At Thornhill Primary School we want all of our Early Years pupils to be happy, confident, resilient individuals who have a love of learning and exploring. We believe in providing all children with a safe, secure and engaging environment, both inside and out, that builds on individuals’ needs and interests.

Children will have the opportunity to learn through play throughout the day, as well as experience direct teaching. Learning will be fun, purposeful and challenging. Adults will provide high quality interactions to develop and deepen learning opportunities. All adults in our base are role models for the children and their learning. We will deliver our curriculum through a balance of adult led (group work and carpet sessions) and child-initiated activities.

We understand and value the use of the outdoor environment for all children, taking advantage vast school grounds whenever the opportunity arises. At Thornhill we provide our children with opportunities to improve their gross motor skills, develop their imagination and further sense of curiosity.

Our indoor environment offers opportunities to develop our children’s fine motor skills through a range of provisions including loose parts, small world and creative station. We enhance our indoor and outdoor environment to suit the seasons, the needs and interests of the children and to promote the high-quality texts that are part of our long-term curriculum overview.

We are passionate about developing a love of reading from the very start of our children’s education: delivering regular library sessions, visits to local libraries, daily story times and phonically matched reading books that go home with children daily. We believe that reading opens the door to the world of adventure, increasing imagination and curiosity, as well as life opportunities.

We recognise that children learn to be confident and independent through the development of secure relationships. We develop caring, respectful, professional relationships with the children and their families. We work together with our families, valuing parents and carers as partners in their children’s education.

We are whole-heartedly committed to giving our children the best possible start to their school life, teaching them skills which ensure their well-being now, and success in the future.

The EYFS Curriculum:

The foundation for our curriculum and the children’s learning experience is rooted in the ‘Prime Areas’ of the EYFS Framework: Communication and Language; Personal, Social and Emotional Development and Physical Development. The four specific areas, Literacy, Maths, Understanding the World, and Expressive Arts and Design, will build on these firm foundations and ensure that children are ready for the depth and breadth of our Key Stage 1 curriculum.