Early Years Foundation Stage

Our EYFS curriculum aims to enable our children to be:

Competent and creative learners; who are curious about the world around them.
Secure and confident; who enjoy coming to school and learning new skills and knowledge, building on their existing learning.

At Blacko Primary School, we believe that every child deserves the best possible start in life and the support that enables them to fulfil their true potential. We aim to place the child at the heart of our practice and value the journey of each unique child. To support each child’s unique learning journey, we value everybody’s curiosity and imagination to plan and enhance our continuous provision. Our children have daily opportunities to access open-ended, flexible, large-scale and skills-driven provision. Each year our provision changes slightly to allow each cohort to sprinkle their own magic to their learning environment, aiming to inspire children and progress learning further.

Our children leave the foundation stage with the skills, attitudes and attributes that they need to continue their learning journey into Key Stage 1. We have a play-based provision which allows children to revisit, rehearse, consolidate and learn alongside the valuable role of the high-quality adult. Play is a vehicle for learning and a way for children to express themselves. The adults work alongside the children, providing new knowledge and facts, giving them experiences and developing and deepening their skills. The learning space is as high an input as the adult. Our learning environment, both indoors and outdoors, acts as the third teacher and has the potential to have maximum impact on the unique child.

A strong focus on oracy, the use of high-quality texts linked to the children’s interests and experiences, a wide range of opportunities to learn about the world around them at local, national and global level, alongside the careful and structured teaching of phonics, reading, writing and maths gives the children solid foundations for the next stage of their education. We also teach children the importance of looking after their bodies through healthy eating, good dental care, and by being physically active.

Our Early Years staff are dedicated to providing an environment that supports every child’s personal, social and emotional development, so that they feel cared for, safe and secure and therefore ready to learn. Staff relationships and interactions with children are of a high quality and are responsive to individual needs and interests. Through adult modelling and guidance, children are supported to develop a positive sense of self, develop their resilience and become independent learners, always coming back to the unique child. We have a balance of adult interaction and play.

We know that parents and carers are a child’s first educators and, because of this, we are dedicated to building firm, supportive and reciprocal relationships with parents so that we can work together to ensure that all of our children reach their full potential.

Department for Education - Early Years Foundation Stage Development Matters Document.

Mathematics in EYFS:

Please follow this link to find out what maths looks like in EYFS:

Blacko Primary Maths Curriculum

English, Early Reading and Phonics in EYFS:

Please follow these links to find out what literacy and phonics looks like in EYFS:

Blacko Primary Phonics and Early Reading Curriculum

Blacko Primary English Curriculum

SEND in EYFS

Pupils with SEND will be supported to access our EYFS curriculum through adaptations depending on their need. Adaptations for learning follow the EEF's 5-a-Day Principles and these adaptations, through Ordinary Alternative Provision (OAP), will be planned by teachers to support all children in being able to achieve, regardless of their individual needs.

Our SEND page provides parents with further information about what this could look like for your child and where you can seek further information or support.