Zelda School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children excitedly greet their friends and eagerly explore the setting when they arrive. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make exceptional progress as the environment is extremely well planned and the curriculum brilliantly sequenced. Children seek adventures in the wonderful outside learning space. Three- and four-year-old children quickly become engaged in learning. They show lots of curiosity when planting out the seedlings they have been growing. Knowledgeable adults help the children to recall how to look after the plants. Children are fluent talkers and remind each other that the 'roots need water, but not the leaves as the sun might scorch them if the water gets too hot'.

Children are expertly guided by adults to manage their own risk. Children feel very safe and secure, so feel able to take on new challenges that help them to learn new skills. Three-year-old children learn to independently jump onto a swing. They successfully push themselves from the ground to get the swing moving. Their friends wait safely by the side, cheering them on and celebrating their success. All children behave exceptionally well as they know the routine and what is expected of them. Children show lots of respect towards each other. They support each other kindly with tasks and activities.

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

• Knowledgeable adults teach children to understand the world around them. Children have opportunities to watch life cycles. They observe the seasonal changes and study creatures, such as tadpoles and caterpillars. They use magnifying glasses to closely observe the caterpillars. Two-year-old children talk knowledgeably about how many legs caterpillars have and what they need to eat to change into a chrysalis. Older children achieve their learning goals very effectively. They form letters and use recognisable words, creating sentences to write about the life cycle of caterpillars.
• Adults brilliantly develop children's language skills throughout all activities. The routine involves rhymes and songs that help children to understand the seasons. Adults brilliantly extend sentences with older children. They offer new words to younger children, such as 'sculpt' and 'sticky'. Children thoroughly enjoy stories throughout the day. They relate well to them during their play, repeating words and phrases.
• Children develop a great understanding of different cultures. Parents of different nationalities visit to teach the children lullabies and how to cook food from their home country. Three- and four-year-old children discuss how they would get to the countries. Adults encourage them to think about transport. Children suggest bullet trains and boats. They share their knowledge, and adults support them to think critically by using thought-provoking questions.
• Adults ensure that children are aware of the importance of a healthy lifestyle. Children place their hands on their chests as they breath in to feel air coming in. Adults explain that we need oxygen to live. Children are supported to understand that when they run around, their breathing gets faster. Adults talk to all children about the importance of healthy foods. They offer healthy and nutritious snacks and meals. Children talk about the energy that these foods will give them. Children check the weather through the windows before going outside. They tell the adults that they do not need their waterproofs as the rain has stopped. They show an excellent sense of responsibility and considerable understanding of how to look after themselves.
• The manager and adults have excellent partnerships with parents. They share information regularly at the gate and through termly reports. Children with SEND are particularly well supported. The manager shares strategies with the parents to ensure that everyone is supporting children in a consistent way. The manager has extremely effective working relationships with outside agencies. This ensures that children with SEND have the right support to make excellent progress.
• The management team is incredibly reflective of practice. Managers are sharply focused on ensuring that children make excellent progress. They also ensure that children access a broad range of stimulating and challenging activities. Adults accurately observe and assess children to ensure they are achieving their maximum potential. The management team uses these assessments to adapt resources and training to meet the needs of each group of children. For example, they noticed that some children were not developing their small-muscle skills as effectively as possible. Staff completed training for improving literacy skills. They introduced more climbing and pulling activities, as well as writing opportunities to the outside learning space. The children have made rapid progress since these changes.