Foundation Stage (Nursery and Reception)

Foundation Stage: Nursery and Reception

Our Early Years curriculum gives children the strongest possible start to school life. We want every child to feel safe, known and valued, while developing the language, confidence and curiosity they need to learn successfully.

Our curriculum is shaped by our Barnes drivers: Belonging, Communication, Curiosity and Resilience. These run through Nursery and Reception, helping children build relationships, develop language, explore the world and persevere when learning is challenging.

We have designed our EYFS curriculum as a clear journey from first experiences in Nursery to school readiness at the end of Reception. Children begin by talking about themselves, their families and what they notice around them. This is then carefully built upon in Reception, where children begin to compare, explain, sequence and connect their ideas with growing confidence.

Children at Barnes Infant Academy learn through a carefully planned balance of adult-led teaching, high-quality provision and purposeful play.

We design our environment so children can explore, revisit and deepen their learning through meaningful experiences. Adults model language, ask questions and extend thinking through high-quality interaction.

Play is not separate from learning. It is how children practise, apply and strengthen what they have been taught. Through this, children develop confidence, independence and the ability to communicate their ideas clearly.

First-hand experiences, including visits, visitors and real-life contexts, help children make sense of the world and give meaning to new vocabulary and knowledge.

Children are encouraged to explore, persist and think for themselves as they learn, developing the confidence and resilience needed for future learning.

EYFS journey poster

Our EYFS Learning Journey

Our EYFS curriculum is carefully sequenced so children build knowledge, language and confidence over time.

Nursery: Building Foundations

In Nursery, children begin by exploring their immediate world and developing the language to talk about it. They learn to:

  • talk about themselves, their families and their experiences
  • use simple vocabulary to describe what they see, feel and do
  • join in with stories, rhymes and familiar routines
  • begin to notice change, difference and the world around them

This stage focuses on developing confidence, communication and a strong sense of belonging.

Reception: Deepening Understanding

In Reception, this learning is built upon and extended. Children:

  • develop a secure sense of place and belonging
  • begin to compare, explain and connect ideas
  • explore the wider world, change over time and living things in a more structured way
  • use a wider and more precise vocabulary to communicate their thinking

This ensures children move from:

talking about experiences → understanding and explaining the world

What Children Learn in EYFS

We are ambitious about what children will know and remember by the end of Reception. Our curriculum introduces important knowledge about the world, which is revisited and strengthened over time.

Children learn that:

  • living things grow and change over time
  • plants and animals need food, water and care
  • weather changes across the year and affects what we do
  • some things are living and some are not
  • materials feel and behave differently and can be changed

They also develop an understanding of:

  • their local area and community, including where they live
  • the difference between the past and the present
  • celebrations and events that are important to different people
  • similarities and differences between people and places

Alongside this, children learn to:

  • represent ideas through drawing, painting, building and making
  • use tools and materials safely and for a purpose
  • begin to understand how technology is used in everyday life

This knowledge is taught through meaningful experiences and is revisited in different contexts so that it becomes secure and usable.

Language and Vocabulary

Language is at the heart of our EYFS curriculum. We prioritise the development of children’s spoken language so that they can communicate clearly, understand what they hear and express their ideas with confidence.

Adults model language carefully and extend children’s thinking through high-quality interactions. Children are given frequent opportunities to talk about their experiences, explain what they notice and use new vocabulary in meaningful contexts.

We are deliberate in the vocabulary we teach:

  • everyday language develops through rich conversation, stories and play
  • important Tier 2 words are explicitly modelled and revisited
  • a small number of subject-specific words are carefully introduced to prepare children for Key Stage 1

We ensure that knowledge is secure orally first, before children are expected to record their learning.

Preparing for Year 1

By the end of Reception, our children are well prepared for the next stage of their learning. They have developed secure foundations in language, knowledge, independence and confidence.

They can listen, respond, take part in structured learning, talk about what they notice and begin to explain simple changes over time.

This means children move into Year 1 ready to engage with a more structured curriculum and continue building on their EYFS learning.