Early Years & Foundation Stage

At St Gregory’s, the curriculum our children experience enables us to live out our Mission Slogan: Loving all, like Jesus, we flourish together. We aim to enable all of our children to flourish, regardless of background or disposition by offering a rich and informed curriculum packed with opportunities for all our children to experience ‘life to the full’ (John 10:10). At St Gregory’s, we encourage children to be inquisitive throughout their time at the school and beyond. At St Gregory’s we believe that every child deserves the best possible start in life and that the support we provide enables them to reach their full potential. Children develop quickly in the early years and a child’s experiences between birth and age five have a major impact on their future life chances. The overarching aim of the Early Years Policy at St Gregory’s is to promote the principles of the EYFS Statutory framework. The statutory document states the requirements for schools to support children’s learning, development, safeguarding and welfare. It also makes it mandatory for practitioners to use the Characteristics of Effective learning to show how children learn. In keeping with the rest of the curriculum at our school, the learning our children undertake in EYFS enables them to continuously develop the Seven Skills of the Steward – attributes and attitudes which we believe will be essential so as to enable our children to thrive in the world of the future and help make ‘Thy Kingdom come’.

Team-working † Problem-solving † Creativity † Peace-making Empathy † Resilience † Gratitude

Aims At St Gregory’s, in age and stage-appropriate ways, we ensure that all pupils:

• experience an EYFS curriculum which is meaningful, motivating and memorable
•  experience purposeful end points within their learning
• become independent, resilient learners who model the skills of the steward in all that they do
• have access to a vocabulary- rich environment
• develop a love of reading and writing right from the start.

Early Reading and Phonics 

Please see the 'Reading and Phonics' area on our curriculum page which provides you with information about Early Reading and Phonics which is at the heart of our curriculum. 

Early Learning Goals

Below are the Early Learning Goals that children need to meet by the end of Reception.

 Communication and Language ELG:

Listening, Attention and Understanding Children at the expected level of development will:

- Listen attentively and respond to what they hear with relevant questions, comments and actions when being read to and during whole class discussions and small group interactions;

- Make comments about what they have heard and ask questions to clarify their understanding;

- Hold conversation when engaged in back-and-forth exchanges with their teacher and peers. ELG: Speaking Children at the expected level of development will:

- Participate in small group, class and one-to-one discussions, offering their own ideas, using recently introduced vocabulary;

- Offer explanations for why things might happen, making use of recently introduced vocabulary from stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems when appropriate;

- Express their ideas and feelings about their experiences using full sentences, including use of past, present and future tenses and making use of conjunctions, with modelling and support from their teacher.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development ELG:

Self-Regulation Children at the expected level of development will:

- Show an understanding of their own feelings and those of others, and begin to regulate their behaviour accordingly;

- Set and work towards simple goals, being able to wait for what they want and control their immediate impulses when appropriate;

- Give focused attention to what the teacher says, responding appropriately even when engaged in activity, and show an ability to follow instructions involving several ideas or actions.

ELG: Managing Self Children at the expected level of development will:

- Be confident to try new activities and show independence, resilience and perseverance in the face of challenge;

- Explain the reasons for rules, know right from wrong and try to behave accordingly; - Manage their own basic hygiene and personal needs, including dressing, going to the toilet and understanding the importance of healthy food choices.

ELG: Building Relationships Children at the expected level of development will:

- Work and play cooperatively and take turns with others;

- Form positive attachments to adults and friendships with peers;

- Show sensitivity to their own and to others’ needs.

Physical Development ELG:

Gross Motor Skills Children at the expected level of development will:

- Negotiate space and obstacles safely, with consideration for themselves and others;

- Demonstrate strength, balance and coordination when playing;

- Move energetically, such as running, jumping, dancing, hopping, skipping and climbing.

 Fine Motor Skills Children at the expected level of development will:

- Hold a pencil effectively in preparation for fluent writing – using the tripod grip in almost all cases;

- Use a range of small tools, including scissors, paint brushes and cutlery;

- Begin to show accuracy and care when drawing.

Literacy ELG:

Comprehension Children at the expected level of development will:

- Demonstrate understanding of what has been read to them by retelling stories and narratives using their own words and recently introduced vocabulary; - Anticipate – where appropriate – key events in stories;

- Use and understand recently introduced vocabulary during discussions about stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems and during role-play.

ELG: Word Reading Children at the expected level of development will:

- Say a sound for each letter in the alphabet and at least 10 digraphs;

- Read words consistent with their phonic knowledge by sound-blending;

- Read aloud simple sentences and books that are consistent with their phonic knowledge, including some common exception words.

ELG: Writing Children at the expected level of development will:

- Write recognisable letters, most of which are correctly formed;

- Spell words by identifying sounds in them and representing the sounds with a letter or letters;

- Write simple phrases and sentences that can be read by others.

Mathematics ELG: Number Children at the expected level of development will:

- Have a deep understanding of number to 10, including the composition of each number; 

- Subitise (recognise quantities without counting) up to 5;

- Automatically recall (without reference to rhymes, counting or other aids) number bonds up to 5 (including subtraction facts) and some number bonds to 10, including double facts.

ELG: Numerical Patterns Children at the expected level of development will:

- Verbally count beyond 20, recognising the pattern of the counting system;

- Compare quantities up to 10 in different contexts, recognising when one quantity is greater than, less than or the same as the other quantity;

- Explore and represent patterns within numbers up to 10, including evens and odds, double facts and how quantities can be distributed equally.

Understanding the World ELG:

Past and Present Children at the expected level of development will:

- Talk about the lives of the people around them and their roles in society;

- Know some similarities and differences between things in the past and now, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class;

- Understand the past through settings, characters and events encountered in books read in class and storytelling.

ELG: People, Culture and Communities Children at the expected level of development will:

- Describe their immediate environment using knowledge from observation, discussion, stories, non-fiction texts and maps;

- Know some similarities and differences between different religious and cultural communities in this country, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class;

- Explain some similarities and differences between life in this country and life in other countries, drawing on knowledge from stories, non-fiction texts and – when appropriate – maps.

ELG: The Natural World Children at the expected level of development will:

- Explore the natural world around them, making observations and drawing pictures of animals and plants;

- Know some similarities and differences between the natural world around them and contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class;

- Understand some important processes and changes in the natural world around them, including the seasons and changing states of matter.

Expressive Arts and Design ELG:

Creating with Materials Children at the expected level of development will:

- Safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function;

- Share their creations, explaining the process they have used;

- Make use of props and materials when role playing characters in narratives and stories.

ELG: Being Imaginative and Expressive Children at the expected level of development will:

- Invent, adapt and recount narratives and stories with peers and their teacher;

- Sing a range of well-known nursery rhymes and songs; Perform songs, rhymes, poems and stories with others, and – when appropriate – try to move in time with music.