Early Years Foundation Stage
Intent
At Bournville All-Through School we are passionate about ensuring our children receive the BEST START to their learning with us. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is crucial in securing solid foundations that our children continue to build upon throughout their schooling. Our curriculum is designed to encourage independent, inquisitive, resilient, happy learners. We absolutely understand that for learning to be effective there must a BALANCE of child and adult initiated learning. Opportunities are mapped carefully to ensure precise adult intervention in order that children remember their learning.
Every child is recognised as a unique individual. We take into account children’s prior learning and various starting points to develop a holistic, engaging curriculum that interlinks across all areas of the EYFS. Our curriculum has been designed to enable children to succeed through co-operative and collaborative learning principles, offering a range of extended child-led play and sustained shared thinking. As such, there is a strong emphasis on the Prime Areas of learning: Personal, Social and Emotional Development and Communication and Language. We place language development and early reading at the heart of our curriculum.
We work in partnership with parents, carers and other settings to provide the best possible start, ensuring each individual child reaches their full potential. We acknowledge and promote children’s interests and strive to embed them in the curriculum to engage, excite and motivate, making learning relevant and meaningful. Our aim is to provide the knowledge and experiences to develop a sense of awe and wonder, creating ‘magical moments’ to wow and captivate each child. We want children to see themselves as individuals and valued members of their own families, school and local community. We want children to learn that places and people are not all the same, each having similarities and differences which should be celebrated. We aim to develop children’s play skills, perseverance and ability to interact with one another showing resilience, tolerance and respect for others whilst having confidence in their own abilities. By the end of Reception year, our intent is to ensure that all children make excellent progress from their starting points and are equipped with the skills and knowledge to have a smooth transition to Year 1.
Implementation
Our EYFS curriculum follows the statutory guidance EYFS Statutory Framework and is supported by the Development Matters guidance. The characteristics of effective teaching and learning are also central to all planned learning experiences in our EYFS curriculum. Emphasis is on learning through play, direct practical experiences, led by the interests of our children; for example, the use of local places of interest e.g. Selly Manor, to discover more about our topic ‘Real Superheroes’ and how times have changed from The Great Fire of London to present day. This then included a visit from West Midlands Fire Service.
There is a combination of adult-led, teacher taught sessions as well as a wealth of stimulating continuous provision opportunities encouraging children to develop their learning independently through discovery, exploration, curiosity and challenge. Adults scaffold learning through skilful interactions and effective interjections. Our learning environments are high quality and exciting but most importantly relevant to the needs and age/stage of our children. The internal and external environments are designed to allow children to access resources and the curriculum independently, making their own choices. All environments are adapted regularly to meet the developing needs of the children, providing support and challenge to all. In planning our EYFS curriculum we have considered what we want our children to learn, know and do whilst taking into account their starting points and experiences. Each half-term, we use a thematic starting point approach to inspire and bring the seven key curriculum areas to life:
Areas of Learning and Development:
Prime Areas
Communication and Language – developing a love of language through conversation, storytelling and role play and providing extensive opportunities to use and embed new words in a range of contexts.
Personal, Social and Emotional Development – managing emotions, developing a sense of self, positive interactions and conflict resolution.
Physical Development – developing core strength, gross and fine motor skills developing proficiency, control and confidence.
Specific Areas
Literacy – developing language comprehension and auditory processing skills. Alongside this, the formal daily phonics teaching using ‘Read Write Inc’.
Maths – using ‘White Rose Maths’ to develop a mastery of numbers to 10 and developing spatial reasoning skills across all areas of maths, including shape, space and measures.
Understanding the World – developing understanding of our culturally, socially, technologically and ecologically diverse world.
Expressive Arts and Design – developing artistic and cultural awareness to support the imagination and creativity.
EYFS staff have a good understanding of how Early Learning Goals (ELG’s) feed into the National Curriculum through our robust planning and CPD opportunities. In reverse, colleagues throughout the school are also aware of the key ELG’s that link to each foundation subject and the progression of each subject. We use ‘Road Maps’ to show this progression.
Our inclusive approach means that all children learn together, but we have a range of additional intervention and support for children who may not be reaching their potential, or conversely, are showing a greater depth of understanding and need further challenge. This includes, for example, sessions for developing speech and language, social skills, fine motor skills, phonics and maths. In addition, for those children on EHCPs, bespoke plans have identified that learning may need to take place away from the classroom due to sensory needs and curriculum planning is adapted effectively. Regular monitoring of teaching and learning ensure staff develop excellent subject knowledge. Assessment is ongoing throughout the year and pupil progress meetings held every half-term ensure consistency in assessment and planning for all children, identifying those in need of further intervention to accelerate progress. Formal assessments in the EYFS include:
Baseline using previous setting: Prior to children starting, staff spend time speaking to the child’s parents, previous settings and read previous learning journeys to gain an understanding of the whole child and where they are at. During the first half-term, all staff use ongoing assessments, observations and conversation with the child to develop a baseline assessment. This identifies individual starting points in all areas so we can plan experiences to ensure progress.
The Statutory Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA): This assessment focuses on ‘Language, Communication and Literacy’ and ‘Mathematics.’ The purpose of this is to show the progress children make from Reception until the end of KS2. This is completed within the first six weeks of beginning the Reception year.
The Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP): This is completed in the final term of the year. The profile provides parents and carers, practitioners and teachers with a well-rounded picture of a child’s knowledge, understanding and abilities, their attainment against expected levels, and their readiness for Year 1.
Ongoing observation and quality interactions: All ongoing observations are used to inform weekly planning and identify children’s next steps. This formative assessment draws on practitioners’ knowledge of the child and their own expert professional judgements through discussions with other practitioners, photographs and physical examples such as a child’s drawing/making. ‘Wow’ moments are recorded on Class Dojo and shared with parents and carers.
Impact
By the end of the EYFS, all children will have reached their personal best and have achieved at least good progress across all areas of learning, aiming for a good level of development (GLD).
Impact is also evident through our successful transitions into Year 1 which happen at various opportunities throughout the year as well as the Summer term. The Year 1 staff have clear knowledge and understanding of EYFS to ensure pupils learning in Key Stage 1 takes account of their previous learning.
Through a love of reading which permeates our school coupled with our selected robust phonics programme, children leave EYFS having been exposed to a canon of texts. Through taking home good quality books to enjoy with parents and carers, having a well-stocked library and through our phonics lessons, our youngest children demonstrate a passion and shared understanding of the importance of reading. Parents also support and understand the impact it has on their child’s access to the whole curriculum.
Through the use of the Read Write Inc phonics programme, with children regularly practising their sounds through suitable texts matched to their phonics knowledge, pupils in Reception leave EYFS as rapidly developing, confident and enthusiastic readers.
Equally, time is dedicated for children to learn maths and integrate maths throughout the day. Through different contexts including: storybooks, puzzles, songs, rhymes, puppet play and through daily routines, we seize chances to reinforce mathematical vocabulary as well as creating opportunities for extended discussion of mathematical ideas. Children represent problems in their own way, for example with drawing and marks, such as keeping a tally of scores during a game. Through assessing what children do, and do not know, we are able to target support so children who do not achieve GLD are supported immediately at the start of their journey into Year 1. Our aim is that all pupils (including, where possible, those with SEND) recognise numbers and number patterns to 10, can count beyond 20 and those that are ready, take part in our 99 Club linked to times tables (repeated addition). Parents and carers at Bournville are enthusiastic and often share what their child has been doing at home – this relationship supports children to deepen their understanding of what they have been learning.
EYFS staff have a good understanding of how ELG’s link to the National Curriculum, and through our robust planning and delivery across the spectrum of subjects – both core and foundation – children leave the EYFS stage with the skills, knowledge and confidence to continue their journey as scientists, historians, artists and geographers.
