If you would like to arrange a visit to have a look around Lady Seaward's Primary School, please contact our school office on 01392 873629 and we would be happy to make you an appointment.  

Welcome to Class 1: Nursery and Reception

 Class 1 is taught by Miss Roberts and is supported by highly trained teaching assistants. Mrs Firth will cover PPA time on a Tuesday morning and occasional other times.

We are a Foundation Stage Unit and take children from the age of 2. More information for the Nursery aged children can be found under our 'Nursery' tab. There are times in the day when children are learning together and other times where our children are having learning to target their age group and individual needs. All children in the Nursery have a Key Worker, Miss Roberts is the Key person for the Reception children. Nursery children also have a Communication book which comes home every night telling you about what your child has been doing during their day at school with us! 

We are the youngest children at Lady Seawards Primary School. In our class, the children enjoy exploring, investigating and learning through hands on activities and play. We have a range of activities out daily for the children to enjoy, these include construction, small world, role play, writing, fine and gross motor skills, maths, art and the outside environment to name a few.

We love to take our learning outside the classroom and explore the world around us! Children in class 1 take part in outdoor learning 'Shamba Time' every week where they learn about the safety of being in nature as well as exploring using our senses. Children are encouraged to practise their communication skills and use exciting vocabulary while learning. 

We aim to create a calm and stimulating atmosphere where all children can learn and build upon their knowledge and understanding. There is a mixture of adult led and child-initiated activities. Children are encouraged to be independent and work as part of a team as much as possible. The children’s interests and needs are at the heart of all planned learning opportunities.

A day in Reception : Butterflies Children 

The gates open for the children at 8:40am when they are able to come straight into school to do their 'jobs'. This includes taking their snack out their bags, sorting their water bottles and changing their reading books. They then sit down on the carpet ready for learning with a morning task to complete.

The gate then closes at 8:50am. Children are then registered and we start our school day. In Class 1 we start with our phonics sessions linked to the children's stage in phonics (sounds write, the initial code). Then we have our 'drawing club' session where the children learn new language and vocabulary and are able to use their imaginations to explore texts together. Children then have the opportunity to work in small groups with adults alongside having access to the continuous provision including free-flow into the outside space. At this point, the whole Foundation Stage Unit opens up and children are able to access all classrooms and outside spaces. 

Children then have play time at 10:20am. After play we come back into class and continue with our continuous provision and children work in small groups at a maths based activity with an adult. We then gather on the carpet for our mastery maths session and head to lunch. 

During the afternoons, you will see Class 1 focusing on different EYFS areas of learning, allowing children to access fun and interactive ways to learn through. Children are always given opportunities to learn through their play. Using their curiosity, children often ask questions which practitioners can answer and help to extend their learning. Through effective questioning and interactions with the children, the children broaden their understanding and acquire new knowledge. We always finish our day by sharing a class story together and talking about what we have learnt. Children are picked up at 3:20pm. 

A day in Nursery : Caterpillars Children 

Children in Nursery can be dropped off for our 'early bird' session at 8:45am, where they will be greeted by a member of staff. They begin their day by accessing quiet activities in the classroom. Our next drop off time is 9am for our 3hr morning session. Again, these children quietly come in and access learning in the classroom that has been set up or the continuous provision. Children then stop for a carpet time around 9:15 where they are introduced to our 'Sign of the Week' (makaton). 

Children are then split into their age ranges to access phonics learning at their ability. This includes playing lots of listening games, oral blending and segmenting as well as talking about rhyme and alliteration. After phonics, children then go into their continuous provision where an adult sets up 'scribble club' for the children to practise mark making and drawing. 

At 10:15am, as a unit, we stop and tidy up ready for our snack. After snack time our nursery children come back inside and have a short maths input which includes counting/number songs/number blocks and then we are back into provision with an activity set up by an adult to continue their maths skills. After tidy up time, we head back to the carpet for our 'dough disco' session where we really think about using the playdough in different ways to build up our finger muscles. At 12pm some children go home and other children then join us for lunch and our afternoon session until 3pm. 

As with Butterflies children, during the afternoons, you will see Class 1 focusing on different EYFS areas of learning, allowing children to access fun and interactive ways to learn through. Children are always given opportunities to learn through their play. Using their curiosity, children often ask questions which practitioners can answer and help to extend their learning. Through effective questioning and interactions with the children, the children broaden their understanding and acquire new knowledge. Our afternoon sessions always end with sharing a story and then children go home at 3pm unless they are in the late leavers in which case they leave at 3:15pm. 

Working in partnership with parents 

Here at Lady Seaward's, we recognise the importance of working alongside parents and in partnership with them. Together, we can build a ‘bigger picture’ of the children and enjoy celebrating their success and achievements from both in school and at home. As well as planned parent consultation meetings and school reports, we also use Class Dojo, collect wow moments and provide parent workshops throughout the year. On Class Dojo, children can gain points for good behaviours, linked to our school values, rules and routines (which they love) and the parents can get an app to keep them linked in with and up-to-date about what is going on during the school day. All parents can send us pictures of things they have been doing at home via Dojo so that we have strong two way communications and can celebrate all the children's achievements and experiences together. We also hold regular 'stay and play' sessions where parents are invited into school to play alongside their child and see what they do while they are here with us! Every half term, parents get a letter with a gird detailing what we are learning about that half term and the types of activities that their children might be doing in school. 

When asked to describe our Foundation Stage Unit in 3 words, this is what our parents had to say: 

"busy, friendly, eclectic"

"happy, fun, safe"

"organised, nurturing, fun"

"happy, engaging, large"

"organised, friendly, engaging" 

Key Documents

Curriculum Spring 1

If you would like to know more about the EYFS curriculum and what we offer here at Lady Seawards, please click the link below to take you to our site page. 

If you would like to know more about the curriculum that we have to offer the children please click the link below.