CURRICULUM
At Brookside children are offered a range of rich learning experiences which is very much led by the children’s interests, nature and the outdoor environment.
Our children benefit from a good balance of free-play, group learning and some adult-led play-based activities. We are very passionate about ensuring that children have a happy and fun introduction to their education and our focus is to build strong, resilient children who are confident and eager to explore and learn.
Children start to learn about the world around them from the moment they are born. It is the aim of Brookside pre-school to extend children’s development by providing high quality care and stimulating learning opportunities which meet and support children’s current age and stage of development. We recognise the importance of giving children time to explore, experiment and embed their knowledge and skills before moving forward with next steps in learning.
The curriculum, which we follow, is The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Guidelines (DFES 2024); this is a play-based curriculum for children from birth to age five. There are 7 areas that are used to plan your child’s learning and activities.
The professionals teaching and supporting your child will make sure that the activities are tailored to your child’s needs and follow their interests. Children in the EYFS learn by playing and exploring, being active, and through creative and critical thinking which takes place both indoors and outside. Children typically develop the 3 prime areas first.
These are:
Communication and language
Physical development
Personal, social and emotional development
These prime areas are the foundations to support your child’s healthy development and future learning.
As children grow and become secure within the prime areas, they will be supported in developing skills in 4 specific areas. These are:
Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the world
Expressive arts and design
At Brookside Pre-School we understand that children progress these 7 areas of learning through play, when they feel safe and happy in their environment.
We have a varied age range and level of need within our pre-school; however, our staff team are experienced in adapting learning opportunities to support children’s individual needs. We strive to ensure that every child has the opportunity to fulfil their full potential. We recognise that our 2- year olds require a different type of learning to many of our 4-year olds, we target this with separate key group times. For example, our youngest children might listen to stories and whilst our older children play a simple number board game.
For More information on the EYFS and the Development Matters please visit the following websites:
Development_Matters_Report_and_illustrations