In the Early Years at Mill Hill, our aim is to create a learning environment and build relationships that support, enhance and invite a child’s curiosity, confidence, and individual uniqueness to flourish regardless of their background and starting point of learning. We aim to work collaboratively with parents and carers to encourage independent, enthusiastic learners who thrive to reach their true potential by adhering to our school motto of ‘work hard, dream big and never give up!’ It is our main intent that children who enter our EYFS from as early as the term after their third birthday, begin their lifelong learning journey by developing physically, verbally, cognitively, and emotionally whilst also embedding a positive attitude to school and foster a love for learning.
To ensure children in EYFS make outstanding progress, we take into consideration children’s starting points and needs as they begin their learning journey. Every child has access to a broad and balanced enabled and extended curriculum that prepares them for now and for the future in terms of range and variety of opportunities and experiences. Following the children’s personal interests and individual needs, allows us to plan and provide opportunities throughout the EYFS curriculum to support learning and development and achieve their next steps.
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.
- Skillful communicators; who connect with others through language and play, ensuring that they are immersed in a language-rich environment both through directed activities and free play based learning. It is our intent to ensure that all children will receive the teaching of early reading through systematic, synthetic phonics to learn to read words and simple sentences with accuracy by the end of Reception.
Curriculum Implementation
At Mill Hill Primary Academy, we ensure that all children experience the seven areas of learning set out in the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework through a balance of adult lead teaching and child initiated play.
Prime areas of learning are:
• Personal, Social and Emotional Development
• Physical Development
• Communication and Language
Specific areas of learning are:
• Mathematics
• Literacy
• Understanding the World
• Expressive Arts & Design
We place a great emphasis on learning through play and direct practical experiences led by the interests of our children. Learning is organised so that the curriculum is delivered through a combination of adult led activities and continuous provision opportunities, encouraging children to develop their learning independently through discovery, exploration, curiosity and challenge.
We recognise that children have a thirst for new experiences and knowledge, and should be provided with opportunities to engage their inquisitive minds. Therefore, we provide stimulating and motivating continuous indoor and outdoor provision, to offer a range of opportunities for children to investigate and developing key learning skills.
Whilst the children’s interests and key learning needs are at the heart of our curriculum, we ensure that we provide all pupils with a broad range of experiences and opportunities covering a variety of festivals and celebrations giving them the cultural capital they need for future success.
British Values play a fundamental part of our curriculum and everything we do; we focus on promoting the more general concepts within the Early Years Foundation Stage and understand that the children’s development within these areas is key to promoting the values in the long term.
For more information, please visit our Nursery and Reception class pages:
