Curriculum & EYFS
Our Approach to Learning & Development
Our Curriculum
At Headstart, we are committed to supporting children in developing and building on their knowledge to give them the best possible start in life. We provide a safe, inclusive environment where every child is encouraged to thrive.
We aim to create a warm, “home from home” atmosphere where children feel secure and confident to express their likes, ideas, and feelings.
We support children in building strong, positive relationships with both their peers and practitioners, recognising the importance of these connections in their overall development. We also teach children the importance of good manners, kindness, and respect for one another, including an understanding and appreciation of different beliefs and backgrounds.
We encourage children to develop resilience, helping them to understand and manage challenges and “bounce back” when things do not go as expected.
We promote independence by supporting children to make their own decisions, develop self-care skills, and take the lead in their play and learning.
Our Teaching
At Headstart, we provide high-quality interactions that support and extend children’s learning. Teachers work alongside children as play partners, allowing them to lead their own play while teachers act as the “knowledgeable other,” carefully scaffolding learning and enhancing each child’s experience.
Our teachers adapt their teaching approaches to meet the needs of every individual child, ensuring that all children remain engaged and appropriately challenged in their learning.
We promote independence through our daily routines, providing children with opportunities to make their own choices and take an active role in their play. Children are offered a range of new and engaging experiences that support the development of their curiosity and investigative skills.
Our planning is guided by each child’s individual interests and preferences, which are incorporated into a broad range of activities to ensure all needs are met and learning is meaningful.
We follow the Birth to Five Matters framework to support
children’s development across different ages and stages. This enables practitioners to monitor each child as an individual and enhance their progress across all seven areas of learning.
Our Achievement
When children leave Headstart, our aim is for them to be confident, resilient, and independent learners.
We strive for all children to have developed their knowledge and skills across all seven areas of learning, ensuring they are well prepared for the next stage in their development.
We support children in gaining key life skills, including independence, decision-making, self-care, and the ability to build and maintain positive relationships. We believe that the more a child knows, the more they are able to do.
Above all, we want every child to leave Headstart with a strong sense of joy, belonging, and happiness, having experienced fun and created lasting, meaningful memories.
Birth to Five Matters
Development Guidance 0-5 years
🌈 Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)
Helping every child get the best possible start
At Headstart, we follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework, which provides the foundation for high-quality learning, development and care for children from birth to five years.
The EYFS is about much more than preparing children for school. It is about giving every child the confidence, skills and experiences they need to become happy, curious and independent learners.
💛 Learning through play, exploration and discovery
Children learn best when they are interested, engaged and having fun. Our experienced practitioners create a rich variety of opportunities for children to play, explore, investigate, create, communicate and problem-solve throughout their day.
We follow each child's interests and build learning naturally into everyday experiences, while carefully supporting their individual development and next steps.
🌱 The seven areas of learning
The EYFS is built around seven areas of learning and development:
Communication & Language - Developing listening, understanding, attention and speaking skills.
Physical Development - Building movement, coordination, strength, independence and healthy habits.
Personal, Social & Emotional Development - Developing confidence, friendships, emotional wellbeing, self-regulation and independence.
Literacy - Encouraging a love of books, stories, songs and early reading and writing.
Mathematics - Exploring numbers, counting, patterns, shapes, space and problem-solving through meaningful experiences.
Understanding the World - Discovering people, communities, nature, technology and the world around us.
Expressive Arts & Design - Encouraging creativity through music, art, dance, role play, imagination and making.
⭐ Every child is unique
At Headstart, we recognise that children develop at their own pace. Our practitioners get to know each child as an individual and use their observations, interactions and knowledge of the child to plan meaningful learning experiences.
We work closely with parents and carers because you know your child best. By sharing information and working together, we can build on children's interests, celebrate their achievements and support them with their next steps.
A strong start for their next adventure
Our aim is for every child to leave Headstart feeling confident, capable, curious and ready for their next stage of learning.
Because every little step is a big achievement. 🌈
Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)
Setting the standards for learning, development and care for children from birth to five