Nursery (Foundation One)
Welcome to Foundation One (Nursery)
Hello and welcome to your Nursery class! We are Mrs Gibaut and Mrs Nadeem, the nursery teachers. Mrs Gibaut loves adrenaline rollercoaster and enjoys going to theme parks with her loved ones. Mrs Nadeem enjoys spending time with her little boy and loves to bake! We are also very lucky to be supported by Mrs Simms, our teaching Assistant who loves spending time at her caravan and padel boarding.
Nursery is a fun and exciting place where children make friends, grow in confidence and discover their love for learning. It is such a special place, being the very first step into your child’s school journey and we are very proud and excited to be a part of that journey with you!
Meet the Team
- Class Teacher: Mrs Gibaut
- Class Teacher: Mrs Nadeem (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday)
- Teaching Assistant: Mrs Simms
- Dinner Support Staff: Ms Macdonald and Ms Clayton
Brief Curriculum Overview
Our revised curriculum is skills-based, providing children with rich and varied opportunities to develop their communication, language and early literacy skills. Throughout the day, children are immersed in language through songs, stories, rhymes, purposeful play and meaningful interactions with adults and their peers. These experiences help to build children’s vocabulary, confidence and listening skills while encouraging curiosity, imagination and a genuine love of learning.
We place a strong emphasis on developing a love of books and reading from an early age. Each week, we focus on a core story which is complemented by our “Fab Five” favourite stories. These are revisited regularly so that children can develop familiarity, recall key phrases, join in with repeated language and build confidence in retelling stories in their own words.
Alongside our story-rich curriculum, we introduce early phonics through Letters and Sounds before they start their Read Write Inc journey in the summer term. Children take part in engaging activities that develop important pre-reading skills, including listening and attention, recognising and distinguishing between different sounds, rhythm and rhyme, alliteration and oral blending and segmenting.
Through the My Happy Mind programme, children learn about emotions, confidence, and resilience. In Mathematics, we follow Master the Curriculum, using fun, practical steps that build strong foundations and a love of number. To promote and improve our physical development we take part in lots of fun funky finger activities and dough disco for early writing development.
What We're Learning This Year
Our Topics for Cycle B include:
Autumn 1 – Terrific Tales
Once upon a time… our Foundation Stage adventure begins! Children will enjoy listening to much-loved traditional tales, meeting exciting characters and joining in with familiar words and phrases. They will use their imagination to retell stories through play, puppets and role play. As children settle into Chapelfield, we will also celebrate everything that makes them special by talking about our families, friends, feelings and the people who help us to feel happy and safe.
Autumn 2 – Sparkle and Shine
It’s time to sparkle and celebrate! Children will discover how families and communities celebrate special occasions in different ways. Through exciting stories, music, dancing, food and creative activities, they will explore a variety of celebrations and traditions. Children will share their own special experiences and learn about the celebrations of others.
Spring 1 – Snow and Ice
Children will explore snowy landscapes and discover some of the animals that live in cold parts of the world. They will compare these chilly environments with where we live and find out how animals keep warm and survive in the cold. Children will also become little scientists as they investigate ice, experiment with freezing and melting, make predictions and talk about the exciting changes they observe.
Spring 2 – Everyday Heroes
Not all heroes wear capes! Children will discover the everyday heroes who help us at home, in school and in our community. We will learn about doctors, nurses, firefighters, police officers, teachers and many more important people through stories, role play and exciting experiences. Children will think about what makes someone a hero and explore how kindness, bravery, helping others and caring for our friends can make us everyday heroes too.
Summer 1 – Deep Dive
Children will explore the exciting underwater world and meet some amazing sea creatures along the way. They will discover where different creatures live, what they eat and how they move and survive beneath the sea. Through stories, investigations and creative activities, children will become ocean explorers while learning how we can help to keep our seas clean, protect marine life and care for our wonderful planet.
Summer 2 – Watch Me Grow
Children will become little gardeners and explorers as they plant seeds, care for them and watch them change over time. They will discover what plants need to grow and explore the fascinating life cycles of plants and animals. We will also celebrate how much the children themselves have grown throughout the year, looking back at their special memories, new skills and achievements before getting excited and ready for their next big adventure!
We run a cyclic curriculum to ensure that all pupils have the same learning experiences. Clink the links below to see the full overview.
Cycle A: 2027/28
Class Timetable
Core elements present every day
- Arrival and settling in: Children are welcomed and can choose an activity to start the day. We begin the day with Brush Bus and a welcome song.
- Key person time groups are Moonbeams and Sunbeams: Regular, focused time is spent with each child and their key worker to build positive relationships.
- Learning is a balance of adult-led group times for stories, rhyme time, phonics, dough disco and Mathematics.
- Child-led free-flow continuous provision: The most significant portion of the day is dedicated to allowing children to explore and learn through play, both indoors and outdoors.
- Scheduled times for snacks, lunch for full time children.
- Personal care: handwashing, and toileting
Homework Learning
We will post weekly fun homework tasks around the stories from our topics on Tapestry.
We will also add some maths games from Master the Curriculum that will be based around the learning in class.
We cannot emphasise enough the importance of reading! Please read to your child every night.
Tips for Home Learning
- Keep it short and playful — 10–15 minutes is enough.
- Encourage your child to retell the story in their own words.
- Make it sensory — touch, build, and explore.
- Celebrate creativity — messy play and imaginative ideas are welcome!
We hope you will share photos on Tapestry with us — we love seeing children’s imaginative ideas and their learning at home!
Useful Information
- Bookbag, water bottle, wellies in a named bag - please label everything!
- Children will bring home a library book every Friday to share
- Please see the link below for useful information.
https://www.beststartinlife.gov.uk/
Class routines
We provide a snack every morning, please do not send food from home with your child as we do have children in school with allergies. Chapelfied is a strictly nut free school.
Supporting learning
Our children will be outside in all weathers. Please ensure they have a warm, waterproof coat with them, along with their wellies which are to be kept in school to ensure they can access this outdoor learning.
How To Contact Us
- If you have any questions, please contact Mrs Gibaut or Mrs Nadeem via the school office email chapelfield@bury.gov.uk or phone 0161 723 5519.
- We are always on the class door at the start and the end of the day, if there is anything you would like to ask.
- Parent Hub
- Tapestry
- We aim to respond to written communications as soon as possible, and always within 5 school days.
Key Dates & Events
Coming up…
- Parents Evening - Wednesday 21st October 3.30-7.30pm
- EYFS Open Evening – Wednesday 11th November 4pm - 5:30pm
- EYFS Nativity – Wednesday 9th December 10:30am