Miss Ahmed leads Pre-Nursery and Mr Smeda is the learning support assistant in this class. 

Miss James is the Nursery teacher and is supported by Miss Timoney as learning support assistant. 

Miss Chesworth is the Reception class teacher and is supported by Mrs Webb and Mrs Riddel, who are the learning support assistants. 

Mrs Wiles is the Early Years Lead for the school and Miss Dean is the Trust Early Years Lead.

EYFS Curriculum

Intent

At Heygreen, we strive to deliver education at the highest quality for all of our pupils. Our vision is to ensure that each and every child, no matter what their background or circumstances, reaches their potential and leaves us ready for the next stage of life. We promote life-long learning, which begins when a child enters our early years provision. 

It is our intent that children who attend Early Years make outstanding progress in learning. We achieve this through an ambitious, balanced curriculum, with the right mix of adult-directed learning, play and exploration. This sequential curriculum ensures children are able to learn new skills, knowledge, express themselves and grow in confidence. 

The early years curriculum develops happy, curious learners with a thirst for knowledge and a positive attitude to school. 

Implementation 

We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage framework with four overarching principles and the characteristics of effective learning guiding our curriculum. 

A unique child: Within our schools, we recognise every child is a competent learner who is resilient, capable, confident and self-assured. We recognise children develop in individual ways and at varying rates. Children’s attitudes to learning are influenced by feedback from others; we use praise and encouragement,  to encourage children to develop a positive attitude to lifelong learning. We understand that all children develop at different rates and that sometimes children may need support with additional needs. We ensure that we are equipped with the skills to support early identification and work in partnership with parents, carers and other professionals to support all children to achieve their full potential. 

Positive relationships: Within our school, we recognise that children learn to be strong and independent from secure relationships. We aim to develop caring, respectful, professional relationships with the children and their families. Our key person system ensures that children settle quickly within our settings and assures families that staff have the best interests of their child at heart.  

Enabling environments:  Within our school, we recognise that the environment plays a key role in supporting and extending the children’s learning and development.  Our rich learning environment offers stimulating resources relevant to children’s development. Through observation and interaction, we continuously assess the children’s interests, stages of development and learning needs. We plan challenging, achievable activities and experiences to extend children’s learning. 

Learning and development: Within our school, we recognise that children learn and develop in different ways and at different rates. We view all seven areas of learning as important and interconnected. 

Educational Programmes

Communication and Language- Development involves giving children opportunities to:

- experience a rich language environment

- to develop and grow their vocabulary

- to develop their confidence and skills in expressing themselves, and to speak and listen in a range of situations. 

This is achieved through daily story and song times, interactions with children pitched at the right level, speaking and listening time and an oracy-based approach to the literacy curriculum. Intervention for the lowest 20% is provided through the WellComm programme, as well as Language Box sessions to ensure that children keep up and not catch up.

 

Physical development- Development involves providing opportunities for children to be active and interactive, and to develop their coordination, control, and movement. In addition to becoming knowledgeable about the attributes that contribute to healthy living. This is achieved through daily access to our outdoor environments; weekly PE sessions; termly Early Years wellbeing week; and fine motor enhancements.
 

Personal, social & emotional development- Development involves helping children to develop a positive sense of themselves and others, form positive relationships, respect others, develop social skills and learn how to manage their feelings, understand appropriate behaviour in groups, and have confidence in their own abilities. This is achieved by allowing time for children to explore and play within our environment, implementing the 'characteristics of effective learning (CoEL)' and celebrating successes with the children through our CoEL dinosaurs, sharing the Early Years behaviour blueprint with children, including implementation of the Zones of Regulation.
 

Literacy- Within our school, we use the Read Write Inc. programme for the teaching of early reading. We begin this programme with our Nursery children in the summer term. This ensures that children are ready to begin the more formal aspect of phonics teaching at the beginning of the Reception year. It is our aim that by the end of the Reception year, children are able to read and write short sentences and books using their taught sounds. We also ensure that children are exposed to high-quality literature through the use of our daily 'talk through stories' sessions and 'favourite five' texts. This allows children to develop a love of reading and supports vocabulary development.

 

Mathematics- 

We take a mastery approach to teaching Maths in the Early Years. We carefully plan for progression in: 

*Cardinality and Counting 

*Composition

*Comparison

*Shape and Space

*Measures

*Pattern

Maths is taught through daily focussed sessions, continuous provision, interventions and the number sense approach. 

 

Understanding the world- Our topic approach allows children to make sense of their physical world and community by giving children opportunities to explore, observe, and find out about people, places, and the environment. Within our topic provision map, we plan opportunities for children to develop their cultural capital through local visits to local museums and art galleries, and accessing visitors, speakers and organising special events.

 

Expressive arts and design- We enable children to explore and play with a wide range of media and material, as well as providing encouragement to share their thoughts, ideas and feelings through a variety of activities in art, music, movement, dance, role-play, and design and technology. 

 

Impact 

Our curriculum meets the needs of all children and supports them to make good progress from their individual starting points. During their time in our early years, children make excellent progress, which ensures children are ready to make the transition into Year One. 

 

We regularly evaluate how children are learning and progressing using ongoing observational assessments. We supplement this by also measuring impact through learning walks, coaching trackers, analysis of formative and summative data, in addition to carrying out staff, pupil and parent voice.  

 

Please click on the links below, to find out more about our Early Years offer.