EYFS Curriculum Intent 

At Deanshanger Primary School, our Early Years curriculum is rich in real-life, hands-on experiences and deeply rooted in our local context. Community involvement plays a vital role—we actively celebrate local traditions and provide meaningful opportunities for children to engage with and contribute to village life. Through seasonal events and purposeful experiences, children develop a sense of belonging and begin to see themselves as capable, valued members of society.

Our intent is to ensure children enter the next stage of their education ready to tackle new challenges with confidence, curiosity, and a positive mindset. We aim to foster a love of learning through a stimulating, child-led environment that is carefully organised and skilfully supported by adults. Our curriculum is inclusive and responsive to children’s individual starting points and developmental needs, creating the right conditions for every child to thrive.

We innovate by empowering children to lead their own learning—encouraging confidence to explore new ideas, think critically, take risks, make links and embrace challenge. We foster high levels of engagement, collaboration and self-regulation, supporting children to manage their own behaviour effectively in the classroom and wider social contexts.

Children are nurtured to express themselves with confidence and meaning, while learning to respect the opinions and values of both themselves and others. Our approach is rooted in the EYFS Statutory Framework (2024) and shaped by its four key principles:

1. Every child is a unique child who is constantly learning and can be resilient, capable, confident, and self-assured.
2. Children learn to be strong and independent through positive relationships.
3. Children learn and develop well in enabling environments with responsive adult support.
4. Children develop and learn at different rates, and we are committed to providing inclusive, accessible education for all.

We also hold firm to the belief that:

“We help children today but we also prepare them for tomorrow” – Julian Grenier

Our curriculum is therefore the cultural capital we know our pupils need so that they can gain the knowledge, skills and understanding they require for success—now and in the future.

EYFS Curriculum Implementation 

Our EYFS approach is rooted in well-established educational principles, current research and a strong understanding of how young children learn best. We ensure a balanced and purposeful blend of adult-led, adult-initiated, and child-led learning experiences. This complementary approach fosters independence, curiosity and resilience, while also ensuring clear progression and high-quality direct teaching.

We prioritise communication and language as a key driver for learning. Through high-quality interactions, explicit teaching of vocabulary, and modelling of language structures, we extend children’s expressive and receptive language across all areas of the curriculum.

The curriculum is carefully structured so that children experience rigorous, sequenced teaching in phonics (Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised) and mathematics (White Rose Maths), alongside extended opportunities for play, exploration and cross-curricular links. We also provide specialist teaching in music and forest school, supporting depth and breadth in our offer.

We follow a continuous cycle of observation, assessment, and responsive teaching. Practitioners use what they know about each child to adapt and enhance provision in real-time, ensuring that learning is meaningful and well-matched to developmental needs.

Our enabling environment includes real tools, materials and experiences—such as a fully functioning kitchen, access to outdoor areas, and purposeful provocations linked to seasons, community events, or whole-school themes. Whether inspired by local building works, a whole-school "Under the Sea" project, or our proximity to Silverstone, we draw upon children’s interests to shape learning.

We ensure alignment with the recommendations of the Ofsted report ‘Strong Foundations in the First Years of School’ (2024) by focusing on clear sequencing of key knowledge, ensuring children have time to practise, consolidate, and secure vital early learning—particularly in reading, writing, and early number.

We believe that:

“Children have agency and curiosity to learn, and will interact with other people and the world around them in different ways.”

This belief underpins our commitment to nurturing the unique child through a curriculum that is ambitious, inclusive, and built on strong foundations in the Prime and Specific Areas of Learning.

EYFS Curriculum Impact

The impact of our Early Years provision is evident in the high levels of progress and achievement our children make.

Our outcomes consistently exceed national expectations. In 2023/24, 74% of our pupils achieved a Good Level of Development (GLD), significantly above the national average of 59%. This strong performance reflects the effectiveness of our curriculum, the dedication of our staff, and our focus on high-quality teaching and learning.

Children leave our EYFS setting as confident, independent, and enthusiastic learners who are well prepared for the next stage of their education. They demonstrate strong foundations in communication, language, literacy, maths, and personal and social development. More importantly, they are equipped with the emotional resilience, curiosity, and positive mindset needed for lifelong learning.

Our commitment to excellence was also recognised in our most recent Ofsted inspection in 2019, where our Early Years provision was graded Outstanding. Inspectors commented:

“The early years leader and staff team work together with great skill to enable children to make an excellent start to their education.”

This recognition reflects the deep professional knowledge, collaborative ethos, and nurturing environment that characterise our EYFS team. We continue to build on this success to ensure that every child has the very best start at Deanshanger Primary School

From September 2025, these will be our EYFS overarching aims