Mrs Mackenzie (Nursery Teacher) is going to be running workshops for parents whose children will be starting Primary 1 in August. These have been organised in conjunction with the Family Learning Coordinator. These workshops will be an exciting opportunity to find out about how phonics, reading, writing and number skills are taught in the Early Level/ Primary 1.  There will be lots of fun activities for parents to take part in and we hope that it will be informative and helpful.  There will be opportunities to look at some of the resources and activities the children may use in Primary 1.

Where: We are planning to hold the sessions in the school library in the main school building.

When: Parents can choose whether they attend the morning or the afternoon workshops. The times are 10.30-11.15 am and 2.00-2.45pm. Refreshments will be available. Mrs Mackenzie will be available to speak to parents before and after the sessions and parents are welcome to arrive early to have a look at the information displays.

How many: There will be 4 morning workshops and 4 afternoon workshops. They will be held on Thursday 30th May, 6th June, 13th June and the 20th June. There will be 2 literacy workshops and 2 numeracy workshops. Parents are encouraged to attend as many as they can.

Leaflets will be sent out soon regarding this. If you are interested in attending the workshops, please speak to Mrs Mackenzie or a member of Nursery staff.

Sun Protection

As the weather is now improving, children will be able to play outside in “free flow outdoor play.” This means that on some days your child is able to choose to play outside for as much of the Nursery session as they choose. It is therefore important that parents take appropriate sun protection precautions to ensure children’s safety in the sun. Staff do not apply sun cream to children.  Please apply a long lasting sun cream just before children come to Nursery and provide appropriate clothing that provides coverage in sensitive areas, a hat for outdoor play and sunglasses. Please remember to label these with your child’s name. If you have any concerns or questions, please speak to a member of Nursery staff. Thank you.

We had a lovely puppet show in the Nursery today. The children had a super time watching the ‘Bella the Butterfly’ puppet show by Graham Moffat and then making puppets with their parents, grandparents and family members. It was a fantastic day and the children really enjoyed it. It was organised in conjunction with the Family Learning Co-ordinator.

Take a look at our new farm display in the Nursery corridor!

The children have been learning about life on a farm and people who help on farms. They have enjoyed a wide range of activities. Some of the children brought in pictures from farms and talked about them to the group. The children have developed their role play in the small world area with play farm equipment. They have also been matching baby animals in bingo games, creating playdough animals and looking at farm related story books. The children have really enjoyed this topic!

Nursery Sponsored Walk: Tuesday 21^st May

On Tuesday 21^st May, we will be going on our sponsored walk. We will be using the funds for a Nursery fun day and to buy resources for the Nursery. If you have an idea for a particular resource, toy or item that would be beneficial to have in the Nursery, please speak to a member of staff. We really would value your input.

Nursery Parents’ Evening Appointments

The appointment sheets for Parents’ Evening (Monday 27^th May) are currently displayed in the Nursery. Please write your appointment time on the sheets by Friday 17^th May.

Nursery Planning (May/June 2013)

The children are currently learning about the life cycle of butterflies and frogs. They will then be taking part in a creative topic linked to nature- exploring music and the work of artists, e.g. Monet. They will be taking part in some art and craft activities to replicate ideas from the work of artists and they will be growing plants in the Nursery. What a fun topic! If you have any ideas for activities or you would like to help in the Nursery with an activity during the topic, please speak to a member of staff.

We learned lots about Scotland! (January 2013)

The children have been making lamps. They have been able to talk about the festival of Divali. They watched a video about this festival and they used materials on the interactive white board. They really enjoyed the texture of the clay and they tried hard to decorate the lamps using a range of beads and glitter.

The children baked delicious jam tarts as part of our day and night topic. They rolled out shortcrust pastry and cut pastry stars for the tops of the tarts. They were very tasty! They learned about cleanliness when cooking and the importance of hand washing. Well done boys and girls.

A field teacher from the RSPB taught the Nursery children all about owls. The children were able to make owl sounds and identify owls.

RSPB visit

They have had a lovely time playing with the night animals puppets, especially the owls.

Playing with the owl puppet

The children have been exploring light by playing with torches in the tent. The children loved this activity!

Tent picture

The children showed an interest in making a warm cover for the bed in the house. This has been extended into work on quilting. Look at our super quilt.

The children were able to sew the patches together. Well done!

The children have also been creating their own quilt patterns at the sticking table.

The children were really pleased with their quilting work!

Nursery Bird Garden Project (2011/2012 and 2012/2013)

glow ev birds part 3

glow ev birds part 2

glow ev birds part 1

The children had a fantastic time working with the RSPB to improve our garden and outdoor nature area. They have learned so much about birds and habitats.