EYFS
By the end of their foundation years, children should be ready for school: healthy, sociable, curious, happy, active and able to make the most of the opportunities available to them.
Over each day and week there will be a balance of adult-directed and child-initiated activities included in our timetable. This includes daily phonics sessions, specific adult led input sessions and ‘independent learning’ times when the children continue their learning through play.
All 7 areas of learning are treated with equal importance and are covered through both adult-led activities and Continuous Provision (where the children choose their learning opportunities independently)
Children will have first hand experiences wherever possible.
Through our ‘objective-led planning’ approach, children are constantly being assessed and this is then fed back into our planning to form the next steps for groups of children of different abilities. Objective-led planning is where the activity is based on the learning to take place (the ‘objective’) rather than being led by the topic.
Our aim for our Continuous Provision is that we provide the children with a range of resources to enable them to continue their learning in the absence of an adult. Effective continuous provision should provide children with the opportunity to demonstrate all three characteristics of effective teaching and learning. Our Continuous provision also enables children to return to their explorations and consolidate their learning over the course of a day or a more extended period. When children do this, they can explore what happens to things as they change over time, and make changes to explore new ideas. Continuous provision also allows children to make choices and initiate play without interaction with an adult. Enhancements are made to our resources as and when appropriate.
In the Early Years Foundation Stage children learn best when they experience learning first hand, through meaningful interactions with others, through physical activity and through play. Our Early Years practice is based on on-going observation and assessment of the children and their interests using the ‘objective-led planning’ approach.
We make full use of the children’s interests and fascinations and sometimes these will form the focus of short theme’s/topics. New stimuli are also used to help broaden children’s interests and experiences.
We pay attention to coverage of each strand of learning, linking in learning where it is most appropriate within our themes. Through careful planning, we ensure that by the end of the year, each strand has the coverage needed to ensure children progress towards the ELG and often beyond.
Prime areas of Learning
- Personal, social and emotional development
- Communication and language development
- Physical development
Specific areas of learning
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the world
- Expressive arts and design
Our EYFS curriculum is progressively sequenced and planned to acknowledge precise next steps in children’s learning. These next steps are addressed by children’s curiosities and fascinations. Planning is flexible to follow children’s interests and to allow for ownership of learning and, as much as possible, we follow an objective led learning approach.
At Godolphin, we acknowledge the four guiding principles that should shape practice:
Unique Child:
Every child is unique and has the potential to be resilient, capable, confident, and self-assured.
Positive Relationships:
Children flourish with warm, strong & positive partnerships between all staff and parents/carers. This promotes independence across the EYFS curriculum.
Enabling environments:
Children learn and develop well in safe and secure environments where routines are established and where adults respond to their individual needs and passions and help them to build upon their learning over time.
Learning and Development:
Children develop and learn at different rates. We must be aware of children who need greater support than others.
We also consider the three characteristics of effective teaching and learning:
Playing and exploring:
Children investigate and experience things, and ‘have a go’. Children who actively participate in their own play develop a larger store of information and experiences to draw on which positively supports their learning.
Active learning:
Children concentrate and keep on trying if they encounter difficulties. They are proud of their own achievements. For children to develop into self-regulating, lifelong learners they are required to take ownership, accept challenges, and learn persistence.
Creating and thinking critically:
Children develop their own ideas and make links between these ideas. They think flexibly and rationally, drawing on previous experiences which help them to solve problems and reach conclusions