Little Characters

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy their time at this nurturing and welcoming setting. Staff know the children well and provide a variety of learning opportunities through carefully planned experiences and routines. For example, staff encourage children to count the number of strawberries they are serving themselves at snack time. Staff check children's understanding by helping them re-count the strawberries on their plate. Children eagerly line up in readiness for outdoor play, where staff help children count their friends. They count backwards from six to one, and children exclaim 'blast off!' Staff are good role models and support children to develop positive behaviours. This sees children be kind to their friends, use their manners and take turns during play.

Staff lead small-group activities, allowing children to share previous learning with their friends. For example, children are keen to view the setting's caterpillars. Children eagerly recall that caterpillars eat their eggs to gain energy to help them grow. Staff introduce new vocabulary, explaining the caterpillars 'hatched' from eggs and they will soon 'transform' into a butterfly. Children show interest as they are supported by staff to take turns to view the caterpillars. This builds on children's emerging interests.

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

• Staff encourage children to develop independence skills from a young age. For example, children are supported to wipe their own nose and mouth and then dispose of their dirty tissue in the bin. In addition, children wash their hands before meals, tidy away activities, and complete simple tasks, such as using sweeping brushes to clean the floor. Toddlers confidently ask to use the potty. They show pride when they receive a sticker for their achievement. This helps children learn to do as much for themselves as possible.
• Children are provided with opportunities to develop their small-muscle skills. These activities help them practise the skills that are needed for early writing. For example, children concentrate as they use tweezers, spoons, pots and scoops to collect flower petals as part of a craft activity. In addition, staff recognise that some pre-school children have started to take an interest in letters. Staff write letters from their name on the whiteboard, which children carefully trace. Staff provide words of encouragement, which sees children smile with pride.
• Leaders and managers are committed to providing good-quality care and education for children. They are reflective, enhancing activities and reviewing the environment to benefit all children. There is a strong focus on staff training, development and continuing support. For example, staff have recently undertaken training to ensure effective support is in place for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Staff understand the importance of children having access to daily fresh air and exercise. However, the curriculum for outdoor play is not as well planned as indoors. For instance, staff do not consistently plan to encourage children to take part in large physical play. As a result, not every child has a sufficient range of opportunities to strengthen their large-muscle skills each time they attend the setting.
• Children enjoy taking part in group story time. Staff are enthusiastic storytellers and they ensure story time is active and engaging. For example, staff work with children to act out a story about teachers being captured by funny monsters. Children laugh as they stomp around the room looking for the monsters who are hiding. Furthermore, staff have thoughtfully placed books around the setting, which children readily access. This helps children develop a love of books and stories.
• Overall, children experience high-quality interactions from staff during activities and daily routines. This helps children build on what they already know and can do. For example, staff show babies how to play musical instruments as they enjoy song time together. However, on occasion, not all staff interact effectively with children to provide them with the required information to complete an activity or to extend on their learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop planning to provide more consistent opportunities for children to enjoy physical play to help develop their large-muscle skills
• develop the consistency of staff interactions with children to fully support and extend each child's learning.