Early Years

Welcome to Early Years

Welcome to the Early Years at Bowesfield Primary School!

Giving top priority to the youngest age group is an investment in the future. They are the seed corn of the future, and their development will determine the fabric of tomorrow’s society.” (Kellner Pringle)

Here you will find information about our Early Years Curriculum and how we deliver it and how you can do to support your child during their time in Early Years!

Mrs Greenhalgh is the Nursery teacher. Mrs Hardiman, who also Leads the Early Years, and Mrs Shardha are the Reception Class teachers and

we are also very lucky to have Mrs Ashfaq, Mrs Byron and Mrs Richardson who are our classroom assistants and support us with our learning every day!

Structure of Early Years

The Early Years at Bowesfield Primary School consists of a 52 place Nursery and two Reception classes. The Nursery part time provision consists of a three hour morning session and a three hour afternoon session. There are also a limited number of nursery places available for working parents who are entitled to 30 hours nursery provision.

Intent

At Bowesfield we strive to build strong foundations rooted in academic success as well as moral and spiritual development, so that ultimately our pupils can be successful, go on to be active citizens of society and happy, curious life-long learners. Early Years education requires a holistic approach, encompassing all learning and development and is the basis upon which children’s learning journey in school begins.

At Bowesfield Primary School we aim to:

recognise that all children are unique and special
recognise that children develop in individual ways and at varying rates
use praise and encouragement to develop a positive attitude to learning
support all children to achieve their potential, identifying and supporting as soon as possible those who need additional help
provide a secure, caring learning environment where children feel happy and know that they are valued
deliver a broad and balanced curriculum
encourage and develop children’s natural desire, interest, excitement and motivation to learn through providing play-based learning experiences which reflect children’s personal interests and areas of curiosity as well as providing opportunities to try new things
promote independent learning in a range of environments, inside and outside
build on children’s existing knowledge and skills as well as broadening their experiences, encouraging them to enjoy and embrace new challenges and make links between their learning
teach children to express and communicate their needs and feelings in appropriate ways, including opportunities to develop their well-being and the ability to self- regulate emotions
provide high expectations, encouraging children to develop perseverance and self- belief
encourage children’s independence and decision-making, supporting them to take risks and to learn through their mistakes
support children to develop care, respect and appreciation for others, including those with beliefs, cultures and opinions that differ to their own
Enable children to feel confident in our school community, equipped with the tools needed to transition to Year 1 effectively
create a partnership with parents to support and enhance the development of the children

Implementation

Teaching and Learning:

Teaching in the EYFS at Bowesfield Primary School is delivered in accordance with the government’s statutory document ‘Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage’. Within EYFS, activities are planned on a half termly basis, using a topic approach to give children a variety of learning experiences and opportunities that support them to work towards the Early Learning Goals as well as preparing them for the transition to year 1. Key texts, our ‘Favourite Fives’, are identified to use to ignite children’s interest and develop understanding of books and print, comprehension skills and phonological awareness.

The curriculum is centred on 3 prime areas of learning:

Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Physical Development
Communication and Language Development

Activities are supported through four specific areas which strengthen the prime areas. These are:

Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding of the World
Expressive Arts and Design

Throughout the day the children participate in a range of activities. Staff work with children individually and in groups within the different areas of the indoor and outdoor classrooms. Staff use these opportunities to support children in different ways such as introducing new concepts, scaffolding learning, supporting language development or challenging and developing children’s thinking through use of questioning. Staff use these learning opportunities to develop their knowledge and understanding of each individual child. They also provide opportunities to gather evidence of the children’s learning and development in different ways. Photos and videos are regularly shared with parents through Tapestry the online learning journal. Parents can also contribute and add their own evidence of their child’s development to the journal.

Whole class carpet sessions happen at different times throughout the day with an emphasis on developing listening, speaking and language skills. These sessions incorporate activities such as song and rhyme time, story times and circle times.

Phonics is taught daily, using the Read Write Inc scheme when children are ready. This may be during their time in Nursery, in Reception children have daily RWI sessions, which increase in length as the year progresses

Play:

At Bowesfield Primary School, we believe that play, both indoors and outdoors, is a fundamental part of how young children learn. Play is enjoyable and can be challenging. Through play, children will develop skills across all the Prime and Specific areas of learning, working towards achieving the Early Learning Goals.

In a secure environment with effective adult support, children will be able to:

explore, develop and represent learning experiences that help them make sense of the world
practise and build upon concepts, ideas and skills;
take risks and make mistakes
think creatively and imaginatively
investigate and solve problems, communicating with others;
use talk to rehearse their feelings
be alone, play alongside or co-operate with others
learn to understand the need for rules and practise controlling their impulses
express fears in controlled and safe situations to relieve anxious experiences

Adults in the setting will support play by:

resourcing stimulating environments
planning a mix of adult supported and child-led activities
extending and supporting children’s spontaneous play
extending and developing children’s language and communication in their play
observing and listening to children’s communication and ideas; using these observations to develop play and to inform future planning
narrating children’s play
asking open-ended questions

Impact

The impact of the EYFS curriculum is reflected in having well rounded, happy and confident children transitioning into Year 1.

Children’s progress in Early Years is monitored closely from the moment they start and their unique journey is closely tracked using our school checkpoints devised from Development Matters. This allows appropriate support and challenge to be put in place. We react quickly to children at risk of falling behind and intervene to accelerate their learning. Our assessments are integral to our effective teaching and learning. We use Tapestry, an online learning journey, alongside a paper Learning Journey File to evidence children’s learning in Early Years. To ensure our judgements are robust we moderate within the school within our team, and we regularly take part in the local Early Years Assessment Partnerships where we can share good practise and moderate judgements across the Local Authority. We aim to match or exceed the National and Local Authority data for children achieving Good Level of Development.

Self-esteem blossoms in our Early Years, children are happy, confident and have a sense of belonging, a positive disposition to learning and are well equipped with a broad range of knowledge and skills to begin the next chapter of their educational journey.

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