Children's Learning

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

The EYFS is a framework which brings together: Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage (2000), the Birth to Three Matters (2002) framework and the National Standards for the Under 8’s Day care and Childminding (2003) and is the new regulatory and quality framework for the provision for learning, development and care for children between birth and the academic year in which they turn five (0-5).

 

The EYFS Principles are grouped into 4 themes as follows:

A unique child – Every child is a competent learner from birth who can be resilient, capable, confident and self reassured.

Positive Relationships- Children learn to be strong and independent from a base of loving and secure relationships with parents and/or a key carer.

Enabling Environments- The environment plays a key role in supporting and extending children’s development and learning.

Learning and Development – Children develop and learn in different ways and at different rates and all areas of learning and development are equally important and inter-connected.

 

Areas of Learning and Development

The EYFS is made up of six areas of learning and development

1.     Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED)

2.     Communication, Language and Literacy (CLL)

3.     Problem solving, Reasoning and Numeracy (PSRN)

4.     Knowledge and Understanding of the World (KUW)

5.     Physical development(PD)

6.     Creative (CD)

All areas are equally important, are connected and underpinned by the Principles of the EYFS.

 

Four key priorities of the EYFS

  • Play is at the heart of the EYFS, children need to play in order to have fun and in order to begin to understand the world around them
  • Welfare and safety of children is paramount
  • Parents should be kept up to date with what their children are doing and encouraged to get involved as much as possible
  • Each child should be allocated a key member of staff and should be encouraged but allowed to develop at their own pace and in their own way

Observation, Assessment and Planning

The planning is based on and starts with observations of the individual child in order to understand their current interests, developmental and learning stages.

Long term Planning - focuses on the environment and the role of the practitioner in supporting learning and can change over time to reflect the changing interests.

Medium Term Planning- This is based on children’s interests and predictable foci throughout the forthcoming year although this can also incorporate unplanned activities.

Short Term Planning- This is based on the observations of the children and their individual interests. It should be flexible in order to adapt to changing circumstances in the child’s life or spontaneous interests. The planning will be focused on challenging children’s thinking and to extend their learning experiences.

 

Profiles

These are individual books which are shared with parents, carers and children. The profiles are compiled chronologically to make it easier for families to include material and show progress in the child’s development. These include all dated observations, photographs and samples of children’s work, children’s comments, parent/carers comments, formative and summative assessments, and reports. The profiles are a valuable tool to inform planning, support learning and areas of interest and to benefit shared information between parent and key workers.