Most children have their first experience away from their immediate family and friends when they come to an Early Years setting. Early Years settings are at the heart of their local communities. They provide safe and nurturing spaces for children to play and learn together. Children learn about respecting other people, co-operating and sharing. They learn about being true to themselves and respecting the rights of others.
Intent
Every child deserves the best possible start in life. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) aims to give this by observing what children can do and by supporting them to reach their full potential and become independent learners. At this fundamental age the development of the whole child is essential. So the physical, intellectual, emotional, social, and cultural aspects of each child’s life are considered and respected. In the Nursery and Reception at Fairway School we believe that children learn best through play based activities and first hand experiences, at their own pace. They have the opportunity to think creatively, investigate and solve problems both individually and within a group. We believe that each child is unique and is valued as an individual.
Our aim is to create a learning environment and build relationships that support, enhance and invite a child’s curiosity, confidence and individual competency to flourish regardless of backgrounds, circumstances or needs. It is our intent that children who enter our EYFS begin their lifelong learning journey by developing physically, verbally, cognitively and emotionally whilst also embedding a positive attitude to school and a love of learning. Staff plan teaching and learning opportunities that cater for the varied life experiences of our children by creating indoor and outdoor environments that support and stimulate children’s learning.
We provide an enabling learning environment that has a balance between adult-led and child-centred learning. The approach follows the personal interests and individual needs of the children, consolidating the knowledge they have gained and ensuring that all children make progress towards their next steps. The setting provides opportunities for the children to experience a rich language environment, to develop their skills in expressing themselves as well as to speak and listen in a range of situations.
Physical activities are integrated into the children’s learning to create a foundation of movement and activity that will be carried with them throughout the rest of their lives.
We work in partnership with parents and carers to ensure that children are happy, independent learners who flourish in school and reach their full potential.
Staff ensure children make good progress from their starting points and are prepared to reach the Early Learning Goals at the end of the Foundation Stage.
Implementation
At Fairway, we follow the Early Years Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. The framework specifies the requirement for learning and development in the Early Years and provides prime and specific areas of learning we must cover in our curriculum. The Development Matters guidance supports the delivery of the Early Years Statutory Framework. The learning experiences within our Early Years are linked to the seven areas of learning and development within the EYFS. These areas are split into three prime areas and four specific areas. The three prime areas are those which the children should develop first and are considered most essential for the healthy development and future learning of our children.
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Prime |
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1. Communication and Language – listening, attention and understanding and speaking. |
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2. Physical Development – gross motor and fine motor. |
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3. Personal, Social and Emotional Development – self-regulation, managing self and building relationships. |
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Specific |
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4. Literacy – comprehension, word reading and writing. |
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5. Mathematics – number and numerical patterns. |
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6. Understanding the world – past and present, people, culture and communities and the natural world. |
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7. Expressive arts and design – creating with materials, being imaginative and expressive. |
When children join Fairway Nursery aged 2 our focus is on the three prime areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage: Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Communication and Language and Physical Development. As the children grow and progress in these areas, they are supported to develop skills and concepts within the four specific areas: Literacy, Mathematics, Understanding the World and Expressive Arts and Design.
Our curriculum is child- centred and we follow a planning in the moment approach. We create enabling environments that are resourced to meet the needs, interests and stages of development for each child.
Adults move to where children are engaged and interact with them as they play and explore; they watch, wait and wonder to spot “teachable moments”.
Adults model thinking and support communication skills, introducing new concepts and skills at the appropriate time for each child. In this way we build on their present stage of development, using their intrinsic motivation to find out more and to do more.
Throughout the course of the year, each nursery class will endeavour to teach the children the following 6 topics:
- Feeling and family
- Oral health
- People who help us
- Our world
- Life cycles and nature
- Recycling and the environment
Children are given time and space to make choices and explore indoors and outdoors. They are provided with experiences and opportunities, which are well thought through offering good continuous provision and open-ended materials which inspire, promote and encourage imaginative and creative thinking and learning.
Curriculum Maps
Impact
Our children will grow to be confident, competent lifelong learners and good citizens. The children at Fairway experience a smooth transition between Nursery, Reception and beyond. Effective communication and collaboration ensure the children leave the EYFS with a solid foundation of learning of which to build upon.
We use learning journals across the EYFS, which evidence to the children and their families the successes of the children throughout their time in Early Years. As a team, we carry out regular internal moderation sessions and also ensure that staff attend external meetings and training to ensure that we feel confident with our judgements and that these judgements are consistent with a range of other settings. Assessment starts with careful observations which are then used to inform planning.
Our aim at Fairway Nursery is to foster curiosity and a love for learning in a well-resourced, rich learning environment both indoors and outdoors and across the Early Years curriculum. The aim is for all children to leave us feeling secure, cared for and for them to be aware of their amazing achievements. Every success deserves celebration and we want every child to leave with a sense of pride and confidence in themselves, ready for the next step in their educational journeys!
