Our biggest room, Pre-school Pippins is for our 3 and 4 year old children.
In this room our main aim is to prepare children for their transition to school.
We start the year off by getting to know our children, by this age most of the children are communicating well so we focus on personal, social and emotional skills.
We do this by assigning each child a key worker, someone they can go to for cuddles if they feel that need for a little comfort. We encourage the children to develop friendships and relationships with each other through positive play and group activities. Most of these children will go to school together so some of the friendships formed here will grow for years to come.
We encourage cooperative play, routines, boundaries and learning right from wrong. We also encourage good manners, creativity and independence. It is important that children build their confidence whilst with us so we give them plenty of opportunities in the daily routine to experience new things through play.
Between February and April, we start our school club where we focus on all of the skills that children will need when they go to school, this varies from putting on their own coat and shoes, to recognising their name on their work.
At Appletree our main focus is always on the children, ensuring they feel safe and well cared for, happy and content.