We will encourage your child to have quality conversations with adults and peers throughout the day in a language-rich environment. By commenting on what children are interested in or doing, and echoing back what they say with new vocabulary added, we ensure that we build on children's language effectively. Throughout the year, we read frequently to your child, and encourage them to actively engage in a range of stories, non-fiction texts, rhymes and poems so that they can acquire, use and embed new words in a range of contexts. Communication and language underpins all of the learning your child will do and it is fundamental to your child thriving in a world beyond school.
We believe that the personal, social and emotional development of your child is crucial in order for them to lead healthy and happy lives. Hopefully, we will have already met your child via our stay and play sessions in the summer term and/or even visited your child in their nursery setting. At the beginning of term, we always offer a home visit so that we can continue building a strong, warm and supportive relationship with your child in the hope that they settle quickly into school life.
As our positive relationships develop with your child, we endeavour to support them in being able to manage their emotions, to encourage a positive sense of self and to manage their personal needs independently. Then, through supported interaction with other children, your child will learn how to make good friendships, co-operate and resolve conflicts amicably.
Gross Motor Skills
During the first half term, we heavily focus on developing your child's gross motor skills. Gross motor skills provide the foundation for developing healthy bodies that are strong, balanced and coordinated. We develop your child's gross motor skills in lots of different ways at Tanworth: for example through building and climbing obstacle courses; creating big art using paint rollers and long-handled brushes; and taking part in our Squiggle whilst you Wiggle program.
Squiggle whilst you Wiggle
Squiggle Whilst You Wiggle is an early writing program created by a Shonette Bason-Wood, who also created the program: Dough Disco. Squiggle Whilst You Wiggle incorporates dance, music and large movements to help children develop the fine muscle control they need for writing. During Squiggle sessions, your child will learn a new gross motor movement to a piece of music while holding 'flappers' (bits of fabric) and dancing along to the music. The children then transfer these movements to floor level and swap their flappers for writing tools (crayons/pens/chalk, etc) to make marks, this could be in foam, on paper, in sand, etc. Finally, your child will then use this action to think of letters they can form that use this shape. These sessions are great fun but most importantly help your child to be confident mark makers.
Please see the videos below to see which movements we are currently practising.
Dough Disco
Once the children have settled into Reception, they participate in regular Dough Disco sessions. We use Dough Disco as a warm up before our handwriting sessions as it helps the children to develop strength in their hands and fingers in preparation for holding a pencil and writing.