June - Roundabout Pre-School

June 2023

Welcome back to Roundabout for the final half-term of the academic year. A big welcome to Andre and Francesca who have recently started with us.

Now that summer is here and we are getting more sunshine, can I please remind you to ensure that your child brings a sunhat and has an eight-hour protective sun cream applied before attending. You will understand that our staff can not apply (or re-apply) up to 30 different sunscreens on individual children; this would be very time-consuming, but more importantly, some children are allergic to some brands of sun cream. Therefore, we do not permit staff to apply suncream. To ensure your child’s well-being is cared for, we allow children to go outdoors for up to twenty minutes in the morning and the afternoon on sunny days if they attend Roundabout without sun cream.

News from the Committee

We would like to thank the Roundabout staff for their fantastic work this year. Millie, who has been part of the team for the last two years, is about to embark on a new career. She will be leaving Roundabout on Thursday, the 22^nd of June and we wish her all the best for the future.

Transition Time

We are extremely sad (but also excited, of course!) to say “Goodbye” to 24 of our children in July, so big changes are afoot!

Transition to school will undoubtedly be our biggest priority this half term for those children who will begin their school journey in September. At circle time, we have been practising lots of the skills the children will need – saying ‘Good morning’ loudly and clearly to whoever is addressing them, sitting with our legs crossed, backs straight, arms in our laps and with listening ears on!!! These things may seem a little trivial, but by exploring these rituals with the children, we regularly allow them to think about and express how they feel about starting school.

We are also giving the children lots of encouragement and support with independence skills, such as putting their coat on and fastening it, putting on their shoes, and washing and drying their hands. You could help by encouraging this at home.

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Transition Reports

Staff are starting to write their transition reports for the school leavers (those lucky children 😊, who are staying with us for another year, will be receiving termly summaries as usual). Please speak to your key person if you have any concerns regarding these reports. The reports feature one section for your child to draw or write something to show to their new teacher and one for you to fill in about your child. The bulk of the report is very similar to the termly summaries that we do for all children, and we welcome as much input from you as possible - after all, you are the people who know your children best.

That said, we pride ourselves on knowing our children very well because of the amount of contact time your child’s key person has with them, as well as the formative/ summative assessments we make throughout the year. In addition to the transition reports, I ensure that either myself or your child’s key person (usually both) is available to speak to your child’s new teacher when they come to visit our setting. I place great value on having the opportunity to talk to your child’s new teacher, to pass on all we have learned about them, and to help them understand their personalities and styles of learning. Please speak to any of our staff if you have any questions or worries.

Events taking place in June and July

The week commencing 19th June we will have “Occupations Week”. We would much appreciate it if you contribute to this by bringing in resources that relate to your occupation/ profession or if you would like to come in and talk to the children about your job.

We will have a “Pirate Week” from 10^{th –}14^thJuly. The children are more than welcome to come dressed up as pirates, ships mates, captains, or any other maritime-themed outfit if they wish to.

On Tuesday, 25^th July we will celebrate the last day of this academic year with an end-of-term party for the children. There will be a disco, party games, etc. If your child does attend on this day, please do not bring your child’s packed lunch, as we will be providing party food for the children. All dietary requirements/ allergies will be catered for. If you have any questions regarding this, please speak to Adele.

Places for September

We do still have spaces available for September starters at Roundabout – please spread the word!!! If you know of any families who are looking for a preschool place in September, please signpost them to our website (www.roundaboutpreschool.org.uk) or tell them to pop into the portacabin for a chat/ visit before Tuesday, 25^th July 2023.

Thank you for your continuing support.

Adele & The Roundabout Team

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