Jiminy Crickets Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are made to feel safe, secure and very welcome by the kind and nurturing staff. Children receive all the support they need to settle and enjoy their time at pre-school. Staff are extremely sensitive to the needs of those children who find the transition from home to pre-school more difficult. Staff adapt routines and work closely with parents to meet the specific needs of these children. As a result, they learn to enjoy pre-school as much as their peers and make really good progress with their social skills. Children behave well. They benefit from being cared for by staff who consistently model good manners, such as how to greet visitors. Staff know the value of children understanding what happens when, and why. They embed routines effectively and, as a result, children cooperate with them swiftly and happily. This enhances the fun, yet purposeful and orderly, atmosphere.

Staff want all children to achieve to their best ability, including children who may need extra help to do so. Children benefit from taking part in an effective mix of adult-led and child-initiated learning experiences, planned to prepare them well for the next stage in their learning. Children are especially well supported in their personal, social and emotional development. Staff are very effective in helping children learn to share, take turns and understand how they and others may be feeling.

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

• Staff support children's developing language very well. They understand how important it is for children to be able to express their opinions and thoughts. Staff enter into thoughtful conversations with children. They carefully listen and respond to what children say. Children learn new words and develop well into confident communicators.
• Staff plan well so that children have lots of opportunities to listen to stories and look at books. Children experience stories in different ways. For example, they hear stories read to them, see stories signed to them and work with staff to re-enact stories using props. Through this fun and effective approach, children become familiar with how stories are structured, remember what they have learnt and develop a love of books.
• Staff provide lots of resources to develop children's large-muscle skills. Staff understand how important physical exercise is to children's overall health and development. They teach some of these skills in a structured way and children learn to use some equipment with confidence. For example, staff teach children how to use balance bikes. However, staff do not always notice when children need help to learn how to use some other large equipment. As a result, some children avoid these activities or do not persevere in trying to master new skills.
• The manager and staff plan themes throughout the year. However, they do not clearly identify what they want children to learn about the topic being explored. Staff do use these experiences well to extend other aspects of learning, such as mathematical understanding. However, they are less successful at ensuring that children learn useful knowledge about the topic being taught.
• Children develop lots of useful independence skills. This is because staff carefully thread this aspect of learning through daily routines. For example, staff have recently reviewed and improved snack times so children have more opportunities to do things for themselves.
• Children are developing well into curious and inquisitive learners. Staff ensure that children's learning is not interrupted unnecessarily. They notice children's interests and join in with their play in ways that encourage children to keep exploring and trying out their own ideas.
• Parents cannot speak highly enough of the staff. They are especially complimentary of the support staff give as they navigate the pathways to any additional support their children may need. These partnerships are used especially effectively to assess children's progress. Staff involve parents closely in building an accurate picture of children's development. This enables everyone to work together to further extend children's learning.
• The manager and staff act with great integrity, putting the children's best interests at the centre of their decision-making. This is especially apparent in how they use any additional funding that children may be entitled to. Staff ensure that this money is used in ways that really help these children learn and feel part of life at the pre-school.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide children with more focused support to gain the skills and confidence they need to use large equipment safely, confidently and purposefully, to enhance their physical development further
• identify more precisely the intended learning for some activities, so staff can focus their teaching more effectively on helping children learn well about the topic being taught.