursery, although an assessment of children entering school shows evidence that children benefit by attending our nursery. They are able to adapt to the school environment and daily routines.

Those parents wishing to apply for a place at our nursery must complete an enquiry form and submit it directly to the school office. Mrs Brentnall, the nursery manager and class teacher, will contact you directly. There is also a waiting list for our nursery and this is on a first-come, first-served basis. Please note that spaces are limited and it is never too early to register interest!

We offer tours around the nursery to allow you to see our fantastic learning areas and to give you a chance to ask any further questions.

For further information and to register interest then please contact the school office on 01843 593412 or contact nursery teacher and manager Mrs Brentnall on h.brentnall@newington-ramsgate.kent.sch.uk

We look forward to meeting you and your child very soon!

 

Staff photos

We may also have work experience students and volunteers working with us throughout the year.  Their names and pictures will be displayed at the entrance to the nursery.

 

 

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Mrs Gower

Assistant Head Teacher

Early Years Lead

 

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Mrs Brentnall

Nursery Teacher

 

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Steph Rowden

Nursery Nurse

 

 

 

 

Abbie James

Teaching Assistant

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mrs Chambers

Midday Meals Supervisor

 

 

 

Claire Taylor

Teaching Assistant

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nursery Sessions
 

Morning session: 8.45 am – 11.45 pm

Lunch Session: 11:45 – 12:15

Afternoon session: 12.15 pm – 3.15 pm

 

Our curriculum

The Early Years Foundation Stage Profile is a statutory assessment of children’s development at the end of the academic year in which children turn 5, usually reception year. Each child’s level of development is assessed against 17 early learning goals (ELGs) across all 7 areas of learning in the EYFS.

In nursery, we use Development Matters to plan and assess our pupils.  This non-statutory guidance material supports practitioners in implementing the statutory requirements of the EYFS.  chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64e6002a20ae890014f26cbc/DfE_Development_Matters_Report_Sep2023.pdf

 

Three characteristics of effective teaching and learning are:

 • playing and exploring – children investigate and experience things, and ‘have a go’

• active learning – children concentrate and keep on trying if they encounter difficulties, and enjoy achievements

• creating and thinking critically – children have and develop their own ideas, make links between ideas, and develop strategies for doing things.

 

What are the 7 Areas of Learning?

Within the Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework, there are 7 areas of learning and development. These follow children from birth to five years old.

All the areas are important as they are all interconnected. These 7 areas are used by all early years settings to shape their education programmes and to determine what children should learn and how children’s learning and development will be supported through each of these 7 areas.

 

The seven areas are split into two categories: the prime areas and the specific areas.

The Prime Areas

The prime areas lay the foundations upon which all further learning can develop. The prime areas are also extremely important for ‘igniting children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, forming relationships and thriving’, as stated in the statutory framework for the early years' foundation stage. The three prime areas are:

Communication and Language

Physical Development

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

The Specific Areas

Early years settings must also support children’s learning and development in the specific areas. The four specific areas are intended to also strengthen learning and development within the prime areas, hence why the 7 areas are seen as being interconnected. The four specific areas are:

 

Literacy

Mathematics

Understanding the World

Expressive Arts and Design

 

Within the early learning goals, the 7 areas of learning and development are broken down further into different aspects. It is these aspects that form the 17 different early learning goals that are reported in the EYFSP.

At Newington, we are fortunate enough to have specialist teachers for PE and Music and our nursery children have these lessons once a week too!

 

Our topics for the year are:

Term 1

Term 2

Term 3

Term 4

Term 5

Term 6

Nursery rhymes

Celebrations

Traditional Tales

Transport

Minibeasts

People who help us

 

All things play!

Play is essential for children’s development, building their confidence as they learn to explore, relate to others, set their own goals and solve problems. Children learn by leading their own play, and by taking part in play which are guided and scaffolded by adults.

We celebrate our children’s success in nursery, by observing them in their play, encouraging them to think critically and develop a curiosity for learning. They spend the majority of their time exploring both inside and outside the setting and fully submerging themselves in child-initiated play.

They may build on existing learning, through interaction with a quality environment and open-ended resources, or alongside an adult. In transforming their stock of knowledge into new connections and applications, children develop mastery of concepts.  They embed skills and knowledge, explore and experiment with ideas and new ways of thinking, support their own creativity and develop their individual dispositions.

 

Further information:

At Twinkling Stars nursery, we provide the children with a healthy and nutritious snack. The children are able to have milk in the nursery and water. We encourage all packed lunches to be healthy and filling. We have lots of suggestions and ideas, should you need help with packing an appropriate lunch.

Seesaw:

Seesaw in an app that we use at Newington from nursery – year 6. When you join us, you will receive a QR code and then have online access to your child’s class page and opportunities to receive photos, letters and updates but also to message your class teacher directly and privately.

Tapestry:

Tapestry is our platform for observing children in both nursery and reception. There is an app that you are able to join, once your child is with us, and you will be updated about their progress and attainment at nursery and school. Further details can be found here –

https://tapestry.info/parents-carers/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKWS5eB4fZL5HVJNNDXKlPw

Policies: please see the main home page for all policies

 

Gallery

To be added

 

Nursery-ready flyer

SEE ATTACHED FLYER