At Our Lady’s Primary School, we are concerned that the children should enjoy coming to school, feel successful and know they are in a happy secure environment where they are able to work towards their full potential. We plan daily for the indoor and outside areas. This is largely based on the children's interests, rhythms of the year and significant events and experiences. Our children are able to free flow between both classrooms; indoor and outdoor.
The following statements indicate how we feel that children learn best.
The school provides a curriculum which is especially suited to the needs of young children and covers all the areas of learning described in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). These are:
Personal and social and emotional development - which focuses on children learning how to manage their feelings and behaviour as well as build relationships and develop confidence.
Physical development - which focuses on children developing physical control, mobility, awareness of space and manipulative skills in the indoor and outdoor environment. This also includes Health and Self-Care.
Communication and language development - which focuses on children developing competence in speaking, listening, attention and understanding.
Literacy - which focuses on children's first steps towards becoming readers and writers.
Mathematics - which focuses on children's first steps in exploring number, shape, space and measure; as well as problem solving.
Understanding the world - which focuses on children's developing knowledge and understanding of their environment, other people and features of the natural and made world as well as technology.
Expressive arts and design - which focuses on the development of the children's imagination and their ability to communicate and express ideas and feelings in a creative way.
Physical development is one of the prime areas and at Our Lady’s we are proud of our outdoor area. Children have continuous access to the outside area where there is provision to encourage them to run, jump, climb, balance and swing and more. These activities are vital to help their fine and gross motor skills develop, which in turn help them be able to write and use tools effectively.
Recent research shows a strong link on physicality helping brain development and the importance of young children being able to move their bodies freely. To be able to sit and listen to stories or work in groups, children need to be able to control their bodies. They gain this control by doing all the physical activities we offer here.