We have had a fantastic start to the autumn term at RTG! Everyone has been very pleased to be back in their special place with friends old and new. A huge welcome to Darragh, Essam, Rithanya, Benjamin, Pepper, Theo and Olivia who have settled very well into life at RTG.

We have a very exciting new water run in our garden so are expecting a few wet changes as children explore this. A huge thank you to Ava's Mummy and Daddy for building it for us. We used some of our fundraising money from last year's sponsored event to buy it, thank you all to those of you who took part and helped us to raise money for RTG and an orphanage in Thailand.

We have lots of 3rd and 4th Birthdays to celebrate each year. For their birthdays, children can bring in a wrapped book to open with their friends. This can be a donation to our lending library, new or old. Write their name and birthday inside the cover so that it can be treasured!

We love our snack times every day at RTG, They are a great time to chat and make friends as we enjoy fruits and snacks together at a table. Your children love to help to prepare the fruit and build independence skills in serving themselves and clearing away too.
We are very grateful for regular donations of whole or packaged fruits that can be prepared at nursery, as well as breadsticks, crackers and biscuits to share. Please place any snack donations on our trolley in the morning and ensure children do not have any snacks in their bags.

This year, please do not bring any cantaloupe melons for a snack donation due to allergies. Thank you.

Our Lunch Club children enjoy eating lunch together at the tables with their teachers before an afternoon of playing and learning. Please ensure children bring a lunch to nursery with healthy options and either an ice pack to keep cool or a thermos to keep warm. We cannot reheat food or store lunches in our fridge.

Please check that any choking hazards are prepared correctly ready for them to eat. Here is some information on choking hazards: https://www.foundationyears.org.uk/files/2021/09/Early-Years-Choking-Hazards-Table_FINAL_21-Sept-2021.pdf 

We are a Nut Free setting. Please check the ingredients you are using to help to keep everyone safe.
We promote healthy eating at nursery. Check out our healthy lunch box suggestions and healthy swaps in the home learning section on Tapestry.

Our Lunch Clubbers have visited the market and Rosebery park so far this term. We had a great time on our trip to the market looking at the flowers and choosing some fruit to share. We were very lucky to have seen a live busker who sang ‘Let it go’ for us too.

We were all rather concerned as to where the ducks and frogs that live in Rosebery pond are at the moment when we saw that there was no water in the pond. We will be going back to check on that soon and of course to collect some conkers for our friends.

We have plans to do some baking so there will be some yummy treats coming home soon. If you like to bake or have a special recipe to share, do let me know if you’d like to come into RTG and cook with us one morning or afternoon. We have a brilliant kitchen that we love to cook together in.

Our curriculum at RTG is child led, meaning that we follow children’s interests and plan our provision and activities based on curiosity. Our teachers work hard to introduce new ideas as well as expanding children’s current experiences to help to develop children’s knowledge and understanding of the world. We believe children learn best through first hand experiences and by getting to know children very well we are proud to able to provide a provision that builds curiosity and a love of learning.

We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage which is embedded into our unique curriculum at RTG, which is available to view on our website. Our Little Bears adult led group times focus on building skills in the prime areas and our Big Bears develop their skills in all seven areas in preparation for transitions to school. Check out your child’s Tapestry account to see observations and lovely moments from nursery where we ensure that the areas of learning are all covered through play. You can read the Early Years Foundation Stage for 0-5s here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6a5f8e4fb00f3323bf1a23a1/EYFS_group_and_school_based_from_September_2026.pdf 

Mr Morris joins us each week with his Keyboard for music and movement sessions. We love singing along to his songs and joining in with actions. We do such great wobbling to his original jellyfish song!

Each morning, children can choose to join Dance Club. The dance moves get better every year! Check them out on Tapestry. We even have a moonwalker this year!

Tapestry is an invaluable resource to support nursery and home partnership to further enhance children’s learning. We use ChatterPictures to share children’s experiences to build on a range of skills including confidence, social skills and building relationships with peers. Please do add ChatterPictures for your children to share in groups with friends.
ChatterPictures are pictures with a few descriptive notes added from home. This could be a trip to the park, special events or pictures of your child’s favourite toys. Children are given the opportunity to share these within small groups on our nursery iPads with a teacher.

💜Epsom Methodist Church Family Centre update💜

Parent Focus Group
We started EMC Family Centre to support local families to improve outcomes for children. We aim to respond to emerging needs and challenges facing families. We need new parents to join our focus group to meet over a coffee to discuss what more we could do to support children and families. If you would like to join a focus group, please email me.

Warm Wednesdays
From 4th November- 17th from 9am – 6pm we will run a free warm hub for the whole community. This will be the fifth year of Warm Wednesdays and it really has a wonderful community feel which we are all very proud of.
It is free to attend and everyone is welcome.
10am-2pm – Free hot drinks, volunteers to talk to and support with energy and debt advice.
12pm-1pm – Free hot soup and a roll for lunch
3.30pm-6pm- Free family after school club with crafts, games, stories and ping pong. Dinner is freshly cooked onsite at 5pm and home made cakes are served for pudding

New this year: 10am- 1pm drop in parenting support. Come in and speak to Miss Golding for support on all things parenting and child development related.

You are also able to access advice on energy and budgeting.

Warm Wednesdays wouldn’t be possible without the support of wonderful volunteers. If you are able to spare a few hours a month to help prepare or serve drinks and meals, to help with children’s crafts and activities or to bake cakes to share please let me know.

Play groups
Did you know that EMC run two stay and play groups each week during term time?

Little Monkeys 0-5 Stay and Play is on every Tuesday from 10-11.30am. It is £2 per family.

Friday for Families 0-5 Stay and Play is on every Friday morning from 10am-11.30am

Baby Clinic and Health Team Collaborative Working
Every Monday from 9.30-11am, our local NHS Health Visiting team host a baby clinic at Epsom Methodist Church Family Centre. The clinic is run as a drop in, you do not require an appointment to attend. The clinic is aimed to support parents and carers with infants 0-2 years.

Baby Massage
Each term, we run a 5 week baby massage course for parents with infants under 9months. If you are interested in joining a course, let Miss Golding or your Health Visitor know.

October Half Term
Special Event- Save the date
On Wednesday 28th October we have a very exciting event for children and families.
Little City are joining us to create a wonderful world of role play. Tickets are £5 per child for a session which includes a themed lunch. Tickets go on sale soon and will be offered to RTG families via our WhatsApp group before they go on sale to the wider community.

If you are experiencing any financial difficulties or need support with parenting, please do reach out to us for support.

Dates for your Diary:

October Half Term
Just a reminder that we are closed for 2 weeks this October half term. Our last day will be on Friday 16th October and we return on Monday 2nd November ready to celebrate Diwali, Bonfire night, remembrance and of course start our sparkly Christmas activities.

Parent Teacher Meetings
From 16th-27th November you will be invited to come into nursery to meet with your child's Key Person to discuss your child's development and next steps for learning. You will be able to book a slot from 1st October via a booking form sent to the WhatsApp group and Tapestry.

Ready Teddy Go Nativity 2026
How exciting!
On Tuesday 15th December our Big and Little Bears will all take part in our Nativity in the church from 10-11am. We provide costumes for children. Roles will be posted on Tapestry after half term. We will also ask you to confirm who is attending to watch the show via email nearer the time.

Christmas Party
Our last session of 2026 is from 9.15am-12.15 pm on Friday 18th December.
We will be holding our annual Christmas party with a visit from a very special guest from The North Pole. Parents, carers and younger siblings are invited to join us from 11.30am on the day. Alana will add £5 to all Autumn 2 invoices for the party costs.

Nativity Festival
Save the Date- Tuesday 22nd December Nativity Festival with crafts, delicious treats and visitors from the stable at Epsom Methodist Church.

Our term dates are available to view on the memos section on Tapestry.

Thank you to our mystery shoppers who sent lovely resources for the children to use at the start of this term. We love the coffee machine and the new scoops are getting a lot of use in our autumn sensory tray! We are looking forward to using the new sand and water trays soon. Here is our Amazon wishlist, it is updated each term: https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/2RTDT0D1UBHQD?ref_=wl_share 

That's all for now,
Miss Golding