First Class Newsletter – April 2026 

First Class Nursery Newsletter

Welcome back! We hope you all had a wonderful and restful Easter break, filled with special moments, family time, and lots of fun. It’s lovely to see all our children returning with big smiles, ready for a new term of learning, exploring, and growing. We have an exciting few weeks ahead with lots of engaging activities, new experiences, and opportunities for the children to develop their skills—so we’re looking forward to another fantastic term together!

Fees Update

Please be advised that nursery fees increased from April in line with rising operational costs to ensure we can continue to provide high-quality care, learning opportunities and resources for all children. We also want to remind parents that we no longer offer discounted fees for holidays or absences. As places are booked and contracted for your child’s agreed attendance days, full fees will apply regardless of any holidays taken or occasional days missed. We appreciate your understanding and continued support.

Dates for the Diary

• Monday 4th May – Early May Bank Holiday (Nursery Closed) 
• Monday 25th May – Spring Bank Holiday (Nursery closed)
• Monday 25th May – Friday 29th May – (May Half Term – No funding sessions) 
• Thursday 9th July – Pre-school Leavers Graduation Day 
• Friday 17th July – Funding session break up for summer holidays 
• Monday 31st August – Summer Bank Holiday (Nursery Closed) 
• Friday 4th September – Staff Training Day (Nursery Closed) 

🗣️ 5 Words a Week

Each week, we focus on five key words to support children’s language, communication, and understanding of our nursery themes.

• On display outside each room – so children can see and use them all day
  • Shared on Famly each week – so you can explore the words at home too
  • Fun at home – try using the words in conversation, play, or stories

Weekly Words 

13th April & 20th April – Light | Water | Early | Under | Warm

27th April & 4th May – Furry | Dots | Spots | Soft | Smallest | Fattest 

11th May – Happy | Kind | Sad | Unkind | Together

18th May – Round | Yellow | Black | Oval | Stripes

25th May – Large | Rough | Heavier | Old | New 

🌸 Our Learning Themes This Half Term

This half term, children across the nursery will be exploring a range of exciting themes that support their confidence, curiosity and overall development. 

Across the nursery, our themes include:

Planting & Germination – exploring how things grow, planting seeds and caring for plants.
Animals & Life Cycles – learning about different animals and how they grow and change over time, including the bean life cycle.
Pets – talking about our own pets and how to care for animals.
Mental Health Awareness – supporting children to understand their feelings, build confidence and develop positive relationships.
The Sea & Ocean Animals – discovering underwater life and learning about different sea creatures.
Bees & Pollination – understanding the role of bees in nature and how they help plants grow.
Recycling & Sustainability – learning how to look after our environment and the importance of reducing waste.
ICT – using age-appropriate technology to support learning, creativity and communication.
Healthy Body, Happy Me – promoting healthy eating, exercise, self-care and overall wellbeing.

All learning is delivered through play, stories, songs and hands-on experiences, with activities carefully differentiated to meet the needs of both our Under 3’s and Over 3’s.

👶 Baby Room

🌟 Our Learning & Activities This Half Term

In the Baby Room, we will be bringing our nursery themes to life through sensory play, calming experiences and lots of hands-on exploration, all carefully adapted to support our youngest children.

🌿 Mental Health & Emotional Wellbeing
We will be focusing on calm and nurturing activities to support emotional development, including sensory exploration, soothing experiences, self-care routines and opportunities for children to begin recognising different emotions in a gentle and supportive way.

🌊 The Sea & Ocean Animals
Babies will explore ocean-themed activities through ice play, foam play and sensory trays, encouraging curiosity, movement and early language development. We will also be introducing Makaton animal signs to support communication and understanding.

🌱 Family Learning Event

On Thursday 23rd April, 10–11am, we warmly invite parents and grandparents to join us for a planting seeds session, supporting children to explore growth, nature and early science through shared experiences.

Please refer to the Famly newsfeed for full details and kindly complete the poll if your child attends on this day, so we can plan accordingly.

🏡 Home Learning

We would love for families to go on a nature walk together and see if you can find any flowers or plants. Please take photos and upload them onto the Famly app so the children can share and talk about their discoveries with their friends at nursery.

📌 A Gentle Reminder for Parents:

Please can we kindly remind all parents to:

• Ensure your child brings a named bottle for water each day 💧 
• Provide appropriate shoes for walkers to support independence and outdoor learning 👟 
• Regularly check Famly notes/messages/Newsfeed for important updates and information 📱 

Thank you for your continued support and cooperation. 

🐝 Bumblebee Room

🌟 Our Learning & Activities This Half Term
In the Bumblebee Room, we will be supporting children’s learning through fun, engaging and hands-on experiences that promote independence, communication, wellbeing and curiosity about the world around us. Our activities will be carefully planned to reflect our nursery themes and the children’s interests.

🧘 Yoga & Wellbeing
Children will be introduced to simple yoga movements to support balance, coordination, relaxation and emotional wellbeing. These calming sessions help children to develop body awareness and self-regulation in a fun and gentle way.

🍎 Good Food & Bad Food / Healthy Eating
We will be exploring healthy eating through discussions and activities around “good foods and sometimes foods”, helping children to understand how food supports a healthy body and happy mind.

🍓 Fruit Kebabs & Food Preparation
Children will take part in simple food preparation activities, such as making fruit kebabs, supporting fine motor skills, independence and healthy choices.

📚 Book of the Week – The Snail and the Whale
We will be focusing on the story The Snail and the Whale, using it to inspire language development, storytelling, imagination and creative activities.

📚 Book of the Week – How It Works: Recycling Truck
Children will be exploring our Book of the Week, How It Works: Recycling Truck, which helps us learn all about recycling and how rubbish is collected, sorted and reused. Through stories, discussions and hands-on activities, the children will begin to understand how recycling trucks work and why it is important to look after our environment, supporting their awareness of sustainability in a fun and engaging way.

🐾 Animals & Observation Learning
We will be observing and learning about animals, including Rachel’s pets, helping children to develop curiosity, care and understanding of living things, with a focus on snails and whales linked to our story theme.

🚶‍🌳 Planned Trips & Experiences
Throughout the term, children will enjoy a variety of exciting experiences including:

• Walking to the park to explore nature and develop physical skills 
• Visiting the garden centre (travelling by bus both ways – a spontaneous learning experience) 
• Walking to the local market to buy seasonal spring/summer fruit and vegetables 
• Visiting the vets at Pets at Home to learn about caring for animals 

📌 Messages & Reminders for Parents:

Please can we kindly remind all parents to:
• Ensure your child brings at least 3–4 full changes of clothes, including socks
• Provide a named water bottle if not already in nursery
• Bring in a family photo for our nursery family board
• Regularly check Famly for updates, messages and newsfeed information 

Thank you for your continued support and cooperation. 🌼

Pre-School Room (3 – 4 Year olds) 

In Pre-School, we will be bringing our nursery themes to life through engaging, hands-on activities that support children’s independence, curiosity and deeper understanding.

Our activities will include:
🌱 Planting & Growing – planting seeds from fruits such as papaya, watermelon, mango, apple and lemon, and observing how they grow over time.
🌿 Life Cycles – exploring the bean life cycle through real planting and learning about insects such as ladybirds and how they change.
🐞 Animals & Minibeasts – learning about creatures like ladybirds through discussions, play and observations.
🧘‍♀️ Healthy Body, Happy Me – taking part in simple yoga sessions to support physical development, focus and wellbeing.
💛 Mental Health Awareness – using activities such as the Colour Monster to help children understand and talk about their feelings.
🌊 Caring for Our World – learning about recycling and how we can help prevent sea pollution through discussions and activities.
💻 ICT – using age-appropriate technology to support learning, research and creativity.

All learning will be delivered through a balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities, encouraging children to explore, question and develop key skills in a fun and meaningful way.

🌍 Activities & Experiences Planned

To enhance our learning, children will take part in a range of real-life experiences and outings within the local community. These include:
• Trip to the park to explore nature and the outdoor environment
• Visit to a church to learn about different places in our community
• Trip to a garden centre to explore plants, flowers and growing
• Visit to a community garden to see what is growing and how it is cared for

These experiences will help children make meaningful connections to their learning, develop confidence and build an understanding of the world around them.

“Thank you for all your support at home and at nursery. 

We look forward to sharing the children’s learning, celebrations, and achievements with you over the coming weeks”

Reminders

✔ Running Late? Call ahead to avoid late collection fees (£10 for the first 15 minutes, then £1 per minute).
✔ No Toys from Home: To prevent loss or distraction, children should not bring personal toys.
✔ Sickness: Please ring the nursery on each day your child is unwell to inform us and also update on Famly.

Funding & Childcare Updates

• 30 Hours Funding Deadline: Apply by 22nd May 2026 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

📍 First Class Childcare Huddersfield

📞 01484 950746

📱 07526932683

📧 firstclasshuddersfield@gmail.com

📍 Address: 16a Portland Street, HD1 5PB

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Thank you for being part of the First Class family! We appreciate your support and look forward to another fantastic half term of learning and fun! 🎉