Facilities
Kings Castle is situated in the Tuckton area of Bournemouth and so is ideal for children coming from Littledown, Southbourne, Christchurch, Boscombe and surrounding areas.
The nursery is arranged in 3 areas according to the age of the children. This allows us to offer different classroom areas for different age groups so that each child has the best activities, toys and facilities for their age group and their development. All the nursery rooms are bright and spacious!
Our playground and indoor areas have been designed to offer different learning zones. Our facilities are very flexible so that we provide new and fresh activities on a regular basis to reflect the seasons, local and world events and the children’s interests.
The nursery has 3 distinct areas each named after a Dorset Castle: Highcliffe, Christchurch and Lulworth.
- Highcliffe is for babies aged approximately 3 months to 2 years.
- Christchurch is for toddlers aged approximately 2 to 3 years.
- Lulworth is for children aged approximately 3 to 5 years.
Each child is assessed individually before moving to the next area and the ages above are only a general guideline. Some children may move earlier and some may move later. Many ‘room moves’ also take place during the summer when our older children leave for primary school. Children who are almost ready to “move up” will be gently introduced to the ‘next room’ and will have some weeks when they spend some sessions in their current room and have some introductory sessions in the next room. For some activities, we may mix children of different rooms and different ages. For example, some of our older children love reading to the younger children and many of our younger children enjoy spending time with the ‘big children.’
Highcliffe Baby Unit (for children aged approximately 3 months to 2 years)
The baby unit has been specially designed for our youngest children to give a feeling of warmth and security combined with a selection of carefully chosen toys and activities. The main baby room is homely and carpeted but also has a wet area for messy play, arts & crafts and snacks. There is a separate Montessori room where the babies are introduced to Montessori activities including Practical Life activities. Sleep routines are very important for babies and we have a separate sleep room. The baby unit is calm and cosy yet full of new toys and activities to discover and explore.
Christchurch Toddler Room (for children aged approximately 2-3 years)
This is a warm, inviting space with 2 main classroom areas, a separate sleep room and a separate nappy changing area. The main classroom is divided into several activity areas including a cosy book corner, maths and language areas, cookery corner and an art area. There is plenty of space for music and movement and physical activities. A wide range of Montessori activities help the children to develop their concentration and cognitive skills. The children in Christchurch have their own covered outdoor space with outdoor learning activities and they also have access to the main garden at playtimes.
Lulworth Montessori pre-school (for children aged approximately 3– 5 years)
By this age, our children are following the full Montessori curriculum and we offer separate classrooms or learning areas for the main areas of the Montessori Curriculum including practical life, maths, language and literacy, sensorial, culture and art.
The ground floor of Lulworth has a large Practical Life room with practical life, cultural and art activities while the Green Room provides a full range of maths, language and sensorial activities. Older children use the upstairs classrooms provide a full range of extended Montessori activities and school-readiness activities to help children prepare for their transition to Reception.
‘School readiness’ activities include learning to get changed (mastering buttons, shoes, zips, etc), having taster PE lessons, lots more activities using numbers, letters and practical life and a few more activities which involve ‘sitting still’!
We do not generally try and teach the children to ‘read and write’ but if your child is showing interest in reading and writing, we have lots of suitable activities in Lulworth to encourage this and to ensure that they have a fun and positive start to reading and writing.
In all areas of the nursery, the activities available are changed periodically to provide fresh experiences and challenges for the children.
The nursery garden
We encourage our children to spend as much time as possible outside in the fresh air and we foster a love of outdoor exploration and fun. Our fully-enclosed garden gives children plenty of space to run around as well as offering educational activities. There is a covered area to allow outside activities in the winter too. In addition to the main garden, the babies and toddlers have their own covered outdoor area just outside the Christchurch classroom.
Kings Castle outdoor facilites:
- Our famous ‘Kings Castle’ – perfect for climbing and role-play.
- Wooden playhouse – perfect for story-telling, chatting to friends and reading and writing.
- Covered outside classroom – for structured learning activities
- A large digging pit – great for getting mucky and bug-hunts
- Planting area – great for budding gardeners
- Bug hotel and lots of outdoor games including balls, hoops, balance beam, etc.
- Mini climbing wall and mini assault course
Typical outdoor activities can include:
- Climbing wall
- Water play
- Outdoor arts and crafts
- Climbing and balancing challenges (e.g. balance beams, mini climbing wall and assault course)
- Den-building
- Bugs and mud
- Balls and bouncing
- Sand table
- Gardening
- Garden games
- Outdoor theatre
- Chalk wall
- Outdoor snacks
- Weather station
Our playground and outdoor activities change with the seasons and with current topics and events to ensure a world of discovery and exploration.
