Bristol Childcare

At The Court House we have been looking at healthy eating recently. We have extended this in the Baby Room to include one of our favourite core books – 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'! We have been reading this book through the week and discussing how we need to have a balanced diet to support our bodies to have energy and help us grow. This very quickly moved to the role play area as we have been looking at our food within this area and feeding our role play babies. Josie saw this opportunity to engage the children in making playdough in all of the colours – making this a learning experience for mathematics in the EYFS as we discuss shape, space, and measure as well as colour. The babies did a fantastic job at having their own ideas when adding labels to the colours and had ‘a go’ with language as set out in the Characteristics of Effective Learning and Communication and Language in the EYFS. We started by adding our pre-measured ingredients to the bowl whilst discussing how much of each ingredient we had. We then combined all of our dry and wet ingredients before stirring in food colouring to make our different foods. After the playdough had come together, we set out a tray with some of the foods made from the playdough to represent those in the book and the children had a sense of achievement as they recognised this was something they participated in to get the end result. The children had a great time using their senses to explore the playdough, as they used different movement with their fine motor skills to poke, prod, and roll the dough – all supporting their physical development. We have enjoyed experimenting with colour as we mix the playdough and can’t wait to see what creations and colours the babies create next!

The Twos at The Priory are all very excited for the first England football game tonight. They have made some flags in preparation!

This is Saffia our Managing Director in action – she is asking Olivia Bailey MP the Minister for Early Education a question at the NDNA - National Day Nurseries Association Conference on Friday. Saffia says “the conference was a fantastic opportunity to talk about lots of key issues and hear from interesting speakers. I’m grateful to the Minister for taking questions at the end of her session because not all government representatives have shown us this respect at previous conferences. It was helpful to be able to query some statements she had made which are causing the sector concern. We also chatted to her afterwards and emphasised how important it is for the Department for Education to listen to feedback providers are giving – too much of the messaging coming out of the DfE recently has been driving a wedge between parents and providers, and that is not in the best interests of the children we care for.”

Budding chef Rosie had the chance to meet nursery cook Heather.

This morning, Heather, our amazing cook at The Priory, helped out in the preschool for a little while and the children were delighted to have her in the classroom. Rosie was especially excited, engaging in imaginative play by welcoming Heather to her pretend restaurant, where she served her spaghetti Bolognese, tea, and cheesecake. Rosie was also thoughtful and cautious, warning Heather to be careful because the food was hot, saying, "Heather, be careful, it's really hot," as she was taking it out of the play microwave.

So adorable!

At the Priory, Meera, one of the preschoolers, showed interest in drawing a caterpillar and butterfly, which has been our topic for the past couple of weeks. We have been observing our own caterpillar that is on the shelf, and it is currently in the chrysalis stage. Meera asked if I could help her draw a caterpillar. I suggested that I draw the butterfly life cycle on the whiteboard so she could copy it. Meera agreed, and I carefully sketched each step on the board, demonstrating how to write and illustrate the stages. Meera listened and, paying close attention to details, followed along. As we worked together, Zivah joined us and began to replicate the drawings and writing with great care and correctly. Soon after, Gracie joined as well, independently drawing and writing with some support and encouragement, showing enthusiasm for the activity.

It’s not only our nurseries that have caterpillars to help learn about lifecycles. Here at Head Office we also have our own caterpillars - outside in a tree! 🐛 🌳

It's wonderful to see the Mornington House Jar of Kindness featured in this month's Bristol Association for Neighbourhood Daycare (BAND) newsletter! Small acts of kindness every day go a long way and it's great to celebrate and acknowledge this; thank you Mornington House team ☺️

Our Managing Director, Saffia, started talking to the preschool children at The Priory before going outside. The next minute a few more children joined in and she was helping them all with their coats and jackets.

Congratulations to Justine, our manager at The Priory Day Nursery who was awarded a long service award by Karen our Setting Support Officer from the Early Years Team at our cluster meeting this week! The EY team are officially recognising all those who have worked in early years for over 20 years, thanking them for their huge commitment and the difference they make to children and families. Justine has been with Bristol Childcare for 36 years this September so we are always happy to celebrate that amazing commitment ✨🤩. Thank you to everyone at the cluster meeting last night for celebrating with us and for really helpful discussions 😊

Congratulations to Louise, our cook at Mornington House, who has had the annual environmental health inspection in the kitchen this week!! We are delighted to announce that they have maintained their 5 star rating 🤗⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Thank you to Louise for all her hard work in achieving this, alongside all the delicious food that she cooks for staff and children every day.