Weekly Bulletin 29 November 2023

29th November 2023

Dear Parents and Carers

              An Invitation

Every child is invited to bring a special adult (it could be a parent, relative, godparent, friend..) to our

Christmas Story Trail on Wednesday 6^th December 8.45 – 9.30am

We invite you to:

·         Arrive with your child between 8.45 – 9.15am

·         Take your child on the story trail in the garden, joining in the things to see, hear, do and taste

·         Settle your child for the rest of his/her session before you leave

You will complete the trail in about 10 minutes from your arrival time, and then enjoy a drink and biscuit made by the children in the classroom.

Any queries please speak to your class staff.

Please do come along to our special event that really brings to life the Christmas story for all the children who see it. A big thank you to all the volunteers who are taking part this year. Nest parents please do come and join in, whether your child is here on Wednesday, or not. Please come through the Nursery gate, next to the park for the trail, and then take your child to the Nest for their session after you have finished going around with them, or return home if it is not your session time. East Blue parents please also come in for this special event so your children can experience it too, and then return for your normal session in the afternoon.

Bob, our caretaker, has also been busy this week putting up very pretty twinkly lights in our corridors, for the children and staff to enjoy.

Tracey and her sister Sharon have also been busy wrapping raffle boxes too – thank you to all of you for your generous donations.

Father Christmas has been in touch and is hoping to pop in next week to see the children. Please keep this as a surprise for them.

Pick up times

Could we request that if you are collecting your children early from the Nursery then please come at one of the following times in order not to disrupt class activities that are going on at other points during the afternoon 11.45am, 12.45pm, 3.00pm or 3.45pm.

Junk modelling request

Please can we request that you bring in clean small boxes, plastic cartons or tubes for our junk modelling tables as we are very short of these sort of items and children are loving making models.

Wiping bottoms

Could we also request that you teach your child how to wipe their bottoms independently as we are finding that some children don’t yet have this skill, and whilst we are very happy to help them it is also skill they need to learn, especially as in primary school they will need to do this on their own.  We are hoping to do a Circle time activity with a teddy bear and toilet roll to show them how best to achieve this. We always recommend wiping from front to back.

Christmas Party Food lists for the Wednesday 13^th December

Classes are putting up lists outside the classroom windows for you to donate food for our Christmas parties.  Please sign your name next to the item you would like to bring and give it to staff on either the 12^th or 13^th December.

Local Authority and Family worker support

I am attaching a couple of useful links for families who maybe finding the current cost of living a challenge. Please look at …

https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/council/communities/support-with-the-cost-of-living

There are also Family Worker drop in sessions at the following places and times if you would like some support with anything from parenting to paying bills etc

They take place on …

Mondays:

9.30am – 11.30am (half hourly appointments)

At The Meadows Community Centre

12.30pm – 2.30pm (half hourly appointments)

At The Fields Child and Family Centre

To make an appointment please ring the number below or email directly.

Tel: 01223 728118

Email: ChildAnd Family Centre.City@Cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Application for Nursery Places September 2024

If your child is in The Nest currently, and you would like them to have a place in the Nursery in September 2024, please fill in an application form – these are available on the website and from our office.

Necklace Found

A neighbour has been in touch to say they have found a necklace with a cross on it, outside their house.  If anyone has lost a necklace please let me know and I can put you in touch with the neighbour.

This week some classes have been focusing on developing the childrens’  independent spreading skills. The children have been using a spoon in The Nest to spread tomato paste on a pastry sheet,  and then adding cheese on top and rolling it up, to make a cheese twist.  They then cooked the twists in the oven for a few minutes to make a tasty snack.

In East Room children have also been learning to spread using a knife, held at an angle on its side, to make a cracker or rice cake snack with honey or cheese topping. Debbie helped them by showing them a recipe card with picture instructions to follow.

Davina was exploring high and low sounds with the children this week, every child had a musical instrument and she accompanied them on the piano…if she was playing a high note they held their instruments right up high, and if she was playing a low note the children crouched down low to play their instruments.

Children also had a lot of fun exploring physical play with the parachute in our Rainbow Room. We often use the parachute when singing familiar songs, sending the parachute up high or down low. Good songs for parachute play are ‘The Grand Old Duke of York’ which involves going up and down the hill, and ‘Ring a Ring a Roses’, where the parachute is moved around in a circular motion from one child to another, before the children crouch down at the end of the song with ‘A tissue, a tissue we all fall down’ .

Each week we have a garden focus for the Nursery. This week West Room are leading this, developing physical strength by seeing how far children can throw the welly boot. They were using chalks to record the distance thrown, and the number of throws, which provided an opportunity to also develop mark making and mathematical tallying skills.

Wednesday 6^th December – Christmas Story trail for parents and children around the garden 8.45am-9.30am – East Blue children, and any children from the Nest who attend on a different day/time, please come in to enjoy this event with everyone. 

Wednesday 13^th December – Party day, which is just for the children.

Wednesday 13^th December – Christmas raffle with tickets sold on the day so please bring cash with you on that day.

Wednesday 20^th December – Last day of term

Thursday 4^th January – The Centre is closed for a training day for staff

Friday 5^th January – First day of Spring Term

Holiday Activity Funding and Food vouchers

If you think you are eligible for HAF funding for your child please apply for this directly via HAF funding.

Applying for Reception places – Please remember the deadline for applications is 15^th January 2024

If your child is in The Nest currently, and you would like them to have a place in the Nursery in September 2024, please fill in an application form – these are available on the website and from our office.