What are
The School Roots?
These are the skills that underpin a child’s success in education. They are the 7 areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage Development Matters document, provided to practitioners to support little ones through the different stages of development. These are the areas that we will be working on with your child from birth to aged 5.
They consist of 3 Prime Areas, you will be surprised to know that these are not Reading, Writing and Numbers at this age! And 4 Specific Areas. These ‘Roots’ are the foundations that underpin and sustain a child’s future learning and success in education. Each one of our courses connects to at least one of these strands.
Communication & Language
A child’s spoken language underpins all seven areas of their learning and development. It is well documented that the number, and more importantly, the quality of the conversations they have throughout the day in language-rich environments is crucial to developing their understanding of the world around them, and their ability to express themselves.
Physical Development
Gross and fine motor skills underpin everything from future physical ability & health, to early literacy and mark-making. Starting from birth, with activities such as tummy time, children grow and the activities and games will develop with them. Being out in nature can also provide abundant opportunities to improve both fine and gross motor skills, including agility, spatial awareness, and an unlimited supply of games, arts and crafts.
Personal, Social & Emotional Development
This is a crucial area for children to learn how to lead healthy and happy lives. Developing the important attachments with adults and other children that shape their social world. Children will learn how to look after their bodies, including healthy eating, and managing personal needs independently, along with making solid friendships and resolving conflict peacefully.
Literacy
Ability in literacy begins with developing and nurturing a life-long love of reading. Language comprehension starts from birth, with adults filling the child’s world with rich language in the form of stories, rhymes, poems, songs and simply describing the world around them. Word reading, although taught later in a child’s development, can build upon the correct foundations being laid early.
Mathematics
Developing the necessary building blocks to excel mathematically begins with a solid understanding of the numbers to 10. Understanding the patterns and relationships between these numbers with physical counting activities develops the knowledge and vocabulary needed to thrive mathematically. This also includes spatial reasoning, such as, shape, space and measures. Most importantly children should not be afraid to make mistakes.
Understanding The World
Introducing children to the world around them is vital to help them add context to the rich language they hear through stories and play. Meeting key people in their community such as Police, Firefighters, Medical Professionals and taking them to places such as museums, shops and farms, can all add to their understanding and feed into their language, creative play and imagination.
Expressive Arts & Design
When children see, hear and participate in artistic pursuits and varied cultural experiences, their understanding, self-expression, vocabulary and ability to communicate all flourish. They should be given regular opportunities to experience a wide range of technology and materials through play and exploration. This is another area where outdoor learning gives abundant resources and creative ideas.
