Milngavie Early Years Centre

This is the week before our October Week’s holiday and there is a lot going on.  Here’s hoping the beautiful weather stays with us!

On Monday the morning Nursery group are going to the school’s HARVEST FESTIVAL, at Cairns Church.  We have to be there for 9.15am and will be leaving Nursery about 9.10am to get there.  WE ARE TAKING DONATIONS OF TINS AND JARS WITH US FOR THE HARVEST BASKET AND WOULD BE VERY GRATEFUL FOR ANYTHING YOU CAN SEND IN! The collection will be sent to The City Mission, to help feed homeless people.

On Tuesday, it is the turn of the Red, Yellow and Green Groups to visit the gym.

On Thursday we have the big Sponsored Nursery Rhyme Challenge.  If you did not receive a wee booklet explaining it all, and giving the nursery rhymes we are learning for it, please ask staff or look in your child’s group drawer.  We are hoping to raise enough money to pay for our Halloween Entertainer.  We have been practising our rhymes and are confident that most of us know most of them!!!   The sponsorship part is, of course, optional – but we will all take part in the challenge and get a wee certificate at the end of it.  We will let you know how we get on and if you do choose to sponsor your child, will collect any money raised after the October Holiday Week!

On Thursday Evening we are holding an Open Night for Parents at Nursery.  It is a chance to come in and see what staff do to encourage your child’s learning and to find out more about our Learning Journeys, how we plan, assess and further  learning at Milngavie Nursery.  Please come and have a walk around and talk to staff about what we do.  Some of the things might surprise you!  We work on the Early Level of the 3-18 Curriculum along with Primary 1.  If you haven’t had the thrill of exploring what we expect of our children, aged 3, 4 and 5 it’s definitely worth a look!  We can show you on Thursday evening how we prepare our learning environment to stimulate imagination and excitement about learning and also some photos of the year so far. Children are welcome- they are, by far, the best tour guides of the nursery and you might find out a lot more about what they like to do, as most nursery children are a wee bit reticent about what they have done, when asked about it!   Open night is not a night for individual parent consultations about progress.  If you have any concerns or questions about your child’s progress or well being within Nursery, do not hesitate to ask for a meeting with your child’s key worker.  We would be happy to organise this, and are always happy to talk and listen!

ON FRIDAY 14TH OCTOBER, NURSERY IS CLOSED AND STAFF ARE ON AN IN-SERVICE DAY.  In the morning we are looking at Early Level Maths and in the afternoon we are off to Clober Primary for a course on Nurture.

NURSERY OPENS AGAIN ON MONDAY 24th OCTOBER!!  Happy, happy holidays everyone!

Today we were very busy watering the plants that were planted at the Orchard Day .  We looked at all the different plants – redcurrants, blackcurrants, white currants, loganberries, blackberries, cranberries and logan berries!  We are so looking forward to next year when we will be able to enjoy the delicious berries!

This morning we visited Mrs Forrester’s garden – Mrs Forrester lives opposite the school and has a beautiful apple tree in her garden.  She has kindly allowed the nursery to harvest some of her apples to put in the apple and bramble jelly we will be making after the October week.  Here are some photos of our trip to the tree this morning.  We collected 2 big bags of lovely apples – thank you Mrs Forrester!

This week in Nursery

This morning we are going to water in the £400 worth of fruit bushes and ground cover plants which were planted at the Orchard Day yesterday. We are looking forward to seeing what kinds of fruit we will be harvesting next year.

Tuesday- the Blue and Orange Groups are going to gym.

On Wednesday, Kate and Valerie are attending an EDC Seminar on Vocabulary Building.

Friday is Lucia and Catherine’s last day in their Nursery Placement.

Dates for the Diary – Thursday 13th – Nursery Open Evening.

Friday 14th NURSERY CLOSED FOR STAFF INSERVICE

October Week – 17th -21st October – Nursery Closed for the holiday!

Lynn’s Nursery News

This month in Nursery we are harvesting brambles and making bramble jelly.  Thank you to everyone who has braved the prickly bushes and brought in a bumper crop, which is growing by the day in our freezer.  We are going to make the jelly in the week beginning Monday 24^th October.  Jam making can be a bit of a messy business so please could everyone wear old clothes this week.

Nursery Fundraiser

Throughout the nursery year we rely on fundraising to help towards the cost of many different activities and experiences for the children e.g Halloween Entertainer, Nursery Trips etc.  Our first fundraiser this year is going to be a Sponsored Nursery Rhyme.  This will take place on the 13th of October in Nursery.  Could you please hand in sponsor forms and donations by Thursday 26^th of October.

We have an In Service Day on Friday 14^th of October followed by the School October Week from Monday 17^th of October to Friday 28^th of October.  The nursery will be closed on these dates.

HALLOWEEN’S COMING – OOOOOOOO

The social event of the nursery year, our Halloween Party, takes place on Monday 31^st October.  There has been discussion since the beginning of term about possible costumes and excitement is already beginning to build!  We are looking forward to a lovely Halloween feast and we have booked Gary Dunn one of Scotland’s best children’s entertainers, to entertain us.  Fancy dress is optional.  If your child does not attend on a Monday, they can still come to the entertainment, if you come with them.  The morning show starts at 10.15a.m.  and the afternoon one at 1.15pm and the show lasts an hour.  If you are bringing your child, please come along to the Infant Building Gym Hall.

WIN A HALLOWEEN CAKE!

We have a wonderful baker in the Nursery- Elisabeth Van Kampen who is going to bake an amazing Halloween themed cake which she is going to raffle for Nursery Funds.  She makes cakes professionally and is quite well known in the Dumbarton Area for her Briar Bakery.  Tickets will be on sale from Monday 24^th October to Friday 28^th October.  The draw will take place on Friday 28^th October so, if you are lucky,  you might win a delicious Halloween Cake for the weekend.

Gym Fun with Enjoy-a-Ball

We have Enjoy a Ball returning to Nursery on Tuesday Morning and Wednesday Afternoon for six weeks.  The sessions will begin on Tuesday 25^th October.   The children all love taking part in this.

NURSERY OPEN EVENING

Our Nursery Open Evening will be on Thursday 13^th October between 6 and 8pm.  You are welcome to come along to Nursery without your little treasure, for a look at our nursery and its resources, and to find out what we are going to be learning this year.  This is not an evening of formal Parent Teacher interviews – just an informal look at the fun we have with the Early Level Curriculum throughout the year.  It is a chance to chat to staff about how we encourage  awareness of early literacy and numeracy and all the other curricular areas, both indoors and out, over the nursery year.  If you would like to speak to your child’s keyworker about any aspect regarding your child, we are always able to make an appointment for you to have a meeting, before, or after the nursery setting.

WELLIES FOR ALL, PLEASE!

Please check to see if your child has a pair of wellies in Nursery.  We are getting into real welly weather again and it is important that we can play outside without getting our feet wet or muddy.  Please, please, please put your child’s name inside them clearly.   We can lend a Sharpy Marker pen for this purpose, if required.  Also check your child has a pair of gym shoes for nursery.

RECYCLING YOUR JUNK FOR AMAZING ARTWORK

Please could we have your cardboard boxes, tubs, kitchen roll tubes, bottle tops, buttons, ribbons or any other recycling material we could make artistic creations from.  We would be very grateful – you may even get them back transformed into a masterpiece to display in your home!

A very big Congratulations to Kate Cameron who has become a very special Granny.  Kate now has a very special Grandaughter – wee Penelope Margaret Brown- and she is looking forward to lots of granny fun, in a whole new chapter of her life.

On Thursday 13^th October we are holding a Parents’ Open Evening in the Nursery Building between 6 and 8pm.  It is a chance for parents to have a closer look at the types of learning activities we offer and to look at how we use both indoor and outdoor environments, to stimulate children’s natural curiosity and encourage their enjoyment of learning.

It’s an opportunity to look at our curriculum in action, on our walls, and in photos of what we get up to in Nursery.  The staff will be on hand to talk to you about the things we do and the purpose of the different activities and areas within the Nursery.  It’s also a great chance for us to ask your opinions and ideas on what we might change or develop further.

At the Open Evening there is, unfortunately, no opportunity to discuss individual children’s progress- but if you are in any way concerned about your child, we can always make an appointment for you to see your child’s keyworker.   Please do not hesitate to ask – we are always happy to make time to talk to parents.

Please come and have a look – you might be (pleasantly) surprised by some of the things that go on in our Nursery!

Welcome back – we hope you had an amazing long weekend!  In Nursery this week we have lots going on.

Today (Tuesday) – the Blue and Orange Groups are visiting the Cafe at Tesco, while the Red, Yellow and Green Groups visit the gym.

On Wednesday we have our school photographer – Tempest- visiting to take individual photos of the children.  If you would like any wee brothers or sisters in the photos too, please bring them to the upper school gym at 9.45am or 1.30pm.

On Friday- Susan will be bringing Mr Snappy and friends and her Snappy Sounds into nursery and we will have fun making wonderful music!

Ms Murphy has become a Nana over the weekend, to a gorgeous, wee grand daughter!! All of us at nursery send love and MASSIVE CONGRATULATIONS to Elina, Ryan and their new wee daughter, and to Linda, who will be the most amazing nana!

Finlay told his amazing story as he drew it!

Finlay’s Dinosaur Story   16/9/16

“Look at my dinosaur – is a noceraptor – that’s just his paws!  He’s going to bite all the nother dinosaurs! They’re going to wake up cos they’re sleeping.  Both of them are going to wake up!

I’m trying to make spikes!  The noceraptor is dancing !(drawing a line around his page)

Look at this dinosaur – it’s called a noceraptor name – yes a noceraptor name!!

Look at these footprints!  They are noceraptor footprints!  He’s escaping all the way back to his house,  and now he’s escaping out of his house!”

Finlay is a 3 year old superstar!  He loves dinosaurs and we love his story!

This year our photographer-Tempest- will be visiting school and taking individual photos of our children.  They are also happy to take photos of siblings.  The morning photo session starts at 9.45am and the afternoon one at 1.30p.m.    If you would like to bring along little brothers or sisters for a photo please come along to the Upper school gym at the above times.

Over the last few days there has been an interest in camping which developed from Elisabeth’s teepee .  Children had expressed interested in a campfire and Julie had asked what we might eat round the fire- the general consensus was marshmallows and sausages!  This morning we had a fun campfire snack – we talked about what we use fires for and how we keep safe.  We sang lots of campfire songs and thoroughly enjoyed our sausages and marshmallows!  Next week we might even get round to lighting the fire!!!!