Head of School's message
I wanted to let you know how proud I am of the way the Heath Lane team has pulled together over the past few weeks during a period of higher-than-usual staff absence.
Although we have had to make some short-term adjustments, staff have been incredibly flexible, stepping into different roles and supporting one another to ensure that children continue to experience calm, nurturing routines and high-quality learning opportunities every day.
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Our priority has remained firmly on the children – keeping them settled, smiling and engaged in their play and learning. I have been so impressed by how smoothly sessions have run and how strong the provision has remained, both indoors and outdoors. Throughout, everyone has retained the Heath Lane values: safe, confidence, respect.
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Thank you for your understanding, kind words and support at the door; it really does make a difference. We remain fully committed to providing the very best start for every child and will continue to communicate openly with you as we move forward together.
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We are delighted to share the happy news that Joanna has welcomed her baby! We are sure you would like to join us in sending warm wishes to her and her family as they enjoy this special time together.
Dates coming up:
​Please see the Christmas at Heath Lane letter attached to last week's email.
Thursday 11th December - "Winter Lights Festival" from 4pm to 5pm. We look forward to seeing you there!
Friday 19th December - Last day of term and the Nursery will be closing at 1pm.
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Monday 5th January - Stay and Play 1.30pm to 3pm, all families welcome.​
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Tuesday 6th January - Nursery open.​​​​
Reminders:
Donation Station - thank you for the plastic bottles - we now have enough. If you have any swatches of fabric, we would welcome your donation.
The deadline for on-time Primary School Applications is 15 January 2026.
​​​Join our nursery's social media pages to stay connected.
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Book & Rhyme of the week
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Our Structured Stories Book is "The Gruffalo" by Julia Donaldson.
Next week the story will move into the innovation phase of our Structured Storytelling programme, where the children will make changes to the original story such as characters, settings, or events while maintaining the structure and style of the original text. This will involve activities such as creating story maps and expressing their unique ideas through language, both written and spoken. This phase is essential in fostering a love for storytelling and a deeper understanding of narrative structures.
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Our key vocabulary of the text is "terrible", "tusk", "sneak", "knobbly", "roasted" and "poisonous". Please see below link to story;
Please see below a link to the story
The Gruffalo - Animated Read Aloud Book
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Next week's Rhyme of the week is going to be "Alice the camel".
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This Rhyme will support the children with early maths (counting backwards), language and memory, as well as rhythm and listening skills
Language of the week
We are lucky to have a rich and diverse community with lots of different languages. Our language of the week is Tagalog, which is spoken by some of our children and their families.
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Please find below links of how to say "Hello" and "Goodbye" in Tagalog. You can practise with your child/ren at home.
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How do you say "hello" in Filipino? | How to say "hello" in Filipino?
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Learn Tagalog: Saying Goodbye #tagalog #filipino #philippines #filipinoculture #pilipinas #polyglot
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Learning at home
This week in Nursery we have been focusing on the story structure of "The Gruffalo". The activities of which included creating story maps.
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Can you and your child/ren try re-telling the story using the story map provided, or make your own, at home?
Healthy me, Healthy world
As part of our Personal, Social and Emotional Development curriculum, we will be helping children learn about their bodies, understand which parts are private, and know simple ways to keep themselves safe.
This is an important part of helping children develop confidence, boundaries, and the ability to speak up if something feels wrong.
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Please see the attached letter giving more detail.
Success story of the week
This week in Nursery, the children have been exploring printing using a variety of natural resources such as leaves, sticks, and pine cones. They loved experimenting with different textures and patterns and showed wonderful creativity throughout the activity.
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Our Butterfly group used their printing skills to create a fantastic collaborative painting of The Gruffalo! They worked carefully, shared ideas, and showed great enthusiasm as they brought the beloved character to life using nature-inspired prints.
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Well done, Nursery—what amazing artists you are becoming!
