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St Alban's Catholic Academy

St Alban's

Catholic Academy

First Avenue, Harlow, Essex, CM20 2NP

Through God’s love we learn together, grow together and achieve together.

The Curriculum

Children start to learn about the world around them from the moment they are born. We believe that play is central to a young child’s learning. Through play they can explore ideas, feelings and relationships. Therefore, through our planning we will ensure all areas of learning and development are addressed using a play-based approach as well as adult directed activities. 

As a registered early year’s provider, St Alban’s Nursery follows the Early Years Foundation Stage framework. This framework of guidance consists of four themes and principles, these are as follows:

A Unique Child: Every child is a competent learner from birth who can be resilient, capable, confident and self-assured.

Positive Relationships: Children learn to be strong and independent from a base of loving and secure relationships with parents/carers and a key person.

Enabling Environments:The environment plays a key role in supporting and expanding children’s development and learning.

Learning and Development: Children develop and learn in different ways, at different rates and in all areas of learning development that are equally important and interconnected.

Learning and development are divided into the seven areas of learning:

The three prime areas are the most essential for your child’s healthy development and future learning. They are as follows…

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

•        Making relationships

•        Self Confidence and self-awareness

•        Managing feelings and behaviour       

                                   

Physical Development         

•        Moving and handling

•        Health and self-care

         

Communication and Language Development

•        Listening and attention

•        Understanding

•        Speaking

       

 

 As the children grow, the prime areas will help them to develop essential skills in the four specific areas. These are as follows…

Literacy 

•        Reading

•        Writing

Mathematics

•        Numbers

•        Shape, space and measure

Understanding of the world

•        People and communities

•        The World

•        Technology

Expressive arts and design

•        Exploring and using media and materials

•        Being imaginative

                                              

Characteristics of effective learning

These are the ways in which the child engages with other people and their environment – playing and exploring, active learning, and creating and thinking critically. These characteristics underpin learning and development across all areas and support the child to remain an effective and motivated learner.

Playing and Exploring: Finding out and exploring, playing with what they know and initiating activities.

Active Learning: Being involved and concentrating, keeping on trying and enjoying achieving what they set out to do.

Creating and Thinking Critically: Having their own ideas, making links and  choosing ways to do things.

The staff at St Alban's Nursery will observe each child constantly, this will enable them to record significant achievements, move learning forward and plan appropriate experiences to support and challenge each child’s learning. These will be recorded on their EYFS Profile which will show what the children are able to do by the end of the reception year of their education.