St Thomas' C of E Primary School

Nursery

A Letter from Mrs Williams

Week 10 - 24.07.2020

Hello Nursery,

This will be my last letter to you as next week it is the start of the summer holidays. Most of us have been at home with our families for 18 weeks now. Can you count to 18? Wow! It’s a big number, isn’t it? I really hope that the sun is shining over the summer holidays so that you can enjoy some family time before September. You could go to the park, have a picnic in the garden or enjoy spending time with family and friends. I will be doing all of these things as well as celebrating Tom’s birthday - it’s on Sunday and I’ve already got the cakes, candles, banners and drinks...I just need to wrap his birthday presents.

It’s sad to think that, for most of you, our time together in Nursery had to end early but Mrs Brokenbrow and I are really lucky because even when you go up to Reception, we will still get to see you and talk to you through the doorway in the classrooms and we will still get to play together outside every week. There’s also some surprise news for the first few days back in September so make sure your grown up looks out for the letter that is coming in the post.

This week is also Mrs Gray’s last week in school as our Headteacher as she is retiring. She has worked very hard since she joined St. Thomas’ CE Primary School a long, long time ago and deserves a big rest. I’m not sure what her plans are, as I’ve not been in school to ask, but I’m sure they involve football (she is a big Manchester City fan).
*Photo taken from the ‘message from home’ picture*

Summer challenges...
I have put some new learning jobs on the home learning section of the school website to help you to get ready for going up to Reception. There are also some activities for you to have your own sports day at home because we couldn’t do one in school, ask your grownups to have a look. Here’s what else you can do over summer...

Personal, Social & Emotional Development:
- play games that involve sharing toys and taking turns

Communication & Language:
- talk as you play and tell people what you are doing
- get your grownups to give instructions and see if you can follow them e.g. “Go and got your shoes” or “Take your coat off and then go and get a book”

Physical Development:
- draw pictures using circles and lines
- practice using scissors (only when your grown up is there to watch)
- practice writing your name using little letters
- help to get dressed in the morning and undressed at night

Literacy:
- give meaning to marks that you make when you draw or to logos and signs that you see on food or when at the shops
- find your own name
- when you share a book with your grown up, talk about the characters (who), setting (where) and plot (what is happening)
- ask your grown up chop up words (e.g. c/a/t/ OR c/oa/t/ OR ch/air/) as you play eye spy and see if you can work out what it is they can see.

Maths:
- count to 10 or even more
- count out the right number of toys when your grown up asks
- recognise numbers 0-5 then 0-10 when your grown up shows you them randomly out of sequence

Understanding the World:
- talk and ask questions about the changes you can see in the world (seasons / things growing / animals / weather / plants)
- talk about important times and celebrations for you and your family

Expressive Arts and Design:
- paint, draw and make models of the things you are interested in

Finally, do you remember I showed you the big buds on one of my plants and said I’d show you the flower when it opened up? Well here it is, just in time...isn’t it pretty.

Take care and stay safe over the summer and we’ll see you all in September.

Mrs Williams

Dear Parents,

Thank you for all your support during lockdown. I hope you have enjoyed completing some of the learning challenges with your children over the last 18 weeks whilst trying to navigate your way through the biggest event in our lifetimes. Myself and Mrs Brokenbrow have truly missed seeing your children everyday so whether your child is moving up to reception, moving on to a new school or staying with us in Nursery next year, know that your child had made a big impression in our lives and in our hearts. We hope you have a wonderful summer together and wish your child every success for the future.

Take care,

Mrs Williams

Activities this week...

Previous Letters

Previous Activities

Additional Home Learning

Please find below a list of activities that you can do indoors at home with your child.

Crafts

1. Make paper airplanes
2. Salt painting
3. Make sun catchers
4. Make salt dough
5. Make sponge stamps
6. Make a cereal box aquarium
7. Make scratch art
8. Make your own bookmark
9. Paint pet rocks
10. Make recycled crayons
11. Make paper boats
12. Finger paint
13. Make friendship bracelets
14. Make a bird feeder
15. Make paper bag puppets
16. Make handprint art
17. Make a scrapbook
18. Decorate a t-shirt
19. Make a thankful jar
20. Paint leaves
21. Make a time capsule
22. Make button art
23. Paint with watercolours
24. Colour in a colouring book
25. Make paper crafts
26. Build a cardboard castle
27. Make tissue box monsters
28. Make a toilet roll butterfly
29. Make chalk ice
30. Draw a self portrait
31. Paint a recycled jar
32. Make a superhero costume 

Activities

1. Make playdough
2. Make slime
3. Make play mud
4. Make fake snow
5. Make a sensory tub
6. Build a fort
7. Have a pillow fight
8. Make up/write a story
9. Have a film day
10. Put on a fashion show
11. Bake cupcakes/muffins
12. Do yoga
13. Build an obstacle course
14. Make dinner together
15. Build something with lego
16. Build a stack of cards
17. Put on a puppet show
18. Make a treasure hunt
19. Indoor bowling
20. Learn to draw something new
21. Put on a play
22. Make indoor hopscotch
23. Do a family chore together
24. Have a dance party
25. Have a tea party
26. Water play in the bath
27. Set up a toy shop and play
28. Make a sock toss game
29. Keep a diary 

Games

1. Play would you rather
2. Play I-spy
3. Play Simon says
4. Play a board game
5. Play hide and seek
6. Indoor scavenger hunt
7. Play bingo
8. Play card games – e.g. snap
9. Do a jigsaw puzzle
10. Play charades
11. Build your own game
12. Play musical statues / bumps / chairs
13. Play hot potato
14. Play marbles
15. Keep the balloon up
16. Play dominoes
17. Play hangman

Have fun doing some new activities together.