Early Years Foundation Stage

INTENT

In the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) at Glenmead Primary School our intent is to:

•  support children to make a planned, confident transition from home to school
•  provide a positive, caring, safe and secure environment for learning
•  plan learning experiences that meet the individual needs and interests of the children through a balanced provision of adult  led and child initiated opportunities
•  support children to become competent and confident learners so they are able to reach their full potential
•  provide a broad and balanced high quality curriculum in line with the Early Years Foundation Stage guidance
•  foster positive home school links with parents and other care providers.

IMPLEMENTATION

• Invite the children and their families in for a welcome meeting in the Summer term prior to the pupils starting.
• EYFS lead teacher visit children at nursery settings or makes phone calls to discuss children in more detail.
• Home visits are carried out in September before children start at school.
• Part time provision to begin with - to help children settle.
• Photos of children and their families displayed in the setting, which provides a sense of belonging and safety from the very start.
• Areas of learning are designed and set up, both inside and outside, to encourage access to safe and independent learning.

After discussions with nursery providers and parents, the child’s individual needs and interests are carefully thought about when planning initial provision. Soon after, observations and assessments are carried out in order to identify individual pupils' needs and abilities. Provision is a balance of whole class/small group and one to one teaching and learning. In addition, there is a wide variety of child initiated opportunities available for the children to explore and engage with.

Provision supports the children to become competent by ensuring that they have the opportunity to repeat, share and discuss their learning with each other and adults regularly. Children are always encouraged to ‘have a go’ at a wide variety of new and unfamiliar activities helping them to become confident learners.

We follow the revised Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum. This framework is a means of ensuring high standards of early education and care that will reassure parents that their child’s development is being fully supported.

Statutory Framework for Early Years

OUR APPROACH TO EARLY READING

Reading is very high profile at Glenmead. All children in the EYFS at Glenmead are encouraged to enjoy and share books with each other, individually and with an adult. A meeting is held in school for parents in the autumn term to explain in detail what reading and the teaching of phonics in the EYFS looks like and what parents can expect.

The children are taught phonics through  ‘Little Wandle Letters and Sounds revised’ which is a systematic synthetic phonics approach to learning to read and write. Regular videos are provided to parents sharing the phonemes the children have been taught in school and should be practised at home. 

• Daily videos are shared with parents/guardians to support their knowledge of phonics in order for them to support their child at home.
• Home school reading is highly valued and parents are encouraged and expected to share reading experiences with their child at home and comment in their reading record book on a weekly basis.
• Parents are given opportunities to share their child’s development by sharing activities and ‘special moments’ from home through photographs and videos uploaded into their Class Dojo Portfolio. Staff in school make use of these in order to build a full picture of how each pupil is progressing overtime.

GETTING OFF TO A GOOD START

For our youngest learners  who are starting their primary education, their learning experiences are a balance between child initiated play based learning and formal teaching. A wide range of learning experiences will support the children in developing key skills, knowledge and competencies that will bridge the Early Years Foundation Stage and the National Curriculum in Key Stage 1. 

We want our children to get off to the best possible start, to enjoy school; to be motivated and engaged in the planned activities, but also to have opportunities to follow some of their own interests and direct some of their own learning. We realise that all the children have different starting points and we take that into account when leading them through their first year of school. 

CORE SKILLS

It is vital that the children make a good start in their Reception year, as it is at this time that they secure the essential skills of reading, writing and mathematics. These core elements of the curriculum are the gatekeepers for successful learning across all other subjects. Equally important is for the children to develop confidence, concentration and an ability to listen and follow instructions. 

AREAS OF LEARNING

Assessment in Early Years Foundation Stage is aligned to the Early Years Foundation Profile. This document defines what skills knowledge and competencies the children should gain by the end of their first year in school. The profile is made up of important areas of learning that we use to assess and track the children's progress. There are:

 3 prime areas of learning & development

• communication and language
• physical development
• personal, social and emotional development

4 specific areas of learning & development

•   literacy 
•   mathematics
•  expressive arts and design 
• understanding the world

Progress - these seven areas of learning and development shape the  educational programme at Glenmead. All areas of learning and development are important and inter-connected. Pupils must achieve the age related standard in all 7 areas of learning to gain a 'good level of development' which is the expected standard at the end of the first year in school. 

A PARTNERSHIP

We know that working closely with families is a very important aspect of a successful time at school.  When parents and staff work closely together, communicate well and share an understanding, outcomes for children are good. This partnership will begin straight away and will continue throughout the year and then onwards into the rest of their time at Glenmead.