The Early Years Foundation Stage
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is a Government framework that sets out minimum standards of care and learning that all childcare providers are expected to deliver. Its purpose is to ensure that children are provided with a rich learning experience tailored to their individual needs whilst being cared for in a safe and secure environment.
The EYFS is made up of 3 'prime areas' :
- Personal, Social and Emotional Development
- Communication and Language
- Physical Development
and 4 'specific areas' :
- Understanding the world
- Expressive arts and design
To enable nursery staff to implement the early years foundation stage, close observations and assessments are carried out by staff on your child as they play and learn. These observations are then usued to plan for childrens next steps in relation to their learning, progress and development.
Here are a couple of guides to help explain the EYFS.