About Us

Meet Teacher Nicky

The Sunshine Club playschool is run by Nicky Brunskill, a qualified teacher specialising in early childhood development and foundation phase education. With over 13 years of experience teaching and working in foundation phase classrooms with children from 16 months to 9 years old, Nicky is a passionate and caring teacher with a vision for a school that prioritises exploration and learning through play.

With experience in local schools, her own holiday school and tutoring services, Nicky’s experience in different classrooms has guided her towards building her dream school which encapsulates all the best practices from modern teaching philosophies.

Where do we draw inspiration from?

Our playschool offers a modern approach to teaching and learning that draws inspiration from the Reggio Emilia approach
- a child-centered philosophy with a unique learning environment. It emphasizes the importance of the child’s innate curiosity and natural ability to learn through exploration and hands-on experiences. We encourage different learning methods by offering multiple and varied opportunities for our children to show what they know.

Our daily set ups include a rotation of outdoor play apparatus and daily sensory invitations. We encourage independence and decision-making by giving children the freedom to choose where they would like to play. Our indoor spaces include dedicated Fantasy and Creative rooms, each designed to spark curiosity and imagination.
Through these choices, children learn best — by playing, exploring, and experimenting. We follow a constructivist approach, where children are active participants in their own learning, building knowledge and skills through hands-on experiences.

We believe that creativity is a key part of early learning. Our art activities are thoughtfully balanced between two approaches:

Theme-inspired art – Teacher-planned projects linked to our current theme. These activities reinforce discussions and concepts, helping children deepen their understanding in a fun, hands-on way.
Process art – Open-ended exploration where children are encouraged to experiment with different tools and materials. With no set outcome, process art allows children to express themselves freely, discover new techniques, and develop confidence at their own pace.

This balance ensures our children experience both guided learning and the joy of creative discovery

Every game, story, puzzle, or painting session is a stepping stone in your child’s learning journey.

At The Sunshine Cub, we celebrate play as the heart of childhood and the key to a lifelong love of learning.

In addition to this, our teachers plan structured art actives that tie in with our fortnightly theme.

Our fantasy room set up is rotated every 2 weeks, allowing enough time for repeated visits to the same set ups. This allows for strengthening of the neural pathways that have been established when learning something new. Our set ups include: Fire Station, Dr’s Rooms, Construction Site, Baby Room, The Office, The Café as well as many Loose parts set ups.