Birkbees Nursery Newsletter – Summer Term Two
As we approach the end of another wonderful year at Birkbees Nursery, we want to extend a huge thank you to all our families for your ongoing support and partnership. It’s been amazing to watch our little learners grow, explore, and achieve so much — especially our pre-school children who are now getting ready for their exciting next step: starting school! We wish them all the very best on their new adventure.
We’re excited to welcome a new member to our team – Shannon! She brings with her valuable early years’ experience and is currently working in the Bumblebee Room. Shannon works with us all year round, doing three full days a week. The children have already enjoyed getting to know her, and she’s quickly become a lovely part of our nursery family!
We’re also thrilled to welcome Becca, who has joined us from our sister nursery, Nursery Rhymes, as the new Senior in Bumblebees. She’ll be working part-time during the holidays and full-time during term time, and the children are already enjoying getting to know her!
Please remember that funded sessions will finish for the summer on Friday 18th July and will resume on Monday 8th September. We hope you all have a wonderful, restful summer break filled with sunshine, laughter, and special family moments.
Thank you for your continued support throughout the year — we look forward to seeing you and your children back refreshed and ready for new adventures in September!
Honeybees (Baby Room)
Theme: Summer Fun & Learning! 🌞
Over the summer, our Honeybees will be enjoying lots of summer-themed activities to support their learning through play, sunshine, and exploration. We’ll be making the most of the warm weather with water play, sensory trays, and outdoor fun to help develop physical skills and independence.
Home Learning for Honeybees:
To continue learning at home, we encourage families to focus on:
✂️ Fine Motor Skills – Try activities like finger painting, tearing paper, scooping and pouring, or using chunky crayons to help strengthen little hands.
📸 Holiday Adventures – If you go on any family trips or days out, please share photos with us so your child can talk about their special memories with their friends!
📸 Don’t forget to send us your travel pictures – we’ll share them at nursery with your child and use them to encourage vocabulary and recognition.
📧 Email your pictures to birkbeesdaycare@gmail.com or you could add them to parent zone.
Upcoming Family Learning Events for Honeybees:
📅 Thursday 17th July, 1:30 – 2:15pm – Beach Theme Activities/Outdoors
Join us to enjoy summer vibes with sand, water, and sunshine fun!
📅 Tuesday 19th August – 10 – 11am – Summer fun messy activities
Come along and join us for a morning full of colourful, creative, and messy fun! Explore through senses and enjoy the freedom of messy play in a fun, summer-themed setting. Together, we’ll be getting stuck into activities such as:
🌈 Paint splashing and sponge printing
🍓 Fruit and jelly play
🫧 Foam and bubble trays
🏖 Sand and water exploration
🍦 Ice cream dough and scented playdough fun
Messy play helps develop fine motor skills, imagination, and sensory awareness—and best of all, it’s lots of fun!
👕 Please dress your child (and yourself!) in clothes you don’t mind getting messy.
Bumblebees
Theme: Growing, Learning & Imagining! 📚🐝
Our Bumblebees have been busy learning all about the life cycle of a plant. The children have taken part in hands-on activities to explore each stage – from tiny seeds to blooming flowers! It’s been wonderful to see their curiosity grow alongside their plants.
🌿 How are your plants growing at home?
We’d love to hear about your child’s planting journey at home – feel free to send in photos or updates!
📧 Email your pictures to birkbeesdaycare@gmail.com or you could add them to parent zone.
Focus for this Term: Group Time & Communication
We’re working on supporting our Bumblebees to:
- Sit and engage during small group times
- Develop attention and listening skills
- Build communication by sharing ideas and talking in small group activities
These group times are a fantastic way to help children grow in confidence and learn from one another.
Home Learning for Bumblebees: Storytelling with Props! 📚🎭
We’d love for you to take part in our home learning challenge this summer:
Can your child create a prop from their favourite book?
This could be a character, an object, or even a small part of the setting. You can use anything you have at home – cardboard, recycled materials, playdough, fabric – be as creative as you like!
🗣️ Once completed, please bring the prop into nursery.
Your child will have the opportunity to re-tell the story during group time, helping them to build confidence, improve their speaking and listening skills, and share their love of books with friends.
This activity is a fantastic way to support your child’s communication and language development, while encouraging imagination and a love for storytelling. We can’t wait to see what you create together!
📸 Also don’t forget to send us your travel pictures – we’ll share them at nursery with your child and use them to encourage vocabulary and recognition.
📧 Email your pictures to birkbeesdaycare@gmail.com or you could add them to parent zone.
Upcoming Family Learning Events for Bumblebees:
📅 Wednesday 6th August – Outdoor Activities – Time to be confirmed
Join us in the fresh air of outdoor fun including water play, movement games, and nature-inspired exploration.
We hope to see you there! Don’t forget to dress for the weather! 🌞🌿
Queen Bees
Theme: “Around the World in Playful Ways”
Our little learners will be exploring exciting themes through music, movement, sensory play, and plenty of imagination.
Here’s what we’ve got coming up this summer:
🎭 Carnival Celebration
We’ll kick-start our summer fun with a vibrant Carnival Week – full of music, dancing, and making our own colourful headbands. Get ready to see some amazing moves and creativity!
✈️ Summer Holiday Theme: “Where in the World?”
Over the holidays, we’ll explore exciting places and talk about:
- Different countries and cultures
- Weather and appropriate clothing
- Transport and travel
- Making our own passports and role playing holiday adventures!
🐮 Yorkshire Day – Thursday 1st August – To celebrate our local culture, we’ll be learning all about Yorkshire farming and farm animals. The children will enjoy a traditional afternoon tea role play in our cosy home corner — complete with teapots, scones, and pretend treats! To make the day even more special, we’ll also be having a Yorkshire-themed meal day, giving the children a chance to try classic local dishes and explore traditional tastes from our region. It’s a lovely opportunity to connect food, culture, and learning in a fun and interactive way!
🌈 Special Days in Queenbees
📅 Tuesday 6th August – National Play Dough Day
Let’s get squishy and creative with shapes, textures and colours using playdough!
📅 Thursday 15th August – National Relaxation Day
Our room will turn into a mini spa for children to role play relaxing treatments – cucumbers and calming music included!
📅 Friday 30th August – Beach Day
We’ll bring the seaside to nursery – paddling, building sandcastles and making our own homemade ice cream!
Home Learning for Queen bees:
We’d love your support with some home activities this summer:
📸 Holiday Photos – Please send in photos from your holidays for your child to share and talk about with friends.
🍦 Play Dough Fun at Home – We’ll send home a simple play dough recipe and instructions to help keep children creative and busy during the holidays.
📝 Individual Home Learning Sheets based on your child’s development will be sent home by their key person.
📸 Don’t forget to send us your travel pictures – we’ll share them at nursery with your child and use them to encourage vocabulary and recognition.
📧 Email your pictures to birkbeesdaycare@gmail.com or you could add them to parent zone.
Upcoming Family Learning Events for Queen bees:
🎨 Friday 25th July – Summer Fun & Crafts (2–3pm)
Join us for a creative afternoon full of summer-themed fun and family time.
🏖️ Tuesday 15th August – Beach Party (10–11am)
Come along for seaside games, paddling fun and lots of smiles!
We hope to see as many of you as possible! 🌟
Parent Notices & Reminders
✔ Running Late? Call ahead to avoid late collection fees (£10 for the first 15 minutes, then £1 per minute).
✔ Breakfast Deadline: Breakfast is served until 8:30 AM only.
✔ No Toys from Home: To prevent loss or distraction, children should not bring personal toys.
✔ Parent Zone: Check your child’s learning journey, bookings, and invoices online.
Funding & Childcare Updates
- 30 Hours Funding Deadline: Apply by 31st August 2025 if your child turns 3 before this date.
- 15 Hours Funding: If your child is aged 2 or 3, they may be eligible for 15 hours of funded childcare per week. Please check your eligibility and apply as soon as possible to secure a place.
- Funding for Babies: Some families may be eligible for funded childcare for babies under 2 years old, depending on their circumstances. Please speak to our team for more information on how to apply.
- More Info: Visit www.childcarechoices.gov.uk for eligibility details.
Contact Information
📍 Birkbees Day Care LTD
📞 01484 453354
📍 Address: 65a Halifax Old Rd, Hillhouse, Huddersfield HD1 6EE
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