Play underpins our delivery of the Early Years curriculum.

Through play our children become active learners, explore and develop learning experiences which helps them to make sense of the world.

Children have the chance to explore ideas, learn how to manage feelings and resolve conflicts. They are given the space to explore and discover, to take risks and make mistakes within a safe and secure environment. We nurture a sense of curiosity by encouraging children to ask questions, reflect and problem solve on their own and with others.

Practitioners create an environment which is child focused which challenges, motivates and encourages learning through first-hand experiences.

Early Years learning comprises of 7 areas; 3 prime and 4 specific areas of learning:

The prime areas of learning are:

The specific areas of learning are:

Further information:

Reception Curriculum

All practitioners are responsible and contribute to the assessment of learning for all children through recorded observations.

The school uses tapestry to record all observations and link to ages and stages. Parents are encouraged to share their learning journey through tapestry.

We have designed a curriculum that is personal and meaningful for the children who attend Thorpepark Academy.

It builds on the children’s personal experiences from home and extends their understanding of the world around them.

They have the opportunity to learn about their local community, what they see on their way to school, special places and people who can help them in their local area.

This learning extends to the wider world as the year progresses where the children have the opportunity to learn about cultures and communities that differ from their own.

We delve into the past, learning about how transport has changed throughout the years and special people who have shaped history. The curriculum has been carefully designed to prepare the children for National Curriculum subjects in Key Stage 1 and 2. Topics taught feed into each group to ensure children can build on prior knowledge.

At Thorpepark Academy we promote a love of reading from the very start. In the Early Years Foundation Stage we expose the children to a range of fiction and non-fiction books which enriches their vocabulary and storytelling language.

This progresses through the Early Years Foundation Stage to enable the children to recall key events and characters of familiar stories. This enables the children in Reception to express their own ideas and imagination and become authors of their own stories.