Hello, Welcome to our Foundation Stage!
If you are unable to join us for our Reception welcome meeting (12.06.23) or our Nursery Welcome meeting (13.06.23) then please take a look to find out more about our fabulous school.
Meet our Leadership Team
Message from our Headteacher
Coming into School
- Foundation Stage Classes - Children are placed into Red and Yellow classes and these classes will generally follow them all through school.
- Whole School Organisation - Our school is open plan from Nursery all the way up to year 6. We are very fortunate to have a separate Early Years building but as the children move from one building to the other the layout is very similar.
- Cars and Parking - There is no parking in the streets around the school but we have access to the Rugby Club car park where parents can park and then walk children across to school.
- Admission arrangements - These have been sent to all parents via email and are in your welcome packs.
Punctuality
It is really important that children arrive at school on time to start their learning along with their peers. Children who are persistently late are disadvantaged by missing key aspects of learning. Imagine how it feels to walk into a classroom when all your friends are there already!
The normal school day for both Nursery and Reception starts at 8.55am with children lining up in the Early Years outdoor area.
Welcome from our Assistant Headteacher
Welcome from our Foundation Stage Phase Leader
Meet our Nursery and Reception teaching staff
Nursery
Come and have a look around our nursery classroom and find out the exciting things your child can explore
Reception
Take a look inside our Reception classrooms
Appointments
We encourage parents to try to make medical appointments outside school hours if possible. However, should you need to take your child to an appointment during school hours you will need to give notice and complete a form at the main school office or bring in the appointment letter for us to copy.
Mrs Suzanne Cowell - our Deputy Headteacher and Special Educational Needs Lead
Please note our school support worker is now Lynsey McMenzie
Collecting your Child
The safeguarding of children is extremely important and it can take us some time to get to know you as parents. Please be patient at the end of the day, as teachers will need to identify you in the playground before handing over your child. Give them a friendly wave as this makes the process a little quicker. If for any reason, you ask someone else to collect your child, it is very important that you let us know via the class teacher or school office prior to the end of the school day. The school day ends at 3.15 pm – please try not to be late, if you are going to be unavoidably late then please contact the school office so we can let your child and their teacher know to avoid any distress to your child. Please collect younger siblings first.
Behaviour
At Kingston Park Primary School we pride ourselves on supporting children to be respectful. Adults encourage children to always act as good role models to others. Whole school rules are displayed and referred to in school. These rules are a permanent feature of display in all classrooms and around the school.
We have many rewards for positive behaviour including verbal praise, reward stickers, headteacher awards, star of the week and a weekly Show and tell, where children's achievements are celebrated. Staff maintain regular dialogue with parents to ensure that a partnership between home and school evolves.
Playtime and Assemblies
Nursery and Reception children use the Foundation Stage outdoor areas for outdoor learning throughout the school day and for structured playtimes.
Children in Reception are involved in key stage and whole school assemblies from early in the Autumn term. Assemblies have a themed approach and are delivered by a range of staff and visitors.
School Meals
Our school kitchen provides a choice of meals selected each morning using a band system. Menus can be seen on our school website, at the front of school and outside Foundation Stage classrooms. Parents are asked to help their children select a band on a morning. All pupils benefit enormously from having a school lunch as this is a lovely opportunity to develop social skills. It also encourages children to extend their food choices by trying new foods and using cutlery.
Children who are in Nursery may choose between a school lunch or packed lunch. If opting for a school lunch you are required to pay for this in advance via Arbor (more information on this can be found in your Welcome Pack).
Children in Reception are currently entitled to receive a UIFSM (Universal Infant Free School Meal), we strongly encourage all children to take up this offer.
Uniform/School Essentials
Getting your new school uniform is an exciting part of starting school. Wearing a uniform helps your child to feel part of our school family and ensures that when they (inevitably) get messy, special home clothes are protected! You can see information on which essential items you will need in your Welcome Pack.
Please note a school uniform is not compulsory in Nursery but the majority of parents prefer to have this.
Our uniform can be purchased locally from “Tots to Teams”. Please see details in your Welcome Pack.
Children in both Nursery and Reception will also be required to purchase a Reading folder from “Tots to Teams”
Children are encouraged to drink water during the school day and have access to this at all times. School water bottles can be purchased from the school office for £1 – you can purchase additional lids for 20p. You may also wish to provide your own.
Please ensure that every item of your child’s clothing/shoes/PE kit are labelled clearly with their name, if your child loses an item then you will need to look through the Lost Property Box or speak to your child’s teacher.
Breakfast Club and After School Club
We run a Breakfast Club and After School Club to assist parents with child care before and after school. The clubs are available for all pupils from Nursery to Year 6 and are run onsite by members of the school staff. Further details and a registration form can be found in your Welcome Pack.
Communication
Once your child starts Nursery/Reception you will be sent an email with instructions on how to set up your Arbor Account, which is the system we use to communicate with you. You will need to do this within 48 hours of receiving this email.
Arbor allows us to make emergency contact with parents or carers as well as provide an email or text messaging service which we use to send letters or notifications. You will receive most correspondence from school via email, i.e. Newsletters, trip letters, school performances.
We operate a cashless system and Arbor enables you to pay for school trips, clubs or meals via the parent portal. It is, therefore, very important that you keep us up-to-date with your latest contact details.
Welcome Pack
Welcome packs are available to be collected from school, during the welcome meeting or from the school office. Inside the pack you will find information on:
• Admission Arrangements for your Child – Please look carefully at this document for your specific starting dates and times.
• Medication – All medication can only be administered if prescribed. A school medication form, available from the school office, must be completed beforehand.
• Holidays and Attendance – There are proven links between good attendance and pupil’s attainment. Pupil attendance is monitored regularly and celebrated in special attendance assemblies. If your child is unable to attend school due to illness, please inform the school office on the morning of absence. If your child has been sick or had diarrhoea, they must not return to school for 48 hours.
Holidays cannot be authorised during term time.
Consent
• A consent for school visits is included in your child’s Admission Form (Page 4) Please make sure you have completed this section.
• All other consents will be required via Arbor (i.e. photographs/videos in school, social media, school website, wider marketing).
We will send you an email to let you know when you will need to log onto your account to action these. You will have a limited amount of time to log onto your account to administer this.
If, for any reason, you wish to amend the permission you have given, you will need to contact the school office.
Transition documents telling us a little bit more about your child and their likes and dislikes.
Curriculum
The Early Years Foundation Stage Seven Areas of Learning.
There are seven areas of learning and development through which your child will learn new skills, acquire new knowledge and demonstrate their understanding. All these seven areas are important and inter-connected.
The Prime Areas – These three areas are the most crucial for igniting curiosity, a love of learning and the ability to form relationships and thrive.
Communication and language - Spoken language underpins all of the seven areas of learning and involves giving children many opportunities to have quality back and forth interactions and conversations in a language rich environment. During these interactions they are able to develop and use an extensive range of vocabulary to confidently express themselves.
Physical development - Children are given lots of opportunities to be active and through this develop coordination and control when moving and when using small tools such as pencils, scissors, paint brushes and cutlery. Children are encouraged to understand the importance of having healthy and active lifestyles.
Personal, social and emotional development - This area is crucial for children to lead healthy and happy lives. By the adults around them providing warm and supportive relationships, children learn how to understand their own feelings and those of others. They learn how to make good friendships, how to co-operate, resolve conflicts and to develop a positive sense of self.
As young children continue to grow and develop their learning in these prime areas, it helps them to further develop skills in the other four Specific Areas of learning.
The Specific Areas
These include essential skills and knowledge that children need to participate successfully in society.
Literacy
This area involves the teaching of reading and writing. Children are given lots of opportunities to develop a range of reading skills to enable them to quickly decode and recognise words on sight. It is crucial that children are encouraged to listen to and talk about stories, rhymes, poems and non-fiction books developing a lifelong love of reading.
Writing
Writing not only includes spelling and handwriting but also the ability to orally rehearse their ideas before getting them down on the page. The ability to be a good writer relies heavily on good understanding of the world and the use of varied vocabulary.
Mathematics
By providing a frequent and varied range of mathematical opportunities, children will be able to build on and apply a deep understanding of numbers to ten and the patterns and relationships between these numbers. Children will be encouraged to develop their curiosity about number, shape, space and measures. The aim is to develop a secure base of knowledge from which mathematical mastery is built.
Understanding the World
The aim here is, to foster an understanding of our culturally, socially and ecologically diverse world, through providing a range of personal experiences including visits and visitors into school. This involves children having some understanding about past and present, different religions and cultures, life in their own and different countries and the natural world.
Expressive Arts and Design
Here the children are encouraged to develop their cultural and artistic awareness to support their imagination and creativity. This includes using a wide range of media and materials to draw, paint and make props with. Children will be supported to work creatively and imaginatively to tell stories, sing songs and nursery rhymes and engage with musical activities.
Play
Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage learn best through play and playful learning where they can explore, be active and use their creativity and critical thinking.
Topics
Learning in the Early Years is delivered through the use of topics. The topics this year will be: Nursery - Marvellous Me, Our Super School, Once Upon a Time and Amazing Animals. Reception - Marvellous Me, Our Super School, All Dressed Up and Off we go!
My Online Learning Journey
My Learning Journal celebrates my own special learning journey throughout my time in the Foundation Stage. It tells the story of me— my learning, my achievements and the things I like to do. It is an online journey through an app called SeeSaw
Staff observe my play and interactions so they can understand and support my well-being and development and get to know me really well. You can help with this too by watching out for new things I do and say when I’m at home or out and about with my family. You can tell the adults in my setting about them, write about them on a “WOW” sheet, take photographs or collect my drawings and paintings to add to my journal. Through building up this picture of me, the adults in my setting can help my learning to move on.
My journal is a wonderful record of some of the first years of my life. Because it is online, it is always up to date and allows you to see what is happening in real time.
Getting Ready for School
- Help your child develop independence - Can they put on and take off their own jumpers and shoes? Go to the toilet by themselves? Cut up their own food and use a knife and fork?
- Sing nursery rhymes.
- Read lots of stories.
- Talk positively about school , their teachers and making new friends.
- Engage in lots of communication, model language.
- Develop fine motor skills - threading, jigsaws, picking up and moving small objects.
- Develop gross motor skills - scooters, climbing, jumping, skipping, balancing.
You can take a 360º tour of the Early Years by clicking on the links below. (Please note these 360º images will open in a new window.)
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have wrap around care provision?
Yes, we have a Breakfast Club which starts at 7.30 am. The children are then taken straight to their classes by staff when normal school starts.
We also have an after school club which runs from the end of the school day until 5.45 pm
Does my child need to wear a school uniform?
Yes, we have a school uniform consisting of a green sweatshirt or cardigan, a white polo shirt and grey trousers or a grey skirt. These can be purchased from Tops to Teams on Kingston Park. School uniform for Nursery children is optional.
How do you cater for different dietary needs in school?
Our school kitchen prepares at least one vegetarian meal option a day. Individual needs can be discussed with our SENCO and the school cook.
Menus can be viewed on our school website.
Children can bring a packed lunch.
We are a “nut free” school so please ensure packed lunches do not contain any foods with nuts. Some nuts are hidden so please check labels carefully as we do have children in Early Years with severe nut allergies.
Lunchtimes are at 11.30 for Nursery and 12.00 for Reception.
What will my child be learning?
In Foundation Stage we cover the seven areas of learning set out in the Foundation Stage Profile Government framework.
In KS1 and KS2 the National Curriculum is planned for.
In both cases a topic or themed approach is taken. We pride ourselves on a very creative curriculum which is tailored to the needs of all children.
Further information can be found on our school website
How will I find out about what my child is learning and the progress they are making?
We have regular parent consultation meetings and review meetings for children who require these. Throughout the year you will be sent termly topic overviews to inform you what your child will be learning in Foundation Stage. Each child has their own online Learning Journal on the SeeSaw app which parents can also contribute to. You will also receive an end of year report which is sent out in July.
Throughout the year we hold stay and play sessions, deliver presentations and hold other events where parents can come into school to work alongside their children.
How can I help my child?
We have an active Friends of the School group who would welcome new members to help with a range of activities from fund raising to wrapping presents for Christmas!
Once your child is settled into school, you are welcome to come in to support in classrooms with reading, cooking, making resources or using any of your own talents!
How many children will be in the nursery class?
Nursery classes have 26 children, with some full time and part time places.
How do I get a 30 hour nursery place?
To find out if you are eligible for a 30 hour place and information on how to apply please google Newcastle 30 hours. This will provide a link to the information you need.
How are children supported during transition to or from Nursery?
Teaching staff will work with you and your child throughout the transition. If you requested a personalised transition staff will be in contact to discuss this. We complete home visits to come and meet your child in their own surroundings before the summer holidays. Teaching staff will also be posting storytime videos that your child can watch via SeeSaw during the Summer months to help familiarise themselves with their teacher. (More information about this will follow)
What is expected if my child is not fully potty trained?
We will work together with parents on this to support your child. Please discuss this with your child's class teacher via email or telephone.
michelle.clarke@smartacademies.net or rachael.batey@smartacademies.net
Do you expect my child to be able to read and write when starting Reception?
No, the children will continue their journey of reading and writing in Reception. They have however already started to build the foundations of these skills in nursery/pre school. Your child can probably already recognise print and pictures, turn pages in a book, join in with rhyming phrases during songs and stories, discriminate between different sounds and make marks on a page. These are all the first stages of reading and writing.
Credits:
Created with images by Gem Education, © Kingston Park Primary School