This week at Nursery…
This week, the children have been doing lots of learning based upon ‘Room on the Broom’ which is our focus book for two weeks. We have used props and puppets to retell the story and have made our own wands and hats. We have mixed potions and created our own ‘Magic Mud’ using cornflour, water and food colouring. The children were excited to see how this mixture can exist as a liquid and a solid at the same time – I think we have some budding scientists in Nursery! We look forward to another exciting week ahead where we will be continuing our ‘Room on the Broom’ learning activities.
Here are a selection of photos showing what we’ve all been up to…
This week’s bible story
Our friendship with Jesus: John 15:12-15
Jesus calls us his friend and He wants to be in a relationship with us. In the Bible, we see the friendship of Jesus and his disciples develop. Although their intent was to serve and follow Jesus as Master, He calls them friends. Jesus’ love and sacrifice for those He walked with is the ultimate example of a relationship. Though we may show it differently, we show our friends how much we love them by the actions that we take.
Jesus calls us friend and He wants to live in a relationship with us. This means that He wants us to get to know Him and He wants us to share our lives with Him – every joy, every care, every hurt, every triumph.
Reflection:
We show our friends we care by the actions we do and how we behave towards our friends. Think about how you can show your friends you care this week and how you can share your week with them.
Prayer:
Dear God,
Thank you that we will always have a friend in Jesus. Help us to be good friends to our friends and show them that we care about them.
Amen
We’ve had a very busy week!
This week has been a very busy one at Nursery! We have been reading ‘We’re Going on a Bear Hunt’ by Michael Rosen, we’ve been mixing some beautiful autumnal colours and we’ve also been investigating the properties of ice whilst making some wonderful marks.
Next week, we will continue talking about the weather and looking at hot and cold places around the world. If you would like to share any family photos of holidays which we can talk about, please email them to us at:
stjamesnursery@spherefederation.org
Please remember to bring named wellies into Nursery as we expect to be puddle jumping soon.
Here’s just a snapshot of our very busy week!
This week’s bible story
Four friends help a paralysed man: Luke 5: 17-25
If I asked you to tell you one of the things they liked doing best of all, I imagine it would be playing with their friends. Have a think about your friends and think about what you feel is special about them. In our story, we hear about how four friends help a paralysed man.
Reflection:
Think about the story.
Were there good friends in it?
Think about your friends.
What makes a good friend?
Think about yourself.
Are you a good friend?
Prayer:
Dear God
We thank you for our friends and for the happy times we share with them. Help us to be a good friend to them. Teach us how to play fairly and to share. Help us to recognize loneliness in others and show friendliness towards them. We know that you are our friend and will be with us always.
Amen.
What have we been learning this week?
This week, we have been learning all about dinosaurs! We have been reading dinosaur stories, singing dinosaur songs, counting dinosaurs, sorting dinosaurs and even drawing their skeletons. We have also looked at non-fiction books and talked about where dinosaurs may have lived.
Next week, we will be discussing the change of seasons and learning to mix autumnal colours. We will also be talking about our families and would love family photos to include at circle time. These can be emailed to the following address:
stjamesnursery@spherefederation.org
Things to remember for the coming week:
Please can all children have a named pair of wellington boots in school as soon as possible – we would love to go puddle jumping soon!
This week’s bible story
David and Jonathan: 1 Samuel 18-19
Friendship is a precious gift. Everyone wants to have friends. If we are fortunate, we will have a group of close friends, people with whom we can share our lives. However, sometimes, things go wrong. There can be disagreements that lead to friends falling out and maybe not talking to each other altogether. When David was a young boy, he had been told that one day, he would be the future King of Israel. As he grew up, David became famous for defeating the giant, Goliath, and for being a skilled soldier. He also wrote many songs that are recorded in the Book of Psalms in the Bible.
When David was a boy, a man called Saul was the King of Israel. Saul had a son who was called Jonathan. David and Jonathan became great friends. One reason was that Saul (Jonathan’s dad) was the present king and David was going to be the future king. David was also a great soldier and King Saul became very jealous of him! Another reason is that, if the usual practices were followed, Jonathan would have followed in his father’s footsteps as the future king – not David! Jonathan had a good reason to be jealous of David!
Reflection:
It would have been very easy for Jonathan to be jealous of David. Instead, he always protected him – sometimes, even saving David’s life!
How do we treat our friends?
Do we get jealous when they are successful or if they are better than us at something?
Or do we encourage them? Do we stand up for them? Do we feel happy when something good happens in their lives?
In David’s case, he really did get by ‘with a little help from his friend’.
Prayer
Dear God,
Thank you for friends whom we can trust.
Thank you for friends who stick with us when we need them.
Please help us to be a friend to anyone in need.
Amen.
Welcome
Welcome to Nursery!
My name is Mrs Boulton and I’ll be teaching the Nursery class this year. This week, Mrs Cairnes and I have been settling the children into their daily routines and have also spent a lot of time getting to know them. We have shared our favourite stories and songs. The children have been busy learning in all the areas of provision and we look forward to a very happy year ahead.
If you would like to to ask any questions, please speak to a member of staff at the gate or contact us using the following email address:
stjamesnursery@spherefederation.org
What does my child need to bring:
- water bottle – NAMED
- change of clothes in a small bag – NAMED
- waterproof coat – NAMED
- wellies – NAMED
This week’s bible story
Zacchaeus is friends with Jesus: Luke 19: 1-10
In today’s story, we hear about a man called Zacchaeus. He had always been a loner. He had never had as much as one friend. Not surprising, really. He had lived most of his life as a cheat. It was easy. Just demand more money. That was the beauty of his job as a tax collector. People were a bit afraid of tax collectors. You would not want to get on the wrong side of a tax collector, especially one like Zacchaeus.
He was a small man, was Zacchaeus. Perhaps he was bullied or laughed at. Sometimes people get picked on by others – the tall ones, perhaps, or the short ones, or ones with straight hair, or ones with curly hair, or ones with the wrong clothes. People are certainly not born cheats.
Or perhaps Zacchaeus just thought that money could bring him happiness, or friends. Or maybe he was just a rogue!
One day Zacchaeus was out and about in the streets of Jericho. He heard people talking about Jesus. All excited, they were, that Jesus was going to be passing through their town that day. Read the story to find out what happened to Zacchaeus.
Reflection:
Zacchaeus was a man with a hard heart and no friends. We don’t know why, but Jesus cared for Zacchaeus. Jesus also believed that Zacchaeus had some good in him, if only he could be persuaded to change his ways. Zacchaeus mattered to Jesus, and Jesus’ friendship was able to change how Zacchaeus acted. Think about yourself and your friends. Are there any ways in which you can treat people that might help them to become friends?
Prayer
Dear God,
Thank you that you know us and that you care for us.
Help us to be kind and generous to other people,
like Zacchaeus after he met Jesus.
Amen.