Early Years (Nursery & Reception)

Graded as Outstanding by Ofsted July 2023.

Nursery (Jackson Pollock Class) and Reception (Wassily Kandinsky Class & Piet Mondrian Class)

Our Early Years Expectations

When our children leave Reception they will have a love for learning and be motivated, confident and resilient individuals who are able to build positive relationships.  They will have learnt and will use a wide vocabulary and have a good understanding and knowledge across all the areas of learning ready for the next stage of their learning in Key Stage 1.

Click here for our Welcome to Nursery presentation

Click here for our Welcome to Reception presentation

Starting Nursery Booklet/Information Pack

Starting Reception Booklet/Information Pack

Starting Reception Transition Activity Booklet

Early Years Parent Agreement

Reception Baseline Assessment Leaflet for Parents

Talking With Your Children - Activities for Parents to Help Nursery Children's Speaking and Listening Skills

Early Years Termly NewslettersEarwsletters

Jackson Pollock Class (Nursery) - Autumn  2023

Wassily Kandinsky Class (Reception) - Autumn 2023

Piet Mondrian Class (Reception) - Autumn 2023

Jackson Pollock Class (Nursery) - Spring 2024

Wassily Kandinsky Class (Reception) - Spring 2024

Piet Mondrian Class (Reception) - Spring 2024

Jackson Pollock Class (Nursery) - Summer 2024

Wassily Kandinsky Class (Reception) - Summer 2024

Piet Mondrian Class (Reception) - Summer 2024

The Early Years Curriculum 

 

In the Early Years, leaders’ curriculum-thinking is particularly strong. Leaders know exactly what they want children to know, in order to be able to do preparation for Year 1, across all subjects. (Ofsted Report 2023)

 

At Bangabandhu Primary School we follow the Early Years Statutory Framework. Our play based curriculum has been designed specifically to meet the needs of our youngest learners with an emphasis on the unique child at the centre. The curriculum takes a holistic approach to teaching and learning and is divided up into two main areas - the Prime Areas and the Specific Areas.  There is an explanation of each area below. 

What to Expect in the Early Years - a Guide for Parents

Development Matters - Non statutory curriculum guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage

The Prime Areas – The prime areas of learning are divided into three sections: Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Communication and Language and Physical Development. The prime areas are important because they lay the foundations for children’s success in all other areas of learning and of life.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

In this area children develop confidence and self-esteem. They learn about relationships and how to express their feelings. Children learn about sharing, taking turns and negotiating with others. They begin to understand rules but also develop independence and responsibility.

 

 

 

 

Communication and Language

In this area children talk about what they want and feel, likes and dislikes. They have opportunities to express themselves through role-play and they can enjoy stories, songs, poems and rhymes. Children use language to describe past and present experiences, and sequence events. Children will learn to speak in small and large groups and listen and follow instructions, also listening carefully to others and demonstrate asking interesting and appropriate questions.

 

 

Physical Development

This area sees children playing and learning inside and outside. They become good at moving, climbing, controlling, catching, throwing and coordinating with more and more skill. 

They will get opportunities to chase, race, jump, balance and play with a partner and in teams. Children will find out about keeping healthy as well as learning to dress and undress themselves. They will use different types of tools for drawing, painting, cutting and sticking to develop fine motor skills.  

 

 

 

 

 

The Specific Areas – The specific areas are divided into three sections: literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and expressive arts and design. The specific areas provide the range of experiences and opportunities for children to broaden their knowledge and skills.

Literacy

In this area children handle and share books with others. Children will have chances to see letters and words written down, they will learn the sounds of the alphabet through phonic sessions and speaking and listening activities.

They will start to hear the different sounds that make up a word and apply this knowledge when looking at words in books and begin to read and write captions and sentences.

Literacy Development  -  progression of skills from Nursery to end of Reception

Mathematics

 In this area the children sort and group objects and materials, explaining why they have done something. They will compare height, weight, size and texture.

Children will begin to use positional language to tell where things are and to put things in order.

Children have opportunities to make models with shapes and talk about them and what they look like. They will then notice and make patterns with them.

Children will recognise numbers around them, they will begin to count, add objects together and take them away. They will start to put events in order and investigate how to solve practical problems.

 

Understanding the World

In this area the children have opportunities to explore and investigate the world around them.

They will be able to look at and talk about objects, materials, living creatures and plant life, noticing details, similarities and difference. They will try things out and come to some conclusions and see reason.

Children will have support to record findings by drawing, using the computer and camera. They will begin to know about different people and their cultures, traditions and places in the community.

 

Expressive Art and Design

In this area, children will express their own thoughts, ideas and feelings through drawing, painting and model making.

They will have the chance to design and make their own creations using man-made and natural materials.

They will explore colour, shape and texture using their senses. Children will be able to listen to and make their own music, dance, sing songs and take part in imaginative role play with others.

 

 

The Characteristics of Effective Learning

The above areas are all about what the children learn but an equal emphasis is also placed on how the children learn. The characteristics of effective learning are the way in which children engage with other people and their environment and are divided into 3 sections - playing and exploring, active learning and creating and thinking critically.

Playing and Exploring

This looks at how children engage with people and the environment surrounding them. We want our children to find out about things and explore. We want them to play with what they know and be willing to ‘have a go’ no matter how big or small the challenge.

 

 

Active Learning

We want our children to find out about things and explore. We want them to play with what they know and be willing to ‘have a go’ no matter how big or small the challenge.

This looks at children’s motivation and we want children to get involved in activities and be able to concentrate, particularly on activities that they have chosen themselves.

We want children to persevere in what they choose to do and also have a sense of pride and achievement in what they set out to do.

 

Creating and Thinking Critically

This is about children’s thinking and we want children to have their own ideas, make links between what they know and what they learn and also be in charge of the way they do things.

 

 

What does learning look like in Early Years at Bangabandhu Primary School?

At Bangabandhu Primary School we have a commitment to ensure that we provide a broad and enriching curriculum that meets the needs of all our learners. We do not follow a set list of topics but instead choose our half termly topics based on the needs and interests of learners. Examples of our recent topics include:

Art Attack! – The children spent the half term learning all about different artist and styles of art. From Anish Kapoor to Claude Monet the children sculpted, drew, painted and modelled their ideas into the most fantastic creations and we put all of their art on display at the end of the term for parents to come and see.

High in the Sky! – The children developed a real interest in building and famous buildings so we decided to learn all about different types of building from around the world. The children ‘travelled’ far and wide to learn about famous buildings such as the Eiffel Tower and the pyramids and enjoyed reconstructing them using a range of materials.

Once Upon a Time … – This topic was inspired by the children’s love of stories and storytelling and included creating their own stories through interactive storytelling techniques, writing their own stories and making videos with the iPad. The children’s creativity came alive and the topic culminated in a show for the parents, which was the highlight of the half term.

As well as following the topics we ensure that our children are prepared for the next stage in their academic career and the children have small focused sessions of learning throughout the day.