Young pupils love investigating, creating and building so at Ballard we feed their innate passion for STEM with plenty of opportunities and equipment to do just that.
Whether it is a giant Lego fort or using our outdoor building blocks, our pupils work independently and together to build.
Ballard Nursery pupils are also very curious; planting the first seeds of scientific investigation and asking why and how? This has been very apparent whilst at Forest School, where they love getting involved with the natural world.
They are also very at home using their computers, which have extra-large buttons for small fingers.
ICT & Computing
Ballard Nursery and Kindergarten pupils have a chance to get involved with Computer Science. We have bespoke early years’ computers with chunky colour-coded buttons on a large keyboard which are easy for even the smallest of fingers to use.
They love playing educational games and embrace the technology with such ease, putting some of us to shame with their ability to pick things up so quickly.
Mathematics
At Ballard we believe in introducing Mathematics as early as possible and we understand that the way to build our pupils’ skills at this age is to capture their imagination and let them explore and practice.
Opportunities to count and make shapes are all around us: whether it is counting wooden building bricks or parking the correct number of cars on the numbers mat for our garage, we make it as interesting as possible.
At Ballard, we believe in using our pupils’ innate passion for Dance, Music, Art and Drama to develop key skills including confidence, team work and controlled movement. Our Nursery and Kindergarten pupils have a wealth of opportunities in the Arts including access to our Dance studio and Performing Arts Centre.
This year pupils performed in both the nativity and our ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ with a wonderful Teddy Bears Picnic dance, choreographed and led by our Dance teacher.
In the Early Years, Ballard pupils are taught by fully qualified PE staff using specialist equipment. We focus on fitness, gymnastics and core skills. Movement is such a key area at this stage as it enhances both gross mechanical movement and finer motor skills, which are essential to child development.
We therefore spend a large proportion of time working as a group and individually to ensure that the correct foundations are laid for all future sports – especially catching and running, which many children find tricky.
One child who had poor co-ordination in Kindergarten is now in the Year 4 hockey team – so it is worth starting early.
Life is full of fun, curiosity and learning. Our family ethos, alongside the passionate and caring staff, give pupils the courage to be independent and try new things, which is so essential to their development. Whether reading their favourite book or writing their name on the outside chalk board, Ballard pupils are keen to learn.
There are many indoor and outdoor opportunities for pupils at Ballard and they thrive on the variety. We have extensive facilities that enable us to offer wonderful, diverse educational opportunities. They love exploring the grounds and regularly hunt for insects and flowers. Forest School is particularly popular with even the smallest child getting ‘stuck in’ by creating their own bird feeders containing a tasty seed mix treat for our garden friends or making a den.
Our youngest children cook every Friday, taking home a variety of culinary creations from cupcakes to healthy fruit salad (where they partake in carefully cutting all the ingredients). The children really enjoy cooking and often try it at home. Some even proudly brought in their own home-made cakes for our recent Oakhaven Hospice fundraising afternoon, where we raised over £500 for this worthy local charity.
