Like all Ofsted-registered child care settings, as Childminders we need to follow the Early Years Foundation Stage.
“All children deserve the care and support they need to have the best start in life. Children learn and develop at a faster rate from birth to five years old than at any other time in their lives, so their experiences in early years have a major impact on their future life chances. A secure, safe, and happy childhood is important in its own right. Good parenting and high-quality early learning provide the foundation children need to fulfil their potential.
The EYFS sets the standards that all early years providers must meet to ensure that children learn and develop well and are kept healthy and safe. It promotes teaching and learning to ensure children’s ‘school readiness’ and gives children the right foundation for good future progress through school and life.
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EYFS October 2024
The latest version of the EYFS was published in March 2017 with a revised version in November 2024.
There is a document you can download to find out more about “What to Expect, When” which is a guide for parents and carers about your child’s development and the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum.
It sets out 3 ‘prime’ areas of learning:
- Communication and Language
- Personal, social and emotional development
- Physical development
And 4 ‘specific’ areas:
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the world
- Expressive art and design
In addition, practitioners need to provide opportunities and development for the ‘Characteristics of Effective Learning’. Children with effective learning characteristics:
- are willing to have a go
- are involved and concentrating
- have their own ideas
- choose ways to do things
- find new ways of doing things
- enjoy achieving what they set out to do
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