All our activities are inspired with the guidelines of Early Years Foundation Stage. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is a Government framework that sets out minimum standards of care and learning that all childcare providers are expected to deliver. Its purpose is to ensure that children are provided with a rich learning experience tailored to their individual needs whilst being cared for in a safe and secure environment. The EYFS contains a series of “Early Learning Goals” that set out what most children are expected to achieve by the end of their reception year. These goals are grouped into areas below:

 

Prime areas of Learning:

Communication and Language

Physical Development

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

 

Specific areas of Learning:

Literacy

Mathematics

Understanding the World

Expressive Arts and Design

 

The Learning Characteristics:

Playing and Exploring

Active Learning

Creating and thinking Critically

 

As a good childcare setting, we continuously observe, listen and assess the children in our care. This enables us to record their achievements in each of the areas of learning and then to plan activities and provide resources that will extend each individual child’s learning and development.  EYFS is simply a guide to help childcare practitioners provide effective learning opportunities that are adapted to the needs of each child.

 

Our Activities:

We use our treasure of knowledge and experience to provide naturally inspiring, self-led learning. We provide activities that will encourage your child’s imagination and help them develop key social skills.

Our activities - physical, music/dance, gardening, cookery and art - are on offer. These activities are built around the interests of the children and designed to engage them and encourage them to take the next steps in their individual developments.

 

ART:

It’s vital that children are allowed to develop their creative abilities and to form independent opinions by exploring different media, materials, textures, colours, shapes and sizes. Our art supports your child by guiding them from the early stages of mark making through writing their own name and painting their own portrait. Children begin to use representation to communicate, for example, making a mark and saying, “that’s me.” Once these skills are developed and children recognize that marks have a meaning, they will implant the foundations that are necessary to develop their reading and writing skills.

 

Dance:

When children learn to move with confidence, they safely develop a sense of awareness of space for themselves and others. Our dance is specifically designed to help your child understand how their body responds to music and encourages natural and spontaneous movement.

 

Physical:

Your child’s gross and fine motor skills can be developed through a wide range of physical activities including playing with balls, hoops, ropes and cones. They will also develop skills that will help them to solve problems, negotiate and work closely with a team or independently. Physical development is a prime area of development where children need to be given the opportunity to play actively and interactively. The sessions will develop the characteristics of effective learning, for example, the “willingness to have a go” by engaging in new activities and learning by trial and error in a safe environment. We provide this opportunity by taking children to different activity centres or a park just opposite the setting.

 

Gardening: 

Gardening aims to encourage your child’s natural interest and curiosity, which is crucial for developing an appreciation of the world around them. For younger children, the activity focuses on understanding different textures of natural materials whilst for older children we help them develop the appropriate language for labelling and naming plants and planting them in their own pots. Gardening is a vital way for children to understand the impact of nurturing and caring, as they are actively involved in caring for the plants.

 

Cookery: 

Cookery activity is designed to help your child develop their understanding of different concepts relating to food — from different tastes and textures to weighing, measuring and counting. We provide a practical understanding of what happens when you bake food and change it from cold to hot or runny to solid; this helps them to explore the basic scientific concepts. Cookery also educates children about the benefits of healthy eating while encouraging and supporting the development of good habits that will benefit them as they move on in school and throughout their lives.