We do…
At little Acorns we do lots…
Variation is key to a childs learning and development, we like to give them as many opportunities as possible to try something new and find out what they like and what they don’t!
Claire King qualified as a Forest School leader in 2017. The idea of Forest School originated from Scandinavia. In an age when many children have few opportunities to be outdoors, Forest Schools offer children an exciting and stimulating way to learn and experience a broad curriculum amongst nature; children are provided with opportunities to use the natural environment as a learning tool.
Activities include: Den building, story time, natural art, mini beast exploration, natural musical instruments, sculpture – clay/natural materials, wild weaving, growing and harvesting fruits and vegetables.
Sports4Tots takes place every Friday morning. There is an additional fee of £3.70 if you choose for your child to take part. Please click here for more information.
Cooking with children is a great way of introducing them to the idea of following basic instructions and using maths concepts in a fun and stimulating way. In our experience we have found that it helps to greatly improve a child’s self confidence and lay the foundations for healthy eating habits. We are very fortunate to have a member of staff who is also a very talented baker and who successfully leads weekly cookery sessions.
Makaton is a unique form of language and communication that uses symbols, signs and speech to help support and develop individuals communication. Makaton helps develop the essential communications skills, listening and attention, comprehension, memory, recall and organisation of language and expression. We use Makaton daily with the children through conversations, songs, rhymes and play.
It is a great communication skills to teach children from a young age as well as helping them to explore the different ways that we can communicate. We created a little poster of some of the signs we use daily with children. Why not give them a go and see if you can teach some to your children.
There are times when life can become very stressful and this stress can be transferred into the preschool. As practitioners, we want to provide our children with the tools to let them live positive and healthy lives and regular yoga and mindfulness practice can be that tool. It teaches them how to deal with life’s demands in a calm and centered way.
1. Physical Benefits of Preschool Yoga
- A regular yoga practice improves physical fitness. It also boosts the immune system and helps muscles and organs to function at optimal levels.
- Yoga cultivates core strength which helps increase balance and flexibility. It can also help maintain and improve a person’s posture.
2. Emotional Benefits of Preschool Yoga
- Practicing yoga and mindfulness helps empower children to manage and regulate their emotions.
- Yoga helps children to be less reactive, and more mindful, in their thoughts, words and actions.
Many parents are put off by messy play, as although the idea of finger painting or crafts sounds fun at first, the reality of paint, glue and glitter getting everywhere and the inevitable operation clean up that follows it soon sets in. However, many studies have shown that messy play is one of the best ways for children to learn and develop, so now is the time to embrace it and get messy! At Little Acorns we encourage our children to engage in messy and sensory play as much as possible as the many benefits are worth it.
Messy play is all about learning through experience. It involves using all five senses to explore how things feel, smell and taste, as well as what they look and sound like when we interact with them. Messy play is usually a child-led activity- children are given the freedom to use messy play materials in whatever way they like to help encourage them to learn independently.
Messy play can also really aid children’s physical development. Through play, they will be developing things like fine and gross motor skills, and hand-eye coordination.
Studies show that music ignites all areas of child development and the skills needed for school readiness (intellectual, social-emotional, motor, language and overall literacy).
Preschoolers enjoy singing just to be singing. They aren’t self-conscious about their ability, and most are eager to let their voices roar. They like songs that repeat words and melodies, use rhythms with a definite beat, and ask them to do things and follow directions. Preschool children enjoy nursery rhymes and songs about familiar things like toys, animals, play activities, and people. They also like fingerplays and nonsense rhymes with or without musical accompaniment.
At Little Acorns Preschool, we pride ourselves on being musical. Music plays a key part in our daily routine and is used during circle times, outside play, to motivate and inspire us during tidy up times and alongside our ‘healthy movers’ sessions.
Village celebrations:
As a Preschool we participate in several local celebrations and traditions, sharing these with our children and parents. At Christmas time we invite our parents to join in the local village traditions such as the tree lighting ceremony (which takes place in Barripper and Penponds) and the Penponds nativity. At Easter, Halloween and Christmas we get involved in the local treasure hunts that take place in both villages.
Our families and local people:
We feel it is important to include parents and local people in our children’s learning. We have invited family members in to join us for story telling sessions, or to share family traditions with us. We are fortunate to receive visits from members of the local community who work for the emergency services and can talk to the children about what their jobs entail and demonstrate some of the equipment they use. We regard all these visits as highly important as they promote our Cultural Capital learning opportunities.
We are situated on the grounds of Penponds School and are very fortunate to have extremely good links with them; it must be noted though that just because your child attends Little Acorns Preschool, it won’t necessarily guarantee them a place at Penponds School. For those children who are confirmed places at the school, they will be in a very fortunate position because they will be familiar with the school; we are lucky to be able to use the school ground in the summer term for our Sports4Tots sessions and we are invited to the school for events such as the Harvest Festival and Sports Day.
Celebrating different events is important for children because it helps them to develop social, emotional, and cognitive skills, as well as foster a sense of community and belonging. Festivals and different events are one of the best practices for children to let them understand the world and the different cultures and the value in this world. The children can learn many exciting and new things from others by creating bonds or connections.
For the early years learner, celebrating a festival will help them to develop the bond between them and the world around them which is why it’s necessary to introduce and celebrate the events for the children. This allows them to understand, explore, learn and enjoy more with understanding and celebrating different events in their setting.
Here is a list of some of the festivals and cultural holidays that we celebrate at Little Acorns:
- Harvest
- Halloween
- Bonfire night
- Diwali
- Christmas
- Chinese New Year
- Valentine’s Day
- St Piran’s Day
- Mother’s Day
- Easter
- Father’s Day
- Birthdays
- Royal events – weddings, jubilees, birthdays
The Healthy Movers programme is designed to support two to five-year-olds physical literacy, development and wellbeing, helping them gain a better start in life. The programme is delivered through resources and training for practitioners in early years settings and families to continue the activities at home.The staff at Little Acorns have received training and support to help them deliver daily ‘healthy mover’ sessions.