Newburgh C of E Primary School

Early Years Foundation Stage

At Newburgh C.E. Primary School we believe that the Early Years Foundation Stage (E.Y.F.S.) is where our curriculum starts for every subject and is also designed to prepare all children for the start of Year 1. We are fully aware that children develop in a variety of ways and at different rates, which is why we ensure a high quality curriculum that is ambitious and progresses each term so all children have the fundamental knowledge and skills by the end of Reception.

The E.Y.F.S. includes seven areas of learning:-

THE PRIME AREAS:

Communication and Language

• Listening, Attention and Understanding
• Speaking

Physical Development

• Gross Motor Skills
• Fine Motor Skills

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

• Self-Regulation
• Managing Self
• Building Relationships

SPECIFIC AREAS:

Literacy

• Comprehension
• Word Reading
• Writing

Mathematics

• Number
• Numerical Patterns

Understanding of the World

• Past and Present
• People, Culture and Communities
• The Natural World

Expressive Arts and Design

• Creating with Materials
• Being Imaginative and Expressive
• Linking the Early Years with our curriculum

Our curriculum has been carefully constructed to inform assessment and track the progress of all children. However the ambitious curriculum is far more than this, as it provides many exciting experiences whilst developing pupils' vocabulary. The learning and experiences are all linked to meaningful texts and tasks so all children become engrossed in their own development.

Here is how the Seven Areas of Learning link with curriculum subjects taught from Year 1 upwards.

All staff at Newburgh are fully aware that the Prime Areas need to be embedded as early as possible for the children to be able to fulfil their full potential across the specific areas. They are delivered in such a way that they will be fully integrated within the teaching and the continuous provision in the classrooms, both inside and outside. They are taught through a balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities, with careful observations and assessments being made of each child across each area in order to inform the developmental needs and next steps.

INTENT:

Through planned purposeful play, experiences and high-quality interactions, we promote the importance of making links beyond the local environment; opening our children's eyes to the jobs, landscapes, cultures and opportunities in the wider world.

We work tirelessly to ensure all our children become confident speakers and thoughtful listeners. We expose our children to broad and ambitious vocabulary and teach them the power of language for communicating ideas, solving problems and developing a strong self-identity. We make daily story time a priority as we believe that sharing books enables our children to make connections, relationships, develop their imagination and it allows them to become confident independent readers who love books an reading.

Children leave our Early Years with knowledge, skills and memories to draw upon in their next stage of their learning. Our children have the curiosity, resilience, self-control, independence and creativity necessary for success. They have developed respect for themselves and others, built strong positive relationships and know they are a valued member of our Newburgh School community.

IMPLEMENTATION:

At Newburgh C.E. Primary School, we believe purposeful learning is imperative. Our children have high quality learning environments both indoors and outdoors. Through this, our children explore and develop learning experiences, which help them make sense of the world. They have the opportunity to practise skills, develop ideas and think creatively both alongside other children and on their own. Our curriculum enables them to see a need for rules and enables them to take risks and make mistakes. Children's communication skills are highlighted through play and they communicate by investigating and solving problems at their own levels of development.

Characteristics of Effective Learning

We ensure that our environment and delivery of they curriculum incorporates the three characteristics of effective teaching and learning and these are at the forefront of our planning:

• Playing and Exploring
• Active Learning
• Creating and Thinking Critically

Early Reading

At Newburgh C.E. Primary School, reading is at the heart of our curriculum. We are very passionate and ambitious that all children share a love of reading and that all children learn to read fluently and for meaning. We also value the importance of Communication and Language and believe that this needs to be fully embedded at the earliest possible age for children to fully embrace their reading acquisition.

All children take part in a focused phonics session on a daily basis and practise and apply their knowledge in a fun and active way. Our chosen systematic, synthetic phonics programme is 'Essential Letters and Sounds' (ELS).

All children are listened to read regularly with books which match the sounds they know and they are learning to read. We aim to develop children's oral language, establish their phonic knowledge and give them a broad range of reading opportunities including independently reading books and sharing a growing range of books with adults throughout the school day and beyond, with home reading being of high importance.

Inclusion

At Newburgh we give every child the opportunity to achieve their best and have the best possible start in life. We set realistic and challenging expectations tailored to the needs of the children, so that all children have the best start and chances to succeed based on their different starting points on entry to school. We plan carefully to meet the needs of all children.

IMPACT

The richness of our curriculum offer at Newburgh for our children in Early Years Foundation Stage ensures that our children are equipped with the skills, knowledge and a solid foundation on which to build their future learning.