Laugh and Learn Pre-School Heene
122 Heene Community Centre
Heene Road
WORTHING
West Sussex
BN11 4PL
On Arrival
A typical day at pre-school starts at 9am with a pickup at either 12pm, 1pm or 2.00pm. Parents will drop and say goodbye to their children at the door to the corridor and have the opportunity to read any messages for the day on our white board. Children will then hang their named coats on their individual pegs, placing any named wellington
boots by their pegs for use on rainy days and there will be a sunhat box in the summer for sunhats for use on sunny days. There will be an adult to support children with this process.
A member of staff will open the corridor door and remain there for security and to greet the children as they enter the corridor. We ask the children to self-register on arrival by finding their name, which will be displayed on the door in the corridor then putting it on the door between the 2 classrooms.
Sun Screen
Please ensure that during periods of warm weather you apply sun screen to your child before they come to pre-school.
In the coat peg area, we have on display a range of useful and important information for parents, our most recent newsletter, information about our staff and the key worker system, our policies and a compliments and complaints folders. We will also have a member of staff here to take any messages, answer any questions, and take any items that have been brought from home for ‘Show and Tell’.
Once their coat has been hung up an adult will take your child into the classroom and settle them in. The majority of our staff will be available to give a warm welcome to the children and engage them in activities to aid the separation process. If you feel your child needs extra assistance with separation, please feel free to approach any member of staff for support.
Once all of the parents have left the doors will be secured and we will seat the children on a carpet to take a formal register. We will always offer a wide range of activities both inside and out to cover all the areas of learning laid down in the Government’s ‘Early Years Foundation Stage’, and we operate a free play system whereby the children can choose which activities they participate in and move freely around the pre-school. During the morning we will
head out to our amazing garden where our staff are situated in such a way as to ensure that our staff to child ratios are maintained and that the adults can engage with the children to encourage and extend learning.
A typical session will consist of register, free play, rolling snack, garden time. story time,
and home time
Snack Time
We operate a healthy” Rolling Snack” which allows the children to choose when they have their snack during the session. When they are ready they select their name and seat themselves at the table with other children and a supervising adult. They then exchange their name for their snack which they help prepare themselves by pouring drinks or cutting fruit etc. We believe that this way of having snack leads to a more relaxed and smoother running session which benefits the children greatly and causes less disruption to their play and learning. The adult will ensure that all children have snack and a drink at some point, and once they have eaten each child then washes
their cup and plate and returns to their chosen play.
Key Person System
Whilst all our staff are responsible for the health, well-being and emotional happiness of all the children, we also operate a key person system. This means that your child will be assigned to an individual member of staff who will be responsible for observing and recording your child’s individual development in their own Learning Journal. You will be introduced to your key person when your child starts and throughout your child’s time with us both you and your key worker will work together to determine their progress and set their next developmental steps. We have an example of a dummy Learning Journal on the premises for you to look at so please do not hesitate to ask should you require any further information. You can have access to your child’s Learning Journal at any time, please just
ask.
Lunch
For those children who are with us until 1.00pm or 2.00pm we will offer a short lunch session at 12.30pm. You will need to bring a packed lunch with you in the morning and lunch boxes can be stored in the box in the corridor. Please ensure you place a freezer block inside as we have no facility to refrigerate them. We follow a ‘no nuts’ policy.
Toileting
We encourage the children to be as independent as possible in their toileting and hygiene needs. However, if your child is still in nappies when they start with us we will be more than happy to change them providing you supply sufficient nappies and wipes in a named bag. When you are ready to potty train just let us know and again we will be more than happy to continue your home routines at pre-school, all we ask is that you supply a sufficient amount of spare clothes in a named bag.
Home time
Our sessions draw to an end with story time. We split the children into two groups based roughly on age and hold two separate story times simultaneously. This allows the older ones to sit quietly and listen to a story, have circle time or sing more complex action songs; and it also allows the younger ones to sit for a shorter period of time for stories, nursery rhymes and simpler action songs. We find that this system works really well and the children respond positively.
After story time all the children come back together. Those staying for lunch go to the lunch tables and those going home sit on a carpet in the classroom and sing our ‘Laugh and Learn’ song. When we have said ‘good bye’ a member of staff will open the door and pass children out to their parents. The door will be opened at 12pm/1pm/2.00pm at the end of each session. Each child will be individually called out of the classroom to greet their parent, A member of staff positioned on this door will ensure that no child leaves without the correct adult and will mark them out of the register as they leave. Home time is an ideal time to speak to your key worker
should you need to.
Beach School
In the Summer term we offer the opportunity for our older children to visit our local beach in small groups to experience all the amazing things it has to offer.
Uniform polo shirts and sweatshirts
Pre-school is one place where it is absolutely fine to get messy! So please make sure your children only wear old clothes and shoes as, with the best will in the world, we cannot always guarantee they will go home in the same state they arrived. We do sell our own uniform which is just perfect for pre-school and if you are interested in purchasing some please come and speak to us to see an example and for details of current prices.