Need Help With Plans To Start From Next Tuesday

[Guest]

I need some help in starting the planning for the summer term, can I pick up some ideas please???????

[Fredbear]

Although outdoor play goes on throughout the year.It is great to dig, plant, grow, care for vegetables, flowers, looking at the environment, mini-beasts with magnifing glasses, picnics, making healthy sandwiches, water-play.

Have a sports day with picnic, perhaps bring a teddy. Storytime, musical instruments outside are a delight.

How about an outside theatre let the children perform with props.

We are lucky to beable to bascally take anything and everything outside, maybe look at your resources to see what you can use, adapt, expand on, don't forget children's interests and let them lead, hope this might start you off, but most of all have a lovely time.

[Guest terrydoo73]

As our children are only just turned 3 we are slightly dictating what we will be looking at and as we opened only in January it has been difficult to yet see the children's interests fully. For May we are looking at people who help us - firemen, policemen, postman and the medical doctors and nurses. The reason we chose this is because of their fascination with dressing up and playing with water and sand as well as manipulating the dough. We are using hoses in the water both inside and outside and a wheel in the sand and have lovely fire engines for the dough although I am thinking of perhaps making these into salt dough shapes so they could paint them - they are cookie cutters. With all the lovely weather we have been having recently I am hoping we can use the outside more. We planted lettuce seeds and onions as well as sunflowers in large pots outside before we broke up for Easter and I have been back a few times to water and they are looking really good - hopefully now the wet weather doesn't come in and destroy them all on us! The children also planted violas in their own special painted pots which have also come up a real treat and add so much colour to the outside area. I am planning to get each child to paint a picture of their own and then will get it laminated to hang on our wooden fence. I know we shouldn't but we have 2 more children starting after Easter - these will return in September for their preschool year.

[Guest]

go out whatever the weather, its so important

[Cait]

I know we shouldn't but we have 2 more children starting after Easter.

 

What do you mean?

 

I have children starting all year round, it makes settling in so much easier. I have 4 or 5 starting this term at various points

[Inge]

must agree with Cait.. all year entry for children no set date other than eligibility... so much easier on everyone to have one at a time over the year... there is no reason why you shouldn't.

[Fredbear]

Sorry terrydoo i didn't really know what you mean either, we take all year if there are any places available.

[Guest]

It can be good for everyone to have a staggered intake - not so many children to settle in all at once. So less stressful for the staff, children already in the setting are better able to induct their peers, so new chidlren get a calmer start/ better settling in.

[Guest terrydoo73]

We had an Early Years Advisor who was horrified that we were taking more children on continually as she felt it was very unsettling for everyone and most importantly us!! Personally I don't see what is wrong with it like you all as I know the new ones will watch the older children and settle in easily. We will wait and see.

[Guest]

we have the one intake so much easier. I would not want the constant upset of new starters

 

how are you viable if you stagger this intake? Or do you not have enough on yr waiting list to do one intake?

[Inge]

We had an Early Years Advisor who was horrified that we were taking more children on continually as she felt it was very unsettling for everyone and most importantly us!! Personally I don't see what is wrong with it like you all as I know the new ones will watch the older children and settle in easily. We will wait and see.

 

 

Advisors are there to advise, and it does depend on their background as to how they envisage anything will work.

 

Is it more unsettling to have 5 children all new start at the same time, all of them could need dedicated support from one adult when there are only 2 of you, and parents want to talk with you at the same time as it is all new to them as well.... or have 4 settled children happy in their environment and one new child in need of the support - I know which one I choose.... seeing the other children settled can help them become more involved quicker, time can be spent with the one settling properly, you will know the children in the settling and we found we knew them better quicker when taking one or two at a time...

 

Find what is best for you and the setting and while you listen to an advisor, there is no compulsion to follow it... children are all different, as are staff. and mine always hated the large intake togehter as it was hard work settling, teaching them all the 'rules' routine and all else. but one or two children were easy,followed and joined the others seeing to learn them form the other children as much as from us.. in fact less unsettling for all particularly the staff...

 

We always had space for all year entry... without it we would not have survived , parents in our area would not wait until a one entry but would find another setting who would take them so we would end up losing out... but there are a lot of settings in a small area...one always had space...

[Guest]

At my current setting we do as Inge stated above. It works really well.At my last place we had intake all on one day and it was awful! Only 3staff and they would all be with upset children.

[Cait]

I need some help in starting the planning for the summer term, can I pick up some ideas please???????

 

Back to the original question, sorry twinkletwinklestar, have you looked in the resources section for theme ideas? here

There may be something there you can use

[Guest]

Hi as it's May day tomorrow I shall have lots of old material for weaving through our wire fence out-doors and indoors lots of small ribbons and tissue for collage work.

We usually do the seasonal events like teddy bears picnic out-side, sports and sun awareness and leave the rest to follow the children's interests.

 

Have a great term and lets hope the lovely weather keeps rolling!

[Cait]

ooh I want a Maypole now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Inge]

we always included the Maypole, ribbons, scarves for dancing and some lovely music one of our staff had her son find for us ion the internet.. which was labelled ' Inge's pole dancing music' :o

 

lots of fun had and learning which always sparked off something to follow... sometimes to do with the music, others with the ribbons and scarves.. or often form what they had seen on the Monday as lots of the villages have a Mayday Parade and other events

[Guest]

a good debate going on here, lets wait and plan with the children that sounds good.

 

I have 5 new starters tomorrow - needs must - a lower September intake - so really need the children to make ends meet.

 

have a good new summer term.