Reception Class

Reception Class

At Holy Cross Primary School, we are committed to promoting the highest levels of well-being and involvement for our children.

Reception is the exciting start of a child’s education in primary school. During this year our children will learn through play and opportunities to investigate learning. At this age children start to develop an understanding of key communication skills as well as developing more social relationships with their peers and adults in the environment. At Holy Cross the school day provides a safe and secure environment where children can play, explore, experiment, investigate and learn. We also encourage our children to acquire skills and knowledge through first-hand experiences, gaining a sound understanding of the world around them.

EYFS Curriculum

We aim to develop and broaden the range of children’s learning experiences, to leave them confident, eager and enthusiastic learners who enjoy school life. We hope to play our part by treating your child as an individual and offering them a variety of experiences and activities which are designed to further their development process.

In our Reception class we recognise that children learn best when they are active.  We understand that active learning involves other people, objects, ideas and events that engage and involve children for sustained periods.  We believe that early years education should be as practical as possible and our Early Years Foundation Stage has an ethos of learning through play. 

Much of the children’s learning will be through play where children are offered a range of activities each with an educational purpose. Play is the means by which the children explore a variety of experiences in different situations for a variety of purposes. It is a process which provides for children a way of learning about the world around them.

Play is a powerful motivator that encourages children to be creative and to develop their ideas, understandings and language.  Play can be practised indoors and outdoors and helps children to become confident and motivated learners.

We value the role of parents as children’s primary educators and work hard to build positive relationships between home and school.  Our School has a friendly open doors ethos and staff are available to talk to parents and carers at the beginning and end of the day.  Parents and carers are always welcomed and encouraged to discuss any concerns they might have.  

Staff plan activities and experiences that promote children’s development and learning based on the following key aspects:

Area of Learning and Development	Aspect
Prime Areas
Communication and Language	Listening, attention and understanding
Speaking
Personal, Social and Emotional Development	Self-Regulation
Managing Self
Building Relationships
Physical Development	Gross Motor Skills
Fine Motor Skills
Specific areas
Literacy
Comprehension
Word Reading
Writing
Mathematics	Number
Numerical Pattern
Understanding the World	Past and Present
Peoples, Culture and Communities The Natural World
Expressive Arts and Design	Creating with Materials
Being imaginative and Expressive

These seven areas are used to plan children’s learning and activities. The staff supporting our children will make sure that the activities are suited to each child’s unique needs. Children in the EYFS learn by playing and exploring, being active, and through creative and critical thinking which take place both indoors and outside.

Our aim in Reception Class at Holy Cross is to teach our children our key school values and skills such as resilience to make them happy, confident and life-long learners.

Useful links:

https://www.phonicsplay.co.uk

For speech and language resources and advice and tips for parents working at home with children who have SLCN visit:

https://speechandlanguage.info/parents

CBeebies is an excellent resource for you to use. Click on the icon, have a look and see what you can learn!