Our Curriculum Intent

Mission Statement 

“Growing Stronger Together, Making a Positive Difference to Every Child” 

We believe the education of a child is very much a partnership between home and school. 

Reedley Hallows Nursery School follows a structured and progressive curriculum, designed to meet the needs of our children and to ensure their all-round development.  Children play and learn in our carefully-created, stimulating environment and through a mixture of child-initiated and teacher led activities are able to develop their skills, knowledge and vocabulary. Communication and language development is a key aspect of nursery life and is at the heart of everything we do. Staff are skilled at identifying and working with children’s individual needs and through quality interactions with children at the appropriate moment, are able to extend and move their learning on.   

What do children gain? 

Children gain a tremendous amount from nursery education.  They are taught through the seven areas of learning which are outlined in the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum.  Three of these are of particular importance to young children and are called the ‘prime areas’. These are Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Communication and Language and Physical Development.  

The four specific areas of learning are Literacy, Mathematics, Understanding the World and Expressive Arts and Design.  Children need to be secure and confident within the prime areas in order to learn and progress in the specific areas. 

Our curriculum also focuses on the ways in which young children engage with other people by playing and exploring, through active learning and by creating and thinking critically.  These skills underpin learning and development across all areas and support children to become effective, engaged, inquisitive and motivated learners. 

Progress of every child is monitored daily and is assessed at key points in the year against our own curriculum milestones.  

Areas of experience and learning 

Personal, Social & Emotional Development – Children are taught in a structured, disciplined environment that encourages sharing, politeness, good manners, an understanding of right and wrong, an awareness of other cultures and religions, the need for hygiene, how to work and play with others, independence, good communication skills and the ability to use their initiative. 

Communication and language – Children learn to listen attentively, enjoy and share stories, talk and listen to adults and each other; develop and understand new vocabulary; recall songs and rhymes in a stimulating language rich environment. 

Physical Development – Children develop both gross and fine motor skills, body awareness, self-confidence and an understanding of how to play safely.  They develop awareness of good personal hygiene routines and are introduced to the importance of exercise and a healthy diet. 

Literacy – Children develop early reading and writing skills through an interest in stories, books and rhymes and begin to represent spoken language in written form by mark making, writing their name etc. Phonics is taught in a very structured and progressive way (through Letters and Sounds Phase One) in order to ensure children have the necessary skills when they move to primary school. 

Mathematics – Children are introduced to early mathematical concepts such as weight, number, colour, sorting, shape, quantity, money, etc.... all in interesting and practical play situations. It is crucial that children understand number from an early age and our structured maths teacher-led maths sessions support this. 

Understanding the World – Children develop a basic understanding of features and aspects of the world in which they live and are encouraged to develop an enquiring mind and a thirst for knowledge.  They are taught about seasons and their changes, the natural environment around them, how to take care of living thigs and are supported to talk about the past. 

Expressive Arts and Design – Children are encouraged to express themselves both visually, through paint and crayons etc. and through their imagination during role play, drama activities, singing and dancing. 

As a nursery school, all of our teaching is directed at enabling your child to develop and progress on an individual basis.  On leaving nursery all children will be working towards achieving the Early Learning goals, outlined in the Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework.  They will hopefully have developed independence and self-confidence in their own ability, will be interested in the world around them, be eager to learn and able to communicate their feelings and ideas.  They will have gained so much from the wide experiences and learning opportunities offered to them.  Your encouragement, comments and interaction concerning any aspects of the education we provide, are welcomed and valued. 

We view our outdoor play area as a classroom, one without walls and a roof! 

The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework recognises the importance of outdoor activities and play in children’s learning – for some children, being outside is their preferred learning environment and where they will learn the most. 

Children do not catch colds from playing outside.  Colds are caught from viruses and children need to develop physical wellbeing and strong immune systems to combat these.  Playing outdoors supports physical health and wellbeing.