Whether it be snuggling and sharing a group story with Evie or getting lost in a little book moment all by ourselves our children simply adore books here at Jollies!!

The magic of books definitely permeates our very being here at Jollies Xxxx

As transport was currently a huge favourite in Natalie and Evie’s room and their children were always spotting different modes of transport out of their room’s huge window they decided to pop over the road to see some real trains!!!!

They went on a lovely walk to the train station where they talked about what they could see all around them on their travels and they also liked to wave to their friends too as Cheeky Monkeys decided to join in Possums’ fun!!

At the station they loved waving to all the trains and they even spotted a helicopter flying above them in the sky!

They enjoyed some yummy snack whilst watching out for the trains and they sang some songs too whilst waiting for the next one to arrive in the station.

They managed to see 5 trains and all the children were mesmerised and really enjoyed it when the trains beeped at them!

What a fun morning it was getting out and about in our local community… yay to that we all say!!! xxxx

Recently Possums had a fabulous morning exploring their soft play!!!

A tunnel had been created by the grownups for everyone to travel through which they absolutely loved.

However, once the tunnel had been knocked over quite a few of them then loved to sit on one of the soft play pieces and rock backwards and forwards!!!

This then inspired everyone to enjoy singing ‘horsey horsey don’t you stop’…

This resulted in our little ones rocking faster and faster!!

Lots of building with the blocks, balancing on the blocks, climbing over the blocks, ducking under the archways and generally moving around and exploring, exploring, exploring occurred.

All the time our youngest giraffes were collaborating, creating, turn-taking, imagining, communicating, coordinating, investigating and exploring their bodies’ physical skills, movements, strength and capabilities!!

Soft play days and skill developing ways spent building together here at Jollies xxxx

This morning Possums were being super observant and were obsessed with looking out of their room’s HUGE window!!

They saw lots of interesting things going on; from Tracey weeding, to the wonderful ‘Woodlesford in Bloom’ volunteer planting up our Jolly pots! They were all VERY interested and wanted to see even more closely for themselves!!!

So Natalie took small groups outside to look extra closely and they certainly all saw, and heard, lots more!!

The very lovely lady from ‘Woodlesford in Bloom’ who was busy planting spoke to our children and she let them look at all the different plants and she talked about all the wonderful colours they will soon be when they flower!

Our children also saw lots of cars, vans, buses and even a tractor!!!!! It was all very exciting as we observed our amazing village environment and all this was occurring right outside our very own Jolly window…

Keep those eyes peeled as who knows what we will all spot next?! Xxxx

These little ones had been busy playing at the windowsill for a long period of time and they were so immersed in their play that they had no idea Stephen had been sat nearby and had been busy observing their actions and interactions!!

They were so very focused and engrossed upon their imaginative play with each other and they adored creating sound effects for the different cars and trains they were utilising to develop their exciting scenarios.

It’s so lovely to just sit back sometimes and listen carefully and observe in detail exactly how our children are playing and what they are saying and doing as they get lost within their thoughts and ideas and express their imaginations outwardly through their conversations, directions, sounds and actions as they become so engrossed within their play!

Play is our children’s work and they definitely take it VERY seriously!! There’s no slacking on the job here at Jollies xxxx

Spin, spin, spin, spin and spin!!! Some of us just love to spin in Terrific Twos and so Sian bought us a new exciting spinning fish chair that enables us to spin around and around and around just by using our body control!

This piece of apparatus is great for encouraging core strength and balance and the Jolly grownups could see both of these being utilised by their children immediately.

This little one just loved the spinner sooooooo much! He found it absolutely hilarious as he span around and around and around… He had quite a wobble on when he eventually stood up and walked away…

We love to feed our children’s interests and passions and allow their little bodies to repeat, repeat, repeat the actions their brains are driving them to do over and over and over again…

It’s truly fascinating stuff figuring out how little brains are wired and what this means for our practice as practitioners and, ultimately, how we can have the most impact upon their future development and learning! Xxxx

It’s all go in our Jollies Supermarket… there are baskets and trollies to be filled, transactions to be made, roles to be played, pennies to be counted and general fun to be had by one and all!!

Our recent visit to our local Coop has given our role play area even more meaning as we draw upon our own recent real-life experiences Xxxx

Jade and Latisha enabled their little Elephants to take their current role play interest and put it into practice as they got their shoes and coats on and headed off to a real shop!!

The children had spent all week shopping in their ‘Jollies Supermarket’ and they had been turn-taking, role-playing, counting pennies, making shopping lists and had generally been having an awesome time together. However, Jade and Latisha decided to take their room’s current interest to a whole new level as they went out and about in our lovely local environment and walked across the field to the Co-op!!

Before they set off they sat down together and wrote out a shopping list so that they knew exactly what they would be looking out for and getting and also to ensure they didn’t forget anything either!

They all walked beautifully and so, so sensibly together holding their friends’ hands and they had their fab listening ears on too as they talked together about keeping safe and also what they could see around them in their local environment.

When they arrived at the shop they walked around observing carefully; keeping their eyes peeled to help them find all the items they needed before putting them into their basket.

They then took their items to the checkout and used their money to pay for them before heading back to Jollies to enjoy their purchases… their yummy, scrummy strawberries, blueberries, veggie straws and even a cheeky chocolate biscuit!!!!

We’re certain their recent shopping experience will further enhance their future role-playing as they draw upon their real-life shared experiences recalling this very exciting trip!!

Our children’s interests certainly bring the fun and drive their learning forwards in the most exciting ways here at Jollies xxxx

The small world car wash had been a HUGE hit outside, so Cheeky Monkeys decided to do this again, but on a much bigger scale!!! However, to do this they needed to get the cars and bikes really MESSY first!!….

This was where the GIANT messy painting swiftly came in… in a flash they were sitting astride the ‘ride on’ vehicles steering them skilfully through the paint to explore the different tracks they would leave behind and they also investigated the textures and possibilities of this painty medium too, but not just with hands or paintbrushes, instead with larger vehicles!! … This was a definite added bonus for our little transport lovers!!

The children were soooooooo excited to have a turn riding the bikes and cars through the paint and they quickly made their choices as to which ones were their favoured mode of transport. They used both feet to push the vehicles through the paint; although some quickly decided they didn’t like the texture of the cold, wet paint on their toes and wanted it wiping off… although others were the polar opposite and ended up trying to cover as much of their bodies in the paint too as well as their ride on vehicle!!

Mission one was soon completed… the cars and bikes were finally VERY messy, so it was swiftly on to mission two…. it was time to start the cleaning process!!

Our children were observed being excellent at cleaning, ensuring they got into all the vehicles’ little cracks and crevices until the cars and bikes were most definitely SPARKLING clean!

We’re not sure which provided the most fun? The process of getting them dirty or the process of getting them cleaned up afterwards?!?! xxxx

Team Jollies received a HUGE thank you today and felt very loved and appreciated through the kind words received from one of our children’s parents/carers this morning as they embarked upon their last Jolly day with us…

We love that our parents/carers work in such close partnership with us throughout the years as we support their children as they thrive and blossom and strive to reach their full potential and we truly thank them for this!

Here are some snippets from their email and a HUGE thank you to Team Jollies for making Jollies ‘Jollies’ as they truly put their heart and soul into making nursery life the best it can possibly be for our little ones…. xxxx

“Team Jollies,

I’m not really sure I can quite find all the words I want to say so here’s just a little essay .

The past few years **** has spent with you are precious to both of us.

I spoke to Tracey & was introduced to Tia I couldn’t have been more confident that I’d chosen the right place for **** (thanks for the recommendation Natalie!)

Tia is probably unaware how much she helped support both me & **** in that first year. She was so nurturing and fun; **** absolutely adored her. Getting to pick **** up & catch up with Tia at the same time was the highlight of each nursery day. She wouldn’t miss out on letting me know every detail of ****’s day & how she could remember everything we had going on outside of nursery along with all the other parents blows me away!

Knowing *** had her little haven at Jollies has helped us both immensely these past few years. You’ve supported her in being her true self & helped her blossom into my little sassy superstar.

Thank you to each & every one of you.

Laura smashing the toilet training in TT’s when I was near enough ready to give up!

I love hearing all ***’s stories about how silly Stephen is & how much she talks to him & Imogen especially makes me so happy that they’ve created such a safe space for **** to speak openly.

And Emma. ****’s forever & always number 1. No matter what mood **** is in, her face genuinely lights up every time she sees Emma. She is always telling me Emma is her favourite person ever & how much she loves her!

Oh and Sian with your snails – I think I’ve got a few years left of **** begging me to get her some. She absolutely loves them

The atmosphere & environment you have created at Jolly Giraffes is just amazing. We can walk through those doors having a rushed, stressful morning & are always greeted by a lovely smiling jolly face & I can’t tell you what a difference it makes to the rest of my day alone! Knowing **** always has so much fun & enjoys being with the grown ups as much as her children friends.

I cannot thank you enough & genuinely am so sad to be saying goodbye to you all!”