Continuous provision
At Micklands Pre-School, we follow in the moment planning, adopting a child-led approach. Our resources and room layout enables children to have more choice during play, giving the children a more enabling environment and allowing them to explore and investigate through play.
Our cycle of observation, assessment and planning is carried out on a moment by moment basis. When children show high levels of involvement, that is when there is progress and development occurring.
High levels of involvement occur most when children are able to pursue their own interests in an enabling environment, supported by skilled staff. Planning in the moment helps to make this possible.
Our staff are able to facilitate the children’s learning. They know the children well and have a sound knowledge of child development. The staff are able to enhance and extend the children’s learning at an appropriate level.
Our large garden is a combination of surfaces including grass, bark, sand and safety flooring. It is surrounded by trees with a copse area close by. It is a haven for lots of little inhabitants such as birds, insects and squirrels. The children like to feed the birds and search for different types of insects in their very own minibeast area!
We use our outdoor area for learning and play every day and it is an environment rich in learning opportunities from large climbing equipment that promotes physical development to small dens for hiding and reading.
Our planting – we enjoy planting and growing vegetables & fruit together. Our practitioners guide the children and encourage them to nurture the plants. These can then be used for snack time or cooking activities.
The children also help to plant a herb garden which they can cut and use in the mud kitchen for baking and potions!
Our sandpit is everyone’s favourite place outside and our skilled staff use it as the back drop to all sorts of activities such as pirate games and treasure hunts to mark making and beach fun! Shaded by a large sail shade in the summer, this area is a cool haven from the warm sun. In winter, when dressed appropriately, the children have great fun, moulding the wet sand into dramatic castles and huge volcanoes!.
Our mud kitchen is built at a child friendly height with large wooden work top areas for the children to mix and stir their culinary delights. With a wide range of utensils, pots and pans, the children can create mud pies, dirt soup and a natural milkshake!
Our outdoor classroom is a sheltered area that leads onto the patio directly from the building. This area is vital in providing a dry area to play and read against the winter elements. Having this covered over area allows us to continue our learning in the fresh air but without getting wet. We use this area to set up marking making activities, painting, and puzzles – all of the activities that would usually be ruined by a down pour of rain!
Our indoor environment is a safe place where children are protected from the elements and are easily supervised. The open layout of our playroom encourages the children to move freely both indoors and outdoors.
Our large range of resources and equipment are clearly labelled and are easily accessible to the children. They are picked specifically for their ability to provide variety and promote extended play. We encourage the children to independently select their own resources, taking control of their individual learning. We have a number of well-defined, inviting and colourful areas providing cross-curricular opportunities for learning. These distinct areas help to promote concentration and co-operation.
Our accessible kitchen allows the children to become fully involved in all aspects of cooking activities from a safe distance. We use this specifically adapted kitchen area to cook all sorts of dishes from vegetarian curries to fresh pizza, often using ingredients grown in our own vegetable and herb garden. The children’s worktop also doubles up as a snack bar during the pre-school session where they can help to independently select and prepare their own snack.
Our maths area is not just about counting. This area is set up to support and encourage problem solving, measuring, comparisons, grouping and basic addition and subtraction. It is rich in numbers and thought provoking activities.
Our book corner is stocked with a wide variety of literary resources. We have numerous copies of early years classics and social stories. The cushions, bean bags and soft furnishings provide a relaxing environment where the children can enjoy books together, independently or as part of large group. Our library resources don’t stop at familiar stories but extend to books in a number of different languages, Braille, talking stories and stories with props to bring them alive.
Our construction area has seen Eiffel Tower replicas, Windsor Castle inspired buildings and complex underground train networks! From Duplo to wooden blocks, Lego and Playmobil, Brio train tracks and junk model boxes, the children use all sorts of resources to build their imaginative creations. This large floor space is an ideal area for intricate design works and large scale buildings to take form.
Our technology room is home to our smartboard. The quieter environment encouraged in this room allows for smaller group work. The children are able to work through age appropriate interactive software linked to other areas of learning whilst being guided and supported by our skilled practitioners.
Our role play area has been everything from a train station, to a doctor’s surgery, a flower shop, a dentist’s surgery, a builder’s yard and an airport. Inspired by the children and facilitated by the practitioners, it is an area where carefully thought out props and backgrounds encourage the children to make believe and become someone else…….
