Preschool

We would like to welcome you and your child to Pre-School's class page. There will be lots of exciting things being added to the this page throughout the year. We hope your find the information useful. If you have any further questions or queries, please do not hesitate to find one of us as we will be more than happy to assist you with any of your concerns.

Meet our Team

Pre-school Staff (ID 1110)

Miss Bate

Room Leader and Pre-school Teaching Assistant

Miss Bate
Miss Whittaker

Pre-school Teaching Assistant

Miss Whittaker
Miss Tolley

Pre-school Teaching Assistant

Miss Tolley
Mrs Rai

Pre-school teaching Assistant

Mrs Rai

At the start of each session, staff are available at the entrances into school for you to pass on quick messages or ask questions. If you need a more private moment, or need to speak to your child’s key person at length, you are very welcome to make an appointment or email.

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General Information

School times

There are 2 sessions:

Morning session- 8.40am until 11.40am

Afternoon session- 12.25pm until 3.25pm

Absences

If your child is absent please ring the school office to notify them they wont be attending the session and the reason why. The school telephone number is 01922 710874.

Milk and water

All children under the age of 5, are eligible for free fresh, chilled milk through the ‘Walsall Cool milk scheme’. To receive milk at school you need to register with the 'Cool milk' scheme either by post or online at www.coolmilk.com. If your child has special dietary requirements, please to one of the pre-school team so we can order an appropriate alternative.

Your child will also have access to fresh drinking water throughout the session.

You do not need to send your child to pre-school with a water bottle.

Snack Time

Snack time in Pre-school is an opportunity to talk about different fruits and what they look and taste like. It is also a chance to discuss whether they like or dislike the fruits they taste. We want the children to eat a variety of fruits, and they may even get the chance to try a fruit they have never heard of or seen before.

Beacon Academy has a duty of care to ensure they meet the statutory Early Years Nutrition guidance for 0-5 year olds from 1^st September 2025 which outlines healthy snacks, drinks and lunches for children in schools.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-nutrition

We understand that snacks can be an important part of the diet of children and can contribute positively towards a balanced diet. We strongly advise and encourage healthy choices for snacks – Fruit and Vegetables help to give a slow release energy boost to keep children re-fuelled until home time.

Please do not send chocolate, biscuits, sweets or crisps.

Here is a list of snacks you could send into pre-school:

Fruits:

apples
bananas
pears
oranges
grapes
pineapple
strawberries
raspberries
blueberries
melon
cherry tomatoes
kiwi

Vegetables

carrots
cucumber
bell peppers
sugar snap peas
cooked broccoli & cauliflower

Make sure the veggies and fruits you pack are in a named sealed container and pre-chopped and easy to eat.

Comfort items

We understand at this young age, children often have a comfort item such as a blanket, bottle or dummy. We would always aim to make your child's experience at preschool an enjoyable and stress free one and would support parents in sending in comfort items. If any comfort items are sent into preschool please place them in your child bag and if they need it during the session we would give it to your children when needed.

Going to the toilet

Around 2- 3 years of age is when children are becoming physically and emotionally ready to toilet train. Please keep your child's key person informed of your child's toileting progress and we will aim to support them within the setting. In case of an accident, parents are asked to provide a spare pair of pants and trousers, which can be kept in a bag on your child's peg.

Clothing and weather

Pre-school is about active learning and this involves a range of activities both indoors and outdoors. Please ensure your child wears suitable clothes for the various types of play they will be enjoying during the sessions.

We value outdoor play experiences and therefore use our outdoor area in all weathers. During Winter please provide a hat, scarf and gloves for your child to wear when they go outside. In summer please provide a sun hat. We ask parents to take responsibility for applying sun cream to all exposed areas of children's skin before they attend the preschool session.

How to support your child at home

Parent workshops / Play and Stay sessions

We offer 4 session each academic year where you can come into school to support your child’s learning with a specific learning focus. You will get the opportunity to meet with the EY leader who will talk about how to support your child at home and be given a pack of ideas/ resources to use at home. You will then have time to complete some activities with your child, similar to ones we do in school.

Home Learning

Parents participating and actively being involved in early years can have a significant impact on improving children’s learning and supporting their needs. Each week a home learning project will be sent home, we encourage you to do them with your child and return the completed sheet to school.

1000 Stories Project

Every day you can borrow a book to read to your child at bedtime. Having conversations around stories daily is important to your child’s language development. We encourage you to read to your child as much as possible to develop their language and imagination.

Word of the week

Each week there will be a new word added to extend your child’s vocabulary. Encourage your child to say the word and use it in a sentence.

Parents Evening

Each term you can make an appointment to meet with your child’s class teacher to discuss your child’s learning and progress. During this meeting the teacher will talk about what your child can do and how you can support them at home with their learning.