November & December 2020 Newsletter
Welcome back, we hope you have had a lovely fun filled half term. The first day back will be Monday 2nd November. It’s been lovely to have all the children in the setting, watching them open up and reveal their characters. All the children have settled well and have adapted to the different routines which Covid-19 have thrown us.
Covid-19 is still an ongoing worry, please can you continue to follow the social distancing rules at drop off and collection time. If your child has a high temperature, a new continuous cough, a loss of, or change to, their sense of smell or taste, you will need to keep them at home and follow the current government guidelines on self-isolation and seek medical advice.
If your child is off pre-school for any reason, please can you give us a call to let us know. If we have not heard from you we will contact you to ensure everything is ok.
Each half term we create a ‘report’ which will show you where your child is developmentally within our setting, what their next steps are and ways in which we and you can help them to achieve their next steps. An email will follow shortly with how to access your child’s report on Tapestry. If you have any questions regarding your child’s next steps, please let the staff member on the gate know, and we can arrange a convenient time to speak with you.
We are fully aware that sometimes children have accidents, get wet or messy during play and whilst we have spare clothes, however we cannot guarantee to have clothes to fit every child! Therefore, please can you provide a few ‘full’ changes of clothes to keep at preschool. We ask that everything is named that you bring into pre-school, including coats, shoes, lunch boxes and bags etc.
As the beautiful ‘British’ weather is finally upon us, please can you provide your child with a waterproof coat, waterproof trouser and welly boots each time they come in (normal shoes are still needed for indoors).…. we still go outside even if it’s raining!
Lunchboxes – Please can you ensure that the items within your child’s lunchbox are easy for your child to open or peel independently. If your child struggles to open or peel things you can pre-peel or open things in advance. We are only asking this due to the extra precautions that covid-19 has given us (staff have to wash hands after each item they touch). Just a gentle reminder that we are a NUT, SWEETS AND TREATS FREE ZONE!!
Water bottles – please can we ensure that children only have water in their bottles, as we use these bottles for afternoon drinks as well as lunch time.
At pre-school we are a ‘dummy free’ setting... please could you make sure that your child’s dummy is left at home in a safe place. It is important for their social and language development that they do not have one in the setting.
We would also like to ask if you could not bring in any toys and other items from home, this is due to the Covid-19 restrictions we are all under at this time.
Social media – we now have an Instagram and Twitter as well as Facebook accounts, please find us on these platforms for the latest information regarding the setting. On Facebook – We have a closed group page called ‘Parents of Little Dolphins’ where we upload the newsletters, special activities, tips and committee news – please add us to see all the latest news.
Tapestry – If you haven’t activated your Tapestry account, or having problems logging in, please let Anne-Marie know and she will help you with this.
What we are planning on exploring this half term:
Topic: Exploring our Senses & Christmas Time.
Week 1: 2nd-6th November – Sight and Sound.
- Firework and bonfire craft activities
- Outdoor art with natural resources
- Exploring torches, glow sticks and creating dark dens.
- Planting spring bulbs in the garden
- Sound track games
- Small group Welly walk with a focus on listening.
- Story of the week: What the Ladybird heard stories.
Please remember your welly boots this week!!
Week 2: 9th- 13th November – Smell & Taste.
- Tasting different flavours at snack time
- Smelling activity – can you guess the smell?
- Decorating gingerbread biscuits*
- Gingerbread people craft
- Story of the week: The Gingerbread Man
*Due to current restrictions we are unable to use the school kitchen to cook with the children –please find attached a recipe for you to make gingerbread biscuits at home.
We would love to see photos of your made gingerbread biscuits, please upload these to Tapestry and we can share them at circle time.
Week 3: 16th – 20th November – Touch & Feel.
- Exploring different textures through messy play
- Sensory obstacle course
- Exploring hot and cold in different forms
- Foam & texture painting
- Story of the week: We’re going on a bear hunt / The Naughty bus
Week 4: 23rd-27th November – It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
- Christmas tea lights
- Glitter cones
- Writing a letter to Santa
- Story of the week: The Jolly Christmas Postman
Week 5: 30th November – 4th December – Santa Claus is coming to town.
- Christmas card craft
- Hanging up our stockings (fine motor skill activity)
- Decorating the room ready for Christmas
- Story of the week: Stick man
Week 6: 7th-11th December – Jingle bells.
- Christmas calendar craft
- Wrapping presents – fine motor skills
- Discovering snow and ice (hopefully we might have real snow!!!)
- Story of the week: Father Christmas needs a wee!
Week 7: 14th-17th December – Rockin’ around the Christmas tree.
- A week of Christmas fun
- Christmas Jumpers all week
- A mini party with games and dancing every afternoon.
- Story of the week: A selection of Christmas stories.
Christmas Holidays: Friday 18th December 2020 – Monday 4th January 2021
We hope you have a very Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year.
First day back: Monday 4th January 2021.
