EYFS
The intent for Early Years at Bussage CofE Primary School
Our intent is for the children in our school to be happy and secure in our nurturing and inspiring environment. We aim for the children we care for to become independent, confident learners with excellent communication and investigation skills. We encourage all of our children to flourish in every aspect of their lives in school. Our staff are warm, welcoming and caring with excellent communication skills that allow meaningful and supportive relationships to develop between parents, children and staff.
What will the children learn and experience during their Reception year?
Our Reception class is called Rainbows Class. We follow The EYFS curriculum framework which includes 7 areas of learning and development that are equally important and inter-connected.
There are 3 areas known as the prime areas that are seen as particularly important for igniting curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, and for building children’s capacity to learn, form relationships and thrive.
The prime areas are:
- Communication and language
- Physical development
- Personal, social and emotional development
The prime areas are strengthened and applied through 4 specific areas:
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the world
- Expressive Arts and Design
There is provision for all 7 Areas of Learning in the free-flow indoor / outdoor classroom environment. We carefully organise enabling environments for high quality play to ensure all pupils have time to learn actively, play, explore and develop creative and critical thinking.
Our themes are inspired by the children’s questions and interests. These interests are then taken into account when planning exciting and inspiring activities, which will meet the children’s next steps in their learning.
The day follows a routine which allows the children to feel confident and secure in their learning environment. Every day includes time for; letters and sounds, wake and shake, number skills, theme based learning, finger gym, busy learning time, storytime, physical activity and the rhyme of the day.
‘Busy Learning’ is the children’s learning through play time where they have free access to the indoor and outdoor learning environment. The children make choices about where to play/learn and how to use the resources available to them. There are challenges set around the environment which encourage the children to build on skills we have been learning together. These challenges are linked to our ‘Bussage Learning Powers’ which give a variety of ways to help the children become well balanced learners with different skills to help them make the most of their opportunities.
Tapestry is our online learning journal and is a fantastic resource for sharing your child’s learning across their time in Rainbows. It is updated daily to share with you key moments from the day and your child’s progress. We hope you enjoy joining us in celebrating your child’s achievements by adding to the Tapestry too.
How can I help my child make the most of their time in Rainbows?
- Talk
- Read
- Share
Talk to your child about their day, look at Tapestry and discuss what they have been up to, encouraging the use of full sentences and developing a growing vocabulary. Talk about their learning, ask them to show you how they did something or explain what they did.
Talk to us, if you have any concerns, questions, worries, we are here to support you and your child.
Read with your child every day, whether it is a story book, an information book, a library book, school reading book, the daily rhyme or even the signs on the way to school. Show your child the world that reading unlocks. We will share with you how to support your child in their reading journey once we begin to teach them phonics.
Read the school newsletter, website, emails, notes and Tapestry posts. Communication is key in creating a strong relationship from which we can work as a team to support your child’s journey through our school.
Share your child’s achievements, worries and interests with us via Tapestry posts. The more we learn about your child, the better placed we are to inspire, encourage and help them to flourish in our school.
For more information please see our EYFS policy below:
Choosing Bussage for your child's journey through Primary School
When you decide for your child to join our school for Reception year, we work hard to ensure that they have the smoothest of transitions from their pre-school setting into Bussage C of E Primary School. We do this in a variety of ways:
Our EYFS teacher offers stay and play sessions each year on our school site whilst your child is still in their pre-school year, this allows your child a chance to familiarise themselves with our setting and to start to build their confidence.
We also ensure that we visit your child's pre-school/nursery during the summer term before they begin with us so that we can see them in a place which is familiar to them so that they can be comfortable and confident in known surroundings when being introduced to our staff.
When your child accepts a place at Bussage, they will be invited to become a member of Bailey's book club, this means that they are able to come to the school office reception area as often as they like to select and borrow a book from Bailey's book shelf to take home and share with their family. Every time they return their book they get a paw print stamp in their borrower's booklet. This is a great way for your child to build association with our school and to get to know the friendly staff that they will see day in day out once they begin with us.
We run a 'New Parent's meeting' in the June before your child starts so that parents have an opportunity to learn more about the school and to hear about what a usual day would look like for their child. It is also an opportunity to look at examples of uniform, taste samples of the school lunches that are on offer (and free for all EYFS and KS1 children) as well as meet the school staff. At this meeting, parents receive a welcome pack with all the necessary information in it in order for parents and children to be 'school ready'.
We offer home visits before your child begins with us, these involve the class teacher (and usually the Headteacher) popping around to your home at a pre-arranged time to enable a private chat with parents and a chance for your child to play if they would like. These sessions are incredibly popular and get booked up quickly as they are a great time for your child to get to know their new teacher and Headteacher, for them to ask any questions they have, share their favourite toys or play a quick game. Parents relish this opportunity as it is a great time to share information, ask questions and to alleviate any worries they may have.
EYFS booklet for new parentsEYFS new parents meeting for Reception