LATEST STORIES
Meet our pets
At BestStart Roydvale our Nursery environment is the home for three different types of pets that the whole Centre enjoys connecting with. We have our fish Dorothy, birds Bruce and Myrtle and guinea pigs Lassie and Sage. Early every morning Sarah (The Head Teacher of the Nursery) gets asked if she has fed Dorothy the fish yet. We always have lots of eager helpers ready to give her food. After that they play different roles in caring for our birds. They replace their water as well as checking to see if they need some more seeds and helping fill the seed container if it needs more. This is an important part of many of the children’s morning routine and something that we love to see. The children learn to take care of others around them and are inspired to play an active part in learning how to take care of them and what they need to stay healthy.
Our guinea pigs are loved by many of the children and and are often one of the first places the children go to when outside to build a stonger connection. We pick veggies (spinach, celery and parsley) straight from our garden to feed them for breakfast. The Nursery children help put straw and hay in their house, but they love it most when we take them out for cuddles and pats. Children are shown how to be gentle and they build confidence in handling them as this experience is repeated. Lassie and Sage have a big area to run around in and are checked up on often by the children of all ages, expressing great excitement when they spot one running around on the bark! This creates lots of discussions about how to take care of them, what they eat, how to keep them and their house clean, inspiring the children to want to help ensure this is happening.
Having pets in the centre also gives the children a sense of belonging as connections are form. They often find comfort when watching and connecting with them. It also supports and teaches many other wonderful things including empathy and respect towards others.