Happy Children
At The Wigwam day nursery we pride ourselves on making a safe and fun environment as this equals happy children which we all love to see.
Tiny Turtles is the starting room for babies. We pride ourselves in being a home from home. The room is light and airy with cosy areas and plenty of sensory and exploratory learning through play.
Children in squirrels are becoming more independent and the environment in this room reflects this. More of the learning resources can be chosen freely by the children, while being supported by the team.
Children are encouraged to be more resilient in Dancing Deers; this means that we encourage them to show persistence and have a belief in themselves that maybe a different approach to an activity will help them to succeed, for example.
Outdoor learning environment
At Wigwam we believe there are benefits to risk as did the children’s author Roald Dahl “The more risks you allow children to take, the better they learn to take care of themselves.” Now we are not talking about children jumping from great heights out of trees, but we do want them to have a “willing to have a go attitude”, for example, to take the risk to add another brick to the tower before it topples, to jump a puddle, to experiment with potions etc. Children who are willing to take risks will be greater achievers in learning, especially in the areas of literacy.
The outdoor learning environment is a wonderful addition to the nursery and the older children can free flow between the two areas, this means that children can to choose if they want to learn indoors or outdoors and will still be supported by teachers. Some children need to experience/practice writing skills on a larger scale before they sit down and write on paper at a table. To facilitate this type of learning staff may offer simple but worthwhile activities to the children such as a pot of water and a large brush to paint huge circles and squiggles on paths and walls which evaporate when the sun comes out.
The Gift
We have teamed with Reading College and St Lukes Care Home to be part of a wonderful project which focuses on Intergenerational Care. Following on from Channel 4 documentary, Old Peoples Home for 4 Year olds, we decided to set up a project of our own.
Bringing together our preschool children, students from Reading College and residents of St Lukes Care Home, the Gift has been an outstanding success. www.activatelearning.ac.uk/news/fun-and-friendship-young-and-old-new-project-banbury-and-reading
Nutrition
We ensure our children are fed great-tasting, nutritionally balanced food every day. We also ensure plenty of variety, so the menu is never the same in any consecutive week. This introduces children to a wide variety of food. We also cater for all religious preferences as well as any allergy requirement. The Wigwam is also a nut-free zone.
Breakfast
Rice Crispies with Whole Milk & Cranberries
Mid-morning Snack
Seasonal Fruit Bowl
Lunch
Quiche Lorraine with Potatoes & Peas
Peaches & Custard
Mid-afternoon Snack
Seasonal Fruit Bowl
Tea
Salmon & Sweetcorn Wholemeal Sandwiches with Red Peppers
Yoghurt & Mango