Springing into March with Oak Valley

1st April 2024 by Katie

As the the days are getting longer, and the weather is getting (a little bit) warmer, Oak Valley welcomes Spring and all it has to offer!

Seeding Change for a Greener Future!

Pre-School welcomed March, and the slightly warmer weather, by spending some time in our new vegetable garden. The children loved talking about the seeds they were sowing, and watering them. They drew pictures of the vegetables, and loved reading stories in the garden. The Pre-School council also cast a vote to call it ‘The Secret Garden’.

Celebrating Mother’s Day

Here at Oak Valley, the children enjoyed making their mums feel extra special on Mother’s Day. The children sent home a special keepsake and there was even a little gift for them too.

The science of today, is the technology of tomorrow

For British Science Week (8th-17th March) the children loved experimenting and exploring different science experiments. Toddler Room created their own potions, mixing lots of things together to see what they could create. Rising 3’s made a Skittles rainbow, using coloured sweets and water. While Pre-School created their very own lava lamps, using oil and coloured water.

Recycle Today, Save Tomorrow!

For Global Recycling Day, the children in Pre-School talked about the importance of recycling and reusing materials. They reused some cardboard, and their imaginations, to create some wonderful creations.

Celebrating Easter

Toddlers welcomed their parents in to celebrate Easter and to encourage them to ‘Ditch the Dummy’. There was lots of fun had by all and the staff talked about the importance of ‘ditching the dummy’ for promoting speech, as well as lots of Easter activities.

Springing into Spring

With Spring finally here, the children in Rising 3’s have been creating daffodil paintings. They have enjoyed exploring the colours and smells, and using their fine motor skills to create their very own masterpiece!

Babies are on the hunt

The babies have loved having their very own Easter egg hunt. This activity encouraged the babies to explore their surroundings, develop their motor skills and be engaged.

You

You make a difference everyday

Last but not least, we want to congratulate Caitlin on winning ‘Employee of the Month’ for March. Caitlin has great creative ideas, is always happy to help and has built some great bonds with the babies in Baby Room. Keep up the hard work and well done!

May Activities at Oak Valley

7th June 2023 by Katie

At Oak Valley we started off May with the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla. We enjoyed celebrating to mark this special occasion. The children did lots of themed activities including crown making, decorating biscuits and even had our very own tea party. We listened to the National Anthem and dressed in red, white and blue.

As part of our HEY Award (Healthy Early Years), Pre-School have been promoting the importance of oral hygiene even more than normal. Alongside their daily toothbrushing club, they have been talking about the value of brushing your teeth twice a day, and joining in with different toothbrushing activities.

In Rising 3’s we have been doing some recycling using our recycling bins in the entrance hall, and categorising the items into the correct bin. We talked about the importance of recycling and looking after our planet, as well as talking about the different materials. We then used these materials to take part in junk modelling – we made dinosaurs, princess castles and rockets!

Toddlers have been exploring different sensory play and textures this month. We made some marks with various tools in the clay, and talked about the wonderful efforts we had made. We also used some soapy water and paint brushes to make patterns on the nursery wall.

With the weather getting warmer, and the sun starting to shine, Babies took part in ‘Sun Awareness’ activities. They talked about the importance of putting on our hats and wearing sunscreen. They did various activities to get these messages across – putting sunscreen and hats on dolls, and making a sensory sun out of coloured rice and paper to name a couple! We had so much fun exploring this!

September 2021 @ Oak Valley

1st March 202212th October 2021 by Katie

September has been a great month for us all at Oak Valley. We welcomed back our term-time children & had many new starters joining us to begin their nursery journey! We have loved welcoming our parents back into the building to see our newly decorated rooms & the exciting activities that have been taking place!

Baby Room has been exploring words & sounds this month. We have been singing nursery rhymes in English & French, creating sensory music bottles to use at group time, & using our ‘Words of the Week’ to explore. The children particularly enjoyed fruit tasting & baking with lots of different textures & flavours.

Toddler Room has been making the most of the warm weather & spending as much time as possible outdoors. We have enjoyed an outing to the park to play games, & taken part in our monthly Super Star Sport session! This month we focussed on football; the children practiced their gross motor skills & hand -eye coordination, while running around getting lots of exercise & fresh air.

Rising 3’s have been especially interested in role-play this month. The children have created a post office area where they have been busy writing & sorting letters, serving customers & answering the phone. After working really hard, the children decided they need a break, & went on holiday on their aeroplane to lots of exotic destinations!

Rising 3’s have also enjoyed making sensory playdough, drawing shadow pictures of their favorite toys & exploring different countries, to name but a few activities sparked by the children’s interests (which never fail to interest us!)

To finish off the month, Pre-School have been for an adventure into the woods to collect leaves, conkers & sticks! We then made some lovely Autumn pictures to show what we had found.

Some of you may have seen our Early Years Care & Education bear on the Sheffield Bear Trail in aid of Sheffield Children’s Hospital. Keep your eyes peeled, as he’ll be on his way to spend some time with us at Oak Valley :)

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