Early Years Foundation Stage At Blackpool

Intent

• Environment: At Blackpool CE Primary, our Early Years environment is carefully designed to inspire exploration, adventure, and a love of learning. We use a calming blend of natural resources and hessian display boards to create a muted, welcoming atmosphere that reduces sensory overload and supports children’s focus. Our spaces are warm and inclusive, ensuring every child feels safe, nurtured, and valued. With a balance of indoor and outdoor provision, children have access to diverse, accessible resources and well-planned zones for role-play, creativity, quiet reflection, and active play. This thoughtful environment supports individual interests and all stages of development, encouraging curiosity, confidence, and joy in learning.
• Outcomes: We aim to develop the whole child and have high aspirations for their learning in line with the ELG’s. We aim to support all children in making good progress against their starting point.
• Play is an integral part of learning and this is at the heart of our Early Years curriculum. We believe that the correct mix of adult directed and uninterrupted child-initiated play ensures the best outcomes for pupils.
• We aim for our children to be confident and independent, to believe in themselves and interact positively with others, which encompasses our school motto.

Only My Best Is Good Enough; Aspiring and Flourishing Together

These are important attributes that are fostered throughout our whole school Curriculum 

Implementation

Phonics and Early Reading

At Blackpool, phonics is taught daily each morning through the Read Write Inc. programme. This progressive, phonics-based reading scheme offers a structured and systematic approach to teaching reading and spelling. Children are carefully grouped so that they are taught at the stage most suited to their individual needs, supported by sound books and reading books that are closely matched to their phonics phase.

The programme’s step-by-step structure enables children to develop into fluent readers and confident speakers at an appropriate pace. Children are assessed each half term to ensure they are working at the correct stage for their phonic ability. Those making slower progress are identified as ‘spotlight children’ and receive additional targeted support.

To strengthen home-school partnerships, parents are invited to a meeting at the beginning of the year to learn about the scheme. We also use Tapestry to share ‘Virtual Classroom’ videos, helping families to support phonics learning at home.

Maths

Whole class maths is taught daily using the NCETM Mastering Number programme, which is taught at Blackpool from Reception through to Year 2.  It focuses on each child’s number sense, with the aim that by the end of KS1 each child will leave with fluency in calculation and a confidence and flexibility with number. 

Concepts are also explored each week with opportunities in continuous provision activities and by incorporating number into routines and transition times.

Communication and Language

As part of our baseline we carry out a language assessment (Language Link) to check all children’s understanding of spoken language using the online SpeechLink website. From this, we communicate with parents to make referrals to SaLT if recommended from the results or set up support groups for children needing intervention in this area. We use the Language Link intervention programme, where children have up to 3 weekly sessions. Reassessment takes place 6 months later.

We also use SpeechLink to assess children we feel have speech production difficulties. We refer to SaLT if after the assessment highlights a significant need, or support in school with the available materials.

We teach daily sessions where Communication, Language and Literacy (CLL) is our main focus. We have one text each week linked to our theme with progression through the sessions. We always start with a discussion about the book, making links and predictions. We then explore new vocabulary and its meaning. Where appropriate we explore the use of story maps to re-tell stories and develop a deep familiarity with the texts.

We explicitly teach concept vocabulary using the resource ‘Word Aware in the Early Years’. Where appropriate we link this vocabulary to current learning, developing this further by encouraging use of this new vocabulary in children’s play and day-to-day conversations.

Continuous Provision

Our Continuous provision covers all areas of the EYFS framework and is driven by our progressive skills planning, which ensures the resources and opportunities are focussed on meeting the needs, gaps and interests of our children. We aim to enhance it with open-ended resources that will encourage investigation, exploration and thinking as well as resources linked to children’s interests that will encourage engagement.

We value high quality play and opportunities for children to lead their learning with well-organised and open-ended opportunities.  The Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning are used to discuss how children tackle new experiences and deal with challenges. We talk about the characteristics before they their approach their learning and also when reflecting on their decisions and interests.

Children have daily opportunities to develop their communication and language, personal, social and emotional development and physical development through carefully selected resources and play provision. These prime areas of the curriculum are developed and supported through language rich adult interaction, with the support and modelling to acquire, practice and correctly use a wide range of vocabulary.

Curricular Goals

Our Curricular goals use Educational Programmes as a basis and are designed to enable children to apply and demonstrate the skills they have learnt throughout the year, which have focused on play behaviours within a broad and balanced curriculum.

Curricular goals are developed through a blend of direct teaching, planning for skill progression and play behaviours in continuous provision, small group or 1:1 intervention where appropriate. While the EYFS team have a long-term knowledge of the direction of children’s learning, we do not stifle the value of following the interests and needs of the children by planning a whole year in advance. Regular reflection and observations inform planning, and we adapt provision accordingly to support and enhance children’s progress.

Assessment

As part of the learning and teaching process, children are assessed in relation to their progress towards the Early Learning Goals throughout the year using ‘on track’ and ‘not on track’ judgements. These judgements are made based on accumulative observations and in-depth knowledge of the children acquired through ongoing assessment. We value the professional knowledge and judgment of our teachers and support staff and give time for professional dialogue between senior and subject leaders throughout the year for information sharing and professional challenge. Ongoing assessments are used to inform skill planning, continuous provision and intervention planning for all children. Recording of children’s learning is flexible and purposeful, teachers make choices about how and what is recorded, following three key points:

• To show a wow moment or point of concern
• To enable planning of next steps
• To share with parents and carers

Inclusion

Our inclusive approach means that all children learn together. There are opportunities for support and challenge during adult-directed group activities, as well as during continuous provision activities when adults work alongside our pupils.

Children who are not meeting their full potential in key areas will receive additional intervention with the view of closing any gaps as efficiently as possible. These children will become our ‘Notice and Focus’ children, and adults will be more aware of these children when engaging in continuous provision.

Pupils who have a specific Special Educational Need will have a bespoke Personal Learning Plan or an Educational Health Care Plan with targets aimed to specifically support their needs.

Parent Partnerships
At Blackpool CE Primary, we recognise that parents play a vital role in their child’s education, and we are committed to building strong and positive partnerships between home and school. We use Tapestry to share observations of children’s learning and to provide home learning linked to maths and Read Write Inc., giving parents an opportunity to engage with and celebrate their child’s progress. Families also enjoy using Tapestry to share their own experiences from home, helping us to build a fuller picture of each child. Once children have had time to settle into school, we invite parents to a meeting where we discuss how their child has adjusted, explain our baseline assessment process, and introduce the Read Write Inc. programme. This shared approach ensures children feel supported both in school and at home.

Impact

Children’s progress and achievements are recorded in their Tapestry learning journeys, supported by photographs, videos, and displays around the school, as well as assessment data linked to the Early Years Foundation Stage objectives. We revisit knowledge, skills and concepts regularly to support long-term retention. Ongoing assessment and observation, including half-termly phonics assessments, inform our planning and next steps, ensuring the curriculum is stimulating and carefully tailored to individual needs. This approach enables children to embed and retrieve their learning, mastering key skills and concepts that provide a secure foundation for future learning.

Teachers carry out the statutory baseline assessment, focusing on Language, Communication and Literacy as well as Mathematics, to measure progress during the Foundation Stage. Information from previous settings also helps us to build a clear picture of each child’s starting point and plan effectively for their progress.

Learning and assessment outcomes are shared regularly with parents, enabling them to see how their child is developing across different areas of learning.

The impact of our Early Years curriculum is reflected in the successful transition children make to Year 1. EYFS staff understand how the Early Learning Goals link to the National Curriculum, and through whole-school curriculum planning, children leave the Foundation Stage equipped with the skills, knowledge and confidence to continue their journey across both core and foundation subjects.

Only My Best Is Good Enough; Aspiring and Flourishing Together