Foundation Stage Curriculum
The Foundation Stage curriculum was introduced and implemented in line with Government Guidelines at Gamesley Early Excellence Centre in September 2000. This very important stage of education begins when the child reaches three and continues until the end of the reception year.
We believe that the Foundation Stage of education makes an enormous contribution to children’s early development and learning. The Foundation Stage is about developing important skills such as listening, speaking, concentration and persistence and being able to work together and co-operate with other children. It is also about developing early communication, literacy and numeracy skills.
The curriculum at Gamesley Early Excellence Centre is based around the Early Learning Goals as set out in The Foundation Stage Curriculum. Furthermore our curriculum is based on the developmental needs of the young child; it is child-centred, planned around play, language and experiential learning. We are concerned with breadth, continuity and the process of learning and always plan for balance in our early years curriculum, which aims to meet the intellectual, social, physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the children. We work towards the Early Learning Goals which stage the learning goals that are required for each child to achieve by the end of the reception year.
Our nursery curriculum, organisation of the learning and nursery environment, activities and experiences are all planned around the following areas of learning:
Within each curriculum area, early learning goals are set which establish expectations for most children to reach by the end of the Foundation Stage. The early learning goals are supported by stepping stones. These stepping stones show progress towards the early learning goals and are an indication to staff members of the stages a young child may progress through to reach the goal. These stepping stones identify the knowledge, skills, understanding and attitudes that children need if they are to achieve the early learning goals by the end of the foundation stage.
At Gamesley Early Excellence Centre we acknowledge that by the time children are three years old they will have learnt a great deal from their parents, families and carers. We do all we can to establish effective, positive and supportive relationships with all our parents, as we truly believe that children will be best able to meet the early learning goals when staff and parents work in partnership.
Personal, social and emotional development
Behaviour and moral development along with social, personal and emotional development have always been a high priority for the Centre. Our moral policy consists of a whole staff approach to the teaching of right and wrong and the ethos which we wish to create in our nursery, which involves a positive, preventative, interventionist, modelling and proactive approach.
We promote an inclusive ethos and provide opportunities for each child to become a valued member of the group and community so that a strong self-image and self-esteem are promoted.
Much of moral, personal, social and emotional education consists of how we treat each other in an atmosphere of respect and value but we also plan for this area each half term and week.
The spiritual policy is in accordance with our Centre philosophy. Much of children’s spirituality occurs spontaneously as their natural joy of life is expressed on an every day basis and we aim to recognise this, share it and develop it as it happens. We plan for a child’s spiritual experiences. In the long term this may be a focus on new life in spring or the Christmas story in December. In the short term this might include telling religious, humanist or moral stories, role-play scenarios, discussions etc. Equally we plan for joy, awe and wonder – watching tadpoles developing etc.
As a nearly all white, monocultural nursery we do not have the richness of a multicultural clientele to extend our children’s experiences. We aim to present to our children positive images and experiences of children and people of other cultures, races and religions through the use of posters, books and artefacts. We celebrate three multicultural festivals and three Christian festivals each year – Eid, Chinese New Year, Divali, Easter, Harvest and Christmas.
We are aware that our English culture, which though now is multicultural, also has a traditional background, which is still represented through our festivals, customs, parents and grandparents. Not only do we celebrate or refer to these customs e.g. Mother's Day, Pancake Tuesday but we also share a historical perspective of family life with our children and their parents and celebrate family and community life e.g. Grandparents’ Open Day.
Communication, Language and Literacy
Communication, language and Literacy receive a high priority in our curriculum provision. It is our prime importance because skills developed in this subject are essential for learning throughout the school curriculum. The development and use of communication and language is at the very heart of young children’s learning.
Time is set aside during the day for specific discussion and story time when children meet in groups with their family support worker and/or teacher.
Play, in particular role-play, is very important in developing children’s language skills in a social context and we ensure that there are many opportunities for role-play within the nursery.
All our children are screened for language, speech and understanding on entry to nursery using the Derbyshire Language Scheme. Those children who need extra help are given a special language programme and one to one teaching.
Learning nursery rhymes is good for language development by developing rhythm, memory and phonology skills. We have five core nursery rhymes, which we teach to children with the aim that they will be able to say at least three on leaving nursery. We have 30 favourite core stories. These help children to develop confidence and encourage them to behave like a reader.
Children are encouraged to write and from the start are given many opportunities to copy write and develop independent writing through a variety of methods.
At the age of four, children may start learning familiar text from a reading scheme e.g. Oxford Reading Tree. This is well structured and manages to give the children a good start and confidence as they enter primary school.
Mathematical development
Our approach to mathematics is that it is an active life-based skill and from a young age we teach and give children experiences of counting, number values, matching, sorting, spatial awareness, shape, measurement, sequence, pattern and order and we encourage them to solve problems using everyday objects.
We ensure that children are presented with a wide base of mathematical experiences both inside and outside the nursery, that they develop sound mathematical concepts and associated language and that they view mathematics as a living subject, which is part of everyday life.
We encourage children from the start to regard themselves as mathematically competent and extend their mathematical understanding so that they are able to apply what they know in diverse situations.
The organisation of the nursery in the over 3s includes a mathematical area which is primarily resourced for mathematical teaching and learning. The computer software in this area is for mathematical concepts and the imaginative play area is always a different kind of shop because shops have many varied mathematical opportunities in play.
We include mathematical songs and rhymes in our daily routine. We also include mathematical concepts through a fictional familiar story.
Knowledge and understanding of the world
(Includes science, technology, geography and history)
We have two approaches to science and technology experiences. Firstly, science is experienced throughout the nursery through a variety of activities which are always available e.g. sand, water, outdoor discoveries, workshop, block play, computer etc. This means that children are always discovering, experimenting, observing, investigating and exploring naturally and spontaneously. There is always an adult to help them to develop their ideas and concepts and ask and answer questions.
We also plan more detailed scientific and technological experiences on a weekly and daily basis. There is always an interesting science display for the children to touch, experiment with and explore.
ICT is a great strength of our Centre and we make maximum use of all our equipment for the benefit of the children’s learning and our teaching.
Geography must relate to the child’s own experiences. Children of this age are very egotistical and can only relate to and learn from what they know and experience at first hand knowledge. Geography for the young child is about their home, their journey to nursery and the shops. History is about their family and what they did yesterday because children of this age have little concept of time and do not successfully use the language of time. This area of learning, therefore, is about direct experiences and how to extend those experiences so children are active learners.
Trips, visits and visitors play a very important part in extending children’s experiences.
Physical Development
Our current practice in physical development is divided into two areas:
- fine motor control
- gross motor control.
Fine motor control is concerned with the small movement skills a child experiences on an everyday basis in many kinds of situation which abound in the nursery environment.
Gross motor skills are concerned with children moving confidently and imaginatively with increasing control and co-ordination and awareness of space and others. Physical education for the young child is free active play in a carefully structured, challenging environment, where children are encouraged to acquire knowledge, skills and understanding of gymnastics, games, athletics, small apparatus, wheeled toys and large constructions.
We provide two outside areas and an indoor area for physical education. There are picnic areas, fixed climbing equipment, slides, soft surfaces, sand pits, adventure areas, investigative areas, gardening areas and a sensory garden.
Creative development
(Includes art and craft, music and dance)
Art and craft activities are always available in our workshop area, which is well resourced. Children help themselves to equipment and materials and it is the role of the staff to develop the children’s creativity and ideas. We plan according to our scheme of work, which covers many skills and techniques in art and craft and allows for the development of creativity and communication of feelings and ideas.
We have a firm policy to celebrate child art and to display it well.
We employ an artist in residence on a project by project basis specifically to work with children and parents.
Music with the children is time-tabled every day. This involves a mixture of large group singing or use of instruments; use of claves to develop rhythm and a simple understanding of the dynamics of music and small withdrawal sessions for children to work in a small group to learn about simple composition and instrument recognition.
We carefully plan all music activities to include listening skills, the development of creativity, feeling and ideas and to involve experimentation with sound.
We continually work towards giving our children quality musical experiences and aim to involve amateur and professional musicians whenever we can.
Dance is time-tabled to ensure provision. We link dance sessions to our language and literacy planning and we often have spontaneous dance sessions during the nursery session.
We aim to ensure that children freely express themselves with enjoyment and creativity.
We try to give the children many varied experiences of dance and where possible, invite dancers into the Centre.