Papillon Montessori 1

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are very happy at this nursery. They build strong bonds with staff and respond well to the staff's calm, caring and positive interactions with them. Children eagerly approach staff to play alongside them, or for comfort or reassurance. Children learn to play well alongside their peers due to the effective role modelling by staff. For example, they play together in the role-play area, making a pretend picnic for each other, or work as a team to solve a puzzle. They develop teamwork and conversational skills while they hold two-way discussions as they play.

Children behave well. They understand staff's expectations of them clearly. Children benefit from well-embedded routines. For example, children happily join in circle times and sit well on their chairs as they eagerly participate in the songs and discussions.

Children are confident and enthusiastic learners. For example, they perform their parts in the Christmas play with pride and concentrate well on developing their skills at using glue by making collages. Children feel proud to carry out responsibilities and help their peers. They develop their self-esteem as they carefully stack chairs or collect carpet spots, which help children to find where they sit.

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

• Staff carefully consider how to support children to make good progress in their communication and language. Staff use a wide variety of ambitious words with the children. For example, they explain how animals are 'hibernating' for the winter. Staff incorporate many songs and stories into their curriculum. This supports children to develop a wide range of vocabulary
• Staff teach children important skills so that they make good progress in their personal, social and emotional development. Children take turns well as they queue up to go down the slide. Staff support children to use good manners. For example, children say please and thank you as they take fruit and vegetables for their snack. These important skills will help children in the next stage of their learning journey.
• Staff regularly reflect on their practice and how they can improve as a team. They work to improve their practice through regular training and reading. This leads to good outcomes for children.
• Leaders support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) very well. They work closely in partnership with parents and external professionals to ensure that children get the support they need. Staff implement strategies that these external professionals recommend, to help children make progress and meet their individual learning goals. Staff give specific children regular one-to-one support to help them to achieve their targets.
• Staff build strong parent partnerships. They take time to meet parents regularly, to discuss the progress that their children are making and how they can support them at home. This supports children to transition well between home and nursery.
• Staff are passionate about understanding the individual needs and interests of each child. They carefully consider how to use these individual needs and interests to support children with their learning. Staff understand what their key children need to learn next to make progress. They plan how to help children to achieve these next steps in their learning. This means that children make good progress overall.
• Staff provide many opportunities for children to develop their hand-eye coordination and strengthen the small muscles in their hands. For example, children push, squeeze and press play dough, or build constructions using blocks. Children benefit from the large outdoor space that they have to run around in. They enjoy moving to music. For example, they jump along as they sing 'hop, little bunny' or perform the actions to 'heads, shoulders, knees and toes'. They participate in regular gymnastics sessions provided by a specialist. However, staff do not always consider how to support children to develop specific physical skills, such as climbing, balancing and jumping, during daily play. For example, the slide provided for the children is not sufficiently challenging to allow children to develop their physical skills and to challenge all children. This does not support children to learn how to take appropriate risks.
• Occasionally, staff ask children too many closed questions. They do not always give children enough time to think through their answer. On these occasions, this does not support children to make progress in their communication and language.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• consider how to help children learn to take appropriate risks
• consider how to support staff to develop their questioning techniques.