St. Ives Primary
& Nursery School
A National Teaching School
Sandy Lane
St. Ives
Ringwood
BH24 2LE
Telephone: 01425 475478
Nursery Environment
At our nursery, we believe that every child learns best when they are engaged in a well-designed environment that encourages exploration, creativity, and social interaction. Our learning spaces are thoughtfully structured to support the development of a wide range of skills, fostering curiosity and a love for learning.
As you step into our nursery building, there is a small cloakroom with child sized pegs for children to hang their belongings. The nursery building consists of two rooms with toilets in the middle and a large outside area.
Inside the nursery building, our first room allows for a large role play area. In this area, children can pretend to be anyone they want—whether it's a doctor, chef, or shopkeeper. Role-play promotes social interaction and helps children develop a sense of empathy as they imagine different perspectives. It also encourages communication skills as they interact with peers. The space is regularly adapting, enhanced and changed in line with our current themes and the children’s interests. The children love to be involved with creating the space and often make signs and props to enhance the area.
In our Creative Area, children are encouraged to explore their imagination and engage in free artistic expression. The space is stocked with various materials, including paints, playdough, fabric, scissors, and other craft supplies, to inspire creativity. Whether they're painting, sculpting, or building, this area supports cognitive development and the understanding of form, texture, and colour.
There is also a teaching area for adult led learning times where our nursery teacher delivers early reading/ phonic and maths inputs throughout the day for our pre-school aged children. In preparation for school, they use the same routines and resources as Reception such as a visual timetable.
In our second room of our nursery building, there is a warm reading area. This cozy space provides a calm environment where children can enjoy books, listen to stories, and reflect quietly. Reading is essential for language development, and our collection of age-appropriate books encourages children to explore new concepts, widen their vocabulary, and develop a love for reading.
We also have a mark making area which is designed to encourage children to explore writing, drawing, and various forms of creative expression. Here, children engage with a variety of tools, such as crayons, markers, paintbrushes, and chalk, to make marks on paper, boards, and other surfaces. This area provides an introduction to early writing skills and the basics of forming letters and shapes.
On our large carpet area we provide space for construction and small world. This provides children with various building materials such as blocks, large bricks, and construction sets. This hands-on space allows children to experiment with creating structures, from simple towers to more complex designs. As they play, they begin to understand concepts such as balance, symmetry, and engineering principles, which help them develop critical thinking and spatial reasoning skills.
As you step outside, we have a large outdoor area which can be separated into two sections. The outdoor environment at our nursery is an essential part of children's learning journey. It provides a vibrant space where they can develop physically, socially, and cognitively through hands-on experiences. By engaging with nature and open-ended activities, children not only learn vital life skills but also grow in confidence and independence.
The mud kitchen is a fun, messy, and sensory-rich area where children can engage in imaginative play, creating pretend meals and concoctions. Using natural resources like soil, leaves, water, and sticks, children are able to explore textures, temperatures, and the properties of different materials. This encourages cooperative play and role-taking, as they work together to “cook” and “serve” their creations.
The water tray offers endless opportunities for scientific exploration. Children can pour, splash, and experiment with water in different ways, such as floating objects, mixing colours, or measuring quantities. This space provides a hands-on approach to learning about liquid properties, volume, and flow, while also building fine motor skills through pouring, scooping, and handling small tools.
Our climbing equipment is designed to help children develop strength, coordination, and balance. From climbing nets, tunnels and slides, these physical activities help children refine their gross motor skills. They also learn to assess risks and challenge themselves as they overcome obstacles in a safe environment.
Our large construction area is stocked with a variety of materials such as large blocks, crates, wooden planks, and other building resources. Here, children can create their own structures, bridges, or even outdoor obstacle courses. Through these hands-on activities, children explore concepts of balance, structure, and engineering, all while developing teamwork and cooperative play.
The sand pit offers a multi-sensory experience that encourages children to explore textures and engage in creative play. Children can dig, build, sift, and shape the sand, developing fine motor skills and learning about the properties of different materials. The sand pit is also a social space where children collaborate on group projects, such as building castles or digging tunnels
Each of these areas in our nursery is designed to be a safe, nurturing space where children can freely explore, learn, and grow. We recognize that every child is unique and may have different interests or strengths, so we provide a balanced environment that supports individual growth while encouraging collaboration with others. We enhance the environment each day with different resources linked to our current theme or the children’s interests and next step targets. Although we have key areas of our nursery, we believe that learning is not confined to specific areas; it should be a natural, continuous part of a child’s day. Key skills like Maths, Reading, and Writing are seamlessly integrated into every part of the environment, allowing children to access these vital learning opportunities in a variety of fun and meaningful contexts.Through play, exploration, and structured activities, children not only learn valuable skills but also develop a sense of independence, confidence, and resilience. We are dedicated to ensuring that every child’s experience at our nursery is rich in opportunities for growth, both academically and emotionally.