CELEBRATIONS
Nantwich Primary Academy
"Nurturing every child on the pathway to success!"
Respect | Resourcefulness | Reciprocity | Reflectiveness | Resilience | Risk-Taking | Responsibility
School opening hours:
8.35am to 3.15pm daily
Typical week: 33h 20m
EYFS: Mrs Turner, Mrs Callas, Mrs Bird, Miss Foster and Miss Alcott
Welcome to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) at Nantwich Primary Academy and Nursery!
Weekly reminders
Bookbags and reading diaries need to be bought into school daily
'Love to Read' books are changed on a Monday and phonics reading books on a Thursday
PE is on a Tuesday (children need to come to school in their PE kit)
Homework books need to be bought in every Wednesday
Information
New admissions
We very much welcome visits to look around our wonderful school – please contact the school office on 01270 902055 to book an appointment.
Children who are turning 5 between 1st September 2023 and 31st August 2024 will be starting Reception in September 2023. Applications for Cheshire East Primary Schools have now closed but places can still be applied for. Please visit Apply for September 2023 school place (cheshireeast.gov.uk) for more information. Offers will be published on April 17th and thre is a deadline of May 2nd to accept the place offered.
Nursery places
Nantwich Primary Academy and Nursery provides places for children from the term after their 3rd birthday until they start Reception.
From the start of the term following their 3rd birthday, all children are entitled to a free 15 hour place (morning sessions 08:30 – 11:30). Some families will be eligible for a free 30 hours place if both parents are working, subject to criteria. Click HERE to check eligibility.
Curriculum
Spring term topic
Our topic this half-term is 'Once Upon a Time!'. The children will be learning all about traditional tales and answering the question, 'What makes a good story?'
We will be sharing the texts 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears', 'The Three Little Pigs' and 'Jack and the Beanstalk'.
Our learning is very much driven by the children's interests and the traditional tales that they would like to find out about; we have asked them and their families to contribute to our planning ideas, especially if they know of traditional tales from other cultures.
EYFS Curriculum
The Foundation Stage Curriculum is based on seven areas of learning consisting of Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Physical Development, Communication and Language, Literacy, Mathematics, Expressive Arts and Design and Understanding the World.
Our planning, supported by Development Matters, ensures that children learn across the seven areas of the curriculum. We plan that children learn in a variety of ways including child-initiated learning through play and adult-led opportunities both indoors and in our amazing outdoor area.
We promote learning through play as we value its importance. Young children learn best when they explore and experience things first-hand, often in playful ways. Play is essential to development as it contributes to the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children. It allows children to use their creativity while developing their imagination, dexterity and physical strength. Play is also important to healthy brain development as it enables children to learn about themselves, their environment and the world around them.
Phonics
At Nantwich Primary Academy and Nursery, we follow 'Little Wandle Letters and Sounds revised' in order to teach early reading. Our Nursery children build their language development, story reading, phonological awareness and oral blending skills by following the 'Foundation for Phonics' programme. In Reception, the children start to learn GPCs (letter sounds) and blend these together to read words. Please visit the links at the top of the page from more information and view the videos below to see how to support your child at home.
Assessment
Assessment plays an important part in helping families and school staff to recognise children’s progress, understand their needs, and to plan activities and support. Our ongoing assessment is an integral part of our daily learning; our EYFS staff know children’s level of achievement and interests and are then able to personalise teaching and learning experiences for each child reflecting that knowledge.
We share some of our daily observations on our online learning journey so that families are kept up to date with their child's progress and development.
When children join us in Reception they will complete the Reception Baseline Assessment which is statutory for all children. This short and interactive assessment provides us with a starting point for children's early literacy, communication, language and mathematics skills. At the end of the Reception year, the EYFS profile is completed for children which shows their progress across the seven areas of learning which split into 17 Early Learning Goals (ELG) - parents will be informed of their child's progress towards these throughout the year and in a written report in the Summer term.
Parents
We see our parents, carers and families as having a vital role in their child’s education and staff meet regularly with them to discuss their children's needs through termly parent meetings and also informal discussions in person and using our communication app 'ClassDojo'.
This year we will also provide workshops on phonics, reading and maths and how to support children at home. Our 'Discover and Do' sessions are particularly well attended and the whole family have all been known to thoroughly enjoy sharing the activities on offer and the opportunity to work with their children.
In EYFS, we also use an online Learning Journey which allows families to see their child's learning in school and also contribute to their portfolio by adding evidence of children applying their learning at home and any achievements they have reached.
We are committed to giving our children the best possible start to their school life. We work in partnership with parents, carers and families to ensure their well-being and success in the future.