Lots of Learning
June 2026 - Please Help Planet Earth!
We have been exploring the book 'Please help Planet Earth' in Nursery over the last few weeks. This has followed on from our Forest School sessions on 'Sustainability' and our growing topics. Children learnt about endangered animals and searched for them around the garden, using their prepositional language to describe where they were located. They also had the opportunity to make seed bombs using clay, soil and seeds and continue their conversations around how plants help us and our natural world. We also made our own pizzas from scratch and leant how to knead the dough before shaping and adding our own delicious toppings!
May 2026 - Activities Week
This week in Nursery children took part in 'Activities Week' to help raise money for some new playground equipment. We managed to raise over £700 from donations and are very excited to put this money to good use.
Children took part in a range of different activities throughout the week including; an obstacle course, bike-ability training and step-ups!
May 2026 - Walk to School Week
Children in Nursery took part in 'Walk to School Week.' We encouraged children to travel to school by either walking, scooting, or riding their bikes. Lots of children took part and it was great to hear that families that would normally drive parking closer to home so they could walk the remainder of their journey. We did a poll in the morning as children came into Nursery, whereby they had to put a cork in a tub to say whether they walked or did not walk. This was a great converstation starter in the morning, with lots of children sharing how they travelled to Nursery. This week linked nicely with our current core book 'Oliver's Vegetables' where we have been talking to children about the importance of keeping their bodies healthy.
May 2026 - Animal Ark
Children in Nursery were very excited to have a visit from Animal Ark on Friday. They were able to get up close with large farm animals such as goats, sheep and a donkey, taking it in turns to brush and stroke them. They were very gentle with the animals and the dog provided lots of interaction and fascination! The smaller animals were of equal interest and the children were able to stoke, handle and feed guinea pigs, rabbits and even a tortoise!
April 2026 - Jack and the Beanstalk
The growing season has begun! Jack and the Beanstalk has been a great introduction to planting with children in Nursery. They have been planting seeds in Forest School and beans during small group sessions in the morning. Our allotment has also seen lots of vegetables starting to grow, including potatoes, red onions and tomatoes. Children have made signs to show what is growing and have worked hard to ensure plants get plenty of water. Alongside this, we have made green bean fritters during our cooking sessions, which smelt delicious! Children have enjoyed having the opportunity to taste their creations in their groups and recall the ingredients that they added. We have also been practising using mathematical vocabulary to do with measure, such as longer and shorter, creating our own beanstalks using bricks and paint.
March 2026 - Ducklings
A very egg-citing end to this half term with the delivery of 5 duck eggs! The children were able to observe the ducks hatching from the eggs and grow over the last few weeks. We had lots of conversations about life-cycles and the importance of being gentle with the ducklings. Children were able to hold the ducks and learnt how to look after them. We asked children some thought provoking questions such as; How might the ducks be feeling? and 'I wonder how big they will grow...' Children responded with their own questions which we recorded on speech bubbles. We also learnt new words such as 'Incubator' and 'Webbed feet'.
March 2026 - A Special Delivery
Children in Nursery have been making some very special cards for their loved ones this week. They have been very excited to walk to the post box with their key person to post their letters. During the walk, we talked to children about keeping safe with our grown-ups and holding hands and the importance of road safety. Children were very talkative during the walk and we spotted three skips, a squashed banana, a boat and even a mini digger!
February 2026 - Ravi's Roar
Our recent core book has been Ravi’s Roar by Tom Percival. This book explores emotions and tells the story of a boy who became so angry he turned into a tiger. Children have certainly enjoyed listening to the story and have become invested in the main character, Ravi, exploring the many reasons why he becomes so angry.
Alongside reading Ravi’s Roar, we discussed how emotions can look on our faces and drew self portraits while looking in the mirror. We also came up with ideas of how to help ourselves calm down when we are feeling big emotions, like anger. Taking some deep breaths was suggested by children and so we practised by blowing bubbles using long deep breaths. We also had a go at yoga as a way of staying calm and serene, it certainly worked!
Children also had a go at baking 'feel good' chocolate cupcakes this week. Following the recipe and recognising the ingredients allowed us to practice the skills they have learnt through their previous cooking lessons, such as cracking eggs.
February 2026 - The Gruffalo
The Gruffalo is always a favourite story in Nursery and one they know well. This year children have been fully engrossed in the book with many being able to retell it using the pictures and props provided. We have made our own creatures using clay and added loose parts for detail. Children have loved using the Gruffalo teddies to make homes for them and added pieces of material to tuck them into their beds! Alongside this, children have even got to make their own Gruffalo crumble, which smelt and tasted delicious!
January 2026 - Oola the Owl
Children in Nursery had an amazing experience handling some live owls this week. This linked well with our core book 'Oola the Owl' and children had the opportunity to ask questions about the four owls that came to visit. We had; Accio the white faced owl, Wilf the chaco owl, Spud the Tawny owl and Bracken the European eagle owl.
December 2025 - Christmas Extravaganza!
We were delighted to hold our Christmas Extravaganza evening once again this year. It was lovely to see so many families come back into school and take part in all the Christmas activities we had planned. We finished the night with singing some Christmas songs beside the tree. Thank you to #LoveHatfield for their tree and decoration donation, it made the evening quite magical.
December 2025 - Stick Man
It's that time of year again and we are getting all Christmassy in Nursery! We began the week with reading our next core book 'Stick Man' which has helped set the scene and get children excited about this time of year. We have kept our learning festive and children have enjoyed making their own salt dough decorations, Christmas cards and decorating the Christmas tree. We have been making Gingerbread people when cooking and children have learnt new skills such as using their fingers to gain a pinch of certain ingredients. They have revisited this when decorating their salt dough decorations using paints and glitter. We will finish the school term with a visit from a special guest next week!
November 2025 - Going on a Bear Hunt
Going on a Bear Hunt is a children's classic and loved by both children and adults in Nursery. We have explored the story and learnt the actions alongside using the many story props. Children have been investigating mixing primary colours and making the colour brown. They have then painted their own amazing brown bears from the story and thought carefully about the features needed. We have been working hard to develop our cooking skills and this week we have focussed on reading the recipe cards and counting the spoons needed to make banana and chocolate chip oaty biscuits.
November 2025 - Remembrance
Children in Nursery had a two minute silence on Wednesday to mark Remembrance Day. We had different opportunities to explore this in the setting through activities such as painting poppies, making their own poppy badges and experimenting with red paint in the playdough.
October 2025 - Diwali
In Nursery this week we have been learning about Diwali. We shared our core book 'The Best Diwali Ever' with children and gave them the opportunity to take part in a variety of activities such as; making Rangoli patterns using coloured rice, chalk and magnetic shapes. We also made our own Diwa lamps using clay and enjoyed sharing a snack of vegetable samosas. Alongside this, we took the opportunity to explore some seasonal pumpkins and children enjoyed hammering golf tees into the them and then using pliers to pull them out. They also continued their chopping skills by cutting the pumpkins in the mud kitchen and exploring what was inside.
October 2025 - The Colour Monster
The Colour Monster is always a firm favourite for children in Nursery and this year was no exception. Children have become experts at learning the different emotions and how they relate to the different colour monsters in the story. Alongside this, they have learnt the Makaton signs for the feelings and parents have even commented on how their children are teaching them at home! We have started our first cooking sessions where children have learnt how to hold a knife correctly to cut different coloured fruits to make a fruit salad. Children have explored their own emotions by making their own feelings jar and coloured playdough depending on how they were feeling that morning. It was reassuring to see so many yellow and green playdough colours!
October 2025 - Brown Bear
Our first core book in Nursery has been 'Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see?' The children have loved listening to the story and learning the Makaton signs to go alongside the different colours and animals from the story. They have now started to explore the Nursery alongside the other children in their small group activities. Children have been out on the pirate ship using binoculars to spot Brown Bear's friends, digging in the sandpit to find the hidden animals and even having a go at painting characters from the story. The children have joined in with great enthusiasm and have enjoyed moving to different areas of the Nursery with their Key Workers to take part in the planned activities.
September 2025 - Settling in
We have had a brilliant first week in Nursery. Children have come into their new setting with such confidence and have been keen to explore straight away. The new Nursery playground equipment has been a particular highlight and children have enjoyed the challenge of balancing, swinging and climbing up the different components. We can already see the progress they are making and can't wait to see how far they come this year!
