Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

At Upton St James (USJ), we want our Reception children to be independent, resilient, and self-motivated learners who strive to ‘rise to their best’ and who are well prepared for the challenges of KS1. We know that children learn best when engaged and motivated and therefore we aim to provide an exciting and aspirational curriculum, linked to children’s interests and a stimulating learning environment where children are able to demonstrate their knowledge, work collaboratively, think critically and take risks with their learning.  

We want our children to leave Reception as well-rounded individuals, able to persevere in the face of challenge, regulate their emotions appropriately and who embody the school value of ‘loving your neighbour as yourself’ (Mark 12 v30-31). 

Our curriculum follows the Early Years Statutory Framework for the Early years Foundation Stage and is informed by Development Matters (DfE, 2023).  

Children in the EYFS learn by playing and exploring, being active and thinking critically and creatively and this takes place both indoors and in our outdoor areas. We provide a balance of adult-led, subject specific teaching, and adult directed and child-initiated learning. Subject specific learning is planned to broaden children’s knowledge and provide new experiences whilst building on their existing learning.  

Our learning environment is designed to promote independence, perseverance and collaboration through a mix of self-selected, open-ended resources and planned weekly learning challenges.  

For those children who are finding learning challenging and are not on track to meet expectations at the end of the year, we provide effective and focused intervention which aims to enable to them to catch up quickly with their peers.  

We use Class Dojo to record evidence of learning and communicate with parents  

Phonics and early reading are taught using Read Write Inc. 

We measure progress and children’s learning across the year through formative and summative assessments which are based on the teacher’s knowledge of the child, the class floor book, children’s individual learning and photographs and videos on recorded on Seesaw. 

Ongoing observations are used to inform weekly planning and identify children’s next steps. Adults draw on their knowledge of the child and their own expert professional judgements, through discussions with other practitioners, photographs and physical examples such as a child’s drawing/making.  

The impact for children will be that they:  

• Experience a broad and balanced Early Years curriculum that prepares them to move successfully to KS1. 

• Are independent and enthusiastic learners.  

• Take pride in all that they do, always striving to do their best. 

• Demonstrate emotional resilience and the ability to persevere when they encounter challenge. 

• Will be able to communicate effectively and will listen respectfully and with tolerance to the views of others. 

• Be kind, respectful and honest, demonstrate inclusive attitudes and have a sense of their role in our wider society.