Welcome to

1. Welcome to Stoneydown Park School Parent Meeting 22/10/13

2. What is the Early Years Foundation Stage? The Early Years Foundation Stage (E.Y.F.S.) is the stage of education for children from birth to the end of the Reception year. It is based on the recognition that children learn best through play and active learning.

3. The EYFS has four themes. These are: • 1 A Unique Child • 2 Positive Relationships • 3 Enabling Environments • 4 Learning and Development

4. Unique Child, every child is unique, constantly learning and building up resilience, confidence and self-assurance. Positive Relationships help children learn to be strong and independent. Enabling Environments support children in learning and developing in situations which their experiences respond to their individual needs. Children Develop and Learn in different ways and at different rates. The framework covers the education and care of all children.

5. Within the theme of Learning and Development there are seven areas. All areas are connected to one another and are equally important The three Prime areas are: Communication and Language. Physical development. Personal, social and emotional development.

6. Communication, Language and Literacy Talk confidently and clearly. Enjoy listening to stories, songs and poems. Listen to and follow instructions. Answer how and why questions based on their first hand experiences. The children will be learning to:

7. Physical Development Move confidently. Control their body. Handle equipment. Use a pencil to form recognisable letters. The children will be learning to:

8. Personal, Social and Emotional Development Become self-confident. Take an interest in things. Know what their own needs and strengths are. Develop friendships with others. Become independent; solve own problems. Tell the difference between right and wrong. The children will be learning to:

9. The four specific areas of learning Literacy Mathematics Understanding the world Expressive arts and design These areas support the Prime areas:

10. Literacy The children will be learning to: Listen to enjoy and re-tell stories, poems and rhymes. Hear sounds in words. Make marks and letters to represent ideas. Begin to write words and sentences.

11. Mathematics The children will be learning to: Develop an understanding of maths through stories, songs, games and imaginative play; Become comfortable with numbers and with ideas such as 'heavier than' or 'bigger’; Be aware of shapes and space.

12. Understanding the World Explore and find out about the world around them, asking questions about it. Build with different materials, know about everyday technology and learn what it is used for. Find out about past events in their lives and their families' lives. Find out about different cultures and beliefs. The children will:

13. Creative Development Making things. Role-play. Making music. Dancing. Colour and textures. The children will explore:

14. Monitoring Progress Each of the 7 areas of learning has its own set of Early Learning Goals’ which determine what most children are expected to achieve by the endof Reception Class. The E.Y.F.S. Profile is a summative assessment of each child’s progress towards the early learning goals. The profile is updated regularly throughout the year. It shows your child’s development and areas for further support.

15. Early Learning Goals There are 17 ELGs, below is a selection. ELG 03 Speaking: Children express themselves effectively, showing awareness of listeners’ needs. They use past, present and future forms accurately when talking about events that have happened or are to happen in the future. They develop their own narratives and explanations by connecting ideas or events. ELG 07 Managing feelings and behaviour: Children talk about how they and others show feelings, talk about their own and others’ behaviour, and its consequences, and know that some behaviour is unacceptable. They work as part of a group or class, and understand and follow rules. They adjust their behaviour to different situations, and take changes of routine in their stride.

16. ELG 10 Writing: Children use their phonic knowledge to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds. They also write some irregular common words. They write sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible. ELG 11 Numbers: Children count reliably with numbers from one to 20, place them in order and say which number is one more or one less than a given number. Using quantities and objects, they add and subtract two single-digit numbers and count on or back to find the answer. They solve problems, including doubling, halving and sharing. ELG 17 Being imaginative: Children use what they have learnt about media and materials in original ways, thinking about uses and purposes. They represent their own ideas, thoughts and feelings through design and technology, art, music, dance, role- play and stories.

17. The Foundation stage profile There are 17 Early Learning goals that we have to submit a judgment against. This is carried out in the June of your child’s Reception year. We use our ongoing observations, pieces of work and conversations that we have with your child to make these judgements. The three levels are: Emerging Expected Exceeded http://www.foundationyears.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/2013_eyfs_handbook.pdf

18. The first few weeks We find out what the children already know and can do and use this information to help us develop activities and a learning environment to support your child in their learning . We would value any contributions you would like to make in helping us get to know your child’s needs. You will be invited to discuss your child’s progress & settling in to school within the first term at parents ‘ evening.

19. Adults who help children to play are adults who help children to learn.