Outdoor Area

The outdoor environment is divided into three areas. The nursery garden, the schools out garden and the field. Each area provides many valuable learning experiences where the children can develop skills and understanding.

The nursery garden

All three nursery rooms have access to the nursery garden children can experience similar activities to indoors but on a larger scale. Outdoor activities include sand and water play, messy play, developing writing, reading areas and space for children to develop other skills such as riding bikes and walking on beams.

The out of school garden

The garden houses a large climbing frame which has a slide, swings and climbing wall. The children use the climbing frame to make dens and create games. The children use the climbing frame on a night after school and all day throughout the holidays. The nursery children use the climbing frames within smaller groups to develop their gross motor skills. The climbing frame has been built on safety flooring to provide extra safety for the children. The concrete area is used for larger outdoor equipment such as 'Giant Jenga', 'Connect Four' and games brought out from indoors.

The Field

Each year we take part in the 'Lets Grow' scheme which was introduced by Morrison's Supermarket. We collect the vouchers and at the end of the year we choose items out of a catalogue. The items previously ordered have helped to establish our vegetable garden. The children enjoy sowing the seeds, planting bulbs and preparing the poly tunnel for the fruit and vegetables. The children visit the vegetable garden on a regular basis to collect the fruit and vegetables which are used for nursery cooking, in the extra activities baking club and to sell to the parents. The children who are in the gardening club look after and water the flowers. Each year the children grow sunflowers which they measure on a weekly basis to see how much they have grown. Please have a look in our picture gallery. The children learn valuable life skills from growing the vegetables and seeing how they can be used in cooking.

The children visit the animals in the farm on a daily basis. They enjoy collecting the eggs and counting them, expanding on their early mathematical skills. The eggs are used in the baking club, for cooking and selling to the parents. The children enjoy boxing the eggs up and selling them to the parents. With parent's permission the out of school club children help to clean out the smaller animals, they feed and water them and help to exercise them by walking them around the field using special harnesses. The children from the nursery who take part in the animal club look after the smaller pets and help to collect the eggs. The goats, sheep and pig allow the children to expand their knowledge on farm animals and how they are looked after. The children use the empty space in the field to enjoy ball games, run freely and take part in treasure hunts and sporting activities.