Return to flip book view

Edition 21 Edition 23

Directors NewsSparkwellWoodlandsSchool ClubLee MillChaddlewoodMike's Meal - Fish CakesMontessori Information - TheNature TableParenting Advice - Potty TrainingStaff NewsDates for your diaryJanuary News Directors NewsSparkwellWoodlandsSchool ClubLee MillChaddlewoodMike's Meal -Baked Polenta Montessori Information - InspireEmpower RespectParenting Advice - BedtimeRoutineStaff NewsDates for your diaryJune News

It seems a little late to say Happy New Year but wedo wish you all the best for 2021. The year hasstarted challenging with us back in lock down onceagain but the nurseries are a wonderful place filledwith fun and laughter. Our teams are doing anamazing job despite the challenges and concernsand supporting each other well. We have signed upfor the walk-in lateral flow test centres, the firstcentre will open in Exeter soon and then furthercentres will open across Devon, we wait to seelogistically how this will work. We are incredibly proud of how the teams havefaced each challenge and despite being tired andworried themselves they carry on with a smile ontheir faces. They work incredibly hard to createsuch wonderful places for the children to learn andgrow in.All four nurseries are very busy and we are havingenquiries weekly for immediate start andSeptember, if you know you are likely to increaseyour child’s hours in the future or you would like asibling to start please let us know. We would like tomake sure our current families have first choiceover the sessions we have available. At the moment we are not sure what the restof this term will bring and whether we will stillbe in lockdown. Please be very vigilant, ifanyone in your household displays COVIDsymptoms please isolate and organise a test,the results are generally quite rapid now. Yourchild can only return to nursery if their test isnegative and they are well, a negative resultdoes not always mean your child is wellenough to return to nursery and althoughthey are not spreading COVID they mayspread other virus’. Please help us stayhealthy and open. Tracey and Caroline We cannot believe we have another cohort ofchildren leaving us to embark on their schooljourney, it is a bittersweet time as we are so proud ofall they have achieved but will miss seeing theirsmiling faces. Thank you for your ongoing cooperation andsupport with regards to COVID. We understandhow frustrating it is that we have to insist on a PCRtest even when there is just a temperature and noother symptoms such as a cough, but we do haveto follow government guidelines. Hopefully thesituation will change soon. It has been lovely as we have been visiting thesettings to see the nurseries busy and full ofhappy children exploring the environments.Our ethos is that we spend large parts of theday outside being at one with nature. Theoutside areas are kept as natural as possiblewith loose parts for the children to exploreand create their own adventures, one day itmay be an ice palace, another a pirate ship oran assault course. Children risk accessalongside the adults during their play helpingthem to keep safe, children are encouragedto think about their safety and their friends. Our Sparkwell setting has had great successwith their gardening and had a bumper cropof strawberries which looked delicious andjudging from the children’s faces theythoroughly enjoyed them. The challenge is onfor all the other settings next year to see whatthey can grow, vegetable boxes are beingordered. Tracey and Caroline

CharlotteThat was a fast January! Here we are in 2021 still pushing through this pandemic, I hope you’re all stayingsafe and keeping well. A massive thank you to all of our key workers from everyone at Sparkwell! This month we have been learning all about Winter and the Arctic. The babies have explored the sensorytray with ‘snow’ and the Arctic animals, they have focused mainly on penguins and it’s been a huge hit.They have enjoyed penguin stories and songs as well as painting their very own interpretation of apenguin that has been proudly displayed on their Winter display board. The babies also enjoyed sensorybags, using Arctic and winter colour, for them to explore with their hands and feet, they had paint mixedwith rice, cotton balls, black and white paint with pasta and they LOVED it! The over two’s have also enjoyed this topic and have learnt so much in these few weeks. The 2 year oldshave focused on the temperature, talking about hot or cold using ice and the weather to help theirunderstanding. They have also enjoyed a number of sensory trays to help further their understanding, afavourite has been moon sand which feels like snow except much warmer! They have all had a go atpainting and making their own Arctic animals and making their own igloos using ice. This topic has been ahuge hit with all age groups. Next month the over 2 year olds will be learning about Space and the babieswill be learning and exploring land and sea animals. Well June certainly brought us some warmer weather and a splash of sunshine too which we were all verygrateful for. It's been another busy month learning about life cycles of plants, flowers and caterpillars, wehad our own butterfly farm of which the children were able to watch each day to notice any changes ordevelopments, we had some very excited children when our caterpillars turned into butterflies. Thechildren have explored the vegetables that we are growing in the orchard garden and have been able topick their own strawberries from the strawberry plants for their snack! We've been splashing around withwater play not only to stay cool but to learn about objects that float and sink. The babies enjoyed playing hook a duck with the nets and rubber ducks and were very excited when theywere able to catch one in the net, they were also super keen to get into the water with the ducks to cooloff too! We opened our construction zone garden with large diggers, a mud mound, real life construction toolsand the children's favourite, the wheelbarrow! They've been exploring the new area, learning new wordsand pointing out the different letters on the construction zone signs, they're learning new things throughplay and having fun! In July we will be having a 'beach theme', learning about water and sun safety, encouraging role play withtents, camping and beach set ups. We cannot wait to share this will you next month! Charlotte

Well January has flown by! We have all enjoyed seeing each other again after our Christmas festivities.This month we have been looking at the difference between day time and night time and the differentanimals that appear at different times of the day. We have also been learning about the artist Kandinsky who uses a lot of different shapes to create Artand the poet Robert Burns who writes poems about love and nature. We've enjoyed listening to someof his poems at circle time. We have had so much fun dressing up as pirates and looking for treasureand now we have move on to learning about Australia Our two year olds have been working with Claire learning about the farm! They have been makinganimal masks and singing lots of songs. The babies have been having fun making their own snack for a Teddy Bear's Picnic and now they arestarting to learn about the different animals we see at the zoo. We hope you are all keeping well and we are looking forward to February and watching out for the firstsigns of spring to appear.Hannah Well who can believe that June is over and the longest day has passed! We have had a lovely time following the 30 days wild cards, the children have enjoyed going out litterpicking down at the school. We were amazed at how much we collected. We then sorted the litter forrecycling. We had lots of woodlice and spiders and the children handled them with care. We have also done lotsof fun activities exploring nature and colours. We have been matching items from the nature to thecolours of a rainbow and making a mobile using natural materials. We have celebrated fathers day where we made cards for all the important men in our lives and had awonderful tea party where we made crowns and heart jam tarts to celebrate the queens birthday. Thechildren even tried a cup of tea!Hannah

Welcome back! Christmas seems like a lifetime ago now but I hope you all had a well deserved break andenjoyed the family time! I’ve enjoyed hearing all about the children’s Christmas’, what they enjoyed mostand their favourite presents! Everything is a little bit different at the moment but our main aim is to keep everything as normal as wecan, making sure all the children feel settled and happy here, keeping them engaged in lots of differentthings to do and enabling them to have lots of fun with their friends while being as safe as possible. An obvious favourite at the moment is the arts and crafts activities and I’ve enjoyed seeing just howcreative all the children can be! With what I feel to be the fastest January ever coming to an end, I hope you are all staying safe andhealthy and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone’s faces again soon!Breakfast and After School ClubGemma Just like that the school year has come to an end! I cannot believe how fast it has gone. The weather hasn’t really been on our side the last few weeks but we have still been taking everyopportunity to get outside and play tennis, football and a new one I’ve been taught ‘cross the goldenbridge’ (I’m not completely sure I’ve got the name right but I’m sure I will be corrected!) that one is bubble3’s favourite.Bubble 4 have been asking for some kinetic sand, I wasn’t really sure what it was at first but since we’vehad it, they haven’t put it down! It’s strange but oddly satisfying. The new additions to the food menu have gone down well this month, especially the scones with jam.That one is a clear favourite and will be staying on the menu in September! I’ve now been asked to addclotted cream which I didn’t get at first as I wasn’t sure the children would be interested in having it but Ihave been proved wrong! I hope you all have a lovely July and please remember to get your session requests in by the end of theweek to guarantee you have your chosen days in September. If you’re having trouble with the form pleasejust send us your required sessions through email. Any questions please email myself and Hannah onbasc@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk or a message on Famly and we will be happy to help! Breakfast and After School ClubGemma

Wow what a month January has been! Despite the lockdown we have had somuch fun. We have been exploring so many different festivals andcelebrations, including burns night. The children have especially enjoyedexploring ice and the Antarctic. We have been freezing lots of differentobjects inside the ice, using hammers and different objects to melt andbreak the ice. It has been very fun and very interesting. We even got to watchpenguins and polar bears in the zoo on the live feed. We have been making the most of our huge garden area by making birdfeeders, bubble mixtures and mud bakes! It has been great to get fresh airand run around freely whilst we can’t be so lucky at home. The babies have had a very exploratory month, they have focused onsensory play and physical play. We have been exploring all different textures,temperatures and colours. Including a sensory walk that we had made. Wealso made some obstacle courses, climbing frame and lots of small worldactivities, the car race track was the favourite this month. We cant wait to gointo February and see what this month brings us! We have lots of excitingactivities planned!!Briony What a wonderful month we have had! We have been very busy playing and learning at Little OrchardLee Mill. This month we have been celebrating international mud day, world chocolate day, and nationaldoughnut week! It is safe to say that this month was been full of fun messy activities, as well as sweetand tasty treats, (in moderation of course!). We have been reading books and singing songs aboutmud, mark making in mud with sticks, hiding numerals in a muddy swamp! Our artist for the month has been Andy Warhol, an American artist, most known for his pop artcreations, as well as photography and sculptures. The children have been exploring art in his style bypainting with flowers, printing with bell peppers and bright colours. The children have also been busy cooking up a storm by helping to make chocolate doughnuts,investigating chocolate gloop, and playdough. We have also been tasting different types of darkchocolate (allergy permitting) and looking at the “bean to bar” chocolate cycle. Ad some of you may know already, we have introduced a new feature to one of our classroom, thechildren and I have been setting up our new role play / dress up area, it has proven to be a verypopular addition to the setting already, as children love to explore the new trinket baskets, jewellerybox, and practice their everyday life skills, by fastening buttons, and zips on the dress up clothes!Alina

It has been lovely to be back with the children after the Christmas break exploring our topic of Winter andbirds. The children are very excited that we have two black birds who often visit the garden and twopigeons which sit in a tree near the fence who the children have named Marvin and Michelle. We havemade bird feeders to feed the birds in this cold wet weather and have a variety of different relatedactivities such as bird bingo, painting with feathers, small world trays to explore and making our ownnests.Our artist this month was Piet Mondrian and the childrencreated pictures using black tape, squares and primarycolours. He was Dutch so we also planted some Tulip bulbsand we now have some shoots, it will be lovely to havesome cheerful bright flowers for spring time. The babies have enjoyed lots of sensory activities fromtextured squares on the floor, making fruit smoothies totaste, walking on bubble wrap to make it pop and exploringrice with tubes and boxes. They have been so enthusiasticin their learning, eager to participate and laughing somuch. Tracey How has another month gone by so quickly? At Little Orchard Montessori Chaddlewood this month wehave had so many wonderful activities prepared for the children by the dedicated staff. The baby room had their own spa day complete with foot soak, and massage with baby oil. They had fruitinfused water to try in their little china cups and had a healthy snack alongside this. Then they got to laydown and relax on a mattress with a book and listen to some relaxing music. The babies loved talkingpart in this activity and had such an amazing time. The Over 2-year-old children have spent lots of time outdoors. We set up an orange, lemon and limeactivity for them to experiment with and it went so well that we even did it on a separate day again as thechildren asked for it. The smell of the water was so fresh. This month we have been discussing sun safety and what we need to wear to protect ourselves from thesun. I was pleasantly surprised at how much knowledge the children have and how good they are atkeeping their hats on when we are outside. As a spin off from this we made our own sun catchers whichwe are displaying in our classroom and they do look magnificent with the light shining through them. Tracy

2.5 kilos (weight without skin) cod or a mix of cod and salmon1 kilo potato 4 Shallots5 red peppersParsley 1 1/2 cups gluten free flour or rice flour 10 tbsp vegan mayonnaise8 tsp avocado/rapeseed/olive oulPeel and slice the potatoes and boil in water for 10-15minutes until they break easily using a knife.Peel and finely chop the shallots and chop the red peppers. Fry gently using the oil. Allow to cool.When the potatoes are soft, drain,and pop back on the stoveuntil dry. Mash the potatoes ( I use an electric whisk) untilsmooth. Whisk in the mayonnaise and chopped parsley. Foldin the flour and allow to cool.Skin and check the fish for bones.Turn oven on at 200c and line a baking tray with greaseproofpaper.Cut the fish up and pop into a food processor and blitz butleaving the fish a little chunky. Combine all the ingredients together and shape into 2inchpatties.Place them on the prepared tray and cook for 10-12 mins.I don't add salt and pepper but feel free to do so if you wish.Fish CakesMike's MealsIngredientsMethodThis weeks recipe comes to usfrom Kate, our cook at Sparkwell! Makes 90 small cakes or 25 big ones! PolentaWaterButterSweet PotatoSaltSpicesPeasEggCheese (cheddar, Parmesan, Grant Padano)It’s one part polenta to four parts water but I do it by texture. Put some water on to boil and add in some butter. Then I put in some sweet potato, salt and some spices (I did turmericand Garam M) Once boiling turn it to a simmer for about five minutes to allow thepotato to soften then add some peas and bring it back to the boil. Add the polenta, crack in a beaten egg and put in some cheddar butideally you’d use Pecorino, Grana Padano or Parmesan, then use atechnique called Mantecare, (to beat really fast) off the heat The texture you're looking for is like a ball. Once you've mixed ittogether enough you’ll have a smooth ball like a roux or choice pastrywhere it leaves the side of the pan clean. Then grease a tin and pour the mix into it and baked at 200c for about17 minutes. Baked PolentaMike's MealsIngredientsMethod

Every good Montessori setting will have a nature table displaying objects collected bythe children and adults with plants and animals for the children to care for. The nature table is part of the Montessori cultural area and the Early Years FoundationStage Understanding the World. Montessori recognised childrens fascination withnature if they were given the chance and opportunity to observe it closely. Our children certainly are fascinated! Whether that is examining an owl pellet andidentifying what has been eaten, pressing petals, caring for fish, looking at treasuresfrom a beach or woods or bug hunting in the garden. We need to make sure the naturetable or area is refreshed regularly so childrens interest can be satisifed. Addingmagnifying glasses enables a child to look even more closely and labels with questionscan support language development as the teacher and child discover together. Ideas for homeWhy not go on a nature hunt together and collect treasures to explore? You could create your own nature area at home Create pictures with natural objects or 3'd structures. All the nurseries would love you to share your finds with them. You could learn the names of birds, flowers or trees... children love new words! Montessori InformationNature Table Montessori InformationInspire Empower RespectWe spent a long time debating and deciding upon three values which run through the foundationof our company which also reflect our Montessori ethos. These values encapsulate our beliefs,attitudes and behaviours and are lived and breathed by everyone in our teams. Having values helpsus to build a strong culture and a happy, supportive environment. Our final value is being respectful, we are respectful of everyone,everything and value our differences. We recognise ourdifferences and celebrate in them and above all are kind to eachother. We aim to provide inspiring environments, learning opportunities and interactions for all. Ourteams work hard to create a Montessori learning environment that excites children, encouragescuriosityand inspires them to want to learn. We support team members to be inspired by eachother and to be innovative. When parents, professionals or colleagues visit our settings we hopethey will be inspired by what they see, how our teams and children interact with each other andthe Montessori ethos. Oursecondvalue is empowering everyone to reach their fullpotential and be the best they can. Empowering helps a personfeel moreconfidentand feel that that they are incontrolof theirlife. Empowerment is not only about gaining control oneself italso has to do with the way in which we work with others tonurture their sense of self-esteem, autonomy and growth Our Montessori ethos means that we respect the children ascapable individuals with opinionsand ideas we should listen to.We enable the children to express themselves individuallyand asa team we empower them to understand that they matter. Everyday the children inspire us to be the best that we can be. Empowering independenceEncouraging kindness andrespect of othersCreating inspiring learningopportunities. Enabling and empoweringchildren

Potty TrainingPotty Training There is no perfect time to toilet train your child and all children are individuals who gaincontrol of their bowels and bladders at different times. Don't feel pressured by well meaningrelatives or because your friends child is ready before yours. It is however important to beaware of when your child is showing signs of being ready such as saying when they have had abladder or bowel movement. You can sometimes tell when they are going to go for a weewhen they show signs such as fidgeting around or a specific look. They may begin to show aninterest in the toilet or potty and want to sit on it and begin to say before they have a bladderor bowel movement. In preparation for toilet training you could go shopping for pants and a potty. There are somegood books all about using the potty which can help in preparation and for older children whoare reluctant or afraid. At nappy changing time discuss bowel&bladder movements and offer the option of using thetoilet or potty with no pressure. Have a potty your child can freely go to use if they like. It is important that your child is drinking enough throughout the day and to ensure they aredrinking cupfulls in one go rather than sips from a beaker. Your child may not be aware of having a full bladder if it is gradually filling up from small sips. There are various options when considering moving to pants including using disposable orwashable pull ups. My personal view is these can be expensive, confusing and slow down theprocess, however they can be useful for car journeys or nap times initially. At no time should toilet training be upsetting for a child, if a child is unhappy in pants revertbackto nappies but keep the potty in sight, read books, discuss bladder&bowel movements and bepositive! There are numerous websites with advice to support toilet training. For example: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/babys-development/potty-training-and-bedwetting/how-to-potty-train/ https://www.babycentre.co.uk/c5032/potty-training Bedtime Routine Having enough sleep helps with a child's mental, physical and emotional health and can have apositive effect on children's behaviour. I don't know about you but if I'm tired I can be quite grumpy!Whilst I feel a lack of energy, when tired, children will sometimes appear hyperactive if not gettingenough sleep. Even when a child seems to have plenty of energy they still need adequate sleep and abedtime routine. Implementing a bed time routine is so important and the earlier this can be established the better.Children feel reassured by routines and boundaries and a familiar bedtime routine symbolises theend of a day. It should be a familiar and comforting- a special time that you have created for your childthat everyone who may put your child to bed is aware of to ensure your child feels reassured beforesleep. Of course children are not always going to want to go to bed, but if you are lovingly firm they will feelreassured that what you say you mean and you are in control. If the routine remains the same theyknow what is going to happen when.This is a time for snuggles, chats, a special time and a time when children may open up about theirday and say what they have done (rather than 'nothing') or share they struggles or happiness.Everyone's routine will vary but an example could be the routine starting with a gentle reminder it willsoon be bedtime and whatever is happening is going to come to an end soon. Next could be a calmbut fun and bubbly bathtime, teeth brushing, story sharing, kiss goodnight, and lights off. There shouldbe no screen time once the bedtime has begun and it could be argued screen time should stop anhour before the bedtime routine.Of course there will be times when there needs to be flexibility such as on holiday or after a long dayout or when a child or yourselves are poorly. Children are resilient and adaptable they will settle backinto the routine once it can be implemented again. There will also be times when it just does not go toplan and you have no idea why, and children can't always express why. Perseverance in routine is key,but if there are times such as these when the routine slips that is okay. Parents and children are onlyhuman!We hope you enjoy your time to unwind and catch up with your child after a long fun day at nursery.

This month we welcome Tracy to the Chaddlewood team as their new manager, she has manyyears’ experience working in nurseries at management level and also is a qualified Montessoriteacher. Tracey (Director) will be supporting all settings with teaching, learning and environments which isher passion. Chaddlewood also have an apprentice starting called Adele and a cook/housekeeper called Nicola.Abbie has joined our Sparkwell team this month, she is a level 3 Practitioner with lots of experienceworking in nurseries.Zara has started her maternity leave this month, we wish her all the best. Emily has taken over fromZara and can be contacted by using the normal admin email address..I have been a Montessori teacher for over eleven years, workingat inner city and village preschools and also several years as achildminder in rural Devon. I joined Lee Mill in September 2020and it is a lovely place to work! My two passions are firstly in nurturing the child’s independence –helping them learn life skills like dressing themselves, preparingsnacks, pouring drinks, choosing their work and supporting themwith their conversation, manners and listening skills as they learnto be part of a social group, and secondly becoming a champion,an advocate and interpreter for each child – using my childdevelopment training to demonstrate the value in what I seethem doing, their activities, their patterns of linked behaviour andtheir quirks. More than ever our task as the teacher is to provide a calm,friendly, predictable place for your children, when the worldaround is stressful and challenging. As Montessori teachers ourpromise is to follow the individual child, so we are adapting toprovide what they need. For example, we have tried to play partygames as well as the Montessori Birthday Walk for each birthdaychild as children are missing these with lockdown. Our job is sovaried and changing all the time. I particularly enjoy workingoutdoors with children so I can share my love of the naturalworld. Roll on Spring and warmer weather so the garden can beour classroom all day long! Staff NewsFeatured staff member - Gabi This month we held our first Montessori training day at Lee Mill learning about the wonderfulsensorial equipment. We had team members from each of our nurseries attend and an externaltrainer who was so inspiring. Mike prepared a delicious lunch which we all thoroughly enjoyed. Our teams have also attended first aid, safeguarding and speech and language training to ensurethe remain up to date with the latest information and are highly skilled. Each team meets monthlyto discuss ways in which to improve their own settings and to learn about any new early yearsupdates. I’m Emma I am a level 2 Nursery assistant/School clubassistant for Little Orchard Montessori Woodlands, and Iam currently doing my level 3 qualification which I hopeto complete by the end of the year. I have been working for little orchard for almost threeyears now, and have made a really nice home at ourwoodlands setting. I have really enjoyed working with theteam and it has been really rewarding learning andworking in a new profession, after leaving Uni in 2018,and taking a carer change from Dance to Childcare. Ihave recently been asked to become a spare hand in ourbaby room, which has been really great getting to takeon new responsibilities and having a change of pacefrom working in our pre-school room. In my spare time outside of nursery I really enjoyspending time with friends and family as much aspossible, as we all know COVID as take a lot of time awayfrom us.Staff NewsFeatured staff member -Emma

Autumn Term 3rd September-18th DecemberHalf term - Monday 26th October Spring Term 4th January-1st April Half term - Monday 15th February Bank Holiday 2nd April and 5th April Summer Term 19 April-27th July (Chaddlewood 16th July) Half Term - Monday 31st May Bank Holiday 3rd May and 31st May We are closed for all Bank Holidays and for approx a week at Christmas.Stretched funding at Chaddlewood does not cover the weeks beginning 21stDecember. Would you like to order a jumper or T shirt for your child in purple with our logo on? Please letus know via email or message on FamlyT Shirt; £6.95Jumper; £8.95Dates For Your DiariesLee Mill - Briony: ivytown@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Tel: 01752 893498 Term Dates for Devon/PlymouthContact DetailsJumper/ T Shirt PurchasesPlease contact managers direct regarding changes to sessions, extra days andholiday notice:Sparkwell- Charlotte: sparkwell@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk  Tel: 01752 837883Woodlands -Hannah:woodlands@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Tel: 01752 658567Director Caroline:caroline.lucas@littleorchardmontessori.co.ukEmily:Invoice queries:admin@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Tel:07549066082Chaddlewood - Tracy : chaddlewood@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Tel: 01752 202193 Spring Term 4th January-1st April Half term - Monday 15th February Bank Holiday 2nd April and 5th April Summer Term 19 April-16th July Half Term - Monday 31st May Bank Holiday 3rd May and 31st May Autumn Term 6th September - 17th DecemberHalf term - Monday 25th October We are closed for all Bank Holidays and for approx a week at Christmas.Stretched funding at Chaddlewood does not cover the weeks beginning 5th April and23rd August.. Would you like to order a jumper, T shirt or bag for your child in purple with our logo on? These can be purchased by contacting Emily at pa@littleorchardmontessori.co.ukDates For Your DiariesLee Mill - Alina: leemill@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Tel: 01752 893498 Term Dates for Devon/PlymouthContact DetailsJumper/ T Shirt PurchasesPlease contact managers direct regarding changes to sessions, extra days andholiday notice:Sparkwell- Charlotte: sparkwell@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk  Tel: 01752 837883Woodlands -Hannah:woodlands@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Tel: 01752 658567Director Caroline:caroline.lucas@littleorchardmontessori.co.ukEmily:Invoice queries:admin@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Chaddlewood - Tracy : chaddlewood@littleorchardmontessori.co.uk Tel: 01752 202193