Monday 28 March 2011

Additional Holiday

Good morning ,
The voting for the additional public holiday has now closed .
47 votes were returned and the results were:

Friday 29th April    30 votes (64%)
Alternative date      14 votes (30%)
No preference        3 votes   (6%)

So this means that the nursery WILL be closed on Friday 29th April.

Marion

Friday 25 March 2011

Update

Good morning ,

I've just had a suggestion from a parent that we have hand sanitiser available for the parents as you enter the nursery - this has now been done . Until I can source dispensers , there are small pump action containers - one in the conservatory area in the schoolhouse , and one in the sunflowers classroom.
Thank you for the idea Loretta!

Please note that the Care Commission will cease to  exist on 31st March this year . From 1st April the new regulatory body for care services will be Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland(SCSWIS)
Tel: 08456009527  email: enquiries@scswis.com      www.scswis.com
I attended a meeting about the new body yesterday , and we have been assured that the handover will be seamless and the care standards will continue to be upheld.

Dont forget to vote on the extra public holiday this year - I will let you know the result on Monday . If u haven't yet returned your voting slip , please email me asap   marion.barker@clns.co.uk

We still have some of Kathryn Greens lovely books available - but they're going fast!!! So make sure you get yours now. They are on display in both buildings and are a bargain at £4.99 each with £1.00 going to our staff development fund .

Clocks go FORWARD one hour on Sunday morning when BST begins :-) and Dad's.....you have one week left to get a Mother's Day gift(Sunday 3rd April) you really dont want to forget that one!

And finally , go smash a plate - Its Independence Day in Greece!

Happy weekend,

Marion

Thursday 24 March 2011

Important notice

Good morning everyone ,

I'm afraid that the tummy bug is back ! Its been raging through local schools and nurseries and has now made its way to us.  Please remember if your child displays symptoms whilst at nursery ,we will call you immediately and ask you to take them home . If the symptoms begin at home , please do not bring them to nursery. They cannot return until 48 hours clear of all symptoms . This is the guidance issued by the NHS, and is in place to safeguard the health of all the children, families and staff in the nursery. If you or any member of your family is affected , please be vigilant in your personal hygiene , especially handwashing .

It is vital that everyone in the setting follows this procedure so we can keep the risk of infection as low as possible . Thank you for your co-operation and keep healthy!

Marion

Thursday 17 March 2011

STOP PRESS!!!!!!!!

Hello again everyone ,

The grandmother of 2 of our Craigton children has recently written and published 2 delightful books that we are using in the nursery . The first is called ' Molly and Morris go for a walk'. Its a lovely story about 2 moles discovering the signs of spring in the countryside . The second 'What's that tree' is a simple guide to trees and how to identify them . Both books are meant to be shared with children , and get you all outdoors appreciating the beautiful countryside . These books are very popular with the Craigton children and we can highly recommend them .

The author, Kathryn Green , has given us copies of her books to sell here , and very kindly will be donating £1.00 for each book sold to our Staff Development Fund . The books are on display in each building - please have a look at them , and if you'd like to buy any , I have them in my office . Please do this quickly as I'm confident they will sell out ...a total bargain at £4.99 , you and your children will have many happy hours enjoying sharing these lovely books.

I'm expecting to see you all out at the weekend looking for spring!

Marion

Wednesday 16 March 2011

Spring is in the air!

Good afternoon everyone ,

Yes indeed today the sun is shining , the children are out in the garden playing , and exploring and learning :-) They've also been digging up last years crop of potatoes and carrots , and clearing the beds ready for planting We've been able to spend quite a lot of time outside recently and hope to continue to do so. Please ensure that your child has suitable outdoor clothing- (waterproof is best) , and  a change of clothes each day . As we are able to make use of the outdoor area just now , its even more important that the area is secure , so please remember to close and chain all gates behind you each time , and to drive at walking speed in the carpark. Thank you .

We've been very busy at Craigton recently. The children have celebrated  Valentine's Day , Chinese New Year , and Shrove Tuesday amongst others . We all brought in our favourite books/stories to share on World Book Day , and the sunflowers are currently learning all about Fair Trade produce during Fair Trade . And as if that wasn't enough , this week we also have St.Patrick's Day as well as Red Nose Day - phew!!!! As all our fundraising now goes to support the Staff  Development fund , we wont be raising funds for comic relief , but the children are more than welcome to dress in something red , or wear a red nose or anything to celebrate the day.. we have been discussing RND11 and what the money raised is used for this week...well you cant really escape it can you????

I hope that you'll have noticed the new individual display files in the sunflowers cloakroom (coming soon to the schoolhouse too!)- please remember to empty these every time your child attends .....and don't forget the home journals ... please try to  take these home once a week and record something in them - the children love sharing these journals with their friends and the staff , and they give us some valuable information too!
We'll soon be introducing some short information slips - 'Ask me about' and 'Help me find out about'. We hope that this will keep you much more up to date with what your child has been doing during their time with us ..... Yes we know you ask them and the reply is often 'nothing'(as if!) 'don't know' or 'can't remember'. So we'll let you know what we've been doing , and then give you pointers as to what we'll be doing next.

Coming up soon - British Summertime begins Sunday 27th March( hooray!)- clocks forward 1 hour .
Mother's Day Sunday 3rd April - Dont forget that one!

I'm sure that some of you will be planning to get away over the Easter school holidays- please remember to let us know if your going on holiday . In fact , please tell us if your child wont be attending for any reason - staffing and activities are  very carefully planned and it is very important that we know which children will be attending each session . It can also be very frustrating when a group has an opportunity to go for a walk , or visit to the library/post office/shops , but are unable to as they are waiting for a child to arrive...after all we dont want anyone to miss out! So please , just call if they wont be in - thank you.

And finally - I'll give you some  dates for your diary below  including public holidays . Many of you will be aware that there is an extra Public Holiday this year (Royal wedding)on Friday 29th April . This means there will be 3 public holidays in a week- Easter ,Wedding and  Mayday. I'll be putting out a poll shortly to see if you are happy to take this holiday , or would prefer to take it another time . We shall go with the majority decision, so make sure you vote!!!!!

We shall be closed on the following dates this year
Monday 25th April - Easter Monday
Monday 2nd May - Mayday
Monday 11th July and Monday 26th September - local holidays

SPRING/SUMMER FAIR ........SATURDAY 4TH JUNE............more info later but please keep it free!

Don't forget to post your comments on the blog ..... be good to know what you think!

Marion