Hello everyone ,
we are all really enjoying the long awaited good weather at Craigton . All the children are in the garden as I type this (they have made the gazebo into a circus tent)and the sound of their laughter is coming through my office window :-) sometimes this is just the best job!
We have artwork happening with paint and chalks , sand play , and some imaginative building going on with the crates and planks , whilst others are dancing along to the music - a good day at Craigton !
The greenhouse produce is really growing now , and we are looking forward to Joanne from Gardening4Kids coming tomorrow to help us plant some more seeds.
Dont forget that all children need to have a wide brimmed sunhat and suncream each day - we do have limited nursery stocks but its best for each child to bring their own . Please note that if your child doesn't have suncream , we will use our own - Asda Protect Sensitive for Kids Factor 50 .
At the Parent Forum last week (minutes on display in each department) it was mentioned that it's sometimes difficult for all the children's gear to be on their pegs , and items often go astray. We do appreciate you brining in requested items but agree that this can become difficult to manage . So we have ordered a drawstring gymbag for everyone- you will find these in your childs file soon- please take these home to name and decorate anyway you like , then please use for any extra clothing items - hats , shoes etc . We hope that just having bags on the pegs will improve the situation. Remember that all items still need to be named, and don't forget to take your bags home regular to wash items and check they still fit . Please do not put food or medicines in the children's bags as others can access these - Thank you .
This was the last meeting of the Forum for this session, Our thanks to Erin Brown , Carl Gerrard , Claire Molloy , Deirdre Strachan and Madhuri Thakur for their time and contributions - it much appreciated. I will be appealing for volunteers for next session soon .
A message from the schoolhouse - please be patient when buzzing for entry . The buzzer can very loud and if rung for long bursts or repeatedly wakens any sleeping children. It is not always possible for staff to reply immediately , but they will do so as soon as they can.
We hope that you're all getting used to using the childrens photoboards in this building , and they are encouraging you into the rooms so your children can share some of their nursery experience with you .
The schoolhouse have also welcomed a new 4-6 assistant this week - Nuala Wilkinson is in S6 at Cults and will be with us on Wednesdays -she will join Jemma , Catharine and Hannah to complete our afterschool team .
As we are coming up for holiday season - please remember to tell us if your child wont be at nursery or will be late for any reason - we really need to know who will be in each day - Thank you .
And finally , we have rescheduled our renamed Summer Fair for Saturday 26th July 12-2pm . We'll let you know when the tickets for this will be on sale - probably the end of June - bit please keep this date free.
A reminder that we will be closed on 14th July and 22nd September this year
Thursday 29 May 2014
Friday 23 May 2014
Hello everyone ,
As mentioned in previous posts , earlier this year we were invited to participate in an initiative by the Aberdeen Early Years Collaborative in piloting improvements in setting using Attachment led practice, in collaboration with Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk . We are part of a small group involved in this , but it has already been keenly followed by other authorities and the organisers hope that this will bring improvements across the country . Suzanne, Charlotte , Natalie , Alison and myself have attended intensive learning sessions oh this , and have been sharing our experience with others involved . It has been difficult for us to find an improvement in this area , as much of our practice with 0-3's is attachment led . We have been discussing this for some time , but have now agreed on an area we'd like to work on......and this is getting the parents into the rooms along with the children at drop off and pickup times . This will help to support the children in separating from parents/carers- and we hope will encourage you to be even more interested in what goes on at nursery :-)
From next week , all rooms in the schoolhouse will have photo boards both outside and in the rooms . We would like you all to please look for your child's picture with them on arrival , bring it into the room and place it on the board in the room . And at pick up time to reverse the process . We think this is something that you and the children will enjoy doing , and we hope it will encourage further interaction between staff and parents. We will be monitoring the process and will be sharing the results with the other settings over the coming months .
If you'd like more information about this , please visit Dr. Zeedyk's website http://suzannezeedyk.com/
Happy Weekend!
As mentioned in previous posts , earlier this year we were invited to participate in an initiative by the Aberdeen Early Years Collaborative in piloting improvements in setting using Attachment led practice, in collaboration with Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk . We are part of a small group involved in this , but it has already been keenly followed by other authorities and the organisers hope that this will bring improvements across the country . Suzanne, Charlotte , Natalie , Alison and myself have attended intensive learning sessions oh this , and have been sharing our experience with others involved . It has been difficult for us to find an improvement in this area , as much of our practice with 0-3's is attachment led . We have been discussing this for some time , but have now agreed on an area we'd like to work on......and this is getting the parents into the rooms along with the children at drop off and pickup times . This will help to support the children in separating from parents/carers- and we hope will encourage you to be even more interested in what goes on at nursery :-)
From next week , all rooms in the schoolhouse will have photo boards both outside and in the rooms . We would like you all to please look for your child's picture with them on arrival , bring it into the room and place it on the board in the room . And at pick up time to reverse the process . We think this is something that you and the children will enjoy doing , and we hope it will encourage further interaction between staff and parents. We will be monitoring the process and will be sharing the results with the other settings over the coming months .
If you'd like more information about this , please visit Dr. Zeedyk's website http://suzannezeedyk.com/
Happy Weekend!
Friday 16 May 2014
Staff news
Good morning everyone ,
we are making the most of the lovely weather and spending as much time as possible outdoors at the moment . The children are having a great time continuing with their den building , mud making , construction and imaginative play with the new resources , as well as caring for their plants in the greenhouses and growing areas. As we are hoping this is the start of summer , please provide suncream and wide brimmed hat for your child- both clearly labelled please . Please continue to bring in waterproofs and wellies too though- it is Scotland after all !
We have some staffing changes happening soon -
Carly (sunflowers) will be leaving us to concentrate on her language teaching- she's only been with us a few weeks but has become popular with the children - we are hoping that she may return after the summer with some french activities for the sunflowers. From next week Cari (bluebells) will be moving to the sunflowers. Cari has been with the bluebells since she joined us last year and now needs some experience working with the older children .
We also have our new cook , Kate , joining us next week . Kate will be covering for Katie's(yes that's confusing) maternity leave. They will have a week together before Katie goes - her last day will be Friday 23rd May though we hope she will be back next year along with her baby.
A reminder that the sunflowers photo shoot is on Thursday 12th June 9:30am and Sports Day/Graduation on Wednesday 25th June 3pm.
And finally , there will be a Parent Forum meeting next week (21st May) - if you have anything you'd like discussed at this meeting , please contact any member of the forum: Erin Brown , Carl Gerrard , Claire Molloy , Deirdre Strachan , Madhuri Thakur - photos are on display in both buildings .
The nursery will be closed on the following dates this year :
14th July , 22nd September.
We shall close at 6pm Tuesday 23rd December and reopen 8am Monday 5th January 2015
we are making the most of the lovely weather and spending as much time as possible outdoors at the moment . The children are having a great time continuing with their den building , mud making , construction and imaginative play with the new resources , as well as caring for their plants in the greenhouses and growing areas. As we are hoping this is the start of summer , please provide suncream and wide brimmed hat for your child- both clearly labelled please . Please continue to bring in waterproofs and wellies too though- it is Scotland after all !
We have some staffing changes happening soon -
Carly (sunflowers) will be leaving us to concentrate on her language teaching- she's only been with us a few weeks but has become popular with the children - we are hoping that she may return after the summer with some french activities for the sunflowers. From next week Cari (bluebells) will be moving to the sunflowers. Cari has been with the bluebells since she joined us last year and now needs some experience working with the older children .
We also have our new cook , Kate , joining us next week . Kate will be covering for Katie's(yes that's confusing) maternity leave. They will have a week together before Katie goes - her last day will be Friday 23rd May though we hope she will be back next year along with her baby.
A reminder that the sunflowers photo shoot is on Thursday 12th June 9:30am and Sports Day/Graduation on Wednesday 25th June 3pm.
And finally , there will be a Parent Forum meeting next week (21st May) - if you have anything you'd like discussed at this meeting , please contact any member of the forum: Erin Brown , Carl Gerrard , Claire Molloy , Deirdre Strachan , Madhuri Thakur - photos are on display in both buildings .
The nursery will be closed on the following dates this year :
14th July , 22nd September.
We shall close at 6pm Tuesday 23rd December and reopen 8am Monday 5th January 2015
Thursday 8 May 2014
Round up
Good afternoon everyone ,
As ever , we have all been very busy at Craigton lately .
The schoolhouse children have been having great fun focusing on MiniBeats recently with lots of activities both indoors and outside related to this theme . They have also just filled one of the portable greenhouses with tomato plants that they have grown from seed- the children will continue to care for these plants and see how quickly they grow...indeed they have been so successful that we have some extra seedling in the conservatory that you are welcome to take home ....please help yourselves and let us know how successful your harvest is........or take photos for us so we can share the experience !
We have also planted sunflowers and potatoes in the growing area , and have been looking after the fruit trees in the orchard- thanks to Jo from Gardening4Kids for her help and advice on pruning(we needed that!).
All the children are enjoying the new resources outdoors - we are spending as much time as possible outdoors and will be encouraging den building , water runs, play in the mud kitchen as well as exploring local parks and wooland areas. Staff have observed that the children move more freely and explore much more confidently when dressed in waterproofs- some children are worried about getting wet/dirty! So please ensure that your child has suitable clothing each day,- this still means waterproofs and wellies- although the weather may be improving , the children will still be engaged in some wet/messy activities and they need to be properly dressed to get the most from these play and learning opportunities . Please also have a check that wellies still fit- those feet grow very quickly!
We are still awaiting replacements for our new sheds , but have been assured that they will be delivered by the end of this month .
We have a new member of staff starting next week - Claire will be cooking our lunches while Katie is on maternity leave . She has previous experience cooking in both nurseries and care homes so will be more that able to keep the lovely food coming in Katie's absence . Katie's last day will be Friday 23rd May , but she will return next year along with her baby :-)
If you bought a ticket for the cancelled Spring Fair - please come and get your refund if you havent already done so - we will let you know the rescheduled date for this as soon as we have one .
Other dates to remember- Sunflowers group and Graduation photos Thursday 12th June . All sunflowers please be here and ready to be snapped by 9:30am . Our photographer Linda has a very tight schedule and if you're not here in time you may miss out! If your child doesn't normally attend on a Thursday morning , please bring them along so they can be in the photo.
And then we have the sunflowers sports day/Graduation on Wednesday 25th June 3pm. We will give you more info on this popular event nearer the time , but please keep that date free .
We are scheduled to have a Parent Forum meeting on Wednesday 21st May so if there is anything you would like raised/discussed at this meeting , please see any member of the forum or myself . The members this year are : Erin Brown, Carl Gerrard, Claire Molloy , Deirdre Strachan and Madhuri Thakur - their photos are on display in each building. Please note that the minutes of these meetings are displayed on the noticeboards for all parents to read , but we are currently looking into ways of being able to post them on here.
And thats all for now - will be back soon letting you know what your children have been doing at Craigton
As ever , we have all been very busy at Craigton lately .
The schoolhouse children have been having great fun focusing on MiniBeats recently with lots of activities both indoors and outside related to this theme . They have also just filled one of the portable greenhouses with tomato plants that they have grown from seed- the children will continue to care for these plants and see how quickly they grow...indeed they have been so successful that we have some extra seedling in the conservatory that you are welcome to take home ....please help yourselves and let us know how successful your harvest is........or take photos for us so we can share the experience !
We have also planted sunflowers and potatoes in the growing area , and have been looking after the fruit trees in the orchard- thanks to Jo from Gardening4Kids for her help and advice on pruning(we needed that!).
All the children are enjoying the new resources outdoors - we are spending as much time as possible outdoors and will be encouraging den building , water runs, play in the mud kitchen as well as exploring local parks and wooland areas. Staff have observed that the children move more freely and explore much more confidently when dressed in waterproofs- some children are worried about getting wet/dirty! So please ensure that your child has suitable clothing each day,- this still means waterproofs and wellies- although the weather may be improving , the children will still be engaged in some wet/messy activities and they need to be properly dressed to get the most from these play and learning opportunities . Please also have a check that wellies still fit- those feet grow very quickly!
We are still awaiting replacements for our new sheds , but have been assured that they will be delivered by the end of this month .
We have a new member of staff starting next week - Claire will be cooking our lunches while Katie is on maternity leave . She has previous experience cooking in both nurseries and care homes so will be more that able to keep the lovely food coming in Katie's absence . Katie's last day will be Friday 23rd May , but she will return next year along with her baby :-)
If you bought a ticket for the cancelled Spring Fair - please come and get your refund if you havent already done so - we will let you know the rescheduled date for this as soon as we have one .
Other dates to remember- Sunflowers group and Graduation photos Thursday 12th June . All sunflowers please be here and ready to be snapped by 9:30am . Our photographer Linda has a very tight schedule and if you're not here in time you may miss out! If your child doesn't normally attend on a Thursday morning , please bring them along so they can be in the photo.
And then we have the sunflowers sports day/Graduation on Wednesday 25th June 3pm. We will give you more info on this popular event nearer the time , but please keep that date free .
We are scheduled to have a Parent Forum meeting on Wednesday 21st May so if there is anything you would like raised/discussed at this meeting , please see any member of the forum or myself . The members this year are : Erin Brown, Carl Gerrard, Claire Molloy , Deirdre Strachan and Madhuri Thakur - their photos are on display in each building. Please note that the minutes of these meetings are displayed on the noticeboards for all parents to read , but we are currently looking into ways of being able to post them on here.
And thats all for now - will be back soon letting you know what your children have been doing at Craigton
Wednesday 7 May 2014
Change of date
Hello everyone ,
please note that we have rescheduled the sunflowers photo session - it will now be on Thursday 12th June 9:30am . All sunflowers please come along to participate in the group photos .
Thankyou
please note that we have rescheduled the sunflowers photo session - it will now be on Thursday 12th June 9:30am . All sunflowers please come along to participate in the group photos .
Thankyou
Thursday 1 May 2014
Spring Fair Update
Hello everyone ,
just a very quick message to tell you that we have decide to postpone the Spring Fair. We will reschedule this for later in the year(though of course we'll have to change the name!) All donations for raffle prizes will be kept for this , and those who have bought tickets will be refunded. We'll let you know as soon as we have agreed a new date
Dont forget we are closed on Monday 5th May
just a very quick message to tell you that we have decide to postpone the Spring Fair. We will reschedule this for later in the year(though of course we'll have to change the name!) All donations for raffle prizes will be kept for this , and those who have bought tickets will be refunded. We'll let you know as soon as we have agreed a new date
Dont forget we are closed on Monday 5th May
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