FST Federation and Langton Primary Schools are small, rural schools in outskirts of Easingwold and Ryedale with varied catchment areas. Children attend from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. We believe that all children deserve the best possible start to life and the support we give them, through our family approach, allows them to flourish and reach their full potential.

Intent

• Adults foster positive relationships with children from before they start, guiding their development through warm, positive interaction. We support our children to be independent learners, gaining valuable life-long skills during their time with us.
• Children are welcomed into a calming, nurturing and engaging environment allowing them to quickly settle and begin to thrive.
• We provide an engaging indoor and outdoor environment, which allows children to safely explore and manage risks and challenge their own learning.
• Children have a smooth start to life at school and a carefully managed transition into Year One
• We work collaboratively with parents and carers to build a picture of the whole child and work together to help each child achieve
• Teachers have crafted a broad and balanced curriculum to promote the ‘thrill, will and skill’ in learning and aim to spark a love for learning, producing happy children who want to come to school
• Our approach is rooted in the characteristics of effective learning, helping the children to develop the confidence to play and explore, perseverance and joy in achieving what they set out to do and thinking critically by making links.

Implementation

• Carefully planned transitions into EYFS, including nursery visits, conversations with key workers from previous sessions, stay and play sessions and discussions with new parents. Children’s interests are included within the environment to help the children quickly settle
• Staggered start time to allow a calming start to the day, a strong emphasis on routines and building strong relationships with the children during the first half term
• Tiered provision to match the children’s development, strong core provision with engaging enhancements linked to previous learning, interests and next steps in learning
• Transition days in the Year 1 class, EYFS and KS1 teacher discussions, circle time PSHE sessions on change and moving up, Reception timetable begins to mimic some aspects of the Year 1 in preparation
• Two parents evening a year, Tapestry observations shared with parents, regular newsletters send by email, new to Reception parent meeting, frequent informal conversations, home-school planner
• A topic-based curriculum with carefully sequenced small steps of learning in all 7 areas of learning, going beyond the statutory requirements, focussing knowledge, skills and vocabulary
• High quality adult interactions with children within their play helping them to extend and build on prior learning

Impact

• From the carefully planned broad and balanced curriculum our children consistently make good progress, and many achieve higher levels across the seven areas of learning
• Through the immersive family approach this results in a full development of the holistic child.
• We spark a love for learning, producing happy children who want to come to school.
• Due to the positive adult relationships nurtured throughout, children become independent learners, develop confidence, perseverance and joy in achieving their goals and are ready for their next adventure in Year One.

Knowledge Progression

EYFS Progression document – Autumn 1

EYFS Progression document – Autumn 2

EYFS Progression document – Spring 1

EYFS Progression document – Spring 2

EYFS Progression document – Summer 1