Acorn at Mulberry Bear

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The managers and staff create an engaging and interesting environment where children and their families feel welcome. Children show confidence as they arrive and engage in their choice of play with their friends. They are eager to join in and explore the wide range of activities available to them.

Children are curious and focused on their play. Staff plan and resource activities and experiences to build on what the children already know and can do. This builds children's curiosity and develops their skills and interests. For example, children have been learning about the changes in weather and the animals they might see. They create dough models of hedgehogs and worms. Staff interact with children, building on their communication and language skills through discussion and questions that promote their imagination and thinking skills.

Children build on and develop their physical skills well. Younger children develop their gross motor skills through climbing, balancing, and exploring large apparatus. While older children develop fine motor skills as they use pens and pencils to draw pictures and cut them out using scissors.

Children show positive attitudes towards their learning and behaviour. Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour and conduct. They model positive attitudes and care for each other and the children.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

• Managers work together with staff to develop and share a clear vision of what it is they want children to learn. She works with parents to learn and understand children's starting points. She shares this information with staff to plan activities that support children's interest and development.
• Staff know and understand the areas of learning they teach and the way in which children learn. They adapt their planning and approach to meet the ages and stages of individual children. This helps them identify any gaps in learning and provide targeted support to help children make the progress they are capable of.
• Staff present information to children through positive and meaningful interactions. This promotes discussion, which supports children's communication and language development. Staff model language well and help children to develop a broad vocabulary. They ask questions to encourage children to recall and apply their existing knowledge and extend their thinking skills and language development. For example, they ask children about the habitat hedgehogs live in as the children create models using dough.
• Children are beginning to learn some good hygiene routines. For example, they independently wash their hands before lunch. However, some hygiene routines are not consistently promoted by staff. This means at times children do not receive consistent messages about the importance of personal hygiene practices. For instance, they do not always wash their hands after using the bathroom to help minimise the spread of any germs.
• Staff provide activities that challenge children to take appropriate risks through their play. Staff encourage children's physical development through praise and modelling to help them succeed. For example, children enjoy climbing and balancing on large apparatus. This builds their confidence and supports their emotional development, and they show pride in achieving their goal to walk along the swinging balance beams. Children develop their awareness of their surroundings and coordination.
• Generally, children show positive attitudes towards learning through high levels of curiosity and enjoyment. They listen and respond well to adults and each other. However, at times the routine of the day means that at some transition times children are left waiting for long periods of time. Children lose focus and become distracted, and this impacts the otherwise good behaviour shown by the children.
• Staff teach children about keeping themselves safe when on outings. They learn about road safety as they walk to their forest school. Children learn to listen to instructions and follow safety rules. They learn about the natural environment and the world around them.
• Parents know what their children are learning during the time at nursery. Staff share regular feedback and progress discussions to review their current learning and next steps. Staff encourage parents to build on children's learning at home and share activities and ideas. This helps children experience a consistent approach to their learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen hygiene practices so that they are consistently embedded to promote children's understanding of good hygiene
• strengthen the organisation of daily routines to minimise children's waiting times.