Key information 

Little Cherries is a pre school run by Bewick Bridge Community Primary School. Children attend the pre school from aged 2 years 9 months to 4 years. Children then move into the Reception class and start their formal schooling.  Little Cherries has a very experienced pre school teacher as the lead practitioner and she is supported by three teaching assistants. 


What will my child be doing during their sessions?

Little Cherries Preschool adheres to the 2021 statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). We provide a range of play-based activities which help children to make progress in each of the areas of learning and development.


Early Years education is about focusing on the development of the individual child through play and exploration. We believe that this is the best way for children to learn about the world around them. The curriculum in preschool is progressively planned to support child development with an emphasis on a smooth transition from preschool to Reception. We aim to ensure that children are equipped with the skills and knowledge to have a successful start to their primary school career.

Tapestry

Little Cherries use Tapestry, an easy-to-use and secure online learning journal that helps  families and staff celebrate the children’s learning and development. Tapestry builds, over time, into an online journal, weaving a wonderful journey of the children's development during their time at Little Cherries. 

A typical session

Below is a guide to how our sessions operate for both our morning session & afternoon session.

Start of session

On arrival parents/carers and children are greeted at the gate by a member of staff, they will welcome your child help them settle into the session. 

 Starting with a ‘circle time’ song we welcome everyone to the group. This part of the session can include celebrating a birthday or festival, playing counting games or learning new letter sound, discussing  the weather or learning how to share and take turns. At the end of circle time children move into a playful learning session. During this time they may be asked to join a small group for an activity or depending on your child's needs they may spend some time working individually with an adult.  

Playful learning
We have an engaging outside and inside environments where continuous provision is offered to all children. During continuous provision, children have the opportunity to access areas where they can explore all planned activities and resources with the aim to achieve their Early Learning Goals. Continuous provision is freely chosen, personally directed, and intrinsically motivated. There are many activities for children to get involved in; sand, water, play-dough, painting, books, making things, building constructions, games, puzzles, music and so on. As well as the resources that are always available, staff will observe what children are interested in and add new experiences to extend their learning and enhance the provision. Staff deploy their subject knowledge of the EYFS framework to support attainment and progress for all children.  

Snack time
This is an important social and learning time where we offer the children a variety of healthy fruit or vegetable snacks. Children are able to take part in preparing, or simply help themselves, to a healthy snack during the session. Water and milk is offered during this time and water is available throughout the session.

Tidying up
 All children are encouraged to tidy up together both indoors and out. During this time we find many opportunities for learning as children pack away their activities; sorting and classifying resources, counting to make sure a collection is complete, working together, listening to and giving instructions, reading pictures or print to know what goes in drawers etc.

End of session
We finish the session with singing and/or story time. Parents/carers collect their children from the gate where they have an opportunity to speak to the class teacher or the teaching assistants.