Apple Tree Montessori Forest School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Friendly staff greet children as they enter the nursery.

Staff support children to settle quickly and engage in activities. They gather information before children start at the nursery. This helps staff get to know children and plan around their interests.

Parents praise the effective settling-in process that supports children's individual needs. As a result, children are happy and settled when they arrive. The manager plans a curriculum that encourages children to become confident and independent learners.

Children freely choose from a wide selection of resources. Staff extend their learning further by introd...ucing new skills. For instance, children develop their smaller hand muscles by using scissors to cut paper.

Staff supervise children well and encourage them to keep trying. Children persevere when learning how to hold the scissors correctly and show great delight as they make snips in the paper. They decide to cut shapes and find some resources to copy.

Staff support this idea by naming the shapes and cutting alongside the children. Staff use a calm voice and create a relaxing atmosphere for children to learn in. Children remain focused and engaged in the activity.

They show staff that they have learned how to hold the scissors safely and are proud of the shapes they have cut. This helps children develop a sense of achievement and boosts their self-esteem.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

Staff provide children with opportunities to be independent to develop skills for life.

For example, during snack time, children use crockery and jugs carefully and pour their own drinks competently. This helps them to develop good hand-to-eye coordination, fine-motor skills and confidence.Children delight at playing outside in the snowy weather.

Staff encourage them to experience the natural world as they watch the snow melt and feel the water drip through their fingers.Children eagerly explore the outdoor environment. They illustrate this as they find sticks to draw circles in the snow, creating snowman pictures.

Staff discuss the differences between snow and ice with the children. They introduce vocabulary such as 'hard' and 'soft'. These sensory experiences help children to strengthen their knowledge and understanding of new vocabulary.

Staff support children to be physically active and to take risks in their environment. For example, during an imaginative role play game, children confidently climb on a wooden drum and slide down a pole. Staff supervise at a safe distance and encourage children to line up and take turns.

Children show that they can follow instructions and have respect for their friends.Children who speak English as an additional language receive good levels of support. For instance, staff use a 'talk board' to link words in children's first language to routines in the nursery.

This enables staff to communicate effectively with children, to ensure that all children make good progress.Staff encourage children to be curious and learn about the natural world. For example, children are very excited to observe the stick insects they have in the nursery.

Staff encourage children to be gentle and hold the insects carefully. Children demonstrate their secure counting skills as they confidently count the stick insects' legs. They happily share their knowledge of stick insects.

For example, they discuss how they use the sticky pads on their feet to hang upside down. Children relish this experience and eagerly discuss how the insects will grow during the Christmas break. This helps to promote their thinking skills and develops their understanding.

Children thoroughly enjoy reading books and listening to stories. Staff read stories with enthusiasm, which keeps children focused and engaged. They listen intently and answer questions to develop an understanding of the text.

During play and activities, staff support children's language skills by narrating their play. They ask questions and introduce new vocabulary. However, this is not always consistent.

Some staff do not pause and give children sufficient time to think of a reply to a question. This does not fully support their language and communication skills.The manager evaluates her practice.

She has a clear vision of how to develop the forest school ethos in the setting. The manager is currently completing training to become a level 3 forest school leader. This will extend outdoor activities and learning experiences for children.

There are also plans in place for staff to complete Makaton signing training to aid communication with children.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff are clear about their roles and responsibilities to protect children and have completed safeguarding training.

They have a secure knowledge of how to recognise the signs that a child could be at risk of harm or abuse. Staff know how to record and report their concerns accurately if they need to. They have completed paediatric first-aid training and record accidents appropriately.

Procedures are in place to ensure children with allergies and intolerances are catered for. The management team has robust recruitment procedures in place. It performs ongoing checks to ensure staff remain suitable to work with children.

Staff complete risk assessments before visits. This keeps children safe on trips outside of the nursery.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: strengthen staff practice to provide children with more time to process language and respond to questions, to support developing speech and language skills.