Children's Corner Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Practitioners provide children with a safe and caring learning environment. They learn about children and their families before they start. This builds up trust between practitioners, children and their families. Children enter the setting and immediately access resources. They show that they feel safe and secure at the setting. Children are happy when practitioners greet them at the door. Practitioners role model good behaviour. They listen to children and say please and thank you when sharing snacks. Children learn how and when to use manners. They copy this behaviour. Children learn to share resources with their friends. Practitioners teach them to be kind. Children's behaviour is good.

Practitioners provide children with good opportunities to develop their communication, language, personal development, and social skills. For example, children learn how to put their coat on for outdoor play. They express excitement as they look to find insects with their friends. They use magnifying glasses to help them search through the tall grass. Practitioners teach them rich language, such as 'snail' and shell'. Children independently access the water station. They use a tap to fill their beaker up and are careful not to spill any. Children engage in play with sand and work together. They take turns and build sandcastles. Practitioners teach them how to use a spade and build a sandcastle. Children fill buckets and tubes. They develop their hand-eye coordination.

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

• Children have exciting opportunities for physical play. They ride bicycles down a hill and learn to negotiate obstacles. Practitioners teach children about speed and risk. Younger children climb steps and hill mounds. Practitioners teach them to balance. Children mould and cut up dough. Practitioners teach them how to use a rolling pin and a knife. Children curiously play with cause-and-effect toys. They learn that their actions can cause something to happen. Children strengthen and develop their large and small muscles.
• Children develop an understanding of mathematics. They place large wooden pieces on a jigsaw board. Practitioners teach them about shape. Children excitedly catch bubbles and search for plastic ducks when playing in water. Practitioners count as they do so and teach them about early numbers. Children fill up containers with water and learn about size and volume. Children embed their knowledge before progressing on to the next step.
• Children are encouraged to develop their imagination. They explore paint with their hands and make marks on paper. Children create butterflies and caterpillars as they learn about colour. They play with their friends with farm animals and pretend to feed them. Practitioners teach them about the different animals and the noises they make. Children excitedly copy and laugh with their friends. They engage for long periods of time.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities have clear plans in place to support their development. Practitioners works well with parents and other professionals. Together they create targeted plans and interventions. All children make good progress in relation to their starting points. Practitioners share information through information boards, an online app, and parents' evenings. Parents report that communication sharing and practitioners support are excellent.
• The setting is extremely diverse. There are several languages spoken within the setting. All practitioners are trained to support children's early communication and language skills. They use visual prompts to communicate with children and implement early language strategies. For example, they use key words and wait before repeating questions to children. This allows children time to process what they have asked them before they repeat them again. However, these strategies are not consistently used by all practitioners. Unqualified and new staff do not always embed early language strategies consistently across the setting. This minimises children's potential learning.
• The leadership team has a clear vision to improve practice and outcomes for all children. Practitioners have appropriate supervision and professional development opportunities. The leadership team is reflective and has identified a development plan to ensure all practitioners are qualified and have the appropriate knowledge, skills and confidence to deliver good-quality teaching. Practitioners feel valued and appreciated. This positively impacts on the care and education they provide for all children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support all staff to use the skills and knowledge they have gained through training, to support children's early language development.