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Sutton on the Hill Pre-School

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Sutton on the Hill, Ashbourne

Derbyshire    DE6 5JA

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Early Years Foundation Stage

The Early Years Foundation Stage published their revised framework which came into effect from September 2012.  An updated EYFS came into effect on 1 September 2014. This document covers the learning and development of all children from birth to 5 years of age.

See attachments at the bottom of the page for further resources, plus the following links may be useful:

Birth to 5 Matters guidance developed by the Early Years Coalition:  https://www.birthto5matters.org.uk/

Early Years Alliance advice for parents: https://www.eyalliance.org.uk/involving-parents-their-children%E2%80%99s-learning

Foundation Years information surrounding the  EYFS: https://foundationyears.org.uk/2019/08/eyfspolicy/

Government advice on the EYFS: https://www.gov.uk/early-years-foundation-stage

Government advice on Ofsted's role: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/information-for-parents-about-ofsteds-role-in-regulating-childcare/information-for-parents-about-ofsteds-role-in-regulating-childcare

Government advice on the  non-statutory curriculum, Development Matters: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/development-matters--2

National Literacy Trust guidance to help encourage reading together: https://literacytrust.org.uk/resources/parents-partners-how-get-families-reading-together-early-years/

Purpose and aims of the Early Years Foundation Stage

Four guiding principles should shape practice in early years settings. These are:

• every child is a unique child, who is constantly learning and can be resilient, capable, 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; and

• children develop and learn in different ways and at different rates. The framework covers the education and care of all children in early years provision, including children with special educational needs and disabilities. 

The areas of learning and development

There are seven areas of learning and development that must shape educational programmes in early years settings. All areas of learning and development are important and inter-connected. 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. These three areas, the prime areas, are: 

• Communication and language
• Physical development
• Personal, social and emotional development. 

Providers must also support children in four specific areas, through which the three prime areas are strengthened and applied. The specific areas are: 

• Literacy;
• Mathematics;
• Understanding the world; and
• Expressive arts and design.

• Communication and language development involves giving children opportunities to experience a rich language environment; to develop their confidence and skills in expressing themselves; and to speak and listen in a range of situations.

• Physical development involves providing opportunities for young children to be active and interactive; and to develop their co-ordination, control, and movement. Children must also be helped to understand the importance of physical activity, and to make healthy choices in relation to food.

• Personal, social and emotional development involves helping children to develop a positive sense of themselves, and others; to form positive relationships and develop respect for others; to develop social skills and learn how to manage their feelings; to understand appropriate behaviour in groups; and to have confidence in their own abilities.

• Literacy development involves encouraging children to link sounds and letters and to begin to read and write. Children must be given access to a wide range of reading materials (books, poems, and other written materials) to ignite their interest.

• Mathematics involves providing children with opportunities to develop and improve their skills in counting, understanding and using numbers, calculating simple addition and subtraction problems; and to describe shapes, spaces, and measures.

• Understanding the world involves guiding children to make sense of their physical world and their community through opportunities to explore, observe and find out about people, places, technology and the environment.

• Expressive arts and design involves enabling children to explore and play with a wide range of media and materials, as well as providing opportunities and encouragement for sharing their thoughts, ideas and feelings through a variety of activities in art, music, movement, dance, role-play, and design and technology.

The early learning goals (by the end of Reception year)

The prime areas

Communication and language 

Listening and attention: children listen attentively in a range of situations. They listen to stories, accurately anticipating key events and respond to what they hear with relevant comments, questions or actions. They give their attention to what others say and respond appropriately, while engaged in another activity.

Understanding: children follow instructions involving several ideas or actions. They answer ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions about their experiences and in response to stories or events.

Speaking: children express themselves effectively, showing awareness of

listeners’ needs. They use past, present and future forms accurately when talking about events that have happened or are to happen in the future. They develop their own narratives and explanations by connecting ideas or events.                                                                                                                                   

Physical development 

Moving and handling: children show good control and co-ordination in large and small movements. They move confidently in a range of ways, safely negotiating space. They handle equipment and tools effectively, including pencils for writing.

Health and self-care: children know the importance for good health of physical exercise, and a healthy diet, and talk about ways to keep healthy and safe. They manage their own basic hygiene and personal needs successfully, including dressing and going to the toilet independently. 

Personal, social and emotional development 

Self-confidence and self-awareness: children are confident to try new activities, and say why they like some activities more than others. They are confident to speak in a familiar group, will talk about their ideas, and will choose the resources they need for their chosen activities. They say when they do or don’t need help.

Managing feelings and behaviour: children talk about how they and others show feelings, talk about their own and others’ behaviour, and its consequences, and know that some behaviour is unacceptable. They work as part of a group or class, and understand and follow the rules. They adjust their behaviour to different situations, and take changes of routine in their stride.

Making relationships: children play co-operatively, taking turns with others. They take account of one another’s ideas about how to organise their activity. They show sensitivity to others’ needs and feelings, and form positive relationships with adults and other children. 

Literacy 

Reading: children read and understand simple sentences. They use phonic knowledge to decode regular words and read them aloud accurately. They also read some common irregular words. They demonstrate understanding when talking with others about what they have read.

Writing: children use their phonic knowledge to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds. They also write some irregular common words. They write simple sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible. 

Mathematics 

Numbers: children count reliably with numbers from 1 to 20, place them in order and say which number is one more or one less than a given number. Using quantities and objects, they add and subtract two single-digit numbers and count on or back to find the answer. They solve problems, including doubling, halving and sharing.

Shape, space and measures: children use everyday language to talk about size, weight, capacity, position, distance, time and money to compare quantities and objects and to solve problems. They recognise, create and describe patterns. They explore characteristics of everyday objects and shapes and use mathematical language to describe them.

Understanding the world 

People and communities: children talk about past and present events in their own lives and in the lives of family members. They know that other children don’t always enjoy the same things, and are sensitive to this. They know about similarities and differences between themselves and others, and among families, communities and traditions.

The world: children know about similarities and differences in relation to places, objects, materials and living things. They talk about the features of their own immediate environment and how environments might vary from one another. They make observations of animals and plants and explain why some things occur, and talk about changes.

Technology: children recognise that a range of technology is used in places such as homes and schools. They select and use technology for particular purposes.

Expressive arts and design 

Exploring and using media and materials: children sing songs, make music and dance, and experiment with ways of changing them. They safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function.

Being imaginative: children use what they have learnt about media and materials in original ways, thinking about uses and purposes. They represent their own ideas, thoughts and feelings through design and technology, art, music, dance, role-play and stories.

Attachments:

Guidance to children development	[Children-parents guide]	2806 Kb
Books and stories	[Books and stories]	359 Kb
What to Expect When	[Department for Education leaflet on Early Years learning and development]	3003 Kb
EYFS Parents guide	[EYFS Parents guide]	697 Kb
Making maths count	[Making maths count]	276 Kb
Personal, social and emotional development	[Personal, social and emotional development]	384 Kb
Why physical development matters	[Why physical development matters]	469 Kb

Fees and Funding

Fees 

The fees are £16.50 for 3 and 4 year olds, and £17.00 for 2 year olds, for a 3 hr session, payable half termly.  We charge £1.00 per day for snacks & resources.  Parents will receive an invoice at the start of each half term to be paid before the start of the next half term.  Fees must still be paid if the children are absent or on holiday.  If your child has to be absent over a long period of time, talk to the supervisor or chairperson. 

Free Funding

Derbyshire County Council gives free funding to all children age 3 and over, this happens the term after the child’s third birthday.  All children are entitled to 5 free sessions and these can be taken at different sessions.  Parents are asked to fill in an FE1 form so that the Derbyshire County Council knows where each child will be claiming the 5 sessions. In certain cases 2 year old children are now entitled to free funding please see staff for information. Also if both parents are working you might be entitled to 30hrs free childcare, parents will need to apply through HMRC using the following link childcare-support.tax.service.gov.uk. You don't have to use all your 30hrs in one setting to qualify, you can split the free entitlement between different settings.