Baby Room - caterpillars and butterflies
We have a large, spacious room which caters for up to babies and toddlers aged 6 weeks – 3 years. All resources are child friendly and low level, allowing children to play and explore freely at their own pace.
All staff based in this room have undertaken training to ensure they understand your child’s differing needs and accordingly adapt the environment to suit them as necessary. Our experienced staff take care of their key groups while supporting and working closely with families to ensure a high level of care for children, as we understand the concerns parents may have when leaving their children in childcare as they return to work.
With numerous designated areas around the room, babies and toddlers have access to a range of equipment and resources aimed to enhance their development:
- Our ‘Cosy Corner’ provides a den space where children can relax, filled with soft furnishings and toys.
- In our ‘Sleep Area’, we have low level coracle beds, where babies can safely sleep and wake at their own pace.
- Our ‘Book Corner’ has a variety of books and puppets, which children can enjoy and share with their friends.
- The ‘Dressing Up’ space allows children to develop self-help skills and act out various roles within their play, with a selection of outfits available to help them develop and understanding of the world and language skills.
- In our ‘Art Corner’, children can access a range of art and craft resources, encouraging mark making and messy play.
- Our ‘Sand/Water/Messy Area’ allows children to develop a range of skills including physical skills, imagination and simple mathematics.
- The ‘Climb and Slide’ equipment is a firm favourite for children of all ages in the Caterpillar Group, encouraging physical development skills like crawling and walking, as well as the blossoming of new friendships through games and active play.
- The ‘Role Play-Home Corner’ allows children to explore with real life resources.
We also have nappy changing facilities, with each child having their own labelled boxes. Parents/carers must provide their child with nappies and nappy cream, which can be stored in bulk either in the room or in your child’s bag. Care routines will be followed by key workers, considering children’s individual needs. Eczema cream can be applied by nursery staff if required. Where a parent/carer wishes, staff can begin toilet training toddlers in this room, which will also be done to suit the child’s pace.
Butterflies group - 2-3 years
The butterflies group is for children aged 2-3 years, where they can interact with the pre-school children daily and play alongside older peers, allowing them to learn from them while enhancing their own play styles and development.
There is more emphasis on toilet training for this age group. Key workers will discuss with parents/carers when is best to begin this process, with parents/carers expected to begin this at home 2-3 weeks prior to beginning training at nursery. This will enable the child to become familiar with using the toilet without pressure and for parents to try a variety of methods to suit the needs of their child. Key workers will then continue the process at nursery for consistency. Parents/carers are to bring in multiple sets of spare clothes and shoes when training begins, as there may be accidents during the day and staff must have enough clothes for the child to change into. Parents/carers will also take clothes home with them daily to wash and return.
