Early Years Foundation Stage

Early Years Foundation Stage

The provision for children’s learning and development is guided by the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS DfE 2021). Our provision reflects the four guiding themes and principles of the Early Years Foundation Stage. 

The Four guiding principles are:

A Unique Child
Every child is a unique child who is constantly learning and can be resilient, capable, confident and self-assured.

Positive Relationships
Children learn to be strong and independent through positive relationships.

Enabling Environments
Children learn and develop well in enabling environments, in which their experiences respond to their individual needs and there is a strong partnership between the practitioners, parents and carers.

Learning and Development
Children develop and learn in different ways. The framework covers the education and care of all children in early years’ provision including children with special educational needs and disabilities.

Learning through play
Play helps young children to learn and develop through doing and talking, which research has shown to be the means by which young children learn to think. Our setting uses the ‘Birth to 5′ guidance to plan and provide a range of play activities which help children to make progress in each of the areas of learning and development. In some of these activities children decide how they will use the activity and, in others, an adult takes the lead in helping the children to take part in the activity.

Characteristics of effective learning
These are the dispositions or ‘characteristics of effective learning’ which children show, as they make progress in and across all areas of learning and development. They are defined as:
• playing and exploring – engagement
• active learning – motivation
• creating and thinking critically – thinking

How we provide for development and learning
Children start to learn about the world around them from the moment they are born. The care and education offered by our pre-school helps children to continue to do this by providing all of the children with interesting activities that are appropriate for their age and stage of development. There are seven areas of “Learning and Development” comprising:

The three prime areas:
1. Communication and Language
2. Personal, Social and Emotional Development
3. Physical Development

And, the four specific areas:
1. Mathematics
2. Literacy
3. Understanding the World
4. Expressive Arts and Design

Children will be supported in the first instance to acquire the skills as defined in the three ‘prime’ areas, as these provide the firm foundations from which all other areas of learning and development will progress.

For each area of learning and development, the level of progress children should be expected to have attained by the end of the Early Years Foundation Stage is defined by the early learning goals. These goals state what is expected that children will know and be able to do by the end of the reception year of their education.

Progress Check at Age Two
This is statutory requirement of the EYFS. When a child is aged between 24-36 months we need to provide parents/carers with a short, written summary on their child’s development in the three prime Learning and Development areas of the EYFS. The Key Person will discuss this with parents/carers and agree when would be the most appropriate time to undertake the written summary or to confirm that this will be undertaken at another setting, should a child spend more time during the week at another early years setting.

Parent’s Guide to the Early Years Foundation Stage

This guide provides further detailed information the this topic.

Parent Handbook

Our parent handbook has more information on how we implement the EYFS curriculum.

Call us: 01454 867231

Email us: rainbowteddiespreschool@gmail.com