Little Cedars Montessori

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children of all ages are extremely happy, safe and secure in this warm and welcoming, homely environment. They are developing firm attachments with staff who are patient, kind and caring in their approach. Staff adopt a curriculum that reflects children's interests. They gather detailed information from parents so they can build coherently on what children know and what they can already do. Children are making good progress in their learning and development, including those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Children are very well behaved and know what is expected of them. They enjoy helping staff with small tasks, such as collecting eggs from the resident chickens and helping to tidy up ready for lunch. Children show kindness and concern for their friends and play collaboratively together. They listen well and respond quickly to the instructions given by staff.

Children's personal, social and emotional development has been a strong focus since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Staff have recently concentrated on developing children's confidence in their social interactions. Consequently, children enjoy spending time in the company of others. They demonstrate high levels of self-esteem and well-being. They are excited to explore and are motivated to learn.

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

• The dedicated and passionate manager has a clear vision for improvement. She leads a highly qualified and enthusiastic staff team who together identify the setting's strengths and areas for development. This united approach helps staff to continually improve outcomes for children.
• Children have wonderful opportunities to learn about the natural world around them. For example, children grow produce in the garden to enable them to understand where food comes from. Staff support children to harvest tomatoes and strawberries and talk to them about the importance of healthy eating. Furthermore, children gain an understanding of how to care for living things as they take responsibility for watering the plants.
• Children of all ages demonstrate a love of literacy. Staff read to children with enthusiasm and ask questions about what might happen next. Staff have implemented a 'Book of the Month' to further promote the importance of reading and to help them to gain skills for the future. Older children repeat familiar refrains and talk about the characters in their favourite tales. Furthermore, children are encouraged to take home books to share with their families. This practice supports children's early literacy skills.
• Children enjoy spending time outdoors. Their physical development is particularly well supported. Staff encourage children to take safe and controlled risks as they play, which in turns develops their confidence and independence. For example, children concentrate intently as they balance on a beam. Staff offer gentle reminders about looking where they are going and to take careful steps. Consequently, children are developing a positive can-do attitude.
• Overall, staff actively promote children's communication and language skills. They provide a running commentary as children play, which helps to give meaning to what children are doing. Furthermore, staff use descriptive language and use repetition to reinforce understanding. However, occasionally, staff do not always model the correct pronunciation of words in order to successfully support children's emerging awareness of language.
• The manager supports staff effectively through supervision meetings and observations of their practice. Staff are able to access online training and are encouraged to reflect on their practice. However, arrangements to support those staff who are less confident and less experienced are still in their infancy.
• Throughout the COVID -19 pandemic, parents have not had access to the setting as they normally would. However, they talk extremely positively about the steps staff have taken to ensure that communication is maintained. For example, they appreciate the dedicated application that the manager has put in place, alongside their daily discussions at the entrance to the setting. Parents feel well informed and know what their children are learning and enjoying throughout the day.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• continue to sharply focus supervision arrangements to help less-experienced staff to grow in confidence and develop their knowledge and skills even further
• assist staff to understand the importance of pronouncing words correctly in order to support children's emerging communication and language skills.