Little Forest Friends Pre-School
Welcome to Little Forest Friends!
At Little Forest Friends we follow the new Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework and incorporate learning in a safe and secure outdoor environment, where free play, fresh air, exposure to the natural world and physical activity are an integral part of learning. We have a full time Forest School Leader in the pre school and the children therefore have full access to all the forest school initiatives.
We were thrilled to have received ‘Outstanding’ in our early years provision in our most recent OFSTED inspection in September, where the inspectors looked at both Reception and Little Forest Friends in great depth.
‘The curriculum in early years is exceptionally well planned and taught. Leadership of this aspect of the school’s work is inspirational. Children get off to a brilliant start in their education. Staff are highly skilled. This is evident in the expert way they support children’s communication and language skills. Staff use every opportunity to engage children in conversation and foster learning. Children sustain attention and engage fully in all that there is on offer.’ OFSTED 2021
For the full report, please click below:
We continue to use ‘objective led’ and ‘in the moment’ planning, which allows us to follow the children’s interests and plan activities around what will inspire them, whilst also carefully incorporating a progressive skills and knowledge based curriculum linked to the seven areas of learning. We generally have a theme each week (some run for two weeks if appropriate) and plan for both indoor and outdoor continuous provision activities whatever the weather! We have a mixture of adult led and child initiated activities and play lots of phase 1 phonics games to develop the children’s early reading skills.
We spend as much time as possible in the great outdoors so it is important that children come in appropriate clothing please:
What to wear?
Boots –walking boots or Wellington boots. Plastic wellies and several pairs of socks are a good idea if the weather is cold. (Please have a pair of wellies that you can leave at Little Forest Friends).
Long trousers – both in Summer and Winter, to keep warm and to protect from scratches, bites and sunburn.
Long sleeved top – both in Summer and Winter, to keep warm and to protect from scratches, bites and sunburn.
Layers of clothing appropriate to the temperature and the season – in Winter the children will need at least three layers to keep warm. Example: long johns, trousers and the waterproof dungarees work well for their bottom half, and for the top half, a base layer, fleece, long sleeved top and waterproof jacket is a good mix.
Hat (for sun or warmth depending on the season) and waterproof gloves.
These should be old clothes or clothes that parents/guardians do not mind getting dirty. They will get dirty.
Please do not wear dresses or skirts as it is not safe in the forest.
We record children’s achievements on an online journal called ‘Tapestry’, when your child joins Little Forest Friends we will set you up with a login so that you can access this and see what your child is doing and you can also add to it. Parental partnership is integral to our understanding of your ‘whole child’ and we very much value any contributions you have to our online journals so we can work together to give your child the best start in their preschool and school journey. We are passionate about engaging with the children in their play and therefore observations will be for ‘wow’ moments, or brief ‘snapshots’ of their learning so the practitioners can focus on learning enrichment.
Staffing
Mrs Rebecca Smith – Early Years Leader
Mrs Tracy Brown – Administrator
Mrs Steph Owen – Full Time, Level 3 Forest School Leader
Mrs Gemma Ladyman – Full Time, Early Years Educator
We are looking forward to working with you to provide a fun filled term for your children. As always, our door is always open. Please feel free to contact us if you have any concerns or questions, we will try our very best to help.
Please email: littleforestfriends@haddenham-st-marys.bucks.sch.uk if you wish to make an appointment with Mrs Dean or Mrs Owen or for any other general inquiries.
If you would like to speak to our Early Years Leader (Mrs Smith), please email:
rainbow2@haddenham-st-marys.bucks.sch.uk
Best wishes
The Little Forest Friends Team
A parent has kindly linked us to these books that help to explain to children about everything going on with the Coronavirus pandemic and the different world that we are living in:
Why Can’t I Go Outside By Emily Merrifield, Illustrated by Ciara Long
Dont-Worry-Little-Bear-Coronavirus
parsleymimblewoodsavestheworld
