Inspection Number: 1112737
| Name of setting: | Hopscotch Pre-School |
| Setting number: | 521444 |
| Address: | United Reform Church Hall |
| Newtown | |
| Uckfield | |
| East Sussex | |
| Postcode: | TN22 5DJ |
| Person responsible for the day-to-day management of the setting: | Denise Emmerson |
| Position: | Supervisor |
| Name of Inspector: | Virginia Harrison |
| RgNI's Registration number: | 25063 |
| Date(s) of inspection: | 27/1/99 and 28/1/99 |
| Inspection number: | 1112737 |
The inspection took place as part of a national programme of inspection of the educational provision for four year olds. It was commissioned by the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), a department of central government.
The purpose of the inspection is to identify strengths and weaknesses so that providers can improve the quality of educational provision and help children to achieve the Desirable Outcomes for children's learning on entering compulsory education, (ie by the age of five). It is also to ensure parents and the public that nursery education funded by the state is of an acceptable quality. The inspection report must be made available to all parents.
If the setting has been inspected previously, an action plan will have been drawn up to tackle issues identified. This inspection, therefore, must also assess what progress has been made in the implementation of this plan.
Hopscotch Pre-School first opened in 1970 in the United Reform church hall in the centre of the small town of Uckfield. The playgroup serves families from Uckfield and its outlying areas. It is run by a committee made up of parents of the children attending the group. There are places for up to 24 children at each session. Children may attend the playgroup from the age of two-and-a-half to four-and-a-half years old. The playgroup currently has 22 children on the register, six of these children are four-year-olds, three of whom are in receipt of funding. At present the children that attend come from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds. There are no funded children with special educational needs, or for whom English is an additional language, currently attending the group. The playgroup is open from 9.30 am to 12.15 pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays for forty weeks a year. An additional session is offered to the four-year-olds from 12.15 pm to 1.30 pm every Monday from January to July. The playgroup intends to offer a fifth session for the four-year-olds in April 1999. The staff of three are qualified in childcare and have undergone further training to update their skills. They are supported each morning by a parent helper. Since the last inspection improvements have been made to the premises and equipment which have created a brighter learning environment.
The strengths and weaknesses of the educational provision provided
Hopscotch Pre-School provides a relaxed and happy environment for learning. Most children are likely to achieve appropriately in the six learning areas by the time they are five years old. However there are some minor weaknesses in the programme for mathematics.In order to improve the quality and standards of the educational provision, the setting should:
Give more emphasis to mathematics in the overall curriculum and in particular plan activities for children to solve simple problems of addition and subtraction in practical ways and increase their chances to recognise and record numbers.The provider must draw up an action plan within 40 working days of receipt of this report showing how the key issues or points for development detailed above will be addressed. The action plan must be made available to all parents, and to the Local Education Authority if required. An evaluation of the action taken will form part of the next inspection.
| Personal and social development | Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Language and literacy | Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Mathematics | Promotes the desirable outcomes: has minor weaknesses |
| Knowledge and understanding of the world | Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Physical development | Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Creative development | Promotes the desirable outcomes |
Taken overall, the quality and standards of the educational provision are acceptable in promoting the desirable outcomes for children's learning. The action plan should show how the provider will address the key issues or points for development within 12 months of the inspection.
It is recommended that the next inspection occurs within two to four years.
The strengths and weaknesses of personal and social development
The programme for children's personal and social development promotes the desirable learning outcomes and has many strengths. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered appropriately. The children's behaviour is very good. Staff use their behaviour policy effectively. They give clear explanations to develop the children's understanding of appropriate behaviour. They promote good manners and consideration for others, such as, asking the children to put up their hands when wishing to contribute during news-time. Awareness of other cultures and their events is appropriately developed. Staff plan interesting activities, such as, examining artefacts related to the Chinese New Year. Staff supplement the good range of multicultural resources with collections of objects which are brought into the group. Expression of children's different feelings is encouraged. They show joy when they guess the puppet correctly, and wonder at the sight of a Chinese black egg. Children learn how to care for living things during their topic on 'Pets' and are encouraged to care for their environment when they tidy up the pre-school's resources carefully. Staff effectively support children as they develop confidence. Many opportunities are provided each session, for example, the children tell their news at news-time, are chosen to hand out snacks at break-time, and go to the front of the group to help with the calendar. Staff encourage the children to work well together in groups. They provide a range of group activities such as news-time, singing and games, and intervene appropriately to promote the children's ability to share and take turns. Suitable activities are provided to develop children's concentration and their ability to work on their own. Children use resources such as the painting easel, puzzles and dressing-up clothes purposefully and without adult help. They are developing skills in personal independence, such as, pouring their own drink and going to the toilet on their own. The wide range of activities planned each session provides children with good opportunities to use their initiative and make choices about what they do. Staff support and encourage this effectively.The strengths and weaknesses of language and literacy
The programme for language and literacy promotes the desirable learning outcomes. Staff use a range of activities regularly and effectively to promote children's ability to listen and talk. They listen and respond to the register, stories, and news-time, every day. Staff use different resources well to encourage listening skills, for example, props are used to tell a story about a farmer and his animals. They use opportunities for discussion well to explain meanings of words such as 'tradition' and to encourage the children to talk about their experiences. There are many good chances for the children to take part in role-play and develop the use of their language and imagination. Staff provide good resources and support the children's initiative well in this area of learning. The children enjoy 'repairing' the climbing frame and 'writing prescriptions' in the 'doctor's surgery'. Good emphasis is given to the children learning to enjoy books and use them correctly. There is a cosy and well-resourced book corner which is used for group stories as well as for sessions where the children can look at books on their own. Books linked to the topic are displayed on the interest table for children to look at themselves. Children are able to take books home to share with their parents, each week. Opportunities for children to recognise letters of the alphabet, their names and some words are good. Staff use resources such as name cards, labels around the room and writing on displays of the children's work. The children learn to recognise their names and the sound of their initial letter each day before break. They can link sounds such as 'Th' for Thursday at registration and in rhymes that they say each day. The children learn how to form letters tracing the shape in the sand and using wet sponge shapes on the blackboard. There are good opportunities for the children to use writing materials. Equipment for writing is supplied at every session. Pens, paper and a typewriter are provided in the role-play areas. Some opportunities are missed for children to write their own name on their work. The separate sessions for four-year-olds include appropriate activities for children to develop these early reading and writing skills.The strengths and weaknesses of mathematics
The programme for mathematics promotes the desirable learning outcomes, but has some minor weaknesses. The children are able to use a range of mathematical language. Staff use the resources well to plan activities for children to learn to describe shape, position, size and quantity. They use a collection of linking elephants of differing sizes and colours for the children to learn about the language of position and size. They link them together to make patterns. They use the electronic toys so that the children can recognise and describe shapes. They effectively promote their ability to sort, match, order and compare, providing practical problems for the children to solve. The children collect leaves and sort them into different sets. As the children build with bricks on the carpet, staff ask questions such as 'Can you make your tower higher?' They provide cooking activities, sand, and water play for the children to estimate, weigh and measure. Staff make good use of many opportunities for the children to develop their counting skills. The children are familiar with number rhymes and board games such as Dominoes. There are some suitable number books in the book corner. The children count each other at registration and break-time each day and count the number of bounces they make on the trampoline. This is effective in developing their counting skills. However, staff miss opportunities to teach the children to recognise numbers. There are insufficient activities for children to learn to record numbers and to use them in practical ways to solve simple problems of addition and subtraction.The strengths and weaknesses of knowledge and understanding of the world
The programme for knowledge and understanding of the world promotes the desirable learning outcomes and has no areas of weakness. Staff use daily activities and planned topic work well for children to talk about their families and events in their lives. The children speak confidently about their news at news-time and talk about their families as they play in the role-play areas. Outings and visitors to the group are used successfully to promote children's awareness of their local environment and some of its features. The children travel on a train, visit a farm and go out on nature walks. Visitors to the group include a fireman and policeman. Staff use resources well to develop children's understanding of the wider world. The children examine and compare objects from different cultures including a Chinese sausage, prawn crackers, chopsticks and a bowl. They are encouraged to observe the weather, noting and recording differences on a weather chart and graph. Although activities are planned for the children to learn about living things, little work is planned for the children to look at patterns. A topic is planned about 'Pets', and animals such as a guinea pig, rabbit and dog are brought into the group. The children make 'bird-cake' and plant seeds such as sunflowers and cress. The children have access to a good range of equipment and materials to develop their ability to use technology, including programmable toys. They are learning how things work and why they happen, as they use the programmable toys and explore features of made objects such as windmills. They regularly use dough and cutters, scissors, glue, tape, paper and recycled materials as well as a good variety of construction toys. Staff use the programmable toys well to support learning in other areas of the curriculum, such as, shape in mathematics.The strengths and weaknesses of physical development
The programme for physical development promotes the desirable learning outcomes and has no areas of weakness. Although there is no outside play space available, staff plan physical activities each day. This effectively promotes the desirable learning outcomes in this area. Staff promote children's confidence and co-ordination in balancing and climbing skills on the large equipment, such as the climbing frame, slide, trampoline and rocker. They learn to throw and catch with balls and beanbags. They promote their imaginative movement and awareness of space in activities using tapes, where children pretend to be bears and also in games such as 'Farmer's in his Den' and 'Ring a Ring of Roses'. Staff plan the use of the small equipment well to develop children's small muscle skills. The children have regular use of tools such as paintbrushes and sponges for painting, equipment at the dough table, toy tool sets and scissors. Staff use opportunities well to increase children's ability to use these tools. They plan activities and intervene in children's play to develop their skills.The strengths and weaknesses of creative development
The programme for creative development promotes the desirable learning outcomes and has no areas of weakness. Many opportunities are provided for the children to explore their creative skills, including chances to develop their skills of observation and imagination. The children sing, dance, play musical instruments and clap rhythms to explore sound. They explore colour in activities such as painting, colouring and collage. A 'Colours' topic provides a focus for activities in this area. Staff use colour charts to reinforce children's knowledge. They experience different textures as they play with the dough, and take part in finger painting. Staff encourage them to develop the use of their senses, for example, to smell the prawn crackers, and to touch the silky fabric of the Chinese clothes. The children show good ability to use their imagination, particularly in imaginative play. Staff use a wide range of equipment and materials effectively in this area.The strengths and weaknesses of the overall planning of the educational programme
The planning of the educational programme promotes the desirable learning outcomes overall, but has minor weaknesses. Staff plan a good range of activities in the six learning areas. They use topics to link activities for each half-term. This is successful in providing a broad and generally well-balanced programme of activities. Appropriate priority is given to the area of personal and social development. Staff use daily routines to promote children's ability to work with others, to choose activities and to develop confidence. Children's personal independence and social skills are further developed in activities planned for the separate sessions for four-year-olds. They learn to change their clothes for physical activities and to sit down for lunch together. Good attention is given to the area of language and literacy. Staff use daily routines well to promote children's ability to listen, talk, enjoy and use books correctly. Early reading and writing skills are further developed in the separate sessions for four-year-olds. Good attention is given to children learning to use mathematical language, in planned activities and to learning to count in daily routines. The separate sessions for four-year-olds give further attention to children learning these skills. Insufficient attention is given to children learning to recognise and record numbers and to use them to solve simple problems of addition and subtraction. There are clear, written plans for staff to know which activity they are working at and with which resources. However, there is sometimes a lack of clarity in the weekly plans to show what the children are to learn from activities. This could lead to staff not providing what is planned.The strengths and weaknesses of teaching and assessment
The quality of teaching promotes the desirable learning outcomes overall but has minor weaknesses. Staff have a sound knowledge of the desirable learning outcomes in the six areas. They generally use this and the group's resources well to plan and teach a range of activities in the learning areas. However, they give insufficient attention to planning aspects of mathematics. The staff organise activities well and generally use good teaching methods. They use appropriate group sizes, lead some activities themselves and support children well when they initiate their own. They use clear explanations both in large group situations and in spontaneous opportunities to develop individual learning. They often question the children to ascertain that they have understood, but their questions do not always challenge the more able children. Suitable documents for the assessment and recording of children's progress have been introduced, however, they are not being used effectively. Particular staff are responsible for recording a small group of children's progress. Written records are made of each child and are available for parents to see at any time. Staff know the children's strengths and weaknesses well, and often adapt activities to meet a particular child's needs. However, they do not make regular notes of children's achievements in all areas or use this information to plan future learning. This could lead to a loss of continuity in the children's learning process. Although monitoring of the pre-school's provision is mainly informal, it is ongoing and generally effective. Staff hold regular staff meetings to plan activities. They discuss and evaluate their teaching, both during and after the session and undertake training to develop their skills.The strengths and weaknesses of equality of access and opportunity
The pre-school has a written policy which supports all children taking part in what the group offers. Both boys and girls are intended to have equal access and opportunity, although staff do not monitor their participation in activities, other than at the craft table. This could lead to some children not taking part in some activities. Questioning generally lacks challenge for the more able children, although good encouragement and sensitivity is shown to children who are shy or unwilling to take part in some activities. The playgroup would provide appropriate support for children with special educational needs or for children for whom English is an additional language. The playgroup's supervisor is qualified in working with children with special educational needs and has had some previous experience working with such children. Although the playgroup's written policy for special educational needs does not have regard for the Department for Education and Employment's Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs, the supervisor and her deputy are undertaking training related to the Code of Practice for special needs. The playgroup would seek additional funding and resources and provide individual learning sessions to support such children attending the group.The strengths and weaknesses of the learning resources and accommodation
Staff make good use of the playgroup's resources and accommodation to promote the desirable learning outcomes in the six areas. The indoor space is well planned to provide a range of learning experiences in different areas, for example, a quiet book corner, an imaginary play area, craft and construction tables. Children are able to choose activities for themselves and often initiate play in these areas. Free-choice activities are interspersed with times when the whole group unite together for adult-led learning, such as, 'circle time', singing or physical activities. This is effective in promoting the children's ability to work with others. Resources are particularly used well to promote language and literacy skills. There is a cosy and inviting book corner, an excellent range of books and well-resourced role-play areas. Staff use these effectively to promote children's use and enjoyment of books. Children may borrow books from the playgroup 'library' to take home and can look at books related to the topic on the interest table. Wall displays of the children's artwork are named and labelled, encouraging the children to recognise their own name and some familiar words. Staff use resources well to promote mathematical language skills both in planned activities and as the children play, for example, as they play with the building bricks on the carpet, the children are encouraged to compare the height of their towers. Insufficient use is made of resources to promote children's ability to recognise and record numbers, and use them to solve simple problems of addition and subtraction. Good use is made of many resources to promote learning, in the area of knowledge and understanding of the world. Staff use the role-play resources well to encourage the children to talk about their families and events in their lives. They make good use of the local environment and visitors to the group to develop children's understanding of where they live. Collections of objects, such as some Chinese clothes, food and chopsticks are effectively used for children to examine differences and make comparisons with other cultures. Programmable toys are effectively used to support children's learning in other areas of the curriculum. The playgroup compensates well for the lack of outdoor play space by planning a variety of indoor physical activities. They make very good use of the small equipment to provide regular activities to promote small muscle skills. Staff use their wide range of materials and resources well to promote skills in creative development. Although the storage of resources is not accessible to children, staff provide a suitable range for the children each session. The playgroup has some appropriate resources for children with special educational needs and for children learning English as an additional language, such as, puppets, picture cards and books.The strengths and weaknesses of the partnership with parents and carers
The partnership with parents promotes the desirable learning outcomes and has no areas of weakness. The playgroup provides helpful information about the educational programme. The activities in the six learning areas are clearly described in a curriculum booklet. Newsletters and the noticeboard are used to inform parents of current topics and ways that they may be involved in the learning activities. There are details, for example, of the songs the children are learning in a particular week. Parents are encouraged to join the committee and to take part in the parent rota. Although opportunities for parents to share knowledge of their child's achievements are informal, they are effective. Staff have responsibility for particular children and are available to discuss the children's progress at the beginning and end of a session. Written records are available for the parents to see and discuss at any time and they are encouraged to share their knowledge of their child's learning at home.Implementation of action plan
In order to improve the educational provision, the previous inspection identified four key issues for action. These were to: clarify the documentation of planned learning and link it to curriculum areas; further develop the record-keeping process and incorporate parents' observations; develop a more structured programme for early reading and writing skills; and further develop an awareness of cultural diversity.