Herne Hill School

In the Nursery, Kindergarten and Reception classes, the children follow the curriculum of the Early Years Foundation Stage, which comprises six areas of learning:

• Language, Literacy & communication
• Mathematical development
• Knowledge & Understanding of the World
• Physical Development
• Creative Development
• Personal, Social & Emotional Development

Each area has its own learning goals. We regularly achieve these through thoughtful planning of the learning environment and experiences which are tailored to every child’s needs. We plan for and provide a wide range of activities and opportunities which build on and extend what children already know and are interested in. They are designed to motivate, support and meet the developmental needs of each child, helping them to be involved, concentrate and learn effectively.

We use a variety of topics, incorporating the seasons and festivals, to promote learning across the curriculum. These include regular percussion, music and movement, gym, singing and cooking sessions. Drama is important throughout Herne Hill School and starts for Nursery and Kindergarten children with regular role playing and the Nativity Play. Music and dance are taught by specialist instructors. Our outdoor environment also plays an important role in delivering the curriculum; the Nursery and each Kindergarten class have their own outdoor space as well as access to a large communal area. Play is the young child’s work, and by providing the right play, we make learning fun!

In the latter part of the Kindergarten year and as the children move into Reception, we increasingly introduce ’structured’ lessons, especially around literacy and numeracy. The Literacy work is strongly linked to a synthetic phonic approach using ‘Jolly Phonics’. In numeracy, we introduce the New Heinemann Maths Scheme, which is later also used in Years 1 and 2. Of course, plenty of time is still allocated for the children to play, experiment, discover and create through their own hands, with quality interaction from the staff. French is introduced in the Reception Spring term and is taught by a specialist teacher, as are music, dance and gym. Small drama productions in the form of class assemblies take place in the Spring or Summer term, and all children take part in the school’s major festivals at Harvest, Christmas and Easter.