A fabulous final week of the year filled with Christmas treats; Christmas dinners, Christmas treasure hunts and our finale of a fabulous Christmas party, hosted by Lucy from The Baby Hub.
To start the week, we talked about our own houses and who lives with us. We focused on using vocabulary such as mum, dad, sister, brother and pets. The children did a great job of drawing who lived in their house and told the rest of the group about their picture.
We also talked about different types of houses, how lots are different shapes and sizes and that houses have windows, doors, a roof etc.
The children used brown paper as an outline of their house and stuck shapes onto their paper to make doors and windows. Lots of the children were able to identify some rooms of their house, ‘this is my bedroom’ or ‘this is the kitchen’.
At Emmaville, we use the Talk For Writing approach across the school, starting in Nursery.
Talk For Writing is based on the thinking and creative process involved in ‘being a writer’; including generating ideas, drawing on the experience of what has been read, and understanding how to change and improve.
Talk For Writing involves the oral learning of model texts and the oral development of new versions so that children internalise the language patterns that they need for writing, adding to their linguistic competency. This benefits children’s writing as they get older. With a wealth of stories already in their heads, they can focus on the technical parts of writing rather than creating a story.
Last week, our Talk for Writing text was the Traditional Tale, The Little Red Hen
The children learned the story, using actions and a story map.
We baked bread and enjoyed it for snack.
Some of the children finished the week by attempting to draw their own story maps and use them to retell the story to each other.
Week Ending Friday 8th November 2024
This week in nursery we have introduced the children to Remembrance Day through art activities, stories and this Cbeebies short animation:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/watch/poppies
Miss James was so impressed by how our youngest two year old children responded:
'There was no pressure for comments or discussion, but the children commented that they had seen people wearing poppies, pointing to my poppy. Some said their grown ups had poppies too. I was blown away when we bumped into Miss Armstrong, and a group of children told her that everything went dark, then the light came back and poppies grew! I thought this was such a lovely way of looking at it from a child’s observation.'
The Purple Poppies also created these beautiful poppies and a few extra handprints to make a wreath for the door of the Rainbow Room.
We have enjoyed our week of Halloween themed activities. We started the week with pumpkin hunting in the forest area and counting how many pumpkins we found.
We have learnt the Pointy hat poem from the poetry basket and practised the Makaton signs to go with it.
We enjoyed practicing our scissor skills by snipping paper and rolling it into a witch's broomstick.
At the end of the week, we read the book Spider Sandwiches and as our Halloween treat, we made our own spiders, using chocolate spread and pretzel sticks for legs. The children were great at counting out eight legs to put on their spider.
This week in nursery, we have been investigating all of the changes that are happening around us, as we are now in the full swing of Autumn!
We collected Autumn treasures in the forest and made Autumn crowns and wreaths. We talked about the change in the colour of the leaves.
We learned a new song called 'Leaves are Falling' - I have attached the Zebra group's fabulous rendition. The children used Makaton to sign the different colours in the song.
The rain does not stop our play in Nursery. We popped on our waterproofs and wellies then set off to the forest area to find and investigate insects as part of our Minibeast theme. We looked under leaves and tree stumps finding bugs like slugs, spiders and worms. We were all fascinated. We ticked off what we found on our spotter sheets and talked about why we didn't find any ladybirds or butterflies.
We have used some action cards to make gross motor movements to move like minibeasts. We zoomed like a fly, marched like an ant, fluttered like a butterfly, slithered like a slug and wriggled like a worm.
This week, we’ve been singing and using Makaton for ‘There’s a worm at the bottom of the garden’. After singing the song, we rolled some play dough into worms. We then used mathematical language to talk about and compare the lengths of our worms; shorter and longer.
Our 2 year old have been learning the poem Hammer Hammer Hammer this week. They were fantastic at doing the actions and repeating some of the words. They also looked at the Autumn book and talked about the colours that the leaves are during autumn. The children then created some of their own colourful leaves.
We celebrated National Poetry Week in Nursery by learning the first of our 'Poetry Basket' poems - Chop Chop.
Each half term, the children learn a new poem, enabling them to learn at least 12 poems by the time they leave us for Year 1!
We explored lots of different vegetables that we could 'chop chop' - the children used their senses and some were more popular than others when it came to the taste test!
In our Phase 1 phonics sessions, we explored 'Environmental Sounds' - in this activity, the children were encouraged to make different sounds outside with their wooden beaters. The skills the children are developing here are to make sounds, listen carefully to different sounds, and to be able to describe what different things sound like. It is also obviously great fun!
This week, we have been learning our first Talk for Writing text, the story of Mr Wiggle and Mr Waggle. We started by telling the story with hand actions. We then drew a simple story map to help us remember the story for when we retell it. The children were fantastic at telling the story by the end of the week.
The children in nursery have been super independent this week, practising finding matching wellies from the welly rack and also learnt a new trick to put on their own coats- the coat flip.
We also introduced Jigsaw Jennie this week. This is a soft toy that helps us during group time to talk about our feelings. We started by passing it around and giving it a gentle hug. Then, using a chime, we concentrated on our breathing, slowly breathing in through our nose and out through our mouth, imagining a rainbow coming out. We also used the following link so we could visualise a rainbow when we did our breathing.
'Squiggle Whilst You Wiggle' is an Early Writing Program that we follow in nursery. It uses dance and large movements to help children develop the fine muscle control they need for writing. The children learn a new gross motor movement to a piece of music using 'flipper flappers' (cloths) to make the movement with their arms. They dance using this movement and then use it to make marks, this could be in foam, on paper, in the sand, etc. This week the movement was 'up and down'. This movement is used to form lots of letters such as l, t, i.
One of the children's favourite activities this week was a listening walk around the school.
We talked about the skills we need to make us good listeners - staying nice and quiet, looking for sounds, and listening hard.
We donned our big listening ears so that we could listen even better!
The children loved having a thorough exploration around the rest of the school and identified many sounds along the way - the older children working, dinner ladies cleaning, the phone ringing and doors banging.
Our Purple Poppies (two year olds) have also had a great time this week, settling into nursery life. We have introduced them to using a 'book blanket' to begin to look at and choose their own books to take home.
This week, we have enjoyed having our new nursery children in for their first full week. They have been amazing at settling into new routines and building relationships with friends and adults.
We have been practising our group time routines, finding photos for self registration and joining in with small group activities.
The children have loved playing circles games such as Bug in a Rug and using the lycra and parachute whilst singing nursery rhymes.
Everyone has been exploring all of our areas in nursery. We have seen some lovely role play between children in the home corner and imaginative play whilst building with the big blocks outside.
We ended the week with a 'book blanket' activity when the children could discuss why they liked the look of a particular book and then chose their own to take home in their book bags.
This week we have welcomed back our older nursery children, ready and refreshed for their full nursery year!
It was so lovely to see them playing happily together after the six-week holiday. I think a lot of the children have missed each other!
We have also loved having lots of children making their first short, induction visits; ready for longer sessions next week.
We cant wait for another full fun packed nursery year!
Privacy and Cookies Policy
Part 1: Privacy Policy
Last Edited: 22nd April 2021
1. Introduction
1.1. We are committed to safeguarding the privacy of the users of our services. Our services include and will hereby be referred to as 'Our Services' (our websites used to promote eSchools services and tutorial resources, specifically
https://www.eschools.co.uk
and https://academy.eschools.co.uk), 'School Websites' ( designed by eSchools and populated by individual schools themselves) and 'Platforms' (individual online services that provide teachers, learners, parents and governors with information, tools and resources) as well as our smartphone app. This policy sets out how we will treat your personal information across these services.
2. Collecting personal information on Our Services
2.1 We may process or temporarily store the following kinds of personal information:
information about your computer and about your visits to and use of Our Services (including but not limited to, your IP address, geographical location, browser type and version, operating system, referral source, length of visit, page views and website navigation paths)
information contained in or relating to any communications that you send to us or send through our website (including, the communication content) via online forms
any other personal information that you choose to send to us via online forms
manually inputted details of users added to the platform
details of users as integrated by our providers at Wonde via your MIS (if applicable to your package). For further information on integrated data please see our Data Sharing Agreement
2.2 Before you disclose to us the personal information of another person, you must obtain that person's consent to both the disclosure and the processing of that personal information in accordance with the terms of this policy.
2.3 eSchools websites may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us and to enrich your user experience. You can adapt your cookie preferences, although please note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer. We will not, without your express consent, supply your personal information to any third party for the purpose of their or any other third party's direct marketing. For further information on how you can manage and set your cookie preferences, please see our Cookie Policy.
2.4 Information submitted through the online contact form on a school website is processed via eSchools, and passed directly to the school in question. This data is held by eSchools for 30 days (or in the case of failed messages, 90 days) before deletion. Once passed to the school this data is held by them and subject to that school’s privacy policy.
2.5 Schools are also able to add analytics tools and can therefore gather information on visits to and use of their website (including but not limited to, IP address, geographical location, browser type and version, operating system, referral source, length of visit, page views and website navigation paths). Individual visitors can manage their preferences through cookie preferences, as mentioned in 2.4.
2.6 Session IP addresses are retained to monitor and safeguard against improper usage of our services.
2.7 Content on the platform (added by staff, governors and students) and website content is added directly by School Users. This information is only used for to display on the platform in the way the user intends and is not used for any other purposes by eSchools. At a time when a school ceases to use our services the content is removed within a 14 day period as detailed in our agreement with the school.
2.8 Some of our services require the school to provide access to information they require for use with those services. For example a school using our communication tool, Letters Home, which enables schools to contact parents by email regarding important school information. In this situation a school will provide eSchools with access to the email address(es) they wish to send their communication to. Schools have granular access to ensure only the required data is shared and accessed by eSchools. The data is frequently updated to ensure that eSchools only retains up-to-date data.
3. Using your personal information
3.1. We may use your personal information to:
administer our services
enable your use of our services
troubleshoot and problem solve
send you email notifications that you have specifically requested. You can manage your preferences at anytime through your eSchools dashboard.
keep our services secure, safeguard against improper use of our services and prevent fraud.
3.1.1. For the purposes of providing you access to your eSchools platform and app (ie. forgotten password/login)
3.1.2. By registering for updates, School Staff/Governors are able to subscribe to our regular communications.
3.1.3. We will use any contact details supplied in an online form for the purposes explicitly detailed in said form. For example troubleshooting and problem solving or the provision of live online training as explicitly requested by you, the user.
3.2. We will not, without your express consent, supply your personal information to any third party for the purpose of their or any other third party's direct marketing.
3.3. eSchools understands our obligation to be mindful about the data we process and only process data that is required to fulfil our obligations in providing our services; to a school who enters into an agreement to use our services and you, the user.
3.4. We will not pass your information to third parties; except for the purpose of fulfilling our services to a school who enters into an agreement to use our services and you, the user or where we are required to do so by law.
4. Disclosing personal information
4.1 We may disclose your personal information to any of our employees, officers, insurers, professional advisers, agents, suppliers or subcontractors insofar as reasonably necessary for the purposes set out in this policy.
4.2 We may disclose your personal information:
to the extent that we are required to do so by law;
in connection with any ongoing or prospective legal proceedings;
in order to establish, exercise or defend our legal rights (including providing information to others for the purposes of fraud prevention and reducing credit risk);
to any person who we reasonably believe may apply to a court or other competent authority for disclosure of that personal information where, in our reasonable opinion, such court or authority would be reasonably likely to order disclosure of that personal information;
to the school in the case of improper use on the platform by individuals
4.3 Except as provided in this policy, we will not provide your personal information to third parties.
5. International data transfers
5.1. Data directly collected by eSchools may be stored and processed in and transferred between any of the countries in which we operate in order to enable us to use the information in accordance with this policy. Any third party we use is within the EEA or they hold an existing EU SCC, as in line with requirements under the GDPR. No other third party are permitted to access the school’s data.
5.2. Personal information that an individual adds to our websites may be available, via the internet, around the world. We cannot prevent the use or misuse of such information by others.
6. Retaining personal information
6.1. This section sets out our data retention policies and procedures, which are designed to help ensure that we comply with our legal obligations in relation to the retention and deletion of personal information.
6.2. Personal information that we process for any purpose or purposes shall not be kept for longer than is necessary for that purpose or those purposes.
6.3. Data collected through analytic cookies will be retained for 26 months. Individual visitors can adapt the data collected through cookie preferences, as mentioned in 2.4.
6.4. Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Section 6, we will retain documents (including electronic documents) containing personal data:
To the extent that we are required to do so by law;
If we believe that the documents may be relevant to any ongoing or prospective legal proceedings; and
In order to establish, exercise or defend our legal rights (including providing information to others for the purposes of fraud prevention and reducing credit risk). Data will no longer be kept after the termination of the contract with the school.
7. Security of your personal information
7.1. We will take reasonable technical and organisational precautions to prevent the loss, misuse or alteration of your personal information.
7.2. We will store all the personal information you provide on our secure (password- and firewall-protected) servers. The web service we employ has a broad range of accreditations and certifications and the data centres used ensure the data stays within the EEA.
7.3. eSchools use a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) which creates a secure connection and uses two keys to encrypt data in transit. Despite this, you acknowledge that the transmission of information over the internet is inherently insecure, and we cannot guarantee the security of data.
8. Amendments
8.1. We may update this policy from time to time by publishing a new version on our website.
8.2. You should check this page regularly to ensure you are aware of any changes to this policy.
9. Your rights
9.1. You may instruct us to provide you with any personal information we hold about you.
9.2. We may withhold personal information that you request to the extent permitted by law.
9.3. You may change your cookie preferences at any time as referenced in 2.4.
9.4. School Staff/Governors who subscribe to our Newsletter may manage their preferences at any time through their eSchools dashboard.
10. Third party websites
10.1 Our websites may include hyperlinks to, and details of, third party websites. We have no control over, and are not responsible for, the privacy policies and practices of third parties.
11. Updating information
We will only provide communication about the eSchools platform to school staff/governors who can manage their preferences at any time through their eSchools dashboard.
Part 2: Cookie Policy
Last Edited: 22nd April 2021
This Cookie Policy explains how eSchools use cookies and similar technologies in our Services. It explains what these technologies are and why we use them, as well as your rights to control their use.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small data files that are placed on your computer or mobile device when you visit a website. Cookies are widely used by online service providers in order to (for example) make their websites or services work, or to work more efficiently, as well as to provide reporting information.
Cookies set by the website owner or service provider (in this case, eSchools) are called “first party cookies”. Cookies set by parties other than the website owner are called “third party cookies”. Third party cookies enable third party features or functionality to be provided on or through the website or service you are using (such as advertising, interactive content and analytics). The third parties that set these third party cookies can recognise your computer both when it visits the website or service in question and also when it visits certain other websites or services.
Why do we use cookies and other tracking technologies?
We use first party and third party cookies for several reasons. Some cookies are required for technical reasons in order for our Services to operate, and we refer to these as “essential” cookies. Other cookies enable us and the third parties we work with to track and target the interests of visitors to our Services, and we refer to these as “advertising” or “analytical” cookies. For example, the embedding of YouTube and Vimeo videos, as added by individual schools, will require “advertising” cookies to be enabled in order to successfully play them. Schools that, for example, opt to track visitor data using Google Analytics will require “analytical” cookies to be enabled in order to do so. These third party cookies are used to tailor content and information that we may send or display to you and otherwise personalise your experience while interacting with our Services and to otherwise improve the functionality of the Services we provide. We also enable schools to employ cookies and similar tracking technologies in connection with their use of our Services in order to allow them to track visitors to and interactions with their school website.
How eSchools Uses Cookies
eSchools websites may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us and to enrich your user experience. The cookies differ depending on the information. You can adapt your cookie preferences, although please note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer. We will not, without your express consent, supply your personal information to any third party for the purpose of their or any other third party's direct marketing.
User Embedded Content
Our Services allows schools to embed code which may potentially contain cookies. Please note embedded content, if displayed on one of our websites, has been added by the school and not by eSchools. The embedded content added by the school may require additional cookies or tracking technologies to be enabled in order to function.
How can I control cookies?
You have the right to decide whether to accept or reject cookies. Be aware that cookie preferences are set on a per device basis; therefore you may need to set your preferences on each device you use.
Initial cookie pop-up banner: You can exercise preferences about what cookies are served on our Websites by selecting your preference from this modal which appears upon visiting an eSchools website/login screen and dashboard. You can also change your cookie preferences by clicking on the link on the footer of any page. The banner will reappear annually (August 31st to coincide with the academic year) to confirm your settings.
Browser Controls: You can set or amend your web browser controls to accept or refuse cookies. If you choose to reject cookies, you may still use our Websites though your access to some functionality and areas of our Websites may be restricted. As the means by which you can refuse cookies through your web browser controls vary from browser-to-browser, you should visit your browser’s help menu for more information.
Disabling Most Interest Based Advertising: Most advertising networks offer you a way to opt out of Interest Based Advertising. We will not, without your express consent, supply your personal information to any third party for the purpose of their or any other third party's direct marketing. If you would like to find out more information, please visit aboutads.info/choices or youronlinechoices.com.
Mobile Advertising: You can opt out of having your mobile advertising identifiers used for certain types of Interest Based Advertising, by accessing the settings on your Apple or Android mobile device and following the most recent published instructions. We will not, without your express consent, supply your personal information to any third party for the purpose of their or any other third party's direct marketing.
How often will you update this Cookie Statement?
We may update this Cookie Statement from time to time in order to reflect, for example, changes to the cookies we use or for other operational, legal or regulatory reasons. Please therefore re-visit this Cookie Statement regularly to stay informed about our use of cookies and related technologies. The date at the bottom of this Cookie Statement indicates when it was last updated.
Where can I get further information?
If you have any questions about our use of cookies or other technologies, please email us at support@.eschools.co.uk.