At Bensham Grove Community Nursery School the children have a broad balanced curriculum to promote their social, emotional, intellectual, physical and spiritual development. The curriculum is differentiated and rooted in a child centred philosophy which the focus lies upon the individual as a whole person. Active Leaning through play is at the heart of our curriculum and the Highscope approach to active learning provides the Nursery’s daily routine. The plan, do review element of Highscope promotes activity which is child-driven and supports independent learning. 

The Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum is concerned with the child and the context or setting in which the learning takes place, as well as the content of the learning. The following principles express the basis of the curriculum for education in the early years.

1. Early childhood is valid in itself and is a part of life, not simply a preparation for the next stage of education or future work.
2. The whole child is considered to be important – social, emotional, physical, intellectual and moral development are inter-related.
3. Learning is holistic and for the young child, not compartmentalized under subject headings.
4. Children develop individually and at different rates and need to be given time to move through developmental stages at their own pace.
5. Children learn best when they are in control and need to be independently responsible for their own learning.
6. The organisation of space, materials and people must support learning, which is independent and inter-dependent.
7. Children need a stimulating environment in which they can develop, in particular it should promote and enrich the acquisition of language.
8. Young children learn most effectively through play, experimental investigation and first hand experience.
9. Planning, decision making, prioritizing and sequencing are important and young children should be given suitable opportunities to develop these life skills.
10. Adults should display positive attitudes towards children promoting high self- esteem.
    The adults and children to whom the child relates are of central importance. Parents are recognised as the child’s first educators.
    
11. The children access the curriculum through 7 areas of learning and development outlined in the Developmental Matters in the EYFS guidance ( Department for Education 2012)
     

Prime Areas
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Communication and Language
Physical Development
 
Specific Areas
Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the World
Expressive Arts and Design

The Prime Areas of Learning and Development are fundamental to accessing all areas of learning within the environment and the planned learning experiences. As part of the daily routine the children access Reading, Writing and Mathematics through meaningful experiences on a daily basis. (See Appendix 1)
As Early Years Practitioners we believe that children are entitled to a curriculum that:

Provides appropriate experiences and activities across all areas of learning and development; both planning for and assessment of, children’s learning enables them to make progress across all Areas of Learning and Development.

*Responds to individual needs; whilst children have some common needs, each child is unique with needs that may be vital to their interests, development, motivation, confidence etc. Practitioners plan for each child’s individual care and learning requirements, including the additional or different provision required to meet particular individual needs.

*Acknowledges their natural enthusiasm and their need to be active learners; in order for young children to grow into well motivated learners, full of curiosity for the world in which they live, they need a curriculum that is based on play and exploration.

*Builds on previous experiences; effective teaching and learning acknowledges what children already know and understand. The planning and organisation of activities and experiences responds to a wide range of previous experiences, interests and skills and develops self-esteem and confidence in their ability to learn.

*Supports and develops their thinking and learning; the learning environment and the teaching opportunities within it stimulate and challenge children’s thinking. A wide range of teaching strategies are used based on children’s learning needs.

It is recognised as an important purposeful activity.

1. It provides an opportunity to develop language by the child interacting, communicating and expressing ideas with peers and adults.
2. It provides opportunities to practice and develop basic skills such as manipulative skills.
3. It helps children to become self-confident and develop self-awareness.
4. It helps children have control over their own actions.
5. It helps children to learn to interact and work with others thus developing social skills and co-operative skills.
6. It helps to encourage independent thinking.
7. It nourishes curiosity by allowing children to explore.
8. It develops concentration.
9. It stimulates interest.
10. It provides satisfaction and a sense of achievement.
11. It gives pleasure and immense enjoyment.
12. It allows children to learn through first hand experience.
13. It helps children become competent in key learning experiences and prepares them for the next stage in their learning.
14. It provides a basis for further learning.

Play, like learning, is a process where understanding builds through experiences. Children and adults, when confronted with a new object have to first explore then to discover its functions. Younger children have less major experience to draw on and therefore this process is more important. Children are motivated by play, they accept responsibility for their own learning in play, they work collaboratively and co-operatively and apply problem-solving strategies. To children work and play are not opposites but part of a continuum of experiences. Play must be challenging and structured. Children can bring their own structure to their play. The quality of play is dependent on the resources available. Provision of resources and materials is essential to promote progress, development and further challenge. The adult’s role in providing challenging play is vital. The adult needs to intervene when appropriate and engage in the play with children. To do this the adult needs to: –

• Observe and discover what interests individual children
• Note how children perceive and solve problems.
• Take cues from children.
• Work with them.
• Support, encourage and extend children’s ideas.
• Identify play in all areas of learning
  To ensure effective learning for young children practitioners ensure that:
• Children feel safe and secure. The Key Person for each child in particular and all practitioners develop positive relationships based on trust. The growth of confidence and trust enables children to take risks in their learning, to try to solve problems, and to view practitioners as helpful teachers and facilitators of learning.
• Children have opportunity to initiate activities that will promote learning and enable them to learn from each other. Children should access available resources to explore at their own pace. Resources are well organised, developmentally appropriate and easily accessible to encourage children to make choices and explore.
• Children learn through movement and all their senses. Children have the opportunity to explore using all their senses. Young children are active learners and need to move to learn as well as learn to move. Children build concepts and ideas from their experiences and a wide range of opportunities are provided to stimulate their learning.
• Children have time to explore ideas and interests in depth. The process of learning is vital for all young children. Practitioners enable children to return to and extend their focus of interest or piece of learning.
• Children have the opportunity to learn in different ways and at different rates. Practitioners recognise that children learn the same thing in different ways and that progression in learning can happen at different times and rates. Children indicate their
  involvement in different ways e.g. facial expression, verbally or through body language, and practitioners use their observations and knowledge of the child to support this process.
• Children make links in their learning. Practitioners use observations effectively to identify play linked to the development of concepts. Children making links in their learning is the basis of creativity and becoming an effective learner.
• Children participate in creative and imaginative play activities that promote the development and use of language. Practitioners listen and respond to children to encourage them to learn about conversation starting with paying attention to the signals babies give. Small world and role play encourages children to enact scenarios. Practitioners playing alongside children support children and can introduce vocabulary when relevant and appropriate. practitioners to plan appropriately for the needs of bi-lingual children and those with additional needs.

We know that young children are naturally inquisitive and in the process of playing, will explore experiment and find out new things about the world. They develop and acquire skills and knowledge, not just by being told things, but by experiencing them; by actively exploring and using their senses.

If learning through play is to extend children’s thinking and development, our role as practitioners is crucial in relation to the following aspects:

• The creation of a positive ethos, where individuals are valued and where they feel safe and secure and able to take risks.
• Resourcing an environment with quality provision in areas of learning and to meet the developmental needs of all the children.
• Planning learning opportunities which are both practitioner led and child initiated.
• Using a range of interactive strategies to make learning effective. Interacting, questioning and responding to questions.
• Supporting children’s learning during planned play activities.
• Extending and supporting children’s spontaneous play.
• Encouraging and developing children’s language and communication
• Observing/assessing the current stage of development in order to plan the next step/steps.
• Assessing and recording children’s progress and sharing knowledge gained with children, other practitioners and parents/carers