Early Years Foundation stage

Our Early Years curriculum aims to:

  • Support our children to develop strong communication, language and literacy skills.

  • Encourage our children to be creative, imaginative, resilient, independent and resourceful learners.

  • Empower our children to understand, celebrate and respect different cultures and diversity

  • Give our children the courage and desire to be positive role models to their peers.

At The Priory Parish CE Primary School, our Early Years provision consists of a nursery class, a Pre-School class and an F2 Class.  We are committed to providing a high-quality Early Years education, which gives children a secure and confident start to their school life and nurtures a lifelong love of learning. 

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) covers the development of children from birth to the end of their F2 year. The overarching aim of the EYFS is to ensure that children learn and develop well and are kept healthy and safe. It promotes teaching and learning to ensure children’s ‘school readiness’ and gives children the broad range of knowledge and skills that provide the right foundation for good future progress through school and life. 

Intent - Our RAISE curriculum in EYFS:

R - Retention of powerful knowledge and vocabulary: knowledge led curriculum with the development of CLL and vocabulary at the core of all that we do.

A - Application of powerful knowledge and vocabulary: ensure that through the development of knowledge, our children are able to develop skills and apply them in everything they do.

I - Inspiration: we inspire the children through the resources we present them with, the people we celebrate and the experiences we provide for them.

S - Success for everyone: our curriculum is structured using a mastery approach to ensure that all children succeed.

E - Elevating our children to a position where they can make a positive difference to the world: our curriculum allows us to identify children who may need extra support in order to elevate them to be the best version of themselves.

  • We have high ambitions for all children and provide a curriculum that meets the needs of each child, so all children from every background will do well and no child gets left behind.

  • At the Priory Parish, we focus on the development of every child as an individual, valuing and building on their previous experiences and responding to their individual needs.

  • The curriculum is well planned and well sequenced, building on from what children can do and they already know, so they can acquire new skills and knowledge.

  • We aim to provide a happy, caring, secure and stimulating learning environment to support and extend children's development and learning

  • We foster good relationships with families, where they feel valued and are able to actively contribute to and participate in school life.

  • We encourage confidence, independence and a desire to learn;

  • We promote and celebrate achievement across all areas of the EYFS curriculum ensuring every child is included and supported.

Implementation of RAISE in EYFS:

We follow the Statutory Framework of the EYFS and the four guiding principles that shape practice within Early Years settings.  At The Priory Parish CE Primary School, we recognise that:

  • Every child is a unique child, who is constantly learning and can be resilient, confident and self- assured.

  • Children learn to be strong and independent through positive relationships.

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

  • Children develop and learn in different ways and at different rates.

Children learn skills, acquire new knowledge and demonstrate their understanding through the seven areas of learning and development. Children should mostly develop the three prime areas first. These are:

  1. Communication and Language

  2. Physical Development

  3. Personal, Social and Emotional Development

These prime areas are those most essential for a child’s healthy development and future learning. As children grow, the prime areas will help them to develop skills in four specific areas. These are:

  • Literacy

  • Mathematics

  • Understanding the World

  • Expressive Arts and Design

The Role Of The Key Person

At The Priory Parish CE Primary School, each child has a key person. there role is:

  • To develop and build a relationship with each key child, enabling a secure attachment.

  • To ensure children feel safe, loved and have a sense of belonging.

  • To celebrate and understand the uniqueness of each child.

  • To develop strong family relationships with a shared belief to do the very best for each and every child.

  • To ensure families are kept well-informed of their child’s progress, attainment and next steps for development.

  • To develop a trusting and comfortable relationship with each child in order to provide personal care, including toileting and medical care, in an environment, which priorities the safeguarding of all.