Welcome to Little Crofters Nursery

As we begin our new year in Nursery we also continue to develop and explore our new, revised Early Years Foundation Stage framework.

Take a look at the exciting and evolving aspirations for all of our Nursery children...

Autumn 1 Medium Term Plan - 2022

'I am Special'

Summer 2 Medium Term Plan - 2022

'All Join in with making up stories...'

Celebrating a wonderful year and moving on!

What a wonderful time we have had in our final weeks of Nursery, filled with fun, laughter, excitement and special memories. It has been another wonderful year at Little Crofters and we would like to say a huge thank you to all our parents and carers who have supported us throughout and ensured all of the children have had the best time in Nursery. We couldn’t do it without you all! We hope you all have a wonderful Summer break. 

Thank you, The Nursery Team 

Sports Week!

What an amazing 'Sports Week' we have had in Nursery. The children have loved taking part in a variety of races, have learnt new skills and have thoroughly enjoyed cheering their friends on and celebrating together. Well done!

Summer 2 - Weeks 2-3: 'We are Superheroes!'

The Butterfly class loved listening to the story, ‘There’s a superhero in my book.’ We have spent time planning and creating traps to catch the scribbler. Some children enjoyed drawing their very own creatures to scare away the scribbler and help the superhero. What amazing ideas and creations! The Caterpillar class have been exercising and eating healthily like Superheroes too. Well done Little Crofters!

Summer 2 - Week 1: 'The Queen's Platinum Jubilee 2022'

The Queen's Knickers by Nicholas Allan

“I can draw long lines…and a butterfly, queen likes butterfly knickers!” Kian, age 3.

Look at how Little Crofters celebrated the Queen's Platinum Jubilee! 

Summer 1 Medium Term Plan - 2022

'All Join in with making up stories!'

Summer 1 - Week 5: 

‘Run, run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me I’m a gingerbread man!’

"The fox ate it…he was hungry!” Alice, age 3.

In our final week of this half term we enjoyed learning about the story of the gingerbread man. Have a look at how we used the character to work on our numeral recognition, counting skills and creative designs! 

Summer 1 - Week 4: ‘Three Billy Goats Gruff’

"My bridge is long, strong and wide!” Henry, age 4.
 

Trolls, goats, bridges and more! This week we have all thoroughly enjoyed creating props for the story and exploring the different characters. Well done! 

Summer 1 - Week 3: Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?!

"Im sorri. I luv u, I luv u fo meny yis” Olivia, age 4 - a card from the wolf.
 

We have had another fantastic story telling week sharing our own versions of 'The Three Little Pigs.' Well done Little Crofters!

Summer 1 - Week 2: Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear!

”Goldilocks must have been terrified!” Jordi, age 4. 
 

We have had a brilliant week learning all about the fantastic, traditional tale ‘Goldilocks and the three Bears.’ We have focused on counting objects accurately to 3, comparing size, made character puppets and drawn teddy bears. 

Summer 1 - Week 1: The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Fruit Tasting! 

“...strawberries and mushrooms, they are healthy.” Dawson, age 3.

What a fantastic first week back after the Easter break. We have welcomed many new Little Crofters and their families to Nursery this week, made new friends and enjoyed a visit from Asda Man! The hungry caterpillar and fruit tasting were all part of his fantastic week. Well done Little Crofters! 

Spring 2 Medium Term Plan - 2022

'All Join in and use your Imagination!'

Spring 2 - Easter Fun! 

What a wonderful time we had at the end of this term searching for Easter eggs, learning about different celebrations and their importance and creating our own stories! Well done Little Crofters. 

Spring 2 - Week 5: ‘Not a Stick,’ Spring and growing things! 

“This stick is taller than that one. This is H for Henry!” Henry, age 4.

As our beans begin to grow, blossom begins to fall from the tree and plants start to flower we have really enjoyed creating different representations of the world around us using paint, sticks and loose parts. ‘Not a Stick’ by Antoinette Portis is always a fantastic book to share in Nursery. Take a look at how it inspired us through story telling, expressive Art and play!

View large version of image

Spring 2 - Weeks 3-4 Minibeasts 

“Where’s the woodlice? Ahhh they are cute...lovely...tiny!”

Lincoln, age 3.

The sunny weather has certainly made our minibeast hunts very enjoyable. We have been eager to find out more about our precious garden insects, have loved observing them in their natural habitats and have even created our own stories and drawn pictures to match up with the new facts we have learnt.

Spring 2 - Week 2

“You need the ‘shine’ and the rain!” Lily, age 4.

With the sunshine coming out to play this week and the weather settling down, it was the perfect opportunity to begin planting seeds and preparing the Nursery garden for the Summer. 

Spring 2 - Week 1 - Pirates, treasure, sea creatures and more...

What a wonderfully imaginative, creative and engaging first week back at Little Crofters Nursery. Our children have fully immersed themselves in our Pirate theme and have absolutely loved celebrating ‘World Book Day 2022’ in Nursery and at home. What a fantastic week! 

March 1st is the day Romanians celebrate 'Martisor', an old tradition related to Spring arrival and warm weather, also symbolising love, respect and friendship. Here is our Little Crofter sharing his family tradition by offering a ‘red’ rose to each lady and girl at Nursery. What a beautiful tradition. Thank you for sharing it with us... 

Spring 1 Medium Term Plan - 2022

'All Join in, it's a Wonderful Creation!'

Spring 1 - Week 7

“It’s a nest we found on our land. It still has egg shell in it!” 
Brodie, age 3.

Our final week of this half term has been one of discovery, awe and wonder! We have looked carefully in our Nursery garden for birds, learnt about the different types of bird we might see and have made bird feeders to keep our ‘flying friends’ safe and healthy during the stormy weather we have been experiencing. Well done Little Crofters.
Happy half term!

Spring 1 - Week 6

“Purple, yellow, blue, purple, yellow...BLUE! Teacher I’m right!” 
David, age 4.

This week we have been exploring pattern and creating our own repeating patterns. ‘Socks’ and ‘Simon Sock’ were just two of the stories we thoroughly enjoyed listening to, which linked to our topic. 

Spring 1 - Week 5

“It’s a Tiger, just like the Chinese New Year Tiger we painted!”
Harley, age 4

Happy Chinese New Year! We’ve tasted Chinese food, created traditional music, performed the lion and dragon dances, shared the New Year story and created our own Tiger artwork inspired by Henri Rousseau.
Little Crofters Nursery - ‘Learning without limits!’

Spring 1 - Week 4: “I made orange!” Caterpillar room

A wonderful week in our N1 Caterpillar room focusing on recognition, exploration and experimenting with different colours. We have also observed and supported some amazing co-operative play and problem solving skills with our two and three year olds. Well done Caterpillars! 

Spring 1 - Week 3: “I going to the moon, Teacher!” Oakley, age 3.

“She’s been, Elsa’s been...look ice...it is icy and cold out here!”
Phoebe, age 3.
 

Spring 1 - Week 2: 'We’re going on a Shape Hunt!’

This week we have sang about shapes, searched for shapes in Nursery and at home and made our own shape pictures. The developing vocabulary of our children in describing how different shapes look, discussing their properties and using their correct names has been fantastic. We have also been so pleased to see many of our children sharing their play and learning from home with us on the Nursery Class Dojo. Well done Little Crofters! 

We have been exploring the stars and the moon at Nursery. We have linked this area of interest to shapes, songs, our World and much more.

Have a look at our interpretation of Van Gogh's 'The Starry Night' painting.

We really enjoyed having such a large canvas to paint on as we explored the shapes, patterns and colours we could see in the painting. I think you will agree it is beautiful!

Spring 1: 'A great start to the New Year!'

What an incredible start to our Spring Term at Little Crofters Nursery. The children have returned with confidence and a great enthusiasm for their play and learning. 

Mark making, drawing and name writing have been a real focus and fascination for so many of the children who have been keen to share their family news. 

Autumn 2 Medium Term Plan - 2021

'All Join in with Wellies and Weather!'

Autumn 2: Week 6 

'Christmas Creations and Celebrations with Friends!'

Autumn 2: Week 5 

'It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, celebrations and family time!'

We are learning about how many of us celebrate Christmas, how we decorate our houses and the Nursery during these special times and how we can work together to share special times and make memories.

Forest School Project

What a wonderful way to conclude our Little Crofters Forest School experience this term. This group have built shelters, discussed campfire safety, explored the natural world and even created their own 'Celebration' tree for the Nursery garden. Every skill acquired and practised during the children's time at Forest School gives them confidence, independence and experiences we are so proud to offer in Nursery. 

A message from our Forest School Leader, Miss Smallman
“Our Forest School group should be so proud of themselves! They are all strengthening their understanding of safety (for themselves and others) and managing risk. Forest School is not just about 'messing about in the woods' it is about facilitating risk managed opportunities that enable our learners to develop transferable skills socially, physically, intellectually, creatively, communicatively, emotionally and spiritually. By providing these opportunities our learners will hopefully become confident and independent individuals... and have a lot of fun in the process! We are very proud of our first group this year! Well done!” ⭐️

Autumn 2: Week 4 - ‘Brush your teeth in the morning and night!’

How can we keep our teeth healthy and clean? We started to explore this important topic by learning a tooth brushing song and the actions to go with it. We then helped our crocodile, dinosaurs and shark to clean their teeth. 
 

Tooth Brushing Song ~ Simple Songs

19.11.2021 - Children in Need 2021

We had a fantastic day of spotty clothes, decorated faces, Pudsey pictures and teddy bear ears to celebrate this years ‘Children in Need.’ Thank you to all of our Little Crofters who took part and for your generous donations. Our children were proud to learn about how we can all work together to make a difference for others. Well done!

12.11.2021 - Visiting Mr Page

What a fantastic end to another wonderful week at Nursery. We are always so proud of all of our Little Crofters. Mr Page was incredibly pleased to welcome three of our children to visit him at Upper School and share in their learning and creations. Well done! 

Autumn 2: Week 2 - 11th November - 'Lest We Forget'

On Thursday 11th November we sat quietly in Nursery and watched the 'BBC Children's Remembrance film.' We talked about things we are grateful for and special people in our lives.

We know that many of the amazing things we have and can experience in our lives today is due to the help and sacrifices of people from our past. 

Autumn 2: Week 1 - 'Celebrations, Diwali and Fireworks!'

It has been a wonderful first week back at Nursery and we have all thoroughly enjoyed learning about how Diwali is celebrated by so many at this time of year and how we can safely enjoy bonfires, fireworks and walks in the dark with our families. 

Autumn 1 Medium Term Plan - 2021

'All Join in with Celebrating Me!'

Autumn 1: Week 7 - 'Autumn leaves...falling down!'

What a fantastic, final week to our Autumn term in Nursery. We have enjoyed exploring number through play and activities this week and investigated and explored the natural world around us by collecting leaves of all shapes, colours and sizes.

What will you discover during your half term Little Crofters? 

Autumn 1: Week 6 - 'Invitations to Play, Discover and Learn'

At Little Crofters Nursery we plan from the children's interests and needs. We are fortunate to have a wonderful setting, with opportunities to explore both indoors and outdoors. We are proud of the balance between our child-led approach and planning for everything we want our children to 'experience, learn and be able to do!'

Take a look at just a few of the exciting activities and invitations to play we have provided in our first few weeks of the new year...

Autumn 1: Week 5 - 'Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear...'

This week we have moved from animals to bears and our favourite, cuddly toys. It has been a week of biscuit decorating, bear stories and has ended with inviting our teddies to a snack time picnic! We have also loved to share your Dojo posts sent in from home. Great work Little Crofters! 

Little Crofters Forest School

At Little Crofters we are so lucky to have our very own Forest School Leader, Ms Smallman, who was thrilled to begin her sessions again this week alongside Mr Shackleton. The group of children visiting the Forest School area in the Nursery garden were encouraged to explore the natural environment around them whilst learning the important safety routines and boundaries for them to understand and follow in order to enjoy the best experiences. Well done!

Autumn 1: Week 4 - 'Kind hands, actions and words!'

'Little Crofters - A happy place to be'

This week we have continued to settle into Nursery life and explore ways to create a happy, safe and positive environment for everybody. Take a look at the things we use and activities we engage in to help us in Nursery to listen, join in and share!

Autumn 1: Week 3 - 'All Join in with Celebrating Me!'

'What do you like?'

At Little Crofters Nursery it is so important to us to provide a balance for our children between planned experiences and play inspired by their individual fascinations and interests.

Take a look at how our Little Crofters helped to create their own, personal curriculum this week with independence, enthusiasm and a strong desire to learn through their own, child-led play. 

Autumn 1 - Settling in!

Our Little Crofters have had a fantastic start to the school year. We are so proud of how all of the children have settled into Nursery with excitement and enthusiasm. The support from our Parents and Carers has highlighted the continued importance of the shared partnership between home and Nursery to ensure our Little Crofters have the most positive experience. Thank you! 

Look at our amazing learners...