Frensham Heights Information Booklets - Early Years

A PROGRESSIVE DAY & BOARDING SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS FROM THE AGE OF 3 TO 18

EARLY YEARS

NURSERY & RECEPTION

SCHOOL DAY

We have very varied, busy days in our Nursery and Reception classes. We don’t have a uniform, we just ask our children to dress for purpose - with wellies, waterproofs and cold weather gear, when relevant. Our children wear their PE kit on PE & Games days and comfortable, running around, tree-climbing clothes for all the other days – dress for a day out in the woods.

Our week runs from Monday to Friday with no lessons on Saturdays. Here’s our basic school day:

Doors Open: 8:15am

Registration: 8:30am

Classes Start: 8:30am

Morning Break: 10:00 - 10:25am

Lunch: 11:45am

Classes Finish: 3:20pm

NURSERY SESSIONS

Morning: 8:30am - 11:30amMorning plus Lunch: 8:30am - 1:15pmFull Day: 8:30am - 3:20pmAfternoon plus Lunch: 11:45am - 3:20pm

LUNCH

We have a long lunch break, an hour and a half, with plenty of time to play. Whether they’re discovering something new or just having time to play outside unhurried. It’s a really beneficial time for all the children to play and socialise.

AFTER SCHOOL

We have a Late Stay club, run by dedicated staff who are familiar with all the children. It runs from 3.30pm to 5.30pm. The children can play outside, with toys, watch a film or do some craft activities. There is a small hourly charge for the Late Stay club for Nursery through Year 3.

TEACHING & LEARNING

CLASS SIZES

Our class sizes are small allowing for a lot more discussion, flexibility and personality. The maximum class size for Nursery is 16 children and Reception is 12. We have a one class entry for each of these years.

LEARNING SPACE

Nursery and Reception have their own linked classrooms running along the back of the Nursery-Year 3 building situated between the Forest Class and the Junior School Office. The classrooms are equipped with high-quality furniture and workshop areas such as role play, transient art, science and discovery. There are also dedicated toilet facilities in the Nursery area. The children have direct access to an outdoor learning classroom just outside and a large playground which runs alongside and behind the building. There is a shared common assembly area and a paved courtyard. Nursery and Reception children may also be taken to use the Astroturf, Sports and Dance Halls, Theatre and Drama Studios, Science Labs, Ballroom, Front Lawn, Outdoor Classroom, Forest Class and woodland areas.

CURRICULUM

Our Nursery and Reception children learn through a method called Planning in the Moment. Our experienced and creative Early Years teachers mould the day’s learning around whatever interests the children may bring in with them. It’s the kind of education that keeps the children’s imaginations alive and burning to learn more. It teaches them that their opinions and interests are important, that their voices, no matter how little, will be heard and most importantly, that school is a lot of fun.

The Reception teacher will filter Mathematics, Phonics and English through short games and activities. Keeping this primarily child-led helps the children stay keen to learn more while giving them crucial skills for learning.

The curriculum for our Nursery and Reception children covers these areas of the Early Years curriculum:

• Personal, social and emotional development

• Communication and language

• Physical development

• English

• Maths

• Understanding of the world

• Expressive art and design

As in our older years, every child is treated as an individual with their own unique needs and interests - our staff observe and adapt their teaching specifically. Projects can be created and developed hand in hand with a group of children and their teacher. Equally, we know that every child will be at a different point in terms of their physical, personal and emotional development. Our teachers know each child really well and adapt to make sure each can have challenging and enjoyable experiences in all areas of learning.

SPECIALIST LESSONS

Another real advantage of being in an all through school, aside from being part of a cohesive community and the lack of worry about where to go next, is that the younger children benefit from the same facilities and teachers as the older children. Specialist subjects are taught by teachers highly-trained in their areas and who teach up through the school, many to Sixth Form. The younger children benefit not just from the teachers’ deep knowledge and passion for their subjects, but also from starting to build relationships with teachers that they will learn with throughout their time here at Frensham. This is a very important aspect of both our teaching and learning, but also our pastoral care. Getting to know one another’s strengths and weaknesses and also developing trust and friendship for when children might have worries or just need a chat.

Through this individual approach, children achieve deep levels of involvement, which in turn translates into true progress in all areas of the curriculum.

CURRICULUM BREAKDOWN

Reception have their own timetable with the majority of their day made up of a mixture of adult initiated inputs of Mathematics, Phonics and Literacy alongside independent child-initiated learning/play. Dotted throughout the week are scheduled specialist lessons which are up to 30 minutes long.

• Personal, Social, Health Education: 1 lesson per week

• Philosophy, Religion, Ethics: 1 lesson per week

• French*: 1 lesson per week

• PE*: 1 lesson per week

• Art*: 2 lessons per week

• Music*: 1 lesson per week

• Dance/Drama*: 1 lesson per week

* Taught by specialist teacher

Nursery have an equal number of specialist lessons. Their timetable is based around extended periods of play when Planning in the Moment occurs and short adult inputs for stories and games. Early Phonics and Maths are continuously provide through play.

WE’RE NOT IN A RUSH HERE. CHILDREN ARE GIVEN THE TIME AND SPACE TO STAY AS YOUNG AS POSSIBLE FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE.

TAPESTRY

In the Early Years, we use Tapestry, an online platform, to build a very special record of each child’s experiences and development. Tapestry allows us to take parents along on their child’s learning journey through their early years and into primary education. Using photos, videos and diary entries, our teachers and parents weave the story of the child and how they are growing and developing. The Tapestry platform allows these memories to be kept as a permanent record of each child’s unique journey.

We update the children’s online learning journal continually with photos and videos of both child and adult-initiated learning. It is a crucial home/school link supporting the close relationships between the teachers and families.

FOREST CLASS

We have an integrated Forest Class programme which fosters confidence and creativity. Our beautiful Forest Class sits just beyond our Nursery to Year 3 playground. The children in Nursery and Reception spend two sessions a week in the Forest Class learning and exploring in the great outdoors.

Our dedicated trained forest leader accompanies our youngest children on their first steps along their Frensham Outdoor Education adventure where they can enjoy the freedom to explore, to investigate, to experience and to take small, but significant risks that help them grow towards being curious and self-aware adults. The adventures on offer are carefully chosen, meticulously prepared and age appropriate. For these littlest members of the school, the adventures will be full of wonder and exploration.

OUR TEACHERS

We are very proud of our highly creative, dedicated and experienced EYFS team. All our EYFS staff are qualified from Level 3 up to postgraduate level. They have joined us from a range of backgrounds in nursing, primary teaching and SEN positions. It’s a dynamic team who thrive on the imaginations and energy of the children in their care. They will work closely with your Nursery or Reception child as a key worker and are available on a daily basis to share news and feedback with you.

We believe in letting children be little for longer and a big part of that comes through nurturing their natural sense of wonder and their natural inclination to explore. They are given the time and space to investigate, question, discover and to just be themselves.

COMMUNITY

DISCIPLINE

Ours is an ethos founded on mutual respect, generosity and kindness. With our small class sizes and close relationships between children and teachers, bullying and other behavioural issues are rare and tend to be handled before they can become a problem. If problems do arise, they are handled through calm discussion with each child being given the chance to listen, talk and learn. This in turn is clearly communicated to and discussed with parents. We have boundaries, but not rules for rules sake, allowing children to question, develop self-awareness, awareness of others and take responsibility for their actions.

PARENT INVOLVEMENT

In Nursery and Reception, there is an opportunity to meet the Early Years team at the start of each school year and parents are invited in for a consultation in the Autumn and Spring terms. Reports are sent out in the Autumn and Summer terms and parents are invited in for pop-ins once per term to give the children a chance to share their work and learning environment.Parents are also always welcome to catch–up with teachers at any time they need to, either with a chat at the door or a more scheduled meeting. We know our school thrives on having a strong relationship with each of our families, working together and communicating within the school environment and at home.There are also many events during the year when the school community comes together – class assemblies, Christmas plays, Founders’ Day and Bonfire Night to name a few.

HEALTH

NUTRITION

Children will be given a healthy snack (including fruit) twice a day. We eat lunch together as a community with children and teachers eating together. All children have different preferences and our catering team provides a wide range of freshly prepared childfriendly options to cater to all tastes and allergies and to help develop healthy eating habits.

HEALTH CENTRE

We have an onsite Health Centre, staffed by qualified nurses. If a teacher is concerned about a child’s health, they will take them to the Health Centre to be assessed by the nurse who will contact parents if they are concerned or if the child needs to be taken home.

PE KIT

Although we don’t have a school uniform, we still ask that our students are dressed appropriately for all that a school day can offer – which tends to include a lot of running, jumping and climbing trees. In Nursery and Reception, we recommend the children wear a tracksuit on their PE & Games days. This can be purchased through Schoolblazer.

“CHILDREN CAN BE CHILDREN HERE. THEY’RE ALLOWED TO BE WHO THEY ARE.”

Current Parent

KEY EARLY YEARS CONTACTS:

Teacher in Charge of Early Years: Sarah Gibson Head of Junior School: Nick Oram-Tooley Junior School Administrator: Olivia Hannon hello@frensham.orghello@frensham.org

Visit our website or call 01252 792561 to arrange a tour. Frensham Heights Rd, Rowledge, Farnham GU10 4EA.

WWW.FRENSHAM.ORG