EYFS – Silverdale, Ribblesdale, Swaledale and Malhamdale
EYFS@RMS Curriculum
Our curriculum: The best for every child
At EYFS@RMS, we meet the requirements of the educational programmes within the statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). We use the non-statutory guidance, Development Matters, to plan an engaging curriculum through carefully sequenced, incremental steps that build children’s knowledge, skills and understanding over time.
We regularly review children’s progress against age-related expectations, identify individual next steps and evaluate the impact of our curriculum. The relevant guidance and curriculum documents are available to view at the bottom of this page.
However, our curriculum is much richer and more personal than a sequence of planned learning objectives. It reflects the unique children and families who make up our school community at any given time.
Every child in our EYFS family, from our youngest Nursery children to those preparing for Year 1, is recognised as an individual. We carefully plan experiences and provide opportunities that enable all children to develop, achieve, feel successful and reach their potential.
Our curriculum is shaped by children’s interests, experiences, cultures, individual needs and engagement. We balance carefully planned learning with opportunities to follow children’s own lines of enquiry, allowing curiosity and meaningful experiences to drive learning.
We aim to inspire independent learning, develop language and communication, and nurture a lifelong love of learning. Our skilled adults observe, guide, model and intervene thoughtfully, extending children’s spoken language, vocabulary and understanding. Through positive relationships, we help children develop their understanding of themselves and the world around them.
Our Ready, Mutually Respectful and Safe ethos underpins every interaction. Strong relationships enable us to know each child well, understand their developmental journey and provide the support and challenge they need to take their next steps.
Our seven key features of effective practice
Our curriculum is underpinned by the seven key features of effective practice outlined in Development Matters.
- The best for every child
We believe that every child deserves an equal opportunity to succeed. We provide an inclusive curriculum that enables all children to access learning, develop their potential and experience success.
- High-quality care
We want every RMS child to feel loved, noticed, valued and safe, with a strong sense of belonging. Nurturing relationships and responsive care provide the foundations for children’s wellbeing and learning.
- The curriculum
Our curriculum starts with talk. Interactions with skilled adults and other children develop speech, vocabulary, listening and control of language. These communication skills underpin learning across all areas of the curriculum.
- Pedagogy: how we help children to learn
We use a range of teaching approaches to meet children’s developmental needs. Children learn through play, adult modelling and narration, observing and learning from one another, guided learning and direct teaching.
- Assessment
Assessment is continuous and largely informal. Through observation and interaction, we identify what children know and can do, recognise emerging understanding and plan meaningful next steps. We celebrate and share children’s successes and learning journeys with families through Tapestry.
- Self-regulation and executive function
We support children to develop the skills needed to manage their attention, thinking, behaviour and emotions. Executive function includes holding information in mind, focusing attention, thinking flexibly and inhibiting impulsive behaviour.
These developing skills help children to concentrate, plan, monitor their actions, adapt when necessary, manage strong feelings, wait patiently and persevere when things become difficult. Language plays a central role in self-regulation, as children learn to use words to guide their actions and play. Pretend play provides valuable opportunities to practise planning, persistence and flexible thinking.
- Partnership with parents
From our first meetings, we aim to establish caring, respectful and supportive partnerships with our RMS families. We value parents’ and carers’ knowledge of their children and work together to support learning, development and wellbeing.
The characteristics of effective teaching and learning
Throughout our indoor and outdoor continuous provision, three characteristics of effective teaching and learning are woven into everything we do.
- Playing and exploring: Children investigate, experience new things, explore possibilities and develop confidence by having a go.
- Active learning: Children concentrate, persevere when they encounter difficulties and take pride in their achievements.
- Creating and thinking critically: Children develop their own ideas, make connections between experiences and use different strategies to solve problems.
These characteristics encourage children to become curious, confident and resilient learners who take an active role in their own learning.
Our EYFS curriculum
The EYFS framework identifies three prime areas of learning, which are particularly important for children’s healthy development and future learning:
- Communication and Language
- Physical Development
- Personal, Social and Emotional Development
As children grow and develop, these prime areas support their progress across the four specific areas of learning:
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the World
- Expressive Arts and Design
All seven areas are interconnected and are developed through purposeful teaching, meaningful interactions, carefully planned experiences and our engaging indoor and outdoor provision.
Daily deliberate practice
We provide daily deliberate practice in early reading, writing and number fluency. Repeated opportunities to revisit and apply essential knowledge help children develop confidence, accuracy and independence.
Reading
We follow Little Wandle for phonics and aim to instil a love of reading that will last a lifetime.
Children read regularly through shared class reading, group reading and individual reading opportunities. We explicitly develop decoding, prosody (reading with appropriate expression and phrasing) and comprehension, helping children become increasingly confident, fluent and thoughtful readers.
We share a wide range of stories, books and texts to enrich vocabulary, stimulate imagination and develop children's understanding of themselves and the world around them.
Writing and Drawing Club
We recognise every child as a writer, whatever their age or stage of development. Early writing begins with children's marks, pictures and drawings, which communicate ideas and meaning to a reader.
We incorporate Drawing Club into our approach to early writing, using imaginative stories, characters and exciting ideas to inspire children to draw, talk, create and write. Through this approach, children develop their imagination, storytelling, vocabulary and confidence in communicating meaning through pictures, symbols, marks and words.
Drawing Club provides opportunities for children to explore ideas, rehearse language, develop narratives and make purposeful marks. As their confidence and skills grow, children are encouraged to add labels, words, captions and sentences appropriate to their stage of development.
In Reception, handwriting and spelling are taught explicitly and discreetly, enabling children to build the skills needed to progress from communicating through pictures and marks to writing simple words, phrases and sentences using appropriate punctuation. We celebrate these achievements and the pride children feel when they apply their phonics knowledge, including their growing understanding of grapheme–phoneme correspondences (GPCs), to write words that others can read.
Throughout EYFS, we prioritise the development of fine motor control, upper-body strength and core stability to help children develop the physical foundations for comfortable, effective writing. Active outdoor learning and PE promote strength, balance and coordination. We also prioritise cross-body movements, which support coordination and physical development.
Our fine motor continuous provision is complemented by activities such as Dough Disco and Fine Motor Friday, which focus on strengthening and controlling the fingers, wrists, shoulders and upper body.
We encourage children to develop an effective pencil grip, including the use of the pinch technique when they are developmentally ready. In Reception, structured activities are carefully matched to each child's developmental stage, ensuring that handwriting and early writing skills are taught progressively and appropriately.
Oracy is an integral part of writing. Children are encouraged to talk, rehearse their ideas, develop vocabulary and compose sentences aloud before recording them. We recognise that a strong foundation in spoken language supports the development of written language.
Oracy, communication and language
Communication and language are central to our curriculum. We want children to become confident communicators who can listen attentively, express their thoughts and feelings, explain their ideas and engage meaningfully with others.
Our curriculum starts with talk. Throughout the day, adults model language, introduce new vocabulary, narrate activities, ask thoughtful questions and create opportunities for sustained conversations. We encourage children to listen and respond to one another, share their experiences, explain their thinking and develop their understanding through dialogue.
We incorporate SHREC, our speech and language programme, to support the development of children's communication and language skills. Through approaches that encourage shared attention, responsive interactions, engagement and conversation, we aim to create meaningful opportunities for children to listen, communicate and develop their language within everyday experiences and play.
SHREC complements our wider approach to oracy by helping adults recognise and respond to children's communication attempts, follow their interests and create positive interactions that encourage language development. We adapt our interactions to children's individual needs and developmental stages, supporting them to communicate with growing confidence and independence.
Children are given frequent opportunities to rehearse spoken language, develop vocabulary and organise their thoughts before applying these skills across the curriculum, particularly in reading and writing.
Mathematics
We develop mathematical fluency through the White Rose Maths curriculum, providing opportunities for children to explore number, patterns, relationships and mathematical concepts through practical experiences.
Early counting begins in Nursery through number rhymes, songs and opportunities to act out familiar counting sequences. These experiences help children develop an understanding of number and early mathematical relationships.
We explore numbers in meaningful ways, focusing on what each number represents and how quantities can be composed and partitioned. In Nursery, children explore numbers to five, while in Reception they develop their understanding of numbers to ten. For example, children investigate the different ways to make five, such as zero and five, one and four, and two and three. They also learn to recognise quantities represented visually, including patterns on dice and dominoes.
Our provision encourages children to manipulate, group, sort, collect and compare objects; notice changes in quantity; explore size; and investigate patterns and relationships. We use a range of resources, including natural and real-life objects, to make mathematics meaningful and engaging.
We aim to foster positive attitudes towards mathematics, encouraging children to notice connections, look for patterns, explain their thinking and approach mathematical challenges with confidence.
Understanding the world
Our curriculum incorporates seasonal changes, significant events and celebrations from our wonderfully diverse global communities. We aim to broaden children's experiences, develop their curiosity and deepen their understanding of the people, places and environments around them.
We provide opportunities for children to explore, investigate, observe and ask questions about the world. We develop rich vocabulary so that children can describe what they already know, explain what they are learning and communicate their discoveries.
Visits and visitors enhance our curriculum and bring learning to life, helping children make meaningful connections between their experiences and the wider world.
Our EYFS curriculum aligns with the whole-school termly themes, and curriculum subject knowledge and vertical progression have been mapped from Nursery through to Year 6. This supports continuity in learning and helps children build secure foundations for their future education.
All adults, including parents and carers, understand the intent behind our weekly, half-termly and termly curriculum so that learning can be supported and reinforced consistently.
SEND, inclusion and meeting individual needs
At EYFS@RMS, we believe that every child deserves to feel valued, included and successful. Our curriculum is designed to provide equitable access to learning, recognising that children develop at different rates and bring a wide range of experiences, strengths and needs to school.
We carefully observe children's development, interests and engagement to identify what helps them learn best. Our practitioners reflect continually on children's progress and adapt teaching, resources, interactions and learning environments to ensure that all children can participate meaningfully in our curriculum.
For children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), we provide individualised support informed by their strengths, needs and developmental stage. This may include adapting activities and resources, breaking learning into smaller steps, using additional modelling and repetition, providing visual or practical support, allowing additional processing time and creating opportunities for focused adult interaction.
We place particular emphasis on communication and language, recognising that children may need different approaches and levels of support to express themselves, understand others and participate in learning. Through responsive interactions, appropriate scaffolding and our focus on oracy, including SHREC, we aim to help every child develop their communication skills and confidence.
Our continuous provision offers flexible opportunities for children to explore and practise skills in ways that suit their needs. Adults carefully balance support and independence, providing appropriate challenge while allowing children time to investigate, revisit learning and experience success.
We work in partnership with parents and carers, valuing their knowledge and insights, and collaborate with relevant professionals where appropriate. Through ongoing observation, discussion and assessment, we identify next steps and review the support children receive to help them make progress.
We recognise and celebrate individual achievements, however small they may seem, and ensure that children are valued for who they are. Our aim is for every child, including those with SEND, to feel a strong sense of belonging, develop independence, build positive relationships and thrive within our EYFS environment.
Keeping children safe and well
Our curriculum provides children with the essential knowledge, skills and experiences they need to flourish and to understand how to keep themselves and others safe.
We use the NSPCC's Speak out. Stay safe. programme to support children's understanding of safety and help them recognise the importance of speaking to a trusted adult.
Our daily toothbrushing programme reinforces positive oral health habits. Visits from people who help us, including dentists, firefighters, police officers and medical professionals, provide valuable opportunities to learn about safety, health and the roles of people within our community.
These experiences help children develop an age-appropriate understanding of how to care for themselves, seek help when needed and contribute to a safe and respectful community.
Building knowledge over time
We display our weekly sticky knowledge to help children revisit important learning and make connections with what they have learned previously. Through regular opportunities to retrieve and apply prior knowledge, children strengthen their understanding and build confidence as they progress.
Our continuous provision also enables children to revisit familiar experiences, practise developing skills and apply their knowledge in new contexts. This supports our ambition for children to remember more, know more and do more as they move through the curriculum.
Our curriculum is planned both ahead of time, in a carefully sequenced manner, and in the moment, allowing us to respond to children's emerging interests and learning needs.
In-the-moment planning
In-the-moment planning is an approach through which practitioners develop a mini-topic or extend an existing theme spontaneously in response to a child's interest, question or discovery.
It works alongside our carefully planned, sequential curriculum, enhancing engagement and creating meaningful learning opportunities. Our positive relationships and knowledge of each child enable us to recognise opportunities to extend learning and identify appropriate next steps.
By responding thoughtfully to what matters to children in that moment, we provide a personalised curriculum that builds on their interests, encourages curiosity and supports their individual development.
Our learning environment
We plan our continuous provision in response to the curriculum intent and the next steps identified by our whole team. Our indoor and outdoor environments are designed to stimulate engagement, encourage independence and enable every child to access meaningful learning opportunities, both independently and alongside an adult.
We provide a balance of activities with clear intended outcomes and open-ended experiences that allow children to explore multiple possibilities. We believe in low-threshold, high-ceiling learning: activities should be accessible to children at different stages of development while offering opportunities for increasingly complex thinking and challenge.
Natural and open-ended resources encourage imagination, creativity, curiosity and investigation. Each area is equipped with resources that enable children to develop new skills, practise existing knowledge and follow their own interests, according to their age, developmental stage and individual needs.
Our provision supports a range of experiences, from quiet, individual exploration to collaborative play and larger-scale investigations. Children are encouraged to make choices, solve problems, take risks appropriate to their development and learn through first-hand experiences.
Observation, positive relationships and interaction
Alongside carefully planned teaching, children are encouraged to follow their own lines of enquiry through play in our engaging, curriculum-linked continuous provision.
Our practitioners balance careful observation with purposeful interaction. Rather than directing children towards activities unnecessarily, adults take time to understand what children are doing, notice their interests and judge when support or intervention will best enhance learning.
We match the level of scaffolding to each child's developmental journey. This may involve narrating what we observe to develop language, modelling a skill, working alongside children towards a specific outcome or allowing them to explore a broader range of possibilities independently.
When joining children's play, we demonstrate curiosity, enthusiasm, awe and wonder. We use thinking prompts such as "I wonder..." and "I've noticed...", alongside appropriate open-ended questions, to encourage discussion, reasoning and the use of new vocabulary.
Throughout these interactions, we model positive behaviour, attentive listening and respectful responses. Our Ready, Mutually Respectful and Safe ethos remains central to the way we communicate, play and learn together.
Identifying next steps
We continually look for opportunities to extend learning in ways that are meaningful to each child. Through open questioning, narration, modelling and carefully timed support, we help children develop new skills, deepen their understanding and achieve positive outcomes.
Equally, we recognise when to step back and allow children the time and space to investigate, make discoveries and reach their own conclusions.
By knowing our children well, responding to their individual needs and working in partnership with families, we provide a curriculum that is ambitious, inclusive and responsive.
At EYFS@RMS, nurturing confident, curious and resilient learners is at the heart of everything we do. We want every child to feel that they belong, that their ideas matter and that they can succeed at 'Doing all the good they can'.
EYFS@RMS Curriculum Intent
At Richmond Methodist Primary School, we have the highest expectations of ourselves as practitioners and strive to provide the best possible education for every child in our care. Guided by our Christian vision to “do all the good we can”, we are committed to ensuring that “for all” children means every child is valued, included, supported and enabled to flourish.
We aim to provide an ambitious, rich, inclusive and carefully sequenced curriculum that ignites children’s imagination and curiosity, broadens their life experiences and establishes secure foundations for future learning and success. We want every child to develop the knowledge, skills, language, confidence and character they need to thrive, both now and in the future, and to continue to “do all the good they can”.
Our curriculum is rooted in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework for group and school-based providers, effective from September 2026. We recognise our responsibility to meet the statutory requirements for children’s learning, development, assessment, safeguarding and welfare, while providing a curriculum that reflects the distinctive Christian vision, values and ethos of Richmond Methodist Primary School.
Our aims are to ensure:
- Quality and consistency: every child experiences high-quality teaching and care, makes progress from their individual starting point and is supported to achieve well.
- Secure foundations: learning is carefully sequenced so that children build knowledge and skills over time, with regular observation, assessment and responsive teaching informing their next steps.
- Positive partnerships: practitioners work collaboratively with parents and carers, recognising them as their child’s first educators and valuing the knowledge they bring about their child.
- Equality of opportunity and inclusion: every child, including children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), receives the support, adaptations and opportunities they need to participate, belong and achieve.
- Health, happiness and safety: children feel secure, develop positive relationships and learn how to care for themselves and others.
- Character and Christian values: children develop kindness, integrity, generosity and honesty, learning to treat others with dignity, fairness and respect.
Four guiding principles shape our EYFS practice:
- Every child is unique. Children are individuals who are constantly learning and can be resilient, capable, confident and self-assured.
- Positive relationships. Children learn to be strong and independent through warm, responsive relationships with adults and other children.
- Enabling environments. Children learn and develop well in safe, welcoming and stimulating environments, with skilled adults who respond to their interests and needs, support their learning and help them build knowledge over time. Strong partnerships between practitioners, parents and carers are central to this.
- Learning and development. Children develop and learn at different rates. We recognise these differences and adapt our teaching, provision and support accordingly.
These principles underpin our commitment to being a school “for all”, where every child is known, valued and encouraged to flourish.
Implementation
Our curriculum and the seven areas of learning
Our indoor and outdoor EYFS provision reflects the seven areas of learning and development set out in the EYFS statutory framework. We recognise that the three prime areas are particularly important for building the foundations for all future learning.
Our Relationships and Health Curriculum underpins all aspects of learning, supporting children to develop positive relationships, emotional wellbeing, self-regulation and an understanding of how to keep themselves and others healthy and safe.
The three prime areas are:
- Communication and Language
- Physical Development
- Personal, Social and Emotional Development
The four specific areas are:
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the World
- Expressive Arts and Design
The prime areas support children’s development across all aspects of learning, while the specific areas provide opportunities for children to apply, strengthen and extend their developing knowledge and skills.
We provide a broad, balanced and ambitious curriculum that offers meaningful experiences across all seven areas. Learning is planned progressively so that children revisit, practise and deepen their understanding, making connections between experiences and developing the foundations needed for the next stage of their education.
A curriculum that builds over time
Our curriculum is carefully planned to build cumulatively on what children already know and can do. Practitioners identify children’s starting points, consider their interests and needs, and plan experiences that extend their knowledge, vocabulary, skills and understanding.
We use the EYFS statutory framework alongside non-statutory guidance, including Development Matters and Birth to 5 Matters, to inform our professional judgement and curriculum planning. Our curriculum is richer and more personal than a checklist of developmental milestones: it reflects our children, our community, our Christian ethos and our high aspirations for every learner.
Our planning is aligned with the whole-school termly themes, and curriculum subject knowledge and progression strands are mapped from Nursery to Year 6. This supports continuity and ensures that children encounter the knowledge, concepts and experiences that prepare them for future learning.
Seasonal changes, significant events and celebrations from our diverse global communities enrich our curriculum. Through these experiences, children develop their understanding of the world, learn to appreciate similarities and differences, and acquire the vocabulary they need to describe what they experience, remember and learn.
Responsive teaching and planning in the moment
We complement our planned curriculum with planning in the moment. Practitioners observe children carefully, listen to their ideas, identify emerging interests and use these opportunities to extend learning through purposeful interactions, questioning, modelling and scaffolding.
We believe that adults are facilitators of learning who help children to explore, investigate, solve problems and take on new challenges. We provide open-ended resources and embrace the loose parts philosophy, enabling children to use materials creatively and develop their own ideas. Where a child expresses a meaningful interest that cannot be explored with the resources currently available, we seek to provide suitable resources as soon as reasonably possible.
Our environment is designed to promote independence, curiosity, creativity and collaboration. Children are encouraged to make choices, explore possibilities, revisit previous learning and develop their own lines of enquiry. Responsive teaching ensures that spontaneous interests complement, rather than replace, the breadth and progression of our intended curriculum.
Communication, language and vocabulary
Communication and language are central to our curriculum. Practitioners create frequent opportunities for children to listen, speak, discuss, explain, question and express their thoughts and feelings.
We model rich, precise vocabulary, introduce new words in meaningful contexts and revisit language so that children can understand, remember and use it confidently. Stories, rhymes, songs, conversation and shared experiences support children’s listening, comprehension, speaking and communication skills.
We encourage children to develop confidence in expressing themselves, listening to others and participating in thoughtful conversations with adults and their peers. We recognise that language development varies and provide appropriate support and adaptations so that all children can communicate and participate as fully as possible.
Reading, writing and mathematics
We foster a love of books, stories, rhymes and reading from the beginning of children’s time with us. High-quality texts, repeated reading, storytelling, songs and rich discussion help children develop comprehension, vocabulary and an understanding of language.
We build the foundations for early reading and writing through purposeful, developmentally appropriate experiences. Children are supported to develop phonological awareness, engage with systematic phonics teaching, recognise and use sounds as appropriate to their stage of learning, and develop the physical skills needed for writing.
Mathematics is developed through practical experiences, purposeful play, discussion and carefully planned teaching. Children build secure foundations in number, numerical patterns, spatial reasoning, shape, measure and mathematical language. Practitioners help children notice patterns, make connections, explain their thinking and apply their learning in different contexts.
Personal development, relationships and our school ethos
Throughout school, we encourage children to be “Ready, Mutually Respectful and Safe” so that they can maximise their learning opportunities and develop the foundations for positive relationships and lifelong wellbeing.
In EYFS, we explicitly support children to develop self-regulation, independence, resilience, confidence and consideration for others. Through our daily interactions, routines, stories and curriculum experiences, children learn the importance of kindness, integrity, generosity, honesty and respect.
We help children understand how to keep themselves and others safe, manage their feelings, begin to resolve difficulties and seek help when they need it. Adults model the behaviours and language we expect, establishing clear, consistent and nurturing boundaries.
Our Christian vision informs the way we care for one another and our wider community. Children are encouraged to recognise that everyone matters, that people may have different experiences and beliefs, and that our actions can make a positive difference.
Inclusion and individual needs
Our curriculum is designed for all children. We recognise that children arrive with different experiences, strengths, interests, languages, developmental stages and support needs.
Practitioners use observation, assessment and professional discussion to identify barriers to learning and participation. We adapt the environment, resources, interactions and teaching to support children to access the curriculum and make progress from their individual starting points.
We work in partnership with parents and carers and, where appropriate, the Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO), health professionals and other agencies. We identify emerging needs promptly, put appropriate support in place and review its impact. Children with SEND are supported to participate meaningfully in the life of the setting and to achieve the best possible outcomes.
We promote equality of opportunity, celebrate diversity and challenge discriminatory attitudes and behaviours. Our commitment to being “for all” means that no child should be overlooked or prevented from flourishing because of their background, circumstances or additional needs.
Assessment and partnership with parents and carers
Assessment is integral to teaching and learning. Practitioners draw on their knowledge of each child, observations, conversations, children’s work and their participation in everyday experiences to understand what children know and can do.
Assessment is purposeful and informs decisions about teaching, provision, support and next steps. We avoid unnecessary assessment activity that takes practitioners away from interacting with children. We use professional judgement to identify learning that needs revisiting, misconceptions that need addressing and opportunities to extend children’s understanding.
We recognise the importance of the statutory progress check between the ages of two and three. This includes a short written summary of the child’s development in the three prime areas of learning, identifying strengths and any areas where additional support may be needed. We discuss the check with parents and carers and work together to support the child’s development.
At the end of Reception, practitioners complete the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) in accordance with the statutory requirements and current guidance. This assessment summarises children’s attainment against the Early Learning Goals and supports the transition to Year 1.
Parents and carers are valued partners throughout their child’s EYFS journey. We share information about learning and development, listen to families’ knowledge and priorities, and work together to provide consistency and appropriate support. We recognise that children’s experiences at home and in school contribute to their development and that strong partnerships benefit every child.
Effective teaching and learning
We encourage and model the characteristics of effective teaching and learning, helping children develop the foundations of confident, independent and lifelong learning.
These are:
- Playing and exploring: children investigate and experience things, and have a go.
- Active learning: children concentrate, keep trying when they encounter difficulties and enjoy their achievements.
- Creating and thinking critically: children develop their own ideas, make links between ideas and develop strategies for doing things.
Through a balance of child-initiated exploration, adult-guided learning and purposeful direct teaching, we help children develop curiosity, persistence, creativity and confidence. Practitioners know when to observe, when to intervene and when to extend learning through carefully chosen interactions.
All curriculum delivery takes place within safe, well-organised and inclusive environments. Our safeguarding and welfare procedures reflect the current EYFS statutory requirements and are reviewed alongside relevant school policies and procedures.
Impact
The impact of our curriculum is seen in what children know, understand, remember and can do. Children are engaged in their learning, show curiosity and sustain concentration as they explore, investigate and play. They increasingly draw on previous experiences, make connections and apply their developing knowledge and skills in new situations.
We want every child, regardless of starting point or circumstance, to make meaningful progress and achieve well. Children with SEND are supported to achieve the best possible outcomes, and we continually reflect on the effectiveness of our provision to ensure that barriers to learning are identified and addressed.
Our children develop confidence and resilience. They are increasingly willing to have a go, persist when learning is challenging and take pride in their achievements. They learn to show kindness, honesty, generosity and respect, and to recognise the importance of caring for others.
Children become increasingly Ready, Mutually Respectful and Safe. They develop independence, learn to manage their feelings with support, form positive relationships and begin to understand how their choices affect themselves and others. They learn to ask for help, follow familiar routines and take increasing responsibility for their own safety and wellbeing.
Children develop the communication and language skills they need to participate in learning and relationships. They listen attentively, enjoy stories, rhymes and singing, engage in conversations and use increasingly rich vocabulary to express their ideas. They develop the foundations for early reading and writing and are encouraged to become enthusiastic readers who enjoy books and stories.
In mathematics, children develop secure foundational knowledge and an increasing ability to notice patterns, reason, solve problems and use mathematical language. Across all seven areas of learning, children build knowledge and skills progressively through a broad and balanced range of experiences.
Children develop an understanding of the world around them. They explore their local environment and wider communities, encounter different cultures and experiences, and learn to notice, question and talk about similarities and differences. They are encouraged to be curious, creative and thoughtful, developing an appreciation of the world and their place within it.
Our assessment and observation help us understand each child’s progress and identify where further teaching, practice or support is needed. By the end of Reception, the EYFS Profile provides a statutory summary of children’s learning and development and informs the transition to Year 1.
As children move into Year 1, we aim for them to be confident, curious and increasingly independent learners who have experienced a broad and balanced curriculum. They will have developed the foundations for future learning, positive relationships, communication, early literacy and mathematics, and an understanding of how to care for themselves and others.
Above all, we want every child to know that they belong, that they are valued and that their contribution matters. As they complete their Foundation Stage journey at Richmond Methodist Primary School, all children should be inspired and equipped to continue to “do all the good they can”.
Curriculum Planning Documents 2026
Learning Journeys
Our curriculum planning encompasses, and is formed by: the children’s interests, appropriate language rich texts and the EYFS curriculum. Although all 17 areas of our EYFS curriculum are taught weekly, we focus on particular areas of the EYFS profile for a week or two weeks in line with the National Curriculum subject blocking throughout school. In this way, our whole school curriculum is sequentially planned and taught. Our yearly planning follows Seasons and Celebrations, as we investigate the world around us and particularly develop our own cultural capital here in Richmond, Yorkshire. We use NCTEM, Mastering Number and Mastering the Curriculum for the structure of our Mathematical teaching sequences with the aim of achieving mastery and deep conceptual understanding. We follow Little Wandle Letters and Sounds for our phonics teaching and learning. Our R.E. Curriculum is taught in line with the rest of our whole school R.E. planning. We follow the North Yorkshire Agreed Syllabus, the Understanding Christianity blocks and use R.E. Today resources. As the rest of the school, we work towards the promotion of our whole school half termly Christian Value focus. In our P.S.H.E, we work within over-arching themes for each half term. We term this our ‘Preventative PSHE Curriculum’ as it teaches children to know how to make good choices, keeping themselves safe and well in all aspects of their lives. We can also flexibly meet children’s immediate personal and social educational needs daily and weekly, thus maximising continuing development in this area. We term the latter, our ‘Responsive curriculum’.
Retrieval Strategy in EYFS
We use our visual reminders on our learning journey wall displays to reinforce previous learning and make connections with the new sticky knowledge we are teaching. Sticky knowledge we have previously visited is evident in our Continuous Provision. In addition, at the end of free-flow sessions, we have a 'Show and Tell' opportunity for children who have been engaged in child initiated learning, to share what they have found out with their classmates.
Learning Journeys - Our Sticky Knowledge
Progression of Skills in our Continuous Provision
Three characteristics of effective teaching and learning are:
- playing and exploring – where children investigate and experience things, and ‘have a go’
- active learning – where children concentrate and keep on trying if they encounter difficulties, and enjoy achievements
- creating and thinking critically – where children have and develop their own ideas, make links between ideas, and develop strategies for doing things
Our EYFS@RMS curriculum is planned both ahead, in a timely and sequential manner but also ‘in the moment’, to maximise equal learning opportunities ‘for all’.
What is ‘In the Moment Planning’?
In the moment planning is an approach where we as an early years setting develop a mini topic or extension of an existing theme spontaneously based on what a child is interested in ‘in that moment’. Planning in the moment runs alongside and complements our sequentially pre-planned curriculum as it enhances engagement and therefore learning opportunities. It utilises our positive relationships and skills as EYFS practitioners to identify each child’s next step and effectively interact with our children to promote the best outcomes. It ensures we provide a bespoke curriculum for each and every individual child.
Environment
We plan the children’s continuous provision to match the children’s next steps as identified by our whole team. Our environment stimulates engagement in learning and enables each and every child to access activities both without being directed by an adult and whilst working with an adult, equally. The activities therefore have a balance of closed and open outcomes. We believe in low threshold and high ceiling learning. Our provision is characterised by natural and open-ended resources to ignite imagination and creativity. It is planned according to our curriculum intent for the week and enables our planned outcomes. Each activity area is equipped with all necessary provision that allows our children to learn or practice a new skill, depending on the age range and requirements of the children in each indoor or outdoor classroom. It enables curiosity, investigation on a small or large scale, alone or together, in quiet or busy play.
Observation, Positive Relationships and Interaction
In addition to our carefully planned teaching inputs, children are encouraged to pursue their own lines of enquiry through play within our engaging, curriculum-linked continuous provision. We recognise that high-quality interactions and positive relationships are fundamental to children’s learning, wellbeing and communication development.
Rather than always stepping in to direct children towards an activity, we strike a thoughtful balance between observation and interaction. We take time to observe children closely, follow their lead and understand their interests, intentions and developmental needs before deciding how best to support their learning. We aim to match the level of scaffolding we provide to each child’s individual developmental journey, allowing them time and space to explore, think and communicate independently.
We embed the SHREC approach (Shared attention, Help children take turns, Respond, Expand and Conversation) throughout our everyday interactions to support children’s speech, language and communication. Practitioners join children in their play, share their focus and follow their interests. We help children take turns in interactions, respond sensitively to their verbal and non-verbal communication, and expand on what they say by modelling new vocabulary, adding detail and extending their ideas. Through warm, sustained conversations, we create meaningful opportunities for children to develop their listening, attention, understanding, expressive language and confidence as communicators.
We may narrate what we notice children doing to model language and make vocabulary meaningful. When we join children’s play, we bring curiosity, awe, wonder and enthusiasm to their discoveries. We use thinking prompts such as “I wonder…” and “I’ve noticed…”, alongside open-ended questions where appropriate, to encourage children to think deeply, share ideas, explain their reasoning and engage in rich conversations. We are mindful to allow children sufficient processing time and avoid asking too many questions, recognising that meaningful communication develops through responsive, back-and-forth interactions.
Through these positive relationships, we model attentive listening, respectful responses and turn-taking, helping children to feel heard, valued and confident in expressing themselves. We recognise and celebrate all forms of communication, adapting our interactions to meet individual needs and supporting every child to participate, including children who may need additional support with speech, language and communication.
Throughout every interaction, we consistently model and reinforce our school expectations of Ready, Mutually Respectful and Safe. In doing so, we create an environment where children feel secure, develop positive relationships and are empowered to communicate, explore, question and learn together. This reflects our school vision to “do all the good we can” and our commitment to “for all”, ensuring that every child is supported to flourish.
Next Steps
We aim to identify when there is a teaching opportunity so we can gently join the play and increase learning, tailored to that child’s next step of development. We seek to do this through open questioning, narration of processes, modelling of thinking and enabling positive outcomes for the child. We also know when to stand back and observe, allowing the child to discover their own chosen learning path and come to conclusions themselves. Nurturing a child’s lifelong love of learning is core to everything we do and we encourage resilience at every opportunity.
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