Parents

EYFS Summary

At Cheeky Monkeys we follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), which sets standards for the learning, development and care of children from birth to 5 years old.

The Early Years Foundation stage curriculum promotes learning through play within the context of a calm stimulating environment and warm positive relationships. The best outcomes can be achieved when parents and practitioners work together to support development and well-being.

3 Prime areas

Communication and language, this helps children to

develop spoken language in a language rich environment
engage actively in stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems
use and embed new words in a range of contexts through conversation, storytelling and role play, where children share their ideas with support and modelling from the staff

Physical development, this helps children to

pursue happy, healthy and active lives.
develop gross motor control, co-ordination, core strength, stability, balance, spatial awareness, co-ordination and agility through play
develop healthy bodies and social and emotional well-being.
develop fine motor control and hand-eye co-ordination to explore and play with small world activities, puzzles, arts and crafts and practice of using small tools

Personal, social and emotional development, this helps children to

lead healthy and happy lives, which is fundamental to their cognitive development.
learn how to understand their own feelings and those of others, manage emotions, develop a positive sense of self, set themselves simple goals and have confidence in their own abilities
learn how to look after their bodies, including healthy eating, and manage personal needs independently.
make good friendships, co-operate and resolve conflicts peaceably

4 specific areas

Literacy, this helps children to

develop a life-long love of reading and writing

Mathematics, this helps children to

count confidently and develop a deep understanding of the numbers 1 to 10, the relationships between them and the patterns within those numbers
develop their spatial reasoning skills across all areas of mathematics including shape, space and measures.

Understanding the world, this helps children to

make sense of their physical world and their community and foster understanding of our world culturally, socially, technologically and ecologically diverse world.

Expressive arts and design, this helps children to

develop their imagination and creativity and engage with a wide range of media and materials, as well as providing opportunities and encouragement for sharing their thoughts, ideas and feelings through a variety of activities in art, music, movement, dance, role-play, and design and technology

Characteristics of Learning

Learning how to learn! The characteristics of effective learning are behaviours which must be developed to enable children to become effective learners. We are aiming for children who are self- motivated, have the courage to try something new, to be able to concentrate and persist at challenges, to have their own ideas and solve problems.

Playing and exploring: this area is all about engaging with others, objects and environments.
Active Learning: this area is all about being motivated to engage in play and learning
Creating and thinking critically: this area is all about promoting children’s thinking skills.

For further information about the EYFS or other early years topics go to:

GOV.UK

Early Years Framework 2021