Preschool
Ready for school, and ready to enjoy it
Our Woodley preschool room is for the year or two before Reception, where confidence, concentration, and curiosity matter far more than worksheets.
School readiness
What Reception teachers actually ask for
Teachers in Woodley and Reading primary schools consistently name the same things: children who can listen in a group, manage their own coat and lunch, ask for help, and recover from a setback.
Those are the skills our preschool year is built around. Early reading and number grow naturally alongside them rather than replacing them.
- Listening and attention in a larger group
- Dressing, toileting, and managing belongings independently
- Sustained concentration on a chosen activity
- Asking an adult for help, in words
Early literacy and number
Phonics and counting that make sense
Children meet letter sounds through rhyme, story, and play, and practise the fine motor control that writing later depends on: threading, cutting, tweezers, drawing at an easel.
Number sense grows out of real problems. Sharing snack fairly, measuring for a construction, counting how many are missing at registration. Children who understand what a number means are far better placed than children who can only recite the sequence.
Moving on
The handover to your child's primary school
In the final term we prepare a summary of your child's learning and, with your permission, share it with their Reception teacher so the school starts already knowing something about them.
We also practise the mundane parts of school life: lining up, eating lunch in a bigger hall, using a cloakroom peg. Familiarity takes a lot of the fear out of September.
Questions families ask
Useful answers before you visit
Every child and attendance plan is different. Bring the details that matter to you, and we will give you a clear answer.
Ask the nursery teamDo you teach phonics before school?
We introduce letter sounds playfully through rhyme, story, and games. We do not run formal phonics lessons, which is deliberate: Reception teaches a specific scheme and pre-empting it can confuse children.
Will you work with our chosen primary school?
Yes. With your permission we share a learning summary with your child's Reception teacher and welcome contact from local schools in Woodley, Earley, and Reading.
Can we use funded hours for preschool?
Funded hours for eligible three and four-year-olds will be available at Woodley. Our fees page explains how funded hours combine with paid sessions.
When does the Woodley preschool room open?
The Woodley nursery is opening soon on Headley Road. Register your interest and we will confirm opening dates and available preschool places directly with you.
En avant
Be first through the door in Woodley
Register your interest and we will contact you with opening dates, fees, and the first chance to look round.