Nursery Environment

[apple]

Hello all

we are about to begin the process of redesigning our Nursery main room and I wanted to ask for your help. Currently we have four family group areas (1:13 ratio in each) - we are a 52 PT Nursery class in an Infant school. These areas are where we have our daily gatherings and group activities and then after this time the children go off and choose where they want to play/learn.

These areas then are not really used until children gather back together. Part of our redesign is to 'claim back' these areas for the children to use more of the time. We have been inspired by Huddersfield Early Excellence and Community Playthings and this is the route we shall probably take.

My main enquiry then is to ask if any of you work in an environment where the 'group' areas are multi-pupose e.g where the teacher/T.A no longer has a permanent base for their group. Does this make sense and if so how do you organise yours?

Thank you in anticipation of some inspiration

[green hippo]

Hi,

I do have a main carpet area which is such as it has the IWB there and has enough space for all the children at whole class time. This area is used during whole class sessions and often as a 'base' for one of the 3 groups during key group time (10 children per group). The other 2 groups will use other areas of the classroom (nearly always one group will be outside) for their group time. Sometimes we use the area of provision e.g. the role-play for role-play based activities or creative area for those types of activities but sometimes we just use the space that is available with different resources. E.g. writing is often done on the snack and play-dough tables as there is room for the whole group. We give our key groups a colour name (they are mixed ability groups) and say which adult they will be working with and where and they just go to that area and adult. For differentiated groupings that we use for phonics/maths/finger gym, I just read out the names and tell them which adult they need to go to.

We simply wouldn't have room to leave 3 spaces free!

Hope that helps.

Green Hippo x

[Guest]

we've got 37 children and 3 interconnecting rooms with doors we can shut for group time. my group area is the construction area, and another staff member has large small world e.g. garage/farm on hers so they have to be cleared away before group time then got back out after. one area is just used for group - lucky for that staff member!! it's not ideal but better than limiting space for children.... we are rather limited for space, unfortunately

[apple]

thank you both for your helpful replies. Sooty, please can I ask if, when having group time in the above areas, do you have teaching resources to hand or do you have to bring this to the group from elsewhere e.g. usual number lines, letters etc. Also in the morning when the children come in do they go to these areas to register and is so how is this done?