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Exceptional Education at the Heart of the Community

Exceptional Education at the Heart of the Community

EYFS

 

The EYFS is a unique, distinct, and important phase in education. It places an equal priority on supporting children’s social and emotional development and on  their learning. It is a crucial time for developing children’s engagement, enjoyment of learning and motivation. The curriculum in the Early Years provides a structure and sense of direction, whilst providing ambitious opportunities for children to learn. Our curriculum recognises children’s prior learning and experiences and seeks to build on these, developing their skills and knowledge through a variety of themes and first-hand experiences that stimulate their curiosity. The curriculum is designed to meet the needs of all children ensuring adaptations are made where necessary.

Play and exploration are at the heart of Early Years practice and children are able to interact with well-organised and resourced environments that spark their interests and allow for independence and sustained shared thinking. Environments are enhanced with a wide range of multi-sensory activities that encourage children to explore, develop skills and adapt their own learning.

We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage statutory guidance and the non-statutory Development Matters guidance which outlines child development for children from birth to three, three to four and the Reception year. This framework sets the standards for the learning, development and care of your child. Within the framework, there are 7 key learning areas:

We recognise how vital it is for all children to be engaged in their learning and for their learning to be relevant and purposeful. Therefore, we believe that our children will learn best through first hand experiences.  We observe each child closely to ascertain their interests and abilities, and in partnership with parents, we use these observations to plan opportunities to develop their learning further.

We believe that play, both indoors and outdoors, is an ideal vehicle for young children’s’ learning as it provides valuable stimulating opportunities which help children to explore, investigate and, make sense of the world around them. Play allows children to be challenged in their thinking and helps them to practice and rehearse skills and to be motivated in their learning.  Throughout the day the children have access to a wide range of activities and resources both inside and out, with a range of adult led experiences as well as ample time to pursue their own avenues of play

We teach our children to be inquisitive and curious through the learning opportunities we provide and we are committed to giving our children the best possible start to their school life, teaching them skills which ensure their well-being now and success in the future.

Key Principles

Our Early Years provision at is based upon four key principles:

A unique child - We recognise that every child is a competent learner who can be resilient, capable, confident and self assured. We believe that children develop in individual ways and at varying rates and that their attitudes and dispositions to learning are influenced by feedback from others; we use praise and encouragement as well as celebration and rewards to encourage and develop a positive attitude to learning.

Positive relationships - Children learn to be strong and independent from the secure relationships they develop with others, which is why we pay great importance in develop caring, respectful and professional relationships with our children and their families.

Enabling environments - We recognise that the environment plays a key role in supporting and extending our, children’s development. Through observations we assess the children’s interests, stages of development and learning needs, before planning challenging, stimulating and achievable activities and experiences to extend our children’s learning.

Learning and development -Our early years provision is organised in such a way as to ensure that our children are able to explore and learn securely and safely. There are areas where the children can be active, challenge their understanding and be quiet. Our children’s learning takes place both within and outside the classroom, within different learning areas where children are able to find and locate equipment and resources independently. These areas enable our children to become confident, independent learners.

We believe in encouraging our children to be independent in their self-care, confident in their emotional well-being, able to build relationships and have the confidence to make their own choices from the free-flow activities that are carefully planned to further their interests. Early Years education is the foundation on which all learning is built upon. We value the importance that the Early Years plays in laying secure foundations for all of our children’s future learning and development

There are also seven key features of effective practice that underpin the Early Years ethos and are woven through the Oasis EYFS Curriculum.  These are:

  • The best for every child
  • High quality care
  • The curriculum: What we want children to learn
  • Pedagogy: helping children to learn
  • Assessment: checking what children have learnt
  • Self-regulation and executive function
  • Partnership with parents

This is our Reception learning area
Our Mud Kitchen
Our Reading Corner
Our Small World and Construction Area
Our Stage Area
Our Vets Role Play
Our Water and Construction Areas
Our Water Area
Phonic Floor Books