Apple Green Montessori Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy a wealth of learning opportunities in this stimulating environment. They are excited to arrive, and keen to engage in activities both indoors and in the exciting garden area. Children take an active role in planning the environment. They contribute ideas in their scrapbook about activities they enjoy, and topics they wish to learn more about. Management and staff use this information to provide learning opportunities to support children's development in their chosen areas.

Children demonstrate high levels of confidence in the pre-school. They engage extremely well with visitors, chatting to them about their families and engaging them in play. Staff support children to develop a sense of pride in their abilities. They encourage them to share their skills and talents in group activities. For example, children delight at the praise they receive when demonstrating the yoga positions they have learned.

Children show high levels of curiosity. Staff provide an array of versatile resources and supervise children well, encouraging them to explore their ideas. For example, children are encouraged to make their own modelling dough. They help themselves to flour, water and paints, and examine the various textures and colours of the dough they create.

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

• Staff make good use of children's daily routines to support and extend their learning. For example, at snack time, children select cards with their names on. Staff then use the remaining cards to support children in identifying the names of their friends who have not had a snack.
• Staff monitor children's progress well. They have a clear understanding of the Montessori approach and how this supports children's learning across the early years foundation stage (EYFS). Staff complete regular assessments against both the Montessori curriculum and the EYFS. This information is shared with parents electronically, along with ideas to further support children's learning at home.
• Staff place sharp focus on children's emotional well-being. They encourage children to explore their feelings through age-appropriate activities. For example, during story sessions, staff encourage children to identify how the various characters may be feeling. They then discuss together the possible reasons for this.
• Children of all ages display high levels of independence. Staff encourage them to complete age-appropriate tasks with minimal assistance. For example, children tidy away their pottery plates after meals and snacks before washing their hands and faces. They confidently put on their coats and shoes before playing outdoors. This prepares children well for the routines of school.
• Children with special educational needs and /or disabilities are well supported in the pre-school. Staff demonstrate deep knowledge of the children in their care and use this to support their learning. The manager works closely with families to guide them through the referral process. She engages well with other professionals to provide additional support to meet children's individual needs.
• Children are kind and considerate towards one another, cooperating well during activities. Staff are consistent in their approach to behaviour management. They support children's understanding of inappropriate behaviour by explaining the impact their actions may have on others.
• Staff place sharp focus on developing children's communication and language skills. They engage well with children, and provide opportunities for them to explore new vocabulary. For example, children enjoy daily nature walks. Staff encourage them to discuss their surroundings, describing the 'crunchy' leaves and the 'squelchy' mud. However, the same high-quality interactions are not always used to support children's mathematical development.
• The manager reflects well on all areas of her practice. She seeks feedback from parents and staff, and uses her findings to make well informed changes. The manager conducts regular appraisals on all staff to identify areas for development. Staff have access to online and face-to-face training opportunities. This ensures their knowledge remains up to date. However, staff would benefit from more robust methods of coaching and mentoring.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• better support children's mathematical development during planned activities and sessions of free play
• enhance methods of coaching to support staff to raise the quality of their teaching to a consistently high level.