Early Years Foundation Stage

There are seven areas of learning and development that must shape educational programmes in early years settings. All areas of learning and development are important and inter-connected.

Three areas are particularly important for building a foundation for igniting children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, forming relationships and thriving:

Communication and Language

The development of children’s spoken language underpins all seven areas of learning and development. Children’s back-and-forth interactions from an early age form the foundations for language and cognitive development. The number and quality of the conversations they have with adults and peers throughout the day in a language-rich environment is crucial. By commenting on what children are interested in or doing, and echoing back what they say with new vocabulary added, practitioners will build children's language effectively. Reading frequently to children, and engaging them actively in stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems, and then providing them with extensive opportunities to use and embed new words in a range of contexts, will give children the opportunity to thrive. Through conversation, story-telling and role play, where children share their ideas with support and modelling from their teacher, and sensitive questioning that invites them to elaborate, children become comfortable using a rich range of vocabulary and language structures.

Physical Development

Physical activity is vital in children’s all-round development, enabling them to pursue happy, healthy and active lives. Gross and fine motor experiences develop incrementally throughout early childhood, starting with sensory explorations and the development of a child’s strength, co-ordination and positional awareness . By creating games and providing opportunities for play both indoors and outdoors, adults can support children to develop their core strength, stability, balance, spatial awareness, co-ordination and agility. Gross motor skills provide the foundation for developing healthy bodies and social and emotional well-being. Fine motor control and precision helps with hand-eye co-ordination, which is later linked to early literacy. Repeated and varied opportunities to explore and play with small world activities, puzzles, arts and crafts and the practice of using small tools, with feedback and support from adults, allow children to develop proficiency, control and confidence.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Children’s personal, social and emotional development (PSED) is crucial for children to lead healthy and happy lives, and is fundamental to their cognitive development. Underpinning their personal development are the important attachments that shape their social world. Strong, warm and supportive relationships with adults enable children to learn how to understand their own feelings and those of others. Children should be supported to manage emotions, develop a positive sense of self, set themselves simple goals, have confidence in their own abilities, to persist and wait for what they want and direct attention as necessary. Through adult modelling and guidance, they will learn how to look after their bodies, including healthy eating, and manage personal needs independently. Through supported interaction with other children, they learn how to make good friendships, co-operate and resolve conflicts peaceably. These attributes will provide a secure platform from which children can achieve at school and in later life.

Providers must also support children in four specific areas, through which the three prime areas are strengthened and applied. The specific areas are:

Literacy

It is crucial for children to develop a life-long love of reading. Reading consists of two dimensions: language comprehension and word reading. Language comprehension (necessary for both reading and writing) starts from birth. It only develops when adults talk with children about the world around them and the books (stories and non-fiction) they read with them, and enjoy rhymes, poems and songs together.

Mathematics

Developing a strong grounding in number is essential so that all children develop the necessary building blocks to excel mathematically. Children should be able to count confidently, develop a deep understanding of the numbers to 10, the relationships between them and the patterns within those numbers. By providing frequent and varied opportunities to build and apply this understanding - such as using manipulatives, including small pebbles and tens frames for organising counting - children will develop a secure base of knowledge and vocabulary from which mastery of mathematics is built. In addition, it is important that the curriculum includes rich opportunities for children to develop their spatial reasoning skills across all areas of mathematics including shape, space and measures. It is important that children develop positive attitudes and interests in mathematics, look for patterns and relationships, spot connections, ‘have a go’, talk to adults and peers about what they notice and not be afraid to make mistakes.

Understanding the World

Understanding the world involves guiding children to make sense of their physical world and their community. The frequency and range of children’s personal experiences increases their knowledge and sense of the world around them – from visiting parks, libraries and museums to meeting important members of society such as police officers, nurses and firefighters. In addition, listening to a broad selection of stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems will foster their understanding of our culturally, socially, technologically and ecologically diverse world. As well as building important knowledge, this extends their familiarity with words that support understanding across domains. Enriching and widening children’s vocabulary will support later reading comprehension.

Expressive Arts and Design

The development of children’s artistic and cultural awareness supports their imagination and creativity. It is important that children have regular opportunities to engage with the arts, enabling them to explore and play with a wide range of media and materials. The quality and variety of what children see, hear and participate in is crucial for developing their understanding, self-expression, vocabulary and ability to communicate through the arts. The frequency, repetition and depth of their experiences are fundamental to their progress in interpreting and appreciating what they hear, respond to and observe.

Special Educational Needs (SEN)

At The Holy Redeemer Pre-School we provide an environment in which all children are supported to reach their full potential. We recognise that there are children who may require Special Educational Need (SEN) provisions, whilst attending preschool and have in place a clear approach for identifying, responding to, and meeting children's SEN.

Laura Macintyre-Smith and Lucy Allen are our designated Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinators (SENCO). They are committed to working in partnership with parents/carers and outside agencies to raise aspirations and expectations for children with SEN and their families. The preschool staff will always be flexible and understanding with meetings and will be regularly available to discuss the child's development. If you have any concerns about your child’s progress, you can raise these concerns and get advice from the key person, manager and the SENCO.

Useful links to support services and information:

(add link to preschool SEN policy)

https://www.bexleylocaloffer.uk/

https://www.portage.org.uk/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/z6xmjsg

https://www.bexleyvoice.org.uk/

Our local children's centres and libraries also hold SEND drop-in sessions and activities.

Rising 5s

At the Holy Redeemer Preschool we work hard to ensure that your child is well supported and ready for their transition into school. We can help your child to become school ready in a warm, caring atmosphere with plenty of adult support, whilst offering an enriching environment and carefully planned structured activities following the same early years curriculum as a school nursery.

We want our children to be independent; able to manage their own personal needs and confident to communicate to adults in the setting. We believe communication underpins all areas and support children to express themselves appropriately, to identify emotions, to follow instructions and to be a valued part of our community. We encourage the children to develop the physical skills that are needed for mark making and we use Numicon to support the children in developing their understanding of number.

Through stories and practical activities we help children to make sense of the world around them, to nourish their enthusiasm for learning and to support them as they embark on their educational journey.

Speech, Language and Communication

Speech, language and communication skills are crucial to young children's overall development. Being able to speak clearly and process speech sounds, to understand others, to express ideas and interact with others are fundamental building blocks for a child's development.

At the Holy Redeemer Preschool we offer experiences and opportunities for young children to develop their speech and language skills such as, reading books every day and talking with children about stories, circle time which offers children a good opportunity to practice their speaking and listening skills, singing songs and nursery rhymes, describing and guessing games as well as role-play games. As set out in the Bexley local offer we observe, plan and assess all children's development. For those with an identified need, early intervention is crucial, and we will initially discuss any concerns we have about your child with you and form a support plan together to provide the best pathway for your child.

Useful links to support services and information:

https://bexleylocaloffer.uk

https://careservices.bexley.gov.uk/Services/1001

https://stamma.org/get-support/parents

https://www.bexleyvoice.org.uk/

Early Years Foundation Stage

Early Years Foundation Stage

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