Woodentots Montessori School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff create a nurturing environment, where each child feels secure and valued. By engaging with parents, staff build strong partnerships that support children's well-being and emotional security. Staff use their understanding of each child's needs and interests to provide personalised care and meaningful interactions, promoting confidence, curiosity and a sense of belonging. These trusting relationships help children settle quickly and form strong bonds with staff, laying the foundation for happy, successful learning.

Leaders and staff demonstrate exceptional commitment to the setting's vision with a rich, play-based curriculum. All staff confidently deliver a carefully structured learning environment, planning purposeful opportunities that inspire curiosity. For example, during outdoor play, staff skilfully guide children as they gather fallen apples from the tree in the garden. Staff encourage children to count the apples, compare sizes and observe how their appearance changes after falling, prompting thoughtful discussion and scientific observation. Staff use positive reinforcement and encouraging language to foster respectful learning. By modelling kindness and offering praise, they boost children's confidence and resilience. Young children respond well to feedback and older ones demonstrate patience and fairness, creating a purposeful environment where all children thrive.

Staff demonstrate exceptional skill in engaging and inspiring children to watch, learn and explore the world around them. Staff's understanding of child development enables them to create a stimulating environment, where curiosity is ignited. Real-world experiences are thoughtfully woven into daily routines. For example, during morning snack, children independently wash and cut apples, linking nature, healthy eating and practical life skills. Staff extend learning through creative activities, such as encouraging children to create designs in clay, sparking their imagination and fine motor development and facilitating playful conversations as children joyfully make pretend chocolate ice-cream cakes in the sand.

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

• Leaders provide a well-structured curriculum that all staff follow, helping children become confident and independent. For instance, shoe changing is taught step-by-step with shared language, so that children master the skill. Story sessions like 'Brown Bear' and 'Owl Babies' support new and returning children, aiding emotional regulation and smoother transitions. This coordinated approach helps children build key life skills and positive behaviours.
• Every child is valued, respected and included. Staff make the time to get to know each child and their family. They put meticulous thought into how they plan their curriculum and learning activities. Staff take full account of how every child prefers to learn, and what they are currently interested in.
• Children thrive in stimulating garden environments and benefit from weekly forest school sessions, where they develop new skills through creative storytelling, role play and imaginative play with natural objects, such as fallen logs.
• Staff respond swiftly to children's curiosity. As children create play slides for snails using scarves, staff encourage them to search for snails in the soil bed. This leads to children discovering a slug and a spider, prompting staff to explain the differences. As a result, children are highly engaged, confident to ask questions and see their ideas realised. Staff expertly use these opportunities to introduce new vocabulary and concepts, deepening children's understanding of the world. This responsive teaching ensures children consistently develop rich-language skills and make meaningful connections in their learning.
• Leaders provide staff with targeted induction and training focused on children's needs, emphasising positive language and respectful communication. Staff well-being is prioritised, creating a valued team that takes pride in their work.
• Staff and leaders work closely with parents to support children's development. Updates are provided through daily conversations and the online app. Parents report satisfaction with child protection and their children's progress. They would highly recommend this setting to other parents seeking childcare.
• Leaders and staff inspire excellence, working together to deliver a well-structured curriculum across the nursery. Staff clearly understand children's learning needs and maintain high teaching standards. Children develop new physical skills, with toddlers building hand strength using clay and sand, and older children refining cutting abilities with scissors under staff guidance.
• Staff assess children's interests and development daily, using this insight to plan ambitious activities and make swift adjustments. This ensures every child especially those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive prompt support and makes excellent progress through tailored plans developed with parents and professionals.
• Mathematical thinking is seamlessly introduced as children discuss costs and money, patterns and shapes, building early numeracy in an engaging context. By being highly attuned to children's emotions and interests, staff foster genuine excitement and pride in children, ensuring every child is motivated to explore, reflect on their learning and make exceptional progress.