The everyday things they treasure, and some dinosaurs too!

The sunny Summer Term has provided a wealth of outdoor opportunities for our children.

They loved planting sunflower seeds and waited patiently for the strawberries to grow. They walked to the river to spot swans and they watched the sheep being sheared. They played in the sandpit and got very wet while experimenting with the solar fountain and water toys; apologies for the bags of wet clothes!

Thundery downpours provided wonderful puddle jumping opportunities which the Nursery children fully embraced while at Forest School, and being dressed head-to-toe in waterproofs enabled them to jump, splash and even sit in the puddles.

The term started with a Jurassic theme and the children keenly made dinosaur imprints in clay and searched sandpits for hidden dinosaur bones. At Forest School they smashed open the icy eggs to undercover miniature dinosaurs which they had to then identify using the special dinosaur spotting sheets. We sequenced toy dinosaurs by size and talked about how big real dinosaurs would have been, while handling some real fossils and looking at images.

Later in the term we moved onto a woodland themed topic, making tunnels and crawling through them like underground animals as well as creating potions with flower petals and water. Tiny yellow dandelion leaves were mixed into playdough by the children, strengthening little hand muscles. We went out on walks to collect extra natural materials to add to the play trays and we talked about the natural world around us.

While learning about minibeasts we recalled the story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar and the children were able to use safety knives to cut up fruit from the story to try. The Pre-School children created some printed caterpillars to which they added drawings of food from the story. The pictures were wonderful and varied, and they all deserve a spot on the fridge at home as the children were so proud of their creations!.

Our Nursery and Pre-School sports morning was a super success. While the Nursery children completed their carousel course and running race the Pre-School children competed in a variety of races. The hopping bunny race was a firm favourite, with both children and parents competing! We also welcomed parents into the setting for our annual teddy bear picnic, which was a lovely opportunity to say farewell at the end of another successful year in Early Years.

In the final few weeks of term the Nursery and Pre-School children were given the opportunity to recall some of their favourite memories. Many highlights featured hot chocolate and marshmallows, but speaking to the children demonstrated how it is the everyday things that they treasure, such as playing with friends in the quad, listening to stories and being able to make things at the creative table.

As I think back over my final year at Copthill I am also reminded of all of the very special moments I have shared with your children, from first Nativity performances to quietly laying on our tummies to watch nesting birds. The year has seen the children grow in confidence, learn new skills, make new friends and have fun all while developing a love of learning which they will carry with them during their future school years.

For those of you who are moving on from Early Years, I wish you well. For those who are continuing with the department you can look forward to another exciting year filled with memory making moments and further opportunities for learning in a safe and stimulating environment.

Finally, as I finish writing my final end of term review I want to thank you all for making my time at Copthill so wonderful; I will cherish the memories of this incredibly special school.