C/o Greystones Primary School, Tullibardine Road, SHEFFIELD S11 7GL
Telephone: 0114 2671111 email:greystonespreschool@ymail.com
11th October 2022
Dear all,
The weather is definitely feeling autumnal and the days are definitely getting shorter. Here at preschool we are making the most of the sunny days and spending time outdoors playing in the mud kitchen, watering the plants, painting pictures and sharing stories in our play house wrapped in cosy blankets.
We have been so fortunate to have so many dry sunny days so far this half term, however as the temperature drops and the weather becomes more inclement please could you ensure that your child comes into the setting with appropriate clothing for the weather conditions. It would be great if the clothing could be labelled with your child’s name as this will enable us to return all items to the correct families at the end of the day and cut down on the lost property.
As per last week’s newsletter we are talking about harvest and animals that hibernate through the winter. We are reading the story of the little red hen and will be baking bread hedgehogs! We are also doing lots of colour mixing activities as we enjoy reading the book ‘Mixed’. A big thank you to those children who made an owl or hedgehog picture as part of last week’s home challenge. We really enjoyed looking at them, keep them coming. We will also be collecting items for S6 foodbank until 21st October 2022. Please add a donation to our box if you can.
Next week we will be celebrating Black History Month as well as Diwali. We will be reading the book ‘Baby goes to market’, which is a story about a baby and his Mama visiting a bustling southwest Nigerian market place. The market is very crowded, Mama is very busy and baby is very curious. This story also offers a gentle introduction to numbers. We will be acting out the story and tasting the different foods mentioned in the text. Alongside this we will also celebrating Diwali. We will be reading/singing the book ‘Engines, Engines which is an Indian counting rhyme, making chapattis, playing with coloured rice, looking at patterns and colours, dancing to music from different cultures, making our own train out of large cardboard boxes and making our very own Diva lamps out of clay. So a busy and fun filled week for the last week of this half term.
Thank you to the three parents who joined us at our AGM last night, I know it’s not easy escaping when you have small children to put to bed, so we really appreciated your time. Following the AGM last night we are still looking for people to join our team of trustees and our fundraising committee.
Fundraising
The preschool has a fundraising committee that meets once every half term to discuss and organise a range of fundraising activities. These can be as small as a cake sale at the end of a session or as large as organising a Christmas or summer fair.
Every penny raised is spent to enhance your child’s experience at the setting and our team of volunteers put together a wish list of resources that we hope to purchase with the money raised. In the past the money raised has been used to purchase a new computer for the children, new bicycles, trikes and scooters, as well as additional resources and outdoor equipment.
We are always happy to welcome new volunteers onto the team and welcome any ideas and suggestions of how we can raise more money for Preschool.
You may work for a company which offers match-funding for fundraising activities or gives donations to charities that are nominated by its employees, if so we would like to hear from you.
If you feel that this is something you would like to get involved in then look out for the date of the next meeting and come along.
Trustees
Childcare charities make a major contribution to the lives of young children and offer enormous benefits for local families and communities. This is only possible however, through the invaluable work of the individuals who volunteer as trustees to govern the charity. Typically, they are the parents and carers of the children who attend the setting. A trustee’s role is to steer the charity towards achieving the aims or objects outlined in its governing document.
The trustees of childcare charities take on a number of obligations, as:
· a charity trustee
· an employer
· A registered childcare provider.
As a registered childcare provider, trustees will employ qualified and experienced childcare practitioners to lead on the day-to-day implementation of the EYFS.
The trustees of Greystones Preschool are a dedicated committed bunch of volunteers that are thriving to achieve the best outcomes for the children and families that access our setting, but as the saying goes, many hands make light work and they need more volunteers.
If you feel that you could support the setting by either joining the fundraising committee or the trustees’ team please contact me and I will pass on your details to the relevant people.
Polly Ives has been in touch today to say that there are only six tickets left for the
1.30 pm Halloween Concertinas performance at the Greystones on Sunday 30th October. This is not to be missed, so grab one of the last remaining discounted tickets if you can. There will also be a reserved area in the Greystones between 2.15 pm and 3.30 pm for those families who would like to stay for refreshments after the performance. This is an opportunity to socialise and to meet other parents of children that attend the setting.
For those of you who qualify for 30 hours funding, please can you ensure that your code is renewed as the local authority will not fund your child’s place if the code has expired. Please check your government account for further details.
Home learning Challenge
· Look at the Diwali short clip ‘My first festival’ on the CBeebies’ YouTube channel
· Go out on a walk and look for patterns, shapes and numbers in the environment
· Sing number rhymes and songs with your child.
· Light your diva lamp together.
I cannot believe that we are heading towards half term, all aboard!
Take care,
Julie.