The Early Years

The Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum (EYFS) provides the children with the skills necessary to have the best possible start to life. Here, your child will embrace and direct their learning through a combination of play-based and adult supported learning.

The EYFS naturally lends itself to a creative curriculum filled with awe and wonder. Your child will be encouraged to become an independent explorer who engages with their environment. A focus on personal and social development is key in developing happy individuals with a sense of belonging and self-efficacy. Each child is valued, with learning experiences tailored according to their development and needs.

We aim to develop the whole child, focusing on these prime areas of learning:

• Personal, Social and Emotional Development (Self-Regulation, Managing Self and Building Relationships). A child’s sense of self and belonging is vital in the early years. We aim to ensure that each child is cared for, feeling nurtured and valued. Socially, carpet time sessions are held in order to discuss challenges relevant to them where their peers can support and brainstorm solutions to real life problems.
• Physical Development (Gross Motor and Fine Motor Skills).  At Shrewsbury House Pre-Preparatory School, your child will be given plenty of opportunities to develop various large and small muscle groups which support development in other learning areas.  The Reception setting consists of two large classrooms and an outdoor area where the children can use their bodies to explore their surroundings. Exciting and fun challenges help consolidate their balance and motor-skills.
• Communication and Language (Listening, Attention and Understanding and Speaking). A language-rich environment provides children with a wide vocabulary that children use within their play. Your child will be read to and listened to while they read regularly, both in whole-class and one-to-one sessions. Adults value the children’s interests, joining in with children’s natural play to ensure that new vocabulary and language is modelled. This allows for consolidation and deep understanding of concepts to occur. 

The four specific EYFS areas of learning are Literacy, Mathematics, Understanding the World and Expressive Arts and Design.

Teaching and learning is very much a joint partnership where teachers share these responsibilities with your child. Through connecting learning areas with exciting topics, the children express their interests and direct the learning to make it meaningful, fun and purposeful. Opportunities for problem-solving and challenge-based learning are incorporated into the daily routine, allowing your child to extend their skills and deepen understanding.  We acknowledge the importance and value of parents and carers to our children’s wellbeing and learning.  Therefore, we proactively aim to work with parents in delivering the best possible education for our children.