Swan Meadow Private Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thrive in this exemplary village nursery. Highly motivated staff and leaders provide exciting opportunities to support learning and development. Children start the day with 'shared thinking time', where they recall previous learning. Children are given the task to 'wonder' about the world around them. For example, in pre-school, they share their knowledge of dinosaurs. They explore how fossils are created by making models from dough and imprinting them with shells and other materials. Babies laugh, smile, gurgle and vocalise to their favourite rhymes. They dance and join in with some of the actions. Children in the toddler rooms enjoy a 'bedtime story' before they settle for their nap. The nature trail gives children many opportunities to explore nature and the changing seasons.

Children have excellent relationships with their key person, who know them well. Staff plan innovative activities that meet children's specific needs and interests. As such, children engage in activities for a sustained period of time. Staff have high expectations for children, and behaviour is exceptional. Children are polite and respectful towards their friends, reminding them when it is their turn. Staff use non-verbal signals and songs to alert children to new activities or routines, such as tidy-up time.

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

• Staff implement an exceptional, progressive curriculum. The depth of teaching and expectation increases as children move through the rooms. Staff carefully track children's progress to ensure they are meeting their developmental milestones. This enables them to identify any gaps in their learning. Consequently, all children make excellent progress across all areas.
• Before children transition between rooms, staff expertly focus on their 'ambitions for transition', which focuses on what they want the children to know to prepare them for the next stage in their learning. For example, in preparation for toddler room, babies will develop their physical skills to sit at the table and to feed themselves more confidently. As such, children have a secure foundation on which to build future learning.
• Staff engage in high-quality interactions with children of all ages. From early babbles to more fluent speech, staff model the art of conversation. Older children learn new vocabulary linked to their learning by using the 'word rap'. For example, children learn the meaning of the words 'carnivore' and 'herbivore' when exploring their dinosaur topic. Consequently, children become familiar with the word and its meaning.
• Leaders and staff encourage children to be physically active. Regular physical education sessions teach children about their bodies and how they move. Older children also learn the names of muscles and body parts, such as biceps and triceps, and where their abdominals are. As such, children have respect for their body and enjoy developing their physical skills.
• Leaders utilise opportunities within the local area when planning experiences. For example, children visit the park and local allotments, where villagers show the children what they are growing, bringing them food to eat at snack time. Children visit the local residential home, where they listen to the brass band with the residents. Consequently, children learn about real-life experiences, which adds exceptional value to their learning.
• Staff skilfully use fantasy characters, such as dragons, to encourage children's creativity and imagination. Children in the pre-school room enjoy listening to made-up stories. Staff pose questions and encourage their ideas to keep the story going, using favourite characters and features of the local environment to really bring their stories to life. As such, children learn the format of storytelling and develop the necessary literacy skills to become readers.
• Partnership with parents is exemplary. Leaders offer strong links between the setting and home, keeping parents informed of the next steps in their child's learning. Stay-and-play sessions model the setting's approach to literacy and mathematics and why these are important. Therefore, parents can continue to support their child's learning and development at home.
• Leaders offer staff innovative opportunities to explore new ideas. They disseminate training effectively to all staff and support them in refining their provision and practice accordingly. This empowers staff to deeply consider children's unique interests and skills. Consequently, children engage, play and learn in precisely planned environments, which enhances their inspiration, imagination and creativity.