Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

At St Barts, we offer a curriculum that is rich in wonder. We work hard to provide a stimulating environment that provides exciting opportunities, promotes challenge, exploration, adventure, and a real love of learning. We aim for our children to be confident and independent and to believe in themselves, developing the ability to interact positively with others. We seek to provide quality and consistency so that every child in our care makes good progress and no child gets left behind.

Warm and positive relationships between staff and children, consistent routines and strong relationships with parents are key. We recognise the crucial role that early year’s education must play in providing firm foundations upon which the rest of a child’s educational journey is successfully based. Our belief is this is most effective through learning and development opportunities based around the needs and interests of each individual child.

Intent

We provide high-quality EYFS education, giving children a secure and confident start to their school life, underpinned by our Christian Cultures driven by our Christian Vision: Believe. Belong. Become (Romans, 12:4-6) These are at the heart of everything we done. We are committed to nurturing a lifelong love of learning alongside the aims of the EYFS statutory framework. We strive for high standards, consider the development of the whole child, and seek to foster resilience and independence. We aim to provide the essential knowledge that children need to prepare them for their future success and to give them the best possible start to their early education. We recognise that each child is unique; constantly learning that they can be capable, confident, and self-assured.

The EYFS curriculum encompasses our Christian Cultures:

• Fall down seven times, stand up eight
• Ooomph!
• Diversity is the one thing we all have in common
• If you see someone without a smile today, let them borrow yours
• Manners open doors
• Telling the truth even if your voice shakes because nothing you confess will make me love you less

We carefully plan our EYFS curriculum to meet the following aims:

• Foster a love of learning which inspires curiosity.
• Provide experiences of awe and wonder.
• Ensure all children have access to high quality learning opportunities.
• Provide parents/carers with the opportunity to develop their child’s learning at home.
• Develop knowledge and understanding of the community and wider world.

Implementation

At St Bartholomew's EYFS we believe that engagement is the key to learning. Happy, excited children who enjoy what they are doing learn well. Our careful and proactive planning is extremely thorough and involves the children's ideas and responds to their individual interests. We offer a spacious, vibrant unit with a high-quality team of expert staff and excellent resources. We are incredibly proud of our outdoor environment which includes a garden, and several purpose build outdoor learning facilities which enhance our teaching and learning.

There are three prime areas of learning in the early years framework:

• Personal, social, and emotional development
• Physical development
• Communication and language

There are also four specific areas of learning:

• English
• Mathematics
• Understanding the World
• Expressive arts and design

We focus particularly strongly on these areas in our pre-school year to build a sound basis for learning in EYFS. This is implemented through:

• Quality first teaching across all areas of the curriculum.
• Stimulating learning environments indoors and outdoors.
• Well planned and organised continuous provision which allows children to learn through play.
• A carefully planned balance of adult-led and child-initiated learning opportunities.
• Strong parental partnerships which empower parents to support their child’s learning at home.
• Systematic approaches to teaching reading, to ensure all children learn to read.
• High quality phonics teaching is started as soon as children begin reception.
• Opportunities for children and families to develop a love of reading.
• Planned opportunities for outdoor learning through ‘Forest Schools’ and in the outdoor classroom.
• We promote a love of learning through real life experiences and opportunities to build on prior learning.
• Encourage a healthy lifestyle through regular PE teaching; promotion of healthy eating; skills-based cookery sessions; daily self-service snack time.
• Teach independence and risk-management through the Protective Behaviours programme.

Impact

The impact of our EYFS curriculum, practices and pedagogy are reflected by:

• High levels of engagement and motivation demonstrated from children which supports them to become lifelong learners.
• Confident and capable readers who demonstrate a love of reading.
• Evidence of strong links with parents.
• Children who demonstrate the characteristics of effective learning and are well prepared for the next stage in their learning.
• Children who feel happy and safe and enjoy coming to school.
• All children who access a balanced and challenging curriculum regardless of their background, needs or abilities.
• Children who make strong progress from their starting points and are offered a broad curriculum which meets each child’s unique needs. 
• Adults who support children and who are well trained and passionate about providing the best education for every child.

Welcome to Nursery!

Our Nursery also named Belgrade is led by Mrs Anderson and expertly supported by Ms Healey and Mrs Hay. Belgrade is a place where every child is cherished, celebrated, and encouraged to grow into the unique person God created them to be. Guided by our Christian vision of Believe, Belong and Become, we nurture children’s curiosity, confidence, and sense of community through play, exploration, and joyful learning. In Belgrade, children believe in their own abilities, belong to a caring and inclusive family, and become independent, imaginative learners ready for the world ahead.

🌟 Our Learning Themes  

Our curriculum in Belgrade is built around exciting, child‑centred topics that spark Awe and wonder and help children make sense of God’s world.

All About Me

We begin the year by exploring what makes each of us special. Children discover their talents, families, likes and dislikes, and the wonderful truth that they are fearfully and wonderfully made. This topic builds self‑esteem and celebrates the uniqueness of every child.                                                    

Let’s Celebrate This joyful topic helps children explore the celebrations that bring people together. We look at birthdays, festivals, family traditions, and Christian celebrations. Children learn that belonging to a community means sharing joy, kindness, and thankfulness.                                                            

Time for Tea A cosy and imaginative topic where we explore teatimes at home, in the royal household, and through traditional stories like the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Children compare traditions, practise table manners, and enjoy role‑play that builds language, storytelling, and social skills.                                                                                  

Welcome to Reception Class Triumph!

Class Triumph is a vibrant and nurturing Reception class led by Miss Zackaria, supported by our dedicated teaching assistants Mrs Hayward and Mrs Cobbett. We offer a happy, inclusive and inspiring play-based learning environment where every child feels safe, valued and excited to learn.

Our learning is guided by the school’s Christian vision of Believe, Belong, Become, which is embedded throughout daily life in Class Triumph. We encourage children to believe in themselves and their abilities, to belong as part of our caring classroom community, and to become confident, curious and kind learners.

Our curriculum is planned around engaging topics that spark curiosity and imagination. We begin with Marvellous Me, where children learn about themselves, their families and emotions, helping them to build confidence, friendships and a strong sense of belonging. Light and Dark allows children to explore day and night, celebrations, shadows and sources of light, encouraging wonder and thoughtful discussion about the world around them.

In Out of This World, children discover planets, astronauts and space travel, inspiring big questions, creativity and storytelling. Down on the Farm helps children learn about animals, life cycles and where food comes from, developing care and respect for living things. 

Castle Knights and Dragons brings traditional tales to life through role play, problem-solving and teamwork, encouraging perseverance and imaginative thinking. Our final topic, Hot and Cold Adventures, explores weather, seasons and contrasting environments, helping children to compare, investigate and make sense of the world.

Through purposeful play, child-led exploration and adult-guided learning, children in Class Triumph develop key skills in communication, early reading and writing, maths and social interaction. By living out our vision of Believe, Belong, Become, we aim to nurture happy, resilient children who are confident in who they are and excited about their learning journey.