The Panda Bear Room
Our Panda Bear Room is the heart of Little Bears! This wonderful, spacious, open-plan environment is bursting with opportunities for our Little Bears to learn, explore, create and discover through play. Carefully designed around the seven areas of learning and development within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), our Panda Bear Room provides a stimulating, welcoming and nurturing space where every child can flourish.
One of the things we love most about our Panda Bear Room is its large, open-plan layout. This gives our children the freedom to move confidently between different learning areas, follow their own interests and make choices about their play. The generous space encourages independence, curiosity and creativity, whilst also providing wonderful opportunities for children to develop friendships, work together, share ideas and build their communication and social skills. It also allows us the flexibility to adapt our environment to reflect the children’s ever-changing interests, developmental stages and individual needs.
Throughout the room, we have a variety of carefully planned and inviting learning areas, each offering something special. Our cosy areas provide little spaces for children to relax, enjoy books or simply take a quiet moment, whilst our creative areas encourage imagination and self-expression through painting, drawing, sticking and exploring different materials. Our role-play areas bring children’s imaginations to life, encouraging storytelling, communication and an understanding of the world around them.
Our construction and small-world areas provide endless opportunities for problem-solving, teamwork, imaginative play and developing those all-important fine motor skills. Whether our Little Bears are building magnificent towers, creating their own little worlds or acting out familiar experiences, they are developing valuable skills whilst having lots of fun!
Literacy and mathematics are naturally woven throughout our everyday play and experiences. From counting blocks and exploring shapes during construction, to recognising numbers, making marks, sharing stories and using mathematical language during imaginative play, we believe that some of the most meaningful learning happens through children’s natural curiosity and exploration.
Our Panda Bear Room also offers direct access to our garden, allowing our Little Bears to enjoy a wonderful connection between indoor and outdoor learning. This encourages children to explore different environments, enjoy fresh air and physical activity, and extend their learning. We value the importance of outdoor play and the many opportunities it provides for developing confidence, independence, physical skills and a love of nature.
Our dedicated team carefully observes and supports children’s play, providing encouragement, introducing new ideas and extending learning through meaningful interactions. We understand that every Little Bear is unique, and our flexible environment allows us to tailor experiences to their individual interests, abilities and stages of development.
Our Panda Bear Room is a happy, busy and exciting place where little imaginations grow, friendships blossom and every day brings new opportunities to learn, laugh and discover. 🐼❤️
Learning Hub
This amazing area is where your children will spend lots of their time enjoying the huge range of activities and learning opportunities this space offers. With access to the outdoor area we encourage everyone to explore freely between the two, in a controlled and safe environment.
Our Story Room
At Little Bears, we believe that a love of stories begins from the very earliest years. Whilst books and storytelling are woven throughout our nursery, we are especially proud of our dedicated Story Room – a cosy, calm and inviting space designed to nurture our Little Bears’ love of books, stories and imagination.
Our Story Room is used for small group activities, including interactive storytelling, exploring story sacks, puppet play, singing, rhymes and lots of imaginative fun! These experiences help develop children’s communication and language skills, build confidence, encourage creativity and inspire a lifelong love of reading.
The room also provides a peaceful, quieter environment for our targeted interventions and additional learning support, allowing children to benefit from more focused, individualised experiences at their own pace.
Above all, our Story Room is a special little space where children can listen, explore, express themselves and discover the magic of stories together. 🐻❤️
The Bear Forest
Our bear forest has been designed for your children to feel fully engaged in their imagination and learning through stories. We encourage a love for reading through exploring books together with a focus on their communication and language skills.
We also call this of phonic forest where we expose our children to phase one and two phonics from a young age. With our highly experienced school staff leading the way this means our children will be phonic ready!
The Sensory Room
At Little Bears, we recognise that every child is unique and experiences the world in their own special way. Our dedicated Sensory Room provides a peaceful, calming and nurturing environment where all our Little Bears can explore, discover and learn through their senses.
We use our Sensory Room with all children, offering a different kind of learning experience away from our other rooms. With soft lighting, gentle music and carefully chosen calming activities, we create opportunities for children to slow down, relax and enjoy moments of quiet exploration.
Our Sensory Room is filled with exciting sensory experiences, including our fish bubble tube, oozy sensory tubes, textured feely mats and a variety of other resources that encourage children to explore through sight, sound and touch. These experiences help to develop curiosity, concentration, sensory awareness and emotional wellbeing.
The room is also a particularly valuable space for our Little Bears who benefit from additional sensory opportunities or a quieter, less stimulating environment. We carefully tailor activities and experiences to meet each child’s individual needs, supporting sensory regulation, emotional development and confidence.
Above all, our Sensory Room is a special little haven where our Little Bears can take time to feel calm and secure.🐻❤️
The Bear Cave (Nap Room)
We have made this room a calm and relaxing space for your children using sensory items to help soothe your child into a peaceful mindset.
Our Sleep Room
At Little Bears, we know just how important rest and sleep are for our little ones’ growth, development and wellbeing. That’s why we have a dedicated Sleep Room, providing a calm, cosy and comforting environment where our Little Bears can relax, recharge and drift off into sweet dreams.
We create a peaceful atmosphere with gentle, relaxing music and familiar, consistent adults who help our children feel safe, secure and settled. We understand that every child has their own sleep routines and preferences, so we work closely with families to ensure nap times are as familiar and reassuring as possible. Children can also bring their special comforters from home, where these are appropriate for their age and safe sleep needs, helping to provide that extra little bit of comfort.
Each child has their own designated mattress, prepared with a clean, fitted sheet to create a comfortable and hygienic sleeping space.
Safer sleep is incredibly important to us at Little Bears, and we follow clear procedures to ensure our children can rest safely. Members of our team are always present in the Sleep Room while children are sleeping, providing continuous supervision alongside regular checks of each child’s breathing, position and wellbeing. We also carefully monitor the room temperature using a thermometer and remove heavier clothing, such as jumpers, along with hair accessories, to help keep children comfortable and reduce potential risks.
Our Sleep Room is a little haven of peace, where our Little Bears can feel loved, secure and cared for as they enjoy some well-deserved rest, ready for more adventures, discoveries and learning when they wake. 🐻❤️
Pre School / Dining Room
This room has two functions.
Pre School – It is a separate room away from the Learning Hub which engages children in a different way of learning. This gives them the opportunity to challenge themselves in a classroom style setting to prepare them for their early days at school.
Dining Room – Having the option to be able to distinguish between play and dining meal times with our own dining room really helps the children learn the difference between the two, teaching them these skills from an early age.
Our Dining Area
At Little Bears, we believe that mealtimes are about so much more than just eating! Our dedicated dining area provides a welcoming, calm and sociable environment where our Little Bears can enjoy delicious, freshly prepared meals whilst developing important life skills, building friendships and growing in confidence and independence.
As our children grow and develop, we encourage them to become increasingly independent during mealtimes. From learning to pour their own water and use cutlery confidently, to clearing away their plates and cups when they have finished, our Little Bears are given lots of opportunities to develop their self-help skills. These little everyday responsibilities help build confidence, coordination, independence and a wonderful sense of accomplishment.
Mealtimes are also a valuable opportunity for developing communication, language and social skills. Our adults sit alongside the children, encouraging conversations, sharing experiences and modelling positive table manners.
We love creating a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere in our dining area. Sometimes our Little Bears enjoy listening to a gentle Tonies story whilst they eat, or we play some calming acoustic music to help create a peaceful environment. We believe that mealtimes should be a happy experience.
We are very lucky to have our wonderful nursery cook, Mrs Clarke, who lovingly prepares fresh, nutritious meals for our Little Bears every day. Having our meals cooked freshly on site allows us to provide a variety of tasty, balanced dishes whilst carefully considering the individual dietary needs of our children.
We cater for children with food allergies, intolerances and specific dietary requirements, with clear procedures and safety measures in place to ensure their needs are carefully managed. We work closely with families to understand each child’s requirements and ensure that all children can enjoy mealtimes safely and inclusively.
Keeping our Little Bears safe during mealtimes is incredibly important to us. Mrs Clarke carefully prepares food in age-appropriate ways, ensuring that foods requiring chopping, slicing or other adaptations are prepared to help reduce choking risks.
From trying a new food for the very first time to proudly pouring their own drink, we celebrate all the little achievements that make such a big difference to our children’s development. 🐻❤️
The Hall
At The Little Bears Nursery we are lucky enough to have our very own hall which gives us a huge area for open play and activities with an opportunity to experience PE lessons which are a huge part of school life. Another advantage is that the hall will be available to hire for parties and events.
Outdoor Classroom
We have a great outdoor area where children are free to learn and explore while getting their hands dirty. Outdoor learning connects children with the natural world and encourages lifelong involvement and activity in the outdoors.
Polar Bear Room
At Little Bears, we understand that every child is unique and that the environment they learn and grow in plays an important role in their development. Our Polar Bear Room is our smaller, more intimate learning environment, which we have carefully adapted and developed over the years to reflect the changing needs of our children.
Currently, our Polar Bear Room is primarily home to our wonderful two-year-olds, providing them with a nurturing, welcoming and carefully planned space where they can build those all-important foundations for learning and development.
With a small group of children and familiar, consistent adults, our Little Bears have the time, space and reassurance they need to build secure relationships, develop confidence and feel a real sense of belonging.
We know just how important these early relationships are, particularly at this stage of development. Our dedicated adults take the time to really get to know each child, understanding their individual personalities, interests, routines and developmental needs. This allows us to provide meaningful interactions, personalised learning opportunities and plenty of encouragement as our Little Bears begin to explore the world with increasing independence.
Our Polar Bear Room is thoughtfully designed to inspire curiosity, spark imagination and encourage children to explore, investigate and discover. It is full of learning opportunities covering all seven areas of learning and development within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).
At this important stage of development, we place particular emphasis on building strong foundations in communication and language, personal, social and emotional development, and physical development. We provide lots of opportunities for children to develop their vocabulary, express their feelings, build friendships, practise new skills and grow in independence.
Whilst our Polar Bears benefit from having their own dedicated space, they are still very much part of our wider Little Bears family! We provide regular opportunities for our Polar Bear children to spend time with the children in our larger Panda Bear Room, enjoying shared activities, play experiences and social interactions. We believe these opportunities are incredibly valuable. Spending time with older children encourages our younger Little Bears to develop their communication and language skills, build confidence and learn through observing and interacting with others. Our older Little Bears also have the wonderful opportunity to become positive role models, demonstrating new skills, encouraging friendships and developing their own confidence, kindness and sense of responsibility.
We carefully balance these shared experiences with the security and familiarity of the Polar Bear Room, ensuring that each child feels comfortable, supported and ready to explore.
Another lovely feature of our Polar Bear Room is its direct access to a separate, dedicated garden, specially designed for our younger Little Bears. Having their own outdoor space allows our Polar Bears to enjoy fresh air, movement and exploration in an environment suited to their age and stage of development.
Our Polar Bear Room is a warm, happy and nurturing environment where our youngest explorers can feel safe, valued and confident to be themselves.
Our Outside Area
At The Little Bears Nursery, we are incredibly lucky to have two wonderful outdoor garden spaces, providing our Little Bears with exciting opportunities to explore, discover, learn and grow in the fresh air every day.
Our main garden is a spacious, stimulating and inviting environment, thoughtfully arranged into different areas to spark curiosity, encourage imagination and inspire learning through play. We believe that outdoor learning is just as important as indoor learning, and our gardens provide an extension of our nursery classrooms, where children can develop new skills, build confidence and enjoy hands-on experiences.
Our outdoor spaces offer a wide variety of exciting resources and learning opportunities, including a mud kitchen, climbing and physical play equipment, sand and water exploration, and deconstructed role-play areas. These resources encourage children to use their imaginations, experiment, problem-solve, take appropriate risks and develop their independence.
Whether our Little Bears are busy making muddy creations in the kitchen, building imaginative worlds, exploring different textures, investigating water, or challenging themselves on our climbing equipment, every experience provides valuable opportunities for learning and development.
We actively encourage all our children to enjoy our outdoor classrooms daily, embracing the fresh air and opportunities to explore the natural world throughout the changing seasons. Outdoor play is an important part of our daily routine, supporting children’s physical health, emotional wellbeing, confidence and overall development.
Just like our indoor learning environments, our outdoor activities are carefully planned around the seven areas of learning and development within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). This ensures that our Little Bears have access to a broad, balanced and exciting range of learning opportunities, both indoors and outdoors.
Our practitioners support and extend children’s learning through meaningful interactions, exciting activities and child-led experiences.
At The Little Bears Nursery, we believe that there is no such thing as too much outdoor adventure! Our gardens are more than just places to play – they are outdoor classrooms full of imagination, discovery and laughter. 🐻🌻
Our Hall
At The Little Bears Nursery, we are incredibly lucky to have our very own spacious hall, providing our Little Bears with a fantastic environment to enjoy open play, physical activities and exciting learning experiences.
Our hall gives children the freedom to move, explore and develop their physical skills in a safe, stimulating and engaging space. It also provides a wonderful opportunity to introduce our Little Bears to PE-style lessons, helping to prepare them for an important part of school life.
We make full use of this fantastic space with all our Little Bears, encouraging the development of their gross motor skills, balance, coordination, strength and spatial awareness through a wide variety of fun, age-appropriate activities.
With access to resources such as balls, bats, goals, obstacle courses, parachutes, dancing ribbons and much more, our children have endless opportunities to practise new skills, challenge themselves and build their confidence.
We aim to make physical activity an enjoyable part of every child’s nursery experience. We believe that encouraging a love of movement from an early age helps to build healthy habits that can last a lifetime.
Before & After School Club
At The Little Bears Nursery, we are delighted to offer a welcoming, nurturing and fun-filled Before and After School Club, providing wraparound care for children attending schools in Hatfield Peverel, up until their 8th birthday.
Our wraparound care is designed to provide a smooth transition between home, nursery and school, giving parents peace of mind knowing their children are happy, safe and well cared for. As part of our service, we drop children off at school in the morning and collect them at the end of the school day. Primarily based in its very own designated club room, thoughtfully set up to create a relaxed, welcoming and engaging environment where children can unwind after a busy day at school.
We recognise that every child has different needs after their school day. Some children enjoy relaxing with a book or taking part in quieter activities, while others are ready to get creative, socialise with friends or burn off some energy! Our club provides a wide variety of age-appropriate activities, including arts and crafts, construction, games, imaginative play, creative activities and opportunities to relax.
As well as their dedicated club room, our children also benefit from access to our fantastic main hall, providing plenty of space for physical activities, group games, sports and energetic play. They also have their very own private outdoor garden space, where they can enjoy fresh air, explore, play and spend time with their friends.
One of the things that makes our Before and After School Club so special is its small-scale, family-feel environment. Unlike larger after-school provisions, we pride ourselves on creating a warm, personal and nurturing atmosphere where every child is known, valued and made to feel part of our Little Bears family. Our smaller group setting allows us to build strong relationships with the children, understand their individual personalities and interests, and provide a caring environment where they feel comfortable, confident and secure.
We want children to look forward to coming to Little Bears, enjoying time with their friends and making happy memories along the way.
