Springdale Primary School Nursery

Astronaut adventures, shape hunts and pumpkin investigations give Springdale’s nursery learning a distinctly imaginative flavour. Children have explored mathematical ideas through pretend police work and practised movement through a journey into space. These are concrete examples of play carrying a learning purpose.

The nursery belongs to Springdale Primary School on Warstones Drive in Penn, Wolverhampton. Its activities have used both the nursery itself and the school hall, bringing a larger movement space into the children’s learning.

Physical Friday took nursery children to the hall for an astronaut adventure. They crawled as moon vehicles, stretched their steps into moon walks and jumped away from imaginary asteroids. Hoops became planets, with children counting backwards before launching into space. The activity combined movement, listening and number practice within one shared game.

A pretend police investigation gave shape learning a different setting. Children dressed themselves in police costumes, then searched for missing shapes: ovals and rectangles alongside squares, circles and triangles. They matched shapes to objects around the nursery and described their edges and corners. Mathematical vocabulary had a practical job to do, rather than being an isolated naming exercise.

Firefighter play brought smaller movements into the picture. Children explored protective clothing and firefighting equipment, then used pretend hoses and extinguishers in an imaginary emergency. Finger movements were part of the activity. Dressing up also gave children an opportunity to try managing clothing themselves.

In November 2020, pumpkin exploration combined observation with making. Children investigated the pulp and seeds, examined stems and ribs, and decorated pumpkins by hammering pins and shapes into them. This brought together noticing differences in size and shape, handling materials and practising finger control.

Ten Town adds a named numeracy resource to the early-years learning. Characters and rhymes support recognising numbers and learning how to write them. The examples here connect early learning with movement, language, observation and imaginative play.

Talking about feelings has featured in nursery activities. After watching the CBeebies Poppies animation, children discussed their reactions and made a painted poppy display for the window. Some chose purple poppies to remember animals involved in war. The activity made room for children to express a response through both conversation and painting.

Home learning has also provided a connection with families. Nursery remote learning used The Gingerbread Man as a story theme, with families invited to email completed activities. Ten Town home access was offered to nursery families, with teachers controlling which numbers and activities children could use. That gave adults a way to continue a specific learning activity at home.

Attending Springdale’s nursery does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must apply separately for Reception through the normal admissions process. Treat the nursery choice and the Reception application as two distinct decisions.

A Nursery Application form and 30 Hours Eligibility Forms provide separate starting points for nursery applications and eligibility administration. The school’s telephone number is 01902558810. For current charges, contact the school directly.