Our Curriculum Intent

 

At Little Explorers Day Nursery and Preschool we believe every child deserves the very best start in life.

 

Our curriculum is ambitious, inclusive and carefully designed around the children in our care. We recognise that every child is unique and will arrive at Little Explorers with their own experiences, interests, strengths, culture, family background and individual starting point.

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Our intent is to provide a curriculum that gives every child the opportunity to thrive, including children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), children with English as an Additional Language (EAL) and children who may experience disadvantage or other barriers to learning.

 

What We Want for Our Children

 

We want children to leave Little Explorers as happy, confident, curious and capable learners who feel secure in themselves and excited about the next stage of their journey.

 

Through our curriculum, we aim to support children to:

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• develop strong communication and language skills

• build secure relationships and a positive sense of belonging

• become increasingly independent and confident

• recognise, understand and begin to manage their emotions

• develop resilience and a willingness to keep trying

• become curious thinkers who explore, question and investigate

• develop strong physical skills and healthy habits

• build positive relationships and learn to respect others

• experience a rich variety of people, places, cultures and communities

• develop the knowledge and skills they need for future learning and life

 

Building Strong Foundations

 

We recognise that children's earliest experiences provide the foundations for everything that follows.

 

Our curriculum therefore places particular importance on communication and language, personal, social and emotional development and physical development. These prime areas underpin children's learning across the whole Early Years Foundation Stage.

 

Through meaningful play, carefully planned experiences, high quality interactions and opportunities to explore both indoors and outdoors, children are supported to build on what they already know and can do.

 

Our practitioners understand what we want children to learn and use their knowledge of each individual child to decide what they need to learn next.

 

An Inclusive Curriculum for Every Child

 

We have high expectations for all children while recognising that the journey towards these expectations will look different for every child.

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We identify children's individual needs and starting points so that additional support can be provided at the earliest opportunity. Our curriculum can be adapted to remove barriers and ensure that children with SEND are able to participate, belong and make meaningful progress.

 

For children with EAL, we recognise and value their home language, culture and identity. We work closely with families and use strategies including visual support, repetition, modelling, key vocabulary and meaningful interactions to support children's communication and developing English.

 

Where children may experience disadvantage, we consider carefully what additional experiences, opportunities or support may help to ensure they can access and benefit fully from our curriculum.

 

We work in partnership with parents, carers and other professionals because we recognise that the strongest outcomes for children are achieved when we work together.

 

Learning Through Play, Exploration and Experience

 

Children learn best when they are interested, engaged and actively involved in their learning.

 

Our indoor and outdoor environments provide rich opportunities for children to explore, investigate, create, communicate, take appropriate risks, solve problems and develop their independence.

 

Our continuous provision allows children to practise and revisit important knowledge and skills while skilled practitioners observe, interact, model language, introduce new ideas and extend children's thinking.

 

We provide opportunities for children to experience the wider world beyond their immediate surroundings, helping them develop their cultural capital and an understanding and respect for different families, communities, cultures and ways of life.

 

Preparing children for their next chapter

 

School readiness at Little Explorers is about much more than academic knowledge.

It is about developing the whole child.

 

We want children to be able to communicate their needs, build relationships, listen and engage, manage increasing independence, approach new experiences with confidence and develop a genuine love of learning.

 

Our curriculum builds progressively throughout children's time with us, ensuring that new learning builds upon secure foundations and prepares children for their next stage.

 

Above all, our intent is that every child at Little Explorers is known, valued and supported to reach their individual potential.

 

We want our children to leave us happy, confident, inquisitive, resilient and ready to embrace whatever comes next.