Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Curriculum

Characteristics of effective teaching and learning

Part of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum is known as the ‘Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning’ (COETL) which focuses on how children are learning to learn, rather than what they are learning.

These are divided into three areas:

Playing and Exploring
Active Learning
Creating and Thinking Critically

Areas of Learning

The EYFS is made up of seven all important and interconnected areas of learning. There are three prime areas and four specific areas of learning.

The three prime areas are particularly crucial for igniting children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning and for building their capacity to learn, form relationships and thrive. These three areas, the prime areas, are:

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Communication and Language

Physical Development

Building Relationships

Managing Self

Self Regulation

Listening, Attention and Understanding
Speaking

Fine Motor

Gross Motor

Pupils need to be secure in all three of these areas before they are ready to learn more traditional academic skills such as reading and writing.

There are four specific areas through which the three prime areas are strengthened and applied. These are;

Literacy

Mathematics

Understanding of the World

Expressive Arts

Reading
Writing

Number

Numerical patterns

People, Culture and Communities

Past and Present

The Natural World

Creating with Materials

Being Imaginative and Expressive

None of these areas can be delivered in isolation from the others. They are equally important and depend on each other. All areas are delivered through a balance of adult led and child initiated activities. In each area there are Early Learning Goals (ELGs) that define the expectations for most pupils to reach by the end of the EYFS.

During this first year in school, we capture the natural enthusiasm and curiosity of pupils to ensure that they develop an independence and interest in learning. This gives pupils the firm foundation required as they move on to the next key stages of the curriculum. They are encouraged to discover the excitement that can be found in learning new ideas and concepts. They are given the opportunity to develop the broader skills of independence in learning that will help them throughout their school career and beyond.

We do not set out a list of rigid topics that the children will cover in Year R, instead we listen to what has captured the children's interests and build our weekly plans around this. We do also have some thematic learning units which we use alongside key texts to introduce the children to new things to spark their curiosity. You can find a copy of our curriculum below.