A Day At Acorn Pre-School...

You will always be greeted by a happy smiling member of our team.

We recognise that every child is an individual with their own character, abilities, sense of humour and needs. We encourage them to reach their potential through our ambitious curriculum, activities and challenging experiences.

Our sessions offer a range of activities, with specific learning aims, allowing children to make their own choices as well as accessing adult led activities.  We have a dedicated role play area which stimulates your child’s imagination giving them the opportunity to learn from what they already know and have experienced. Always available are craft spaces, access to small world resources, construction, loose part and quiet spaces for reading, sleep and puzzles. Our indoor provision is mirrored in our outside space, where possible. 

Messy play is always popular and we regularly rotate these to provide the children with different experiences, allowing them to explore, create and access a variety of materials , which may not be available at home.

Our outdoor play area, is equipped with trikes, cars and climbing frame providing an environment for our children to be more energetic. We also have digging pits filled with soil or sand for the children to enjoy alongside our gardening and growing spaces.

At circle time all children and staff come together to share our golden rules, signs of the week and various experiences including singing, stories, dancing and reflection. We also have ‘show and tell’ for when the children bring in items from home which they can share and talk about to the staff and their peers. During this time we will also celebrate staff and children's birthdays and other cultural events / celebrations.

Throughout the term we have different themes and celebrate different occasions and cultural events, this offers a great opportunity for the children to bring in items and share their experiences and home cultures.

Session times

Our session times are:

Morning session: 9am to 12pm 

Afternoon session: 12pm to 3pm

Children have the option of staying all day (9am to 3pm). Also wrap around care can be added, subject to availability (7.30am to 6pm).

We encourage parents to adhere to these session times and late collection fees can be charged. Adhering to session times ensures children don't miss out on key moments during the sessions and prepares them for starting school.

Golden Rules within our setting

We encourage and support the children to understand the expectations within our setting, using our Golden Rules and outlining consistent boundaries and routines.

Snacks

We operate a rolling snack time where the children are encouraged to have a snack, which is provided by us and consists of fruit and vegetables or other healthy options during a suitable break in their play. Children will be provided with either milk or water to drink at snack time. Drinks are always available throughout the session. During celebrations such as Chinese New Year, Pancake Day or Easter our snacks may include vegetable rice, pancakes or hot cross buns. We cater for children's individual needs and dietary requirements.

Lunches

Lunches will need to be provided from home following our health lunchbox guideline and our promotion of healthy eating. Drinks are provided for all the children.

What to wear

Acorn Pre-School t-shirts and sweatshirts are available to purchase, however these are not compulsory. It is important that your child wears clothes that are easy for them to manage by themselves and comfortable. We will encourage your children to explore and learn through activities and sometimes these activities can be messy.

Measuring progress

We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) through a challenging and diverse curriculum. We observe your child and document their progress in a secure Digital Learning Journal, to ensure that we're meeting their individual needs at every stage. As parents and carers you have access to the secure Digital Learning Journal where you will see pictures, videos and observations of what your child has been up to whilst with us. You'll also be able to upload and share photos and videos of what you have been up to at home, which our staff love to see.

Working in partnership

We have a more positive impact on children’s learning and development by working closely with those who know them best - their parents and carers. We'll work with you to ensure your child receives appropriate, tailored support to get the most out of their educational journey with us as we in still the life long love of learning.