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
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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.
phonics
Early phonics is taught through the Bug Club phonics scheme. By the end of Year R all pupils have experienced Phases 1-4 of the scheme in order to ensure they are on track to achieve the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics screening.
READING
Children take part in reading activities daily. These are a combination of whole class stories, small group work or one-to-one reading with an adult. The children have access to a range of e-books and paper books via Pearson's Bug Club. This scheme is supplemented with Big Cat Collins books.
FURTHER INFORMATION
We provide a curriculum presentation for parents in the Autumn term of every academic year.