Structure of sessions at WPAPS

 

Welcome Circle

 

We sing our welcome song and include each child’s name as part of the song, a phonics session (we learn a new sound per week through Jolly Phonics) and then we discuss what the adult-led activities are for the session ahead. Before we get going, we have a busy bodies session to get the children energised & pumped for learning.

 

Social Communication Group

 

This group is for a maximum for 4 children who need some support for social skills or communication for a variety of reasons.  We play games which encourage interaction, listening to each other, gesture, turn-taking, talking and making noises!  It runs for 10 minutes after the Welcome Circle and whilst the free-flow play session starts. 

 

Main session

 

After the Welcome Circle, we open up all three our play rooms. 
 

- Our sensory room has a wealth of resources to explore through senses, from having a dark room with light up resources including, fibre optics, to a light room full of tactile, aromatic, audio resources & heuristics activities.
 

- Our Creative room is for messy play and imaginative play.  We have a role play area which changes according to the children’s interests, a water table, a messy play table for play dough/painting/collage/sensory exploration, a mark-making table for emerging writing skills, and table and floor space for Small World play such as the farm, garage and cars, plastic insects, wild animals, dolls’ house and furniture etc.  Our children’s toilets and sinks are just off our Creative room, as our nappy changing facilities.

-  Our Discovery room houses our many construction kits, our heuristic play resources, percussion instruments, resources for strengthening our hands, such as lacing, threading pens, tweezers etc.  We also have a comfortable book corner in this room, although books are available in every room.

- After the ICT room closes, the member of staff that was in that room takes some children outside in either our main garden or our Sensory Garden.  The outdoors creates learning opportunities that are not possible inside, so we place a great importance on outdoor play.  Any nappies that need to be changed are done after we come inside, before we tidy up the rooms.

 

Small Group Time

 

At this time, children are split into their groups with their keyworker, and they do a pre-planned activity that is specifically planned to move specific children’s learning forward.  We use stimulating activities and games to work on each child’s next steps in learning and development.  It is also a nurturing time for children to spend time with their keyworker in a smaller group, and it encourages friendships and feelings of closeness between the children in the group.

 

Circle Time

 

The children going home at the end of the session, and not staying for Lunch Club are all a part of Circle Time.  We share news and sing songs, sometimes using props from our Singing Props basket, such as puppets, masks etc.  Then we sing the goodbye song, again singing each child’s name as part of the song.  Parents/Carers then collect their children.

 

Lunch Club

 

Lunch Club is a lovely social experience for the children, as they sit together to eat their packed lunches that their parents/carers have sent in with them.  We sit with the children, encouraging them to eat as well as socialise, and we help them with any packaging that they require help with.  We encourage families to bring in healthy lunches.

 

The afternoon session is the same structure as the morning session, which is comforting for the children, as they know what to expect and when.  It also ensures that afternoon session children have the same quality of experience as morning session children, and vice versa.  Some children stay for both morning and afternoon sessions, with Lunch Club in between.

 

*At times, the structure of the session may change to reflect the needs of the individual children in our care.  We are flexible to learning opportunities that may arise, and we adapt our provision in response to this.*

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