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A Brilliant First Half Term!
- holidayclub0
- Nov 3, 2025
- 5 min read
Breakfast and Afterschool Club
What a brilliant start to the year our breakfast and afterschool children have had. We are so pleased with how our new children have settled in and embraced all that we have to offer. I thought I would start by giving you a little run down of our routines.
In breakfast club the children are welcomed in and then are offered breakfast, which includes a selection of cereals or toast. They then go off to play and have access to both indoor and outdoor facilities before being taken round to school at 8.45.
For afterschool club we will meet the children at school and line up next to the library ready for walking back to Hollies. Upon arrival the children put all their belongings on their peg and sit down for snack, this includes; fruit, yogurt and then a tray with a mixture of other foods. The tray will always have cheese, vegetables and crackers available and we rotate a more filling option as well which could be toast, crumpets, wraps, sandwiches, bagels, etc. After snack the children will then go off to play. We aim to have an activity planned each day for the children to join in with and toys available to play with both inside and out.
Our junk modelling box is always very popular and the children love making lots of different creations and inventions to bring home and show you. They love crafting at the end of a school day and the older children are brilliant at helping the younger ones too!
The children have enjoyed exploring our different home corners, we have had a doctors, a cafe and a shop with lots of different outfits for the children to try on and play in, they have some brilliant imaginations!
We have also been playing lots outside, in the sand, on the ride ons and with lots of other toys, it's always very exciting when the daylight fades and we can get the torches out and go exploring outside.
There has been some amazing towers that have been built, some of which have actually been taller than the children.
Pre-School
What have we been up to...
Our Pre-School adventures have begun and what fun they have been. We have welcomed in lots of new faces and enjoyed the return of many others. With the help of the children who came to us last year our new children have settled into the Hollies brilliantly and we are so proud of them. Over the last half term we have been really focusing on helping our children settle and get used to our rules, routines and (most importantly) our smiley faces. Building up relationships with the children is such a key part of making sure they thrive and develop in a safe and happy setting. Throughout the day the children have many different activities and resources available to help support them.
Each day we welcome the children in with a big hug and a smile before heading to circle at around 9.10. Our younger and older children are split into two separate circles to help us meet their needs and plan a circle that they will most benefit them. During this circle we will say good morning to each other and sing our good morning song ready to start the day. After circle we then have free play during which time the children have access to both inside and outside areas, with lots of different resources and toys out for them to play with. We have a rolling snack during the morning where we offer the children fruit and breadsticks with a drink of milk or water.
At around 11.10 we start to tidy up and then we split the children again ready for circle. After circle we then sit down for lunch and then free play again.
In the afternoon, we have a rolling snack again and then sit down ready for our end of the day circle at around 2.40.
Throughout the day we have different groups and activities available for the children. Our older children will go into focus group, where a group of four/five children will go into badger base to do a more focused activity which will support them in any areas they may need.
The Caterpillar Group is available for our younger cohort of children which gives them the opportunity to be in a smaller area with a member of staff and around four children, allowing us to support them additionally with building their confidence, friendships and giving them a quieter place to build up communication skills.
As we have entered Autumn we have been looking at the changes in our environment and exploring the different materials we might find. There has been different coloured leaves, pinecones, acorns, pumpkins and more in our sensory trough for the children to explore.
We have been looking at the changes in colour of the leaves and how they also change texture once they fall to the ground. Some of the trees have nearly lost all their leaves now and we can see some old bird nests in the branches.
The trough is always a big hit whether inside or out and we love exploring the different sounds and textures. A few things we have had inside are pasta, lentils, water and the kinetic sand which was very interesting to play with.
The tents came out to play and off on a camping adventure we went, we made our own fires and even toasted some (pretend) marshmallows. The children enjoyed telling us and reading stories around the fire and also doing some great balancing on the logs.
We have been exploring lots of mark-making, using chalk, paints, pencils and felt tips, both inside and out to see what different things we can create. The children really enjoy creating things from the junk modelling box and using the scissors to cut out and stick their inventions together.
What is coming up...
There is lots of exciting things coming up for the children over the next half term, with the arrival of Christmas we will be having our Hollies nativity which parents/family are invited to attend and watch. We will also be having a Christmas party for our children both in Pre-School and Afterschool to help celebrate the end of the year. Dates for these will be sent out shortly.
Useful Information for you...
We have a page on our website which has some really useful information on for you to have a look at regarding a big range of topics. This includes things such as how to chop your child's food safely, how to support children with toilet training and other useful tips. There is also links to some really informative websites that have some great advice on. Please click on the link below and it will direct you there.
If ever there is something you are unsure about or would like a bit of advice on then please ask a member of staff, we are always happy to help or even just to listen if needed.
Our Favourite Stories...
We absolutely love a story at Hollies and more often than not you can find a group of children with an adult reading one.
A favourite so far have been 'We're going on a bear hunt', especially with our story sack that the children can shake to help the story along.
We also love listening to our CD stories, 'Up, Up, Up' and 'Walking through the jungle' are some of our most popular.
Here is the link if you would like to listen with your children at home, barefoot books does some really lovely stories that we love to sing and dance along to.
Thank you for reading our blog, I hope you enjoyed it. If there is anything more you would like to see on it then please do let us know.
We hope you all have a lovely few weeks 😊.
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