EYFS
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) applies to children from birth to the end of the Reception year and is intended to ensure that children learn and develop well and are kept healthy and safe.
It promotes teaching and learning to ensure children’s ‘school readiness’ and gives children the broad range of knowledge and skills that provide the right foundation for good future progress through school and life.
Our experienced and enthusiastic EYFS team are here to support both you and your child as you start your school journey with us. We take children from as young as 2 years old. We also have a Nursery group of 3–4-year-olds and a Reception Group of 4–5-year-olds. Sometimes we all learn together and other times we learn in our groups.
If you'd like to come and speak to us about Early Years provision, please contact the school office to arrange to arrange a visit.
Communication and Language Development focuses on providing children with opportunities to immerse themselves in a rich language environment. It aims to expand their vocabulary, build their confidence in self-expression, and enhance their speaking and listening abilities across various contexts. This is fostered through daily activities such as storytelling, singing, tailored interactions, dedicated speaking and listening sessions, and an oracy-centered approach to the literacy curriculum. This helps us get ready for our oracy learning in Year 1.
Physical Development opportunities encourage children to stay active, develop their gross motor skills and refine their coordination, control, and movement. It fosters their understanding of the key components of healthy living. This is supported through daily indoor and outdoor activities, weekly forest school sessions and PE lessons. This helps us get ready for our physical education learning in Year 1.
Personal, Social, and Emotional Development focuses on supporting children in building a positive sense of self and fostering meaningful connections with others. It helps them cultivate respect, develop social skills, recognising and manage their emotions, understand appropriate group behaviours, and build confidence in their abilities. This is achieved through the teaching of what good behaviour looks like, providing collaborative opportunities for exploration and play inside and outside. We have daily assemblies around a range of themes like friendship, keeping ourselves safe and special events. This helps us get ready for our personal, social health and economic learning in Year 1.
Literacy development in our schools is cantered around the Read Write Inc. programme for teaching early reading. This programme is introduced to Nursery children during the summer term to prepare them for the formal phonics instruction that begins in Reception. Our goal is for children to be able to read and write short sentences using the sounds they have learned by the end of their Reception year. Additionally, we prioritise exposing children to high-quality literature through daily story sessions with our favourite books, rhymes and poems. These practices nurture a love of reading and grow children’s vocabulary. This helps us get ready for our reading, writing, spelling punctuation and grammar in Year 1.
Mathematical learning is guided by the early years white Rose programme. This fosters a deep understanding of numbers and helps children to quickly learn how to recognise, count and manipulate numbers. A daily mathematical taught session is complemented by a wide range of thoughtfully designed activities within the learning environment that children can access throughout the school day. We learn number rhymes; we listen to number stories and we never miss an opportunity to count! This helps us get ready for our mathematical learning in Year 1.
Understanding the World: Learning in this area of the curriculum helps children make sense of their physical surroundings and the community in which they live. By providing opportunities for exploration, observation, and discovery, children learn about people, places, technology and the wider environment. We learn about key historical figures and events through stories and artefacts. We begin to explore the differences between us and key religious celebrations across the year. We make visits to different places in our locality and beyond. This helps us get ready for our learning in history, geography, computing and religious education in Year 1.
Expressive Arts and Design encourages children to explore and interact with a variety of media and materials, fostering their creativity and self-expression. Through activities like art, music, movement, dance, role-play, and design and technology, children are supported in sharing their thoughts, ideas, and emotions in meaningful and imaginative ways. This helps us get ready for our learning in art and design, music and, design and technology in Year 1.