At Upton Infant School we understand that a child’s first year in school is one of the most important as it lays the foundations for a lifelong love of learning and will foster a positive attitude towards education. We aim to provide every child with a broad and balanced curriculum of both adult directed teaching and child-initiated purposeful play, rich in exciting learning opportunities to help develop happy, confident, self-motivated learners.

Curriculum

The curriculum we follow is the statutory Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework for children aged 0-5 (DfE Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage- EYFS reforms- 1st September 2021). We will therefore be building on the good work already started by preschools, nurseries and childminders to enable each child to reach their full potential.

In the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) at Upton Infant School our aims are to:

• support children to make a planned, confident transition from home to school
• provide a happy, caring, safe and secure environment for learning
• plan learning experiences that meet the individual needs and interests of the children through a balanced provision of adult led and child initiated opportunities
• support children to become competent and confident learners so they are able to reach their full potential
• provide a broad and balanced high quality curriculum in line with the Early Years Foundation Stage guidance
• foster positive home school links with parents and other care providers.

We follow The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework as detailed below. This framework is a means of ensuring high standards of early education and care that will reassure parents that their child’s development is being fully supported. It underpins all future learning by supporting and fostering the children’s personal, social and emotional wellbeing. It encourages positive attitudes and dispositions towards learning in the children and promotes learning through play.

All children in the EYFS at are encouraged to enjoy and share books with each other, individually and with an adult. A meeting is held in school for parents at the beginning of the Autumn Term to explain in detail about reading and phonics in the EYFS and school life in general. At Upton Infants School, the children follow the ‘Read Write Inc.’ programme, which is a synthetic phonics approach to learning to read and write. This is a complete literacy programme which helps all children learn to read fluently and at speed so they can focus on developing their skills in comprehension, vocabulary and spelling.

Assessment

Assessment in Reception is carried out in line with the ‘Early Years Foundation Stage Framework’. Staff regularly observe the children to create an online ‘learning journey’ on Tapestry. They also gather other evidence of the children’s progress and achievements from their interactions, any ongoing assessments, the work children have produced and the stages they are working at for their reading. At the end of the Reception in the Summer Term, teachers use all the evidence gathered to inform the final EYFS Profile assessment. To ensure we have a complete, accurate picture of a child’s achievements, parents are strongly encouraged to add ‘wow’ moments from home on to Tapestry. The EYFS Profile assessments cover all seven areas of learning (outlined below) and are used to judge attainment. This information will be used to inform you of your child’s achievements and will help prepare your child’s Year 1 teacher with information they need to support, challenge or extend your child’s learning and development.

The information below is taken from the Department for Education Document ‘Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage- EYFS reforms early adopter version July 2020’.

Early Learning Goals

The EYFS framework is divided into the following areas of learning and their associated Early Learning Goals:

The Prime Areas

Communication and language

Listening, attention and understanding: Listen attentively and respond to what they hear with relevant questions, comments and actions when being read to and during whole class discussions and small group interactions. Make comments about what they have heard and ask questions to clarify their understanding. Hold conversation when engaged in back-and-forth exchanges with their teacher and peers.

Speaking: Participate in small group, class and one-to-one discussions, offering their own ideas, using recently introduced vocabulary. Offer explanations for why things might happen, making use of recently introduced vocabulary from stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems when appropriate. Express their ideas and feelings about their experiences using full sentences, including use of past, present and future tenses and making use of conjunctions, with modelling and support from their teacher.

Physical development

Gross motor skills: Negotiate space and obstacles safely, with consideration for themselves and others. Demonstrate strength, balance and coordination when playing. Move energetically, such as running, jumping, dancing, hopping, skipping and climbing.

Fine motor skills: Hold a pencil effectively in preparation for fluent writing – using the tripod grip in almost all cases. Use a range of small tools, including scissors, paintbrushes and cutlery. Begin to show accuracy and care when drawing.

Personal, social and emotional development

Self-Regulation:  Show an understanding of their own feelings and those of others and begin to regulate their behaviour accordingly. Set and work towards simple goals, being able to wait for what they want and control their immediate impulses when appropriate. Give focused attention to what the teacher says, responding appropriately even when engaged in activity, and show an ability to follow instructions involving several ideas or actions.

Managing Self: Be confident to try new activities and show independence, resilience and perseverance in the face of challenge. Explain the reasons for rules, know right from wrong and try to behave accordingly. Manage their own basic hygiene and personal needs, including dressing, going to the toilet and understanding the importance of healthy food choices.

Building Relationships: Work and play cooperatively and take turns with others. Form positive attachments to adults and friendships with peers. Show sensitivity to their own and to others’ needs.

The Specific Areas

Literacy

Comprehension: Demonstrate understanding of what has been read to them by retelling stories and narratives using their own words and recently introduced vocabulary. Anticipate (where appropriate) key events in stories. Use and understand recently introduced vocabulary during discussions about stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems and during role play.

Word reading: Say a sound for each letter in the alphabet and at least 10 digraphs. Read words consistent with their phonic knowledge by sound-blending. Read aloud simple sentences and books that are consistent with their phonic knowledge, including some common exception words.

Writing: Write recognisable letters, most of which are correctly formed. Spell words by identifying sounds in them and representing the sounds with a letter or letters. Write simple phrases and sentences that can be read by others

Mathematics

Number: Have a deep understanding of number to 10, including the composition of each number. Subitise (recognise quantities without counting) up to 5. Automatically recall (without reference to rhymes, counting or other aids) number bonds up to 5 (including subtraction facts) and some number bonds to 10, including double facts.

Numerical patterns: Verbally count beyond 20, recognising the pattern of the counting system. Compare quantities up to 10 in different contexts, recognising when one quantity is greater than, less than or the same as the other quantity. Explore and represent patterns within numbers up to 10, including evens and odds, double facts and how quantities can be distributed equally.

Understanding the world

Past and present: Talk about the lives of the people around them and their roles in society. Know some similarities and differences between things in the past and now, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class.

Understand the past through settings, characters and events encountered in books read in class and storytelling.

People, culture and communities: Describe their immediate environment using knowledge from observation, discussion, stories, non-fiction texts and maps. Know some similarities and differences between different religious and cultural communities in this country, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class.

Explain some similarities and differences between life in this country and life in other countries, drawing on knowledge from stories, nonfiction texts and (when appropriate) maps

The Natural World: Explore the natural world around them, making observations and drawing pictures of animals and plants. Know some similarities and differences between the natural world around them and contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class.

Understand some important processes and changes in the natural world around them, including the seasons and changing states of matter.

Expressive arts and design

Creating with Materials: Safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function. Share their creations, explaining the process they have used. Make use of props and materials when role playing characters in narratives and stories.

Being Imaginative and Expressive: Invent, adapt and recount narratives and stories with peers and their teacher.

Sing a range of well-known nursery rhymes and songs. Perform songs, rhymes, poems and stories with others, and (when appropriate) try to move in time with music.