01274 410349 admin@cca.bdat-academies.org

Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

Welcome to Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

Miss Grimshaw
EYFS Lead

Miss Outram
Class Teacher

Mrs. Senior
Teaching Assistant

Miss Latz
Teaching Assistant

Our Big Questions in EYFS are:

Why is it good to be me?

Reception: How can I be a positive member of my class?

 

Our Nursery

Our Classroom

This is what our classroom looks like. We have created a sustainably sourced classroom using old bookcases, and pre-loved treasures to create a wonderfully stimulating environment with little pockets of magic in every corner. Come and explore the magic and curiosity through awe and wonder in our beautiful new space with authentic resources, which allows the children to enhance their communication and language skills with rich vocabulary to help them become confident learners.

Did you see us on the front page of the Telegraph and Argus? Christ Church Academy opens impressive new classroom | Bradford Telegraph and Argus

Our Prayer Space

Our Christian ethos is developed through our class prayer space, our class prayers and the Christian values we teach throughout school alongside our positive learning behaviours.

Our Intent and aims at Christ Church Academy Early Years

At Christ Church Academy Early Years, we aim to create an attractive and stimulating learning environment where children feel confident, secure and challenged. We recognise that every child is unique, and in our classroom, we celebrate and respect differences. It is our intent that every child who enters our Early Years setting, whether that be from Nursery or Reception, begin their lifelong journey in education by developing socially, emotionally, physically and cognitively through an early love of learning and a positive attitude towards learning, which is embedded as soon as they begin at our school.

Both Nursery and Reception are based in a merged provision, and through a carefully planned curriculum and assessments, we ensure that our continuous provision is an enabling environment for both our youngest, and oldest children to thrive and have a positive transition through to Year 1.

Our Early Years classroom adopts a modern-day pedagogy to Early Learning. In a world where technology is advancing rapidly, we provide the children with access to a thought-provoking environment that stimulates curiosity through awe and wonder, using authentic resources.

We aim to create a flexible environment with purposeful open-ended resources to enable the children to use their imagination, and communicate with one another in a respectful, thought-provoking learning environment.

We strongly encourage you to come and half a look around our fantastic provision!

Outdoor Provision

We offer both indoor and outdoor provision. EYFS have their own garden and playground space, and we are very fortunate to have our own woodlands area where we can (if we are lucky) observe woodland animals like fox, deer, squirrels and birds.

As part of our drive to create a sustainable environment, we grow some of our own fruits and vegetables with Mrs Senior to try.

Children have the opportunity to explore indoors and outdoors throughout the day, so please ensure that your child has a warm coat for the winter months, alongside suitable footwear as we believe it is important for children to explore the outdoors whatever the weather!

Safer Eating and Lunch times

Early Years have their lunch at 11.30am for 45 minutes.

The children eat in their own space next to the dinner hall, where possible facing a Paeiatric First Aider.

Both Nursery (if they stay full days) and Reception have access to a hot and nutritious school meal each day. There is a fantastic variety of meals each day that the children can choose from. The menu can be found online here: BMDC School Meals – Menu

We are a Nut-Free school, this includes Nutella and any product that contains nuts.

If your child is bringing packed lunch, please ensure this is a healthy nutritious balanced meal.

Here is some packed lunch guidance: Early-Years-Healthy-Lunchboxes Attachment 2.pdf

Oral Health

We are a part of the dental hygiene programme, which means that Nursery and Reception brush their teeth with us to learn good oral hygiene.

Nursery Information and Costs

If you are interested in a place at our Nursery please contact the school on 01274 410349 and ask for Mr Chell or Mrs Foster. We offer a range of attendance patterns for free Nursery funding and the option for parents to pay for additional sessions where required. You can find out more about free Nursery places through the Childcare Choices Website.

Sessions run 8.30-11.30am and/or 12.15-3.15pm. Cost of sessions:

  • Morning £17.50
  • Afternoon £17.50

*Disclaimer: Please be aware that If your child is absent and does not attend a session you will still be charged for this.

We will be offer 30hours free childcare places to eligible families, please get in touch to discuss your requirements.

  • For working families in England
  • With 3 and 4-year-old children
  • An extra 15 hours a week of free childcare – so 30 in all
  • Parents of children who will be 3 on 31st August can apply now

If eligible, you’re entitled to an extra 570 hours of free childcare a year to use flexibly, so 1140 hours in total.

You, and any partner, must each expect to earn (on average) at least £120 a week (equal to 16 hours at the National Minimum or Living Wage). If you, or your partner, are on maternity, paternity or adoption leave, or you’re unable to work because you are disabled or have caring responsibilities, you could still be eligible.

You can’t get 30 hours free childcare if you, or your partner, expect to earn £100,000 or more.

Available at participating:

  • Nurseries and nursery classes
  • Playgroups and pre-school
  • Childminders
  • Sure Start Children’s Centres

Other Information

  • Children have access to a toilet at all times when they need to in provision. However, please pack spare clothes and underwear in a bag with your child, accidents can happen. Children should mostly be toilet trained by the time they come to school but we are able to support you with this if your child is not quite at that stage and we can create a care plan together.
  • We encourage children to become independent learners from the minute they step through our doors, please encourage your child to come in on their own and unzip their own coats and find their name on their peg. A teacher will be there to support.
  • On arrival to EYFS, your child will have a log slice with their name on which matches the name tag on your child’s peg. Each child has their own coat peg and tray for any belongings they bring to school.
  • Every morning the children are able to have breakfast with us, they are offered either toast, bagel or fruit and milk in line with our safer eating guidelines.
  • In an afternoon, children can choose a fruit snack and milk. If you want to send a piece of fruit for snack times for your child, this is fine however please ensure you cut smaller fruits like grapes for example lengthways in half.
  • We provide fresh drinking water each day for all children.
  • We offer regular stay and play sessions all throughout the year on a booking system, please contact the class teacher to organise a stay and play session slot via dojo or the school office.

Nursery Lunch

If your Nursery child is full time (30 hours), or does 2.5 days, we charge a small lunch time fee of £4.37 per day which covers the cost of staffing over lunch times. This can be paid on ParentPay. Children can either stay for a hot cooked lunch at an additional cost, or bring their own lunch box from home.

Wrap around care

We also offer wrap around care for children in Nursery and Reception from 7.30am, see the Jellybeans page, or contact the school office for more information.

P.E

Reception have a P.E lesson each week which is with Miss Lazenby our P.E coach. Children are welcome to come to school in their P.E Uniform. See school uniform page for more information.

Learning

Here is an example of our typical day in Early Years.

8.30am Welcome Nursery and Get Busy time! Nursery are welcomed and able to explore the provision. Adult in this time will interact with children and work 1-1 with any children developing specific skills.
8.50am Nursery tidy time, and Welcome Reception!

We take the registers, count how many children are here this morning. We also look at what day it is, and share stories or have a focussed carpet time together.

After this, Nursery and Reception are welcome to have morning snack, or go and get busy.
9.30am Read Write Inc phonics for Reception.

Nursery get busy time and focused interactions with an adult in provision.
10.30am Nursery math’s session.

Reception finish their phonics session and can choose where to get busy (inside or outside free flow).
11am Tidy up time and story time.
11.30am Goodbye to morning Nursery, and lunch time.
12.15pm Welcome afternoon Nursery, registration and Reception math’s session.
12.45pm Focused Math’s groups for Reception and get busy time.

During this time, any handwriting interventions, or intensive interactions are taking place with staff.
2pm Afternoon snack time, outdoor opens to free flow and Time to Talk Oracy sessions 2-3 times in the week.
2.50pm Tidy up time and story time.
3.15pm Home time for Nursery.
3.20pm Home time for Reception.

Oracy

In Early Years, we understand that communication and language is a pivotal part of our learning and socialising, alongside understanding the content of our curriculum. Some children can struggle with their communication skills when they arrive in Nursery or Reception, so some children who are identified to need some extra help with communication take part in our “time to talk” Ginger Bear oracy sessions. These are short bursts sessions 2-3 times a week which helps develop interactions such as eye contact, feelings, taking turns, giving, following instructions, listening, attention and play skills!

Extra resources for parent’s