Welcome to Early Years!

Just look at our amazing classroom. We are so lucky to learn and explore in such a unique and special building. 

What are we learning this term?

Our driver projects this Summer term are “Sunshine and Sunflowers” and "Big Wide World.

Intent

Our early years’ curriculum lays a secure foundation for future learning. We engage children in learning from the very start and expect our children to leave us as happy, confident and skilful communicators who are curious about the world around them.

Children enter in a positive, caring and welcoming atmosphere where they feel secure, yet are challenged to achieve their best. We provide a high level of wellbeing and this in turn leads to high levels of child development and the ability to create and think critically. We provide opportunities throughout our EYFS curriculum to support learning, consolidate and deepen knowledge and ensure children meet their next steps. Community involvement is an essential part of our curriculum as we celebrate local traditions and learn new skills to enable the children to take an active role in events throughout the year. We work in partnership with parents and carers to encourage independent, happy learners who thrive in school and reach their full potential from their various starting points.

Implementation

We have a curriculum that is child-centred and that is based upon wow experiences and projects which engage and stimulate the children. We encourage active learning to ensure the children are motivated and interested. We take time to get to know children’s interests and their likes to support learning, resulting in a personalised, flexible curriculum.

All areas of the EYFS curriculum are followed and planned for to ensure there is a broad, balanced and progressive learning environment and curriculum. A vital aspect in the development of essential knowledge and skills is the use of continuous provision. Children use and develop taught skills throughout the year on a daily basis. Continuous provision practice and principles begin in EYFS and support children to develop key life skills such as independence, innovation, creativity, enquiry, analysis and problem solving. During the school day, children have an opportunity to work independently, work collaboratively with their friends and with members of staff.

How we learn in EYFS

Daily guided activities are also planned to cover different areas of the EYFS curriculum and allow children to develop their next steps in learning. Through observation and discussion, areas of need and next steps are identified for all children to ensure good progress is made. Staff in the EYFS make regular observations of the children’s learning to ensure their next steps are met. Bespoke personalised learning and interventions for groups or individuals of children are also implemented and monitored on a daily basis.

To support our wider curriculum, we provide regular opportunities for parents and carers to come into school and work with their child, share their work and celebrate successes. We keep parents informed and we meet regularly with them to ensure children’s transition into school and through the EYFS is happy and allows them to reach their potential with the support needed. This includes transition days, nursery or home visits, stay and read sessions, parent workshops, wow moments, reports and parent meetings.

Parents have the opportunity to meet and talk with their child’s teachers and visit their child’s learning environment. We also support the transition into Key Stage 1 for both child and parents. We prepare children for Year 1 with regular visits to their new class and they are already familiar with their year 1 teacher due to regular communication in such a small and unique school.

Impact

At Combs our Early Years children demonstrate high levels of engagement in activities, developing their speaking and listening skills, enabling them to access more areas of learning and communicate to both adults and children. They will have developed concentration, persistence, cooperation and most importantly become willing and confident to ‘have a go’.

Children will develop a wider sense of the world around them and draw on these experiences during interactions with others and link this to new learning. They will also be able to apply their knowledge to a range of situations making links, by explaining their ideas and understanding. Children will be confident to take risks and discuss their successes and failures with adults drawing on their experiences to improve or adjust what they are doing.

From their own starting points, we expect all children, even those at risk of disadvantage, to achieve age related developmental milestones and our curriculum expectations, to make excellent progress academically and socially to give them the best foundations to prepare them for lifelong learning. We challenge pupils and push them to exceed their limits.

Curriculum Aims 

Our EYFS curriculum has been designed to reflect the nature of our beautiful environment, the seasons of the year and the nature around our school. It aims to teach the children how their environment compares to other places, cultures and nature in other parts of the world. It is therefore unique to Combs Infant School.

Each project planned is included in the curriculum for specific reasons and we want to ensure that all children leaving our Foundation Stage are ready to start the KS1 curriculum. All the topics have resources and activities ready to use in the enhanced provision for child initiated learning. Projects are introduced with a good quality storybook or non – fiction text. Using books in this way teaches children that books and reading form the basis of all learning. This ambitious Early Years curriculum aims to teach all children the skills and knowledge in order that they achieve or exceed age related skills in all areas of development. We teach through a range of teaching methods including child-initiated learning, whole class teaching, group teaching, investigations and problem solving together, and independently. We have created a good balance of child initiated and direct teacher led activities to ensure children gain essential knowledge and skills from their teacher. All activities are expertly modelled, and children are given sufficient time, support and resources to repeat and practise them.

Personal Social and Emotional Development

We strive to enable children to be safe, happy, confident individuals. We also encourage self-regulation as much as possible and introduce rules and boundaries through modelling good behaviour and reflection time. We want our children to explore concepts, ideas and the world around them. We want them to have access to a curriculum that inspires them and encourages them to strive for excellence. Most of all, we want every child to be a lifelong learner and we seek to encourage them to become reflective so they are able to recognise the value of resilience and determination. These values underpin our whole curriculum and teaching style throughout the EYFS. These values then follow on throughout the school.

Physical Development

Our stunning outdoor environment and grounds enables us to make the most of the outdoors and we encourage children to play outside as much as possible. Our intention is that children learn how to take measured risks and they are given daily access to the outdoor area of their classroom. We are currently in the process of creating a mini forest school area which the children will then be able to access daily, all year round. We encourage children to learn about nature and look after their environment through regular forest activities and educational visits which provide vital first hand experiences. There is a well-established and comprehensive PE curriculum, which the children access twice a week. At every opportunity, we entwine other areas of learning through our PE sessions especially music.  Children are taught about the importance of regular exercise and healthy eating, and are encouraged to join in with whole-school sports initiatives such as sports days and walk to school week.

Communication and Language

Children are encouraged to listen and communicate appropriately. We enhance the classroom and outdoor area to reflect the project learnt. Each topic encompasses enhancements to the learning environment that include role-play areas, small-world play and story corners to encourage the children to act out scenarios and discuss concepts being learnt. We have a strong focus on oral storytelling and talk for writing. We expose children to high quality texts which reflects the diversity within our school and community. This helps children learn and use new vocabulary introduced through the projects. Children are encouraged to ask questions and contribute to whole-class and group discussion whenever possible. Children who struggle to communicate are targeted in the provision and learning interventions are used when children lack confidence or do not have the age-appropriate skills.