The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) at St Giles’ gives children the opportunity to experience the very best possible start to their education. We ensure that our children establish solid foundations on which they can build on for their future learning journey. This ensures that they continue to flourish throughout their school years and beyond.

The EYFS prepares children for learning in Key Stage 1 and the National Curriculum. Following ‘Development Matters’ to support the implementation of the statutory requirements in EYFS, children are given opportunities for active learning, to play and explore, think critically and be creative. These are taught through the seven areas of learning which include; Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Communication and Language, Physical Development, Expressive Arts and Design, Understanding the World and Literacy and Mathematics.

Learning is brought to life through projects real life experiences and enhanced provision.

In Literacy, skills are taught daily, with specific emphasis on phonics. The children learn to read and write in a variety of fun and practical ways. The foundation to their learning is provided by the Letters and Sounds phonics scheme which teaches the children to blend and segment sounds in words.

Maths is also taught in a fun and practical way following the White Rose Maths Hub. We value all areas of the EYFS curriculum and celebrate children’s successes in whatever they excel in.

Each day through our comprehensive assessment and planning, children will access learning challenges in each of the 7 EYFS areas of learning. In practice, most challenges will develop a number of different skills and knowledge. For example, in role play children could be learning to play with others whilst developing their language or story telling skills or during modelling with construction children could be learning positional language, to count, spacial awareness skills and fine motor control.

Each week is carefully planned to ensure children receive personalised learning experiences, taking into account their skill development and interests. Some challenges will be adult-led, whilst others will be independent activities chosen by the child. We provide opportunities for learning indoors and outdoors whatever the weather.