The Early Years Foundation Stage at Burnwood Community School is a nurturing and caring environment where children are supported to become confident and independent learners, delivered through an exploratory-based approach to developing and securing new skills.

 

Children in both the Nursery (FS1) and Foundation 2 (Reception) classes are encouraged to explore concepts and skills through hands-on experiences, choosing resources and methods based on their own interests. The staff in the Foundation Stage provide all children with appropriate learning experiences for their stage development to promote and encourage their individual potential.

 

In planning and guiding children’s activities, all practitioners must reflect on the different ways that children learn and reflect these in their practice.

The three characteristics of effective teaching and learning are:

• playing and exploring - children investigate and experience things, and ‘have a go’
• active learning - children concentrate and keep on trying if they encounter difficulties, and enjoy achievements
• creating and thinking critically - children have and develop their own ideas, make links between ideas, and develop strategies for doing things.

 

There are seven areas of learning and development. All are important and interconnected. Three areas are particularly crucial for igniting children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning and for building their capacity to learn, form relationships and thrive – they are the PrimeAreas;

 Communication and Language

• Listening and Attention
• Understanding
• Speaking

 Personal, Social and Emotional Development

• Making Relationships
• Self-confidence and Self-Awareness

• Managing Feelings and Behaviour

 Physical Development

• Moving and Handling
• Health and Self-care

 Providers must also support children in 4 Specific areas;

Literacy

• Reading
• Writing

Mathematics

• Numbers
• Shape, Space and Measures

 Understanding the World

• People and Communities
• The World
• Technology

Expressive Arts and Design

• Exploring and using Media and Materials
• Being Imaginative

Each day the children will be taught through adult-led guided groups and through their own independent choices of activity, all of which are underpinned by the Early Year’s Foundation Stage Curriculum. The children at Burnwood love to learn in the safe and inviting spaces, both inside and outside.