Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)
At Calmore Infant School, our children are resilient, ambitious learners with a lifelong love of learning which is fostered from the very start when they join in Year R. In EYFS, we provide an exciting, engaging curriculum which is responsive of all our children’s interests and needs.
Our flexible, child-centred approach allows us to be guided by what the children are fascinated and motivated by. We champion them to be ‘experts’ and learn from each other’s different skills and backgrounds, celebrating their uniqueness which boosts their self-esteem and confidence.
We build on those skills they already have, as well as challenge them to extend this with hands-on, new experiences. Our broad curriculum offers a variety of opportunities inclusive of all backgrounds and needs.
At the heart of our practice are the Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning:
– Play and Exploration,
- Active Learning and
- Creative and Critical Thinking.
These are also underpinned by our school learning behaviours, referred to as our ‘learning heroes’ which are embedded across the school and beyond. Our children are ready to learn, embrace challenges and are reflective.
We prioritise personal, social and emotional development and communication and language as these are essential developmental areas for our children.
We develop positive relationships with our children and their families so that children feel happy and safe in school. This means that they are able to be independent learners who are more likely to take risks in their learning.
We strongly believe that ‘talk’ has an important place in our curriculum; children are given time to express themselves and feel like they are listened to, and we value what they have to share.
This means by the time they leave EYFS, they are confident and ready to learn in KS1 and beyond.
In Year R at Calmore Infant School, our curriculum is designed with our children’s interests in mind.
Every half-term, we have an over-arching theme which is explored through whole class teaching or experiences, small group work and mainly through enhanced continuous provision.
Much of this planning is guided by the time of year, for example, seasons or festivals and what our children are inspired by at the time, as well as formative assessment.
Reception year is the last year of the foundation stage curriculum, at the end of the year the children are assessed whether they have met the ‘Early Learning Goals’ or are still working towards them. This helps the children with their transition into Year 1 as teachers are able to continue working on the skills that they have acquired. We have a strong transition policy in our school for all children to ensure that they settle with confidence and can fully embrace the opportunities on offer in all year groups.
