Children Of The World Montessori School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

The Montessori School offers a welcoming environment where children show that they feel happy, safe and emotionally secure. Staff have very high expectations for all children attending.

Staff interact with warmth and kindness. Toddlers, who attend on a part-time basis, are provided with nurturing and support that helps them to transition into the main classroom with confidence. Toddlers are excited in their play.

For example, staff engage the youngest children as they participate in a sensory activity with bubbles. Staff promote early and emerging language as they use terms such as 'tiny', 'big', 'ready, steady' and 'p...op'. The toddlers laugh as they manage to independently blow through the tube to create bubbles for themselves.

Older children demonstrate a strong willingness to learn and take part in their activities. They show independence relative to their ages and a high level of self-control. All children behave extremely well and have respect for their friends and the staff who care for them.

Staff embed British values very well. Staff are encouraging of children's acquisition of language. Children listen attentively to stories and respond with ideas to demonstrate their comprehension of what is happening.

They show their awareness of letters and the sounds they represent, demonstrated during an activity where children practise phonics. Children react well to the praise and encouragement and are keen to continue trying, while taking pride in what they achieve.

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

The co-directors are exceptionally hard-working.

They use their many years of experience and extensive knowledge of childcare to help ensure children are provided with high-quality care and learning. There are effective systems in place for the supervision and training of staff. This helps to ensure staff remain suitable for their roles and are able to continually enhance their skills.

Staff speak consistently about how well they are supported in their roles by their colleagues.Staff plan securely for children's learning. They know the children well.

Overall, staff implement the early years foundation stage curriculum alongside the Montessori philosophy effectively. They are mindful to help embed in children the essential knowledge they need to prepare them for their future learning and give them the best start in their lives. This includes, for example, broadening children's wider learning with topics such as finding out about authors, and a theatre trip with parents.

Teaching is of a high standard overall. However, at times, staff do not demonstrate confidence to be more ambitious in how they extend and build on what children already know and can do to help them achieve even better outcomes for children. This is most evident during adult-led group discussions and activities when the intent for what staff plan to teach, or help children discuss their knowledge of, is not always clear.

Staff encourage children to work collaboratively together, for example, during an activity where children take turns to choose cards from a bag to match with the corresponding part of the puzzle. Children are very good at understanding the expectations of the activity and patiently wait their turn. Children are very happy to help pack away the activity when they have finished.

They count how many pieces they have as they place the cards back into the bag to help demonstrate their understanding of numbers.Partnerships with parents are positive. They state that their children thoroughly enjoy attending and that staff happily chat at the end of the day and give good feedback.

They add that staff are fully supportive of most-able children. Parents explain that they feel that their children are safe at the setting. Partnerships with other professionals who attend the school to work with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are extremely well established.

The co-directors work very well with the local authority to help ensure that all children, including those with more complex needs, are helped to have full access to their entitlement to early education.Children enjoy regular opportunities to play outdoors. They benefit from being physically active, for example, staging races with their friends on scooters and tricycles, declaring, 'I won', with enthusiasm.

However, at times, learning experiences to offer more challenging and stimulating experiences for children who enjoy learning outdoors are not secure enough.Children show high levels of self-esteem and independence. They keenly help to tidy up, are confident in their toilet and self-care needs relative to their ages, and demonstrate the easiest ways to put on their coats before going outdoors.

Children have warm bonds with staff. They understand the routines of the day, listen well and show positive attitudes to their learning.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The directors use robust recruitment and induction procedures to help ensure staff are suitable for their roles. Staff adhere to the co-director's policies, procedures and risk assessments, which promote children's well-being, health and safety effectively. Staff have a good understanding of all aspects of safeguarding matters and legislation.

They demonstrate a secure knowledge of the signs and symptoms of possible abuse, what to do if they have a concern about another staff member and the 'Prevent' duty. Staff know the procedures to follow if they have a concern and what to do to ensure their concerns are acted on.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: strengthen staff teaching during planned learning experiences to implement the curriculum, so that every opportunity is made to help extend the ways children build on what they already know nenhance the quality of learning experiences to offer more challenging and stimulating experiences for children who enjoy learning outdoors.