Otley and Witnesham Federated Primary Schools

EYFS

In Reception, we follow the national guidance for all children aged 0-5 years. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Framework sets out the standards for development, learning and care of children from birth to five. The curriculum is planned in seven areas of learning and development; all areas are important and inter-connected.

Four themes underpin all the guidance:

1. The Unique Child – every child is unique who is constantly learning, capable confident and self-assured

2. Positive Relationships – Children learn to be strong and independent

3. Enabling Environment – children learn and develop best in an enabling environment where their experiences respond to their individual needs and where there’s a strong partnership between practitioners, parents and carers.

4. Learning and Development – Children develop and learn in different ways.

The Framework covers the education and care of all children in early year’s provision, including children with special educational needs and disabilities.

Prime Areas

There are 3 prime areas, which are:

Communication and Language

• Listening, Attention and Understanding

• Speaking

This involves giving children a wide variety of opportunities to develop their confidence and skills in expressing themselves, and to speak and listen in a range of situations.

Physical Development

• Gross Motor Skills

• Fine Motor Skills

This involves providing opportunities for children to develop their co-ordination, control and movement. Children are also helped to understand the importance of physical activity and how to make healthy choices.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

• Self–Regulation

• Managing Self

• Building Relationship

This involves helping children to form positive relationships and develop respect for others, as well as developing social skills whilst learning how to manage their feelings. Children develop an understanding of appropriate behaviour and to have confidence in their own abilities.

Characteristics of Effective Learning

All of these seven areas are connected together. In addition there are three characteristics of effective learning which weave through all the areas. These are:

playing and exploring – children investigate and experience things

• active learning – children concentrate and keep on trying if they encounter difficulties, and enjoy achievements

• creating and thinking critically , make links between ideas and develop strategies for doing things– children develop their own ideas.

Specific Areas

There are then four specific areas that support and strengthen the three prime areas:

Literacy

• Comprehension

• Word Reading

• Writing

This involves encouraging children to link sounds and letters and to begin to read and write.

Mathematics

• Number

• Numerical Patterns

This involves providing children with a wide range of resources and opportunities to develop their skill and confidence in counting, understanding and using numbers, simple addition and subtraction problems and to describe shapes, spaces and measure.

Understanding the World

• Past and Present

• People, Culture and Communities

• The Natural World

This involves supporting children to make sense of the physical world around them, through opportunities to explore, observe and find out about their community, people, places, technology and environment.

Expressive Arts & Design

• Creating with Materials

• Being Imaginative and Expressive

This involves enabling children to explore and play with a wide range of media and materials. This also includes encouragement for sharing their thoughts, feelings and ideas through a variety of activities in music, art, dance, role-play and design and technology.

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