Muddy Bairns 
“…where the mud will wash off, but
the memories will last a lifetime…”
Muddy Bairns is the name of the Early Years provision at Greenfields Community Primary School.
We currently have provision for 2, 3 and 4 year olds. Your child can either access a morning session 8.30am-11.30am, an afternoon session 12.30pm – 3.30pm or a full day session 8.30am-3.30pm. If you would like your child to stay for lunch either after or before their session we can arrange this for an extra cost. You can use childcare codes if you are entitled to 15 or 30 hours government funded childcare. If you aren’t entitled to the 30 hours Government funded childcare, you can pay for extra sessions.
If you would like further information regarding price and availability, please either come into the school office, give us a call on 0191 6250100 or email us muddybairns@greenfieldsprimary.org.uk and our office staff will be happy to help. You can also book a visit to look around our provision using the same channels.
Muddy Bairns shares the values with our school;
…be amazed
~stay curious and follow your dreams… never lose your sense of wonder~
…be brave
~confront your fears and take a chance… mistakes are the best lessons~
…be original
~never stop asking questions… seek out the answers~
…be bold
~you are capable of changing a situation… become the explorer of tomorrow~
At the heart of our Early years offer is to give children the opportunity to explore and learn through experience in our extensive outdoor areas. We know that the key to developing resilient and enquiring children is to allow them to take chances and charge of their own learning.
If your child is 2
Our two year olds are based in our specialist ‘Enchanted Forest’ Nursery building with a specialist team of Early Years staff supporting them in their learning and development. Our Enchanted Forest is a home from home environment where we have created a cosy space that stimulates your child’s imagination and sense of wonder. We know it can be hard to leave your child in the care of someone else for the first time; so let our experienced and friendly staff take some of these worries away.
Your child can start with us from the day that they turn 2. If your child receives universal funding, this will begin the term after they turn 2. Please contact us at school for more information on pricing and the spaces we have available.
If your child is 3 or 4
You will be able access your 15 hours and 30 hours* funded nursery places at Muddy Bairns.
Our Muddy Bairns who are 3 or 4 move between our Nursery classroom and our Forest provision. During their time in Nursery, your child will have daily phonics and maths small group focus sessions, along with their child initiated learning through our plan, do, review process. In this process the children plan what they would like to do, make plans and reflect on what they have learnt. In doing so, the children learn to take initiative, solve problems, work with others and accomplish these goals.
Reading in Muddy Bairns
All staff at Greenfields recognise the importance of reading and we use every opportunity to read and enjoy stories, poems and non- fiction texts with the children. We want all of our children to learn to read so that they can read to learn.
We use the Over and Over approach to close the gap between young children who readily engage
with stories and those who do not.
Repeated reading of high quality texts and stories is extremely important in building early reading skills. Knowing books well secures vocabulary and builds story language. “Familiar books provide children with repeated opportunities to pull together information from language, the meaning of the story and the print” (Clay, 2016, p111).”
Communication With Parents
Your child will get up to some truly amazing things, each and every day they attend Muddy Bairns. Don’t just take our word for it.
As part of our school/home communication with parents we use seesaw. This is an app which allows parents/ carers to see photos and videos of their children. It allows our teachers to share your child’s learning and development on a personal level and share real WOW moments during the day.
Want to join us?
Please don’t hesitate to contact us at school for a copy of our latest prospectus or to have an informal conversation about how we can support your child and your family childcare needs.
You can email us at:
muddybairns@greenfieldsprimary.org.uk
Telephone: 0191 625 0100
Miss Joanna Love is our Early Years Lead and will be happy to help you
