fimbo

OFSTED asked us how we 'manage' child absences, and when would we be concerned etc

Also if in receipt of funding , we have to inform the funding dept of any repeated absence - and It can affect if they receive their full funding

We find the same , if we receive no response after 2 attempts I phone them. I also involve the parents - show them the info I'm sending , and show them what info we have received - if we haven't received any I ask the parents to chase it up .

we do term,y summative assessments with next steps - and send a copy of that- we also try to get a visit ' in person ' - but it's not easy.

I sent 6 letters / summatives last term - only had 1 reply.

I also keep note of all dates of correspondence sent and received.

We have a laptop - but rarely use it with the children , we have digital cameras , a beebot , Stereo,wind up torches,talking tins . Our ofsted inspector didn't mention the lack of a laptop or tablet in the session .

We are considering a tablet - but to use it alongside books , to research things ( we do like the odd impromptu 'Google' !)

Just a thought wild flowers - we've used talking tins outside to record the sounds we hear - birds singing , the cockrel crowing, wind in the trees etc - then taken them inside and used them as prompts for discussion / art work / literacy etc

We have managed to save some money -and have been told we can spend it !! (yay!)

Can anyone recommend a good -

Pirate ship - for small world play

Garage - small world play

Castle -for small world play

Tablets - are the new kindle fires any good ? child proof ? or any other suggestions ?

cheers x

We have group snack - they line up , take a plate, count how many pieces they need- then find their name card at sit at the table . Table had jug of milk and water - with kitchen roll (!)- they pour their own drinks

We have 1 adult at each table - chatting, eating, helping etc - I adult at the snack table helping to count the snack , and another adult who is the 'runner'

When finished- they take their cups and plates up - cups go in dirty cup bowl , any food goes in recycling bin -plates stacked in dishwasher rack ( out on the table )

Sounds a 'bit much' written down - but we find it works well - they all help each other after a while too

Everyone tidies up at my setting , we split them into groups and each group gets an area and an adult to help . We give loads of praise etc - we do give stickers for 'extra special tidying' - eg , they've put something away without being asked , or they helped another group when they have finished. We sometimes give a whole group stickers as an incentive to the others to tidy up.

Oooooo.... I've never heard of this , we just signed a form to say we accept them - good luck '

How do other settings manage a child swearing ? We have had the odd word from children in the past , we generally ignore and it usually stops , if it persists we speak to the child about 'nice words and unkind words' etc - also a chat to the parents.

But - this isn't working with this child ATM - it's in context , but he's not being aggressive (if you see what I mean )

Mum says his grandparents swear all the time in front of him - I've suggested she remind them to stop, as he has started doing it in nursery

So - what tactics could we try ?

I have a tassimo too - I like the costa coffee pods, the pods arnt cheap - but the coffee is lovely .

Ofsted inspection handbook pages 10 and 11 list the documents an Ofsted inspector would expect to see ( just had our inspection and this is what they told us they would be looking at - not all tho, just a sample )

Each child has A4 clear zip up wallet type thing ( from wilkos !) a copy of their health plan is in it along with the medication, with a sheet to complete each time they receive the medication.

We have generic sheets for simple things like calpol etc - but a special sheet ( from the nurse) for our child with type 1 diabetes and for a child with CF

Me neither :blink:

 

So - all incidents of any kind at all would be recorded in our 'Incident Log'

 

Data Protection number - yes I guess that makes sense - must make sure that I have that in my 'SEF file'

 

Exclusions log - well I have never excluded anyone - if I do I will set up a log - is that a good enough answer?

 

No internet at setting - so non applicable - I think........

We didn't have a 'racism or discrimination ' log book - I told her in all the years I'd been here I'd never heard or seen anything along those lines, but if we did we wld note it in the safeguarding folder - she said we needed a special log - it is listed in the inspection handbook, but tbh it just wasn't something that had occurred to me .

Also she said we needed an exclusions log - again, I said we didn't have one, never had excluded a child - and if it ever came to that there would be so much supporting evidence, reports etc that it would be in the child's folder - but, we still should have one

She was understanding, said an excercise book would do !

we dont use gloves for food prep - but do nappies , cleaning sick etc we do ( also have a type 1 diabetic -so get through quite a few )

I found a great supplier at my local car boot sale - in the summer i bought enough boxes to last for months for about £1 each lol !

we have coshh sheets for glue, paint etc too - they come from consortium ( via email sometimes) when i place an order

we had our inspection today too -it was a weclome relief tbh - been on tenterhooks for 12 months now !

we found it a quite ' enjoyable' experience -and we couldnt believe how the time flew - ( even the inspector said that !)

she did ask lots of questions - and asked myself and the staff the same things ( seeing if our answered tallied )

* safeguarding - radicalisation - FGM

*tracking co-horts of children -how we id any who may be struggling or exceeding

*safe internet useage - for children and how we relay that to parents ( to ensure safe useage at home too )

*training - what staff had been on, what improvments or changes had been made as a results and effectivness of the training

* also identifying any other training needs we may have

*risk assesment - had to show her around, explain what we risk assess and why , id any hazards

* she asked staff about baselines, summatives, 2 yr cq's

* she asked staff about planning - how we include all the children and their next steps

* characteristics of effective learning ( very hot on this !)

* british values - how we incorporate them in the setting

*parent voice -how we get their input into learning

*childs voice

she looked at -

staff records - safeguarding,first aid certs( she also had a look at our SCR)

accident, incident forms, medical info

complaints book

she asked to see our log recording incidents of racism and discrimination

log of exclusions

data protection number

Sef - she looked at it, she was fine with the fact we hadnt got it online ( there is no requirement) - she asked questions from thr sef, asked about the actions we had noted in it - also if all staff input into it

She asked about the commitee - checked our list tallied with hers. We had no commitee member available to see her , but she was fine with that.

She asked if we wanted to do a joint obs - we were fine with it, planned it -but never got round to it !

she observed snack and lunch.

she observed a nappy change ( but at a discreet distance - i forgot she was there !)

it seems alot of questions - but it was just general conversation, and didnt feel like a test.

We just did what we usually do every day, didnt change anything, highlighted to her the things we knew we were looking to improve.

all in all a happy result - but we were gasping for a cuppa by the end, and i was fed up of talking lol !

Many thanks for all the replies - we seem to be managing her diabetes quite well in the setting , so I'm not sure what benefit we would see tbh ? We are in the grounds of a school - so not sure how we would manage the poops and the pee's either

We have a child in our setting with type 1 diabetes - mum has approached us about the possibility of him having a diabetes dog - has anyone had any experience of this in their setting ?

Has anyone had experience of a child wishing to stay on at preschool and delaying their start into school until they are 5 (after Easter)

We have never had this situation before - how does funding etc work ?

many thanks -have registered , look forward to having a play ( sad I know !)

our parents were required to put their NI number on the funding form this term , their eligibility was then checked by the funding team , as all our funding is now entered by us online -I can see who has EYPP. ( Only 3 children)

As far as im aware we've had no stipulations as to how we must spend / track this extra funding ? unless I've missed it ( Its been a rather trying 6 months !) can anyone in Gloucestershire enlighten me ?

Im hunting for a better method of hand drying for our preschoolers,

we currently used the folded paper towels in a wall dispenser -but they either get stuck in the dispenser so the children cant get them out, or great handfulls come out ( which then end up in the bin!)

We are getting through so many its getting silly !

I find myself checking out towel dispensers in public loo's when im out and about -ive even taken photos of ones I thought were good !

we dont want a hand dryer, and as i have no tumble dryer I dont fancy terry towelling - so, what other

systems do settings use ?

Our local family information service have contact us ( in Gloucestershire) and we completed a questionnaire / audit, this info is then made available to the public via their website.

We are also planning to add some info to our Facebook and website.

Not sure what else we will do yet- or what changes there are to the new framework - as all my local training is oversubscribed and I can't get a place !

Our bit of Tarmac is under cover - may get a little rain through the fence- but it's pretty dry

We are planning on re-surfacing part of our outdoor play area -we have an 'L' shaped area, and are primarily doing the short bit on the 'L' !! -we are going to look at the rest of it in time when funds allow.

Our current surface is slightly sloping tarmac, a bit patchy and quite uneven.

we are looking at the wet pour type surface, has anyone got any advice, experience , recommendations etc ?

Many thanks !

Charity here- just gone up to £3.40. - after staying the same for 3 yrs. we get no extra anything for being a charity. Nor do we get any extra if our staff are L4 / L5 .

Tho we do get a surprise deprivation payment annually - I call it surprise, as we never know how much we will get ( if any!) - usually only a few hundred pounds tho .