The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is based on the guidelines provided by the Dept. of Education in England known as the Early Learning Goals and form the foundation stage of the National Curriculum.
The Early Learning Goals are:
Children’s learning and competence in communicating, speaking and listening, being read to and reading and writing is further supported and extended. They are provided with opportunities and encouraged to use their skills in a wider range of situations and for a range of purposes, and are supported in developing the confidence and disposition to do so.
Children experience a variety of writing genres e.g.
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Approaches to Reading and Writing
The five basic skills for reading and witing are:
1. Jolly Phonics is a thorough foundation for reading and writing. It teaches letter sounds in an enjoyable, multi-sensory way. In Reception, we begin by teaching one/two letters (name and sound) per week. Children learn each letter by its sound and its name. For example, ‘a’ in ‘ant,’ and ‘ai’ as in ‘alien’. This helps in blending.
2. Pencil grip is very important. The grip is the same for both left and right-handed children. The correct way, is the ‘tripod’ grip (thumb and first two fingers). We follow the Nelson handwriting scheme. Many of the letters have a flick as a precursor to joined up writing towards the end of Year 1.
3. Blending is the process of saying the individual sounds in a word and then running them together to make a word. For example,‘d’ ‘o’ ‘g’ put together reads ‘dog.’ We start spellings in the second half of the first term and we begin with words that can be sounded out. Spellings are given out on Friday and tested in school the following Friday. You will receive your child’s spellings in the homework folder.
4. Games like, ‘I spy,’ are ideal for a child to listen for the initial sound. Then you can try the end sounds. The middle sounds are harder. You can also play, taking away a sound. For example, ‘What happens if I take ‘c’ away from the word ‘cat’ or, ‘What happens if I put a ‘b’ in front of the word ‘at’ etc.
5. Ways to help with spellings:
There are many things you can do with your child to help strengthen their hand and finger muscles. Some suggestions include picking up small objects. Instead of only using 2 fingers the children should be encouraged to use 3 fingers. E.g. When playing with play dough/plasticine to pinch pieces off. They can then roll it in the palm of their hands and then onto their finger tips. Children can also use scissors to cut the play dough.
We use a teaching method called Big Talk. This comes before Big Writing, which was developed by Ros Wilson based in the UK.
Throughout the year we will be focusing on Big Talk. Ros says that it should be all about talk in Reception. If they can’t say it they won’t be able to write it. We cannot stress enough the importance of talking with your children at home.
As the year progresses, your child will be able to write more independently. We use whiteboards and wordbooks in class, to help develop independent writing. We offer a wide range of writing opportunities. Remember the value of talking with your children on a daily basis as your child’s vocabulary will further develop.
All children in Reception start to read. We do Guided Reading (shared reading) and Individual Reading (1 to 1 reading). Flashcards are sent home, to practise with the book on a daily basis and they will also be taught in class. These words are the 45 high frequency words, taken from the National Literacy Strategy. Your child will be assessed on these words during the year.
Children read with a parent helper, the learning support assistant and the class teacher throughout the week.
Read with your child on a daily bases. It is important for your child to show you the cover, title and author. Allow your child to use the pictures as clues when talking about the story and when attempting to read words. Spend time asking questions and discussing the story e.g. What do you think will happen next? Why do you think the cat ran away? Etc.
Children are supported in developing the knowledge, skills and understanding that help them to make sense of the world. Their learning is supported through offering opportunities for them to use a range of tools safely; encounter creatures, people, plants and objects in their natural environments and in real-life situations; undertake practical ‘experiments’; and work with a range of materials.
The Junior School has implemented a new programme called Big Maths which focuses on improving children’s mental recall of facts and using numbers. During the first term in Reception children are introduced to these facts and practise daily.(1+1=2, 2+2=4, 3+3=6, 4+4=8, 5+5=10, 2+1=3, 3+2=5)
After the first term children are given a timed Big Maths Beat That Quiz, which will challenge their mental recall of the facts they have already learned. The aim is that as the weeks progress the children will improve their score. It is not expected that children will be able to memorise all of the facts at once and will need to see, chant and write-out the facts many times before they can recall them instantly.
The second area of Big Maths is CLIC and focuses on four main areas.
We also use different schemes to supplement the curriculum such as The Collins Primary Maths Scheme which encourages the children to use problem-solving techniques. The Numeracy lesson consists of mental/oral activities, recorded work and practical activities. At the end of the lesson the main teaching points are reviewed and reinforced.
The other mathematical topics that we will focus on include: time, weight, capacity, shape, measurement and money. We will also focus on the understanding of mathematical language, e.g. add, and, plus, subtract, take away, minus, makes, equals.
Children are supported in further developing their understanding of Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy in a broad range of contexts in which they can explore, enjoy, learn, practise and talk about their developing understanding. They practise and extend their skills in these areas to gain confidence and competence in their use.
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Children are supported in developing the knowledge, skills and understanding that help them to make sense of the world. Their learning is supported through offering opportunities for them to use a range of tools safely; encounter creatures, people, plants and objects in their natural environments and in real-life situations; undertake practical ‘experiments’; and work with a range of materials.
Children are provided with opportunities to be active and interactive and to improve their skills of coordination, control, manipulation and movement. They are supported in using all of their senses to learn about the world around them and to make connections between new information and what they already know. They are also supported in developing an understanding of the importance of physical activity and making healthy choices in relation to food.
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Children’s creativity is extended by the provision of support for their curiosity, exploration and play. They are provided with opportunities to explore and share their thoughts, ideas and feelings, for example, through a variety of art, music, movement, dance, imaginative and role-play activities, mathematics, and design and technology.
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The principle of the IPC is to focus on a combination of academic, personal and international learning for children worldwide, combined with innovative and exciting ways to learn.
We will begin by teaching the topic ‘All About Me’. Other areas covered in topic include, the Senses, Growth and Development, People Who Help Us, Around our School, Simple Maps, Seasons and Materials.
Through the study of Greek, children learn to appreciate and understand more deeply the country they live in. By linking to other curricular areas with a thematic, topic-based approach, and using the Communicative Method of language teaching, children of all Greek ability levels will expand their Greek skills by manipulating the language in fun and creative ways and learning how to apply it flexibly and confidently for real and effective communication with the world around them.