Our approach is to help every child develop into confident, independent learners. The right environment and teachers are key to this. We work with the belief that the period up to 5 years of age is a crucial development period and that children can build a solid foundation on which to base further learning at School.
Once Upon A Time Nursery School is committed to:
- providing a positive, safe environment with caring and supportive adults;
- offering a rich and varied curriculum;
- creating a stimulating environment, accessible to all, in which it is fun to learn and in which every child can reach his/her potential
Our curriculum encourages children to be creative, imaginative and to have fun. Research shows that children learn best through play and hands on, multi-sensory experiences. This makes learning exciting and more effective.
Children are given opportunities to explore the world around them and understand how things work by taking part in practical activities that are relevant to their developmental stage. They are challenged with open-ended questions and given opportunities to explore and share their ideas for solving problems.
The early years places great emphasis on children learning by doing. Young children are given opportunities to gain firsthand experiences through play and active involvement. Our curriculum focus’ on experimental learning, active involvement and developing each child’s:
- skills, knowledge and understanding;
- personal, social, emotional, physical and intellectual well-being so as to develop the whole child;
- positive attitudes to learning so that they enjoy it and want to know more and
- self-esteem and self-confidence to experiment, investigate, learn new things and form new relationships
All staff are expected to continually:
- encourage children to learn through play and to follow their own interests;
- cater for the needs and interests of individual children;
- provide a balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities;
- provide a wide variety of practical activities and experiences on a daily basis, both inside and outside;
- use information from parents to help meet the needs of individual children;
- value diversity within our setting and use resources which promote positive images of all the different groups of adults and children living within our society and
- offer outings and bring visitors to the school to extend children’s learning.
At Once Upon A Time we have due regard to the Child Care Standards (Bermuda, 2018). We also incorporate elements of the British Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and Development Matters framework into our activities.
These Characteristics of Effective Learning and the prime and specific Areas of Learning and Development are all interconnected. The ways in which the child engages with other people and their environment – playing and exploring, active learning, and creating and thinking critically – underpin learning and development across all areas and support the child to remain an effective and motivated learner.
Playing and Exploring
Through play our children explore and develop learning experiences, which help them make sense of the world. They practise and build up ideas and learn how to control themselves and understand the need for rules. They have the opportunity to think creatively alongside other children as well as on their own. They communicate with others as they investigate and solve problems.
Active Learning
Active learning occurs when children are motivated and interested. Children need to have some independence and control over their learning. As children develop confidence, they learn to make decisions. It provides children with a sense of satisfaction as they take ownership of their learning.
Creativity and Critical Thinking
Children should be given opportunities to be creative through all areas of learning, not just through the arts. Adults can support children’s thinking and help them to make connections by showing genuine interest, offering encouragement, clarifying ideas and asking open questions. Children can access resources freely and are allowed to move them around the classroom to extend their learning.
The daily activities at Once Upon A Time are based on the following areas of learning and development:
Three prime areas:
Communication and language, Physical development and Personal and social emotional development
Four specific areas:
Literacy, Mathematics, Understanding the world and Expressive arts and design
Staff currently plan activities around themes or topics that stem from children’s interests. Daily planning includes a wide range of activities such as imaginative role play, mark making, mathematics, construction, sensory play (e.g. sand, water), exploration and discovery areas, small world, malleable materials (e.g. clay, playdough), story-time, group time e.g. morning circle, music, creative and physical (e.g. gross and fine motor). These activities are shared with parents through monthly newsletters and the use of Bloomz – a parent/teacher communication app.