Posted on: April 23rd 2021
Here at Norfolk House School we are so thrilled to be able to provide the first steps for children in their educational journey from the age of 2 years.
Having children from toddlers as part of our school community keeps our focus firmly aligned to our Core Value of being caring to ourselves and others and underpins the nurturing ethos of our school.
As we start to think about supporting children to transition to Reception, I am reminded of a quote by the early years researcher Lesley Webb who explained that describing the purpose of nursery as preparing children for ‘big school’ is like saying the purpose of breakfast is to prepare you for lunch. Rather, what you have for breakfast is what you need in the morning and what you eat for lunch is what you need for lunch.
We follow this philosophy in our early years, with the value of our nursery and pre-nursery education being rooted in strong pedagogy where we provide children with the right learning opportunities at the right moment to ensure learning is meaningful for individual children and providing them with the right “nutrients” that they need at different points of their learning.
Our very experienced early years team provide children with opportunities that enrich learning and create awe and wonder in the world and in themselves as competent learners, with staff skillfully scaffolding children’s learning throughout a session. Purposefully planning an engaging, challenging curriculum for our 2, 3 and 4 year olds means that children are learning the underpinning concepts and skills needed for their age and beyond. As this learning is built upon purposefully every day by the time children leave our Nursery they are ready to embrace Reception with confidence, enthusiasm and all the foundations needed for a successful entry into Reception.
Helen Enisoh, Deputy Headteacher