We aim to provide our children with a high quality learning experience through our broad and balanced curriculum. We believe that every child deserves the best possible start in life and provide support that enables them to fulfil their potential. We aim to develop and broaden the range of our children's learning experiences, creating confident, eager and enthusiastic learners who look forward to coming to school.
Our curriculum has been designed to enable pupils to succeed through cooperative and collaborative learning that ensure all pupils develop their skills in being proactive, resilient and independent as learners. Reading is at the heart of all we do and our aim is to encourage a love of reading right from the start.
In Nursery and Reception we follow the Early Years Foundation Stage, which is the statutory guidance published in 2021. It sets out the standards for the development, learning and care of children up to 5 years old. The EYFS is based on four main principles which underpin everything else that we do
- A Unique Child
- Positive relationships
- Enabling Environments
- Learning and Development
In Early Years we cover the seven areas of development:
| Areas of learning and development | Aspect |
| PRIME AREAS | |
|---|---|
| Personal, Social & Emotional Development |
- Building Relationships
- Managing Self
- Self-Regulation
|
| Communication & Language Development |
- Listening, Attention & Understanding
- Speaking
|
| Physical Development |
- Gross Motor Skills
- Fine Motor Skills
|
| SPECIFIC AREAS | |
| Literacy |
- Comprehension
- Word Reading
- Writing
|
| Mathematics |
- Numbers
- Numerical Patterns
|
| Understanding the World |
- People, Culture & Communities
- The Natural World
- Past & Present
|
| Expressive Arts & Design |
- Creating with Materials
- Being Imaginative & Expressive
|
The prime areas begin to develop quickly in response to relationships and experiences, and run through and support learning in all other areas. The prime areas continue to be fundamental throughout the EYFS. The specific areas include essential skills and knowledge. They grow out of the prime areas and provide important contexts for learning.
All of the areas of learning and development are interconnected to the characteristics of effective learning, which are ‘playing and exploring’, ‘active learning’ and ‘creating and critical thinking’.
Here at St Thomas’, children learn through a balance of child-initiated, adult-initiated and adult-directed activities, which allow children to develop to their full potential. Children are provided with plenty of time to engage in "exploration" throughout the variety of experiences carefully planned to engage and challenge them in the provision. The curriculum is planned for the inside and outside classrooms and equal importance is given in both areas.