EYFS (Reception)
EYFS Statement of Intent
At St Peter's we place great value on the development of children as individuals and providing them with the skills, knowledge and understanding they need to prepare them for the challenges in Key Stage One and beyond. Our aim in the EYFS is to work with parents and carers to build strong foundations rooted in academic success as well as faith, moral and spiritual development, so that ultimately our pupils can be successful as active citizens of society and happy, curious life-long learners.
Our curriculum is therefore the cultural capital we know our pupils need so that they can gain the knowledge, skills and understanding they require for success. They can only do that if we embed the right habits for learning and life so that we are fulfilling our mission of 'Unlocking potential with the keys of love, respect and friendship'.
A number of our pupils arrive below national expectations for their age and a proportion have more complex needs. We have to help our children develop the skills of listening, speaking clearly to a range of audiences and meet the high expectations for behaviour by working together and being kind. As such, we prioritise personal, social and emotional development and communication and language in the EYFS curriculum. Our enabling environment and warm, skilful adult interactions support the children as they begin to link learning to their play and exploration. We invest time and energy into helping pupils set and reflect on their own goals by aiming high and developing a love of reading, writing and number. This is delivered through a holistic curriculum which maximises opportunities for meaningful cross-curricular links and learning experiences as well as promoting the unique child by offering extended periods of play and sustained thinking following children’s interests and ideas. We value imagination and creativity and seek to create a sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning through a vibrant continuous indoor and outdoor provision, alongside trips, visits and regular forest school sessions.
Maths
Mathematics in Reception has an emphasis on the development of key skills: of counting, recognising and understanding numbers up to 20; basic calculation strategies and recognising and describing basic shapes, so that pupils develop deep understanding and the acquisition of Mathematical language. Pupils learn through games and tasks using concrete manipulatives which are then rehearsed and applied to their own learning during exploration and in adult lead activities. These collaborative and practical mathematical experiences are carefully designed to help pupils remember the content they have been taught and to support them with integrating their new knowledge across the breadth of their experiences and into larger concepts. Teaching Mathematics in such a kinaesthetic and practical way, supports our children to become logical problem solvers that can demonstrate resilience and deep understanding when learning.
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