The Nursery Team work closely with our Digital Learning Specialists to offer a wide range of early digital experiences for our children to enhance learning on a daily basis. Digital Learning is very much part of our world today and it is essential that we prepare the children by ensuring that they are fluent in computer literacy as well as online safety as they move through school. Within Nursery, we introduce the children to a variety of resources which develop early skills which offer a good foundation for Primary 1 and beyond.

Ipods and Ipads

The children might be shown how to safely take a photograph or a video. This might be of a model in the construction corner or of friends playing in the mud at Forest Kindergarten using one of our ipods or ipads. This ‘evidence’ may be used to record your child’s thoughts and findings and may be added to your child’s Learning Book so that they can reflect on their learning later in the year. The children might also use the ipods or ipads to seek out information with a member of staff or listen to some music.

QR Codes

Scanning a QR code which are displayed around the Nursery allows the children to independently access learning opportunities. This may be to listen to an audio book using the Bluetooth headphones or watch a short clip linked to an activity or specific interest.

Interactive Whiteboards and large touch screen panels

The Nursery team offer a wide range of opportunities to use the interactive whiteboards. This may be to play an educational game or create pictures on a large scale to support gross and fine motor development.

Programmable Toys

The children are introduced to remote control toys as well as Beebots and Codapillars which help the children control the direction of resources by learning how to use or enter simple commands. After a little practice the children will be able to move these in a chosen direction.

Planning an programming an algorithm with a Codeapillar (left) and using a remote control to control a toy (right) are two practical examples of how computational thinking is developed in the Nursery.

We also use Seesaw at ESMS as a way of sharing progress between home and school. Your child will be given new login details at the start of each school session. https://web.seesaw.me

Seesaw is a tool for your child and their teacher to communicate with each other. Seesaw also gives children a place to document their learning, be creative and learn how to use technology in a safe and positive way. Your child will be able to share selected aspects of their learning and their interests with their teacher and in turn, they can share that with you. Your child and teacher can add photographs of work, videos, drawings, voice recordings and notes.

e-Safety and online wellbeing

With internet enabled devices being a part of everyday life for children, e-safety is vitally important from this early stage. Children will use online technologies with an adult so that appropriate behaviours can be modelled and so children understand what to do if they are worried. As technology is used as part of play, children will be encouraged to balance their choice of activity and to consider why this is part of keeping healthy.

As part of our online safety teaching the children listen to and respond to questions and ideas about stories including the one below.