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EYFS
At St Margaret’s at Troy Town, our Early Years provision is rooted in our vision of “Letting your light shine.” We nurture every child as a unique individual, creating a safe, inspiring and inclusive environment where curiosity, confidence and a love of learning can flourish. Our EYFS curriculum is carefully designed around the principles of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and Birth to 5 Matters, combining rich child-led learning with purposeful carpet focus sessions. Through play, exploration and guided learning, children are supported to develop across all seven areas of learning, ensuring strong foundations for lifelong learning while allowing each child’s light to shine brightly.
Progression of Skills
Nursery
nursery progression of skills.pdf
Reception
reception progression of skills.pdf
Long Term Plans
Nursery
nursery long term plan summary.pdf
Reception
rainbows long term summary.pdf
EYFS Policy
EYFS Areas of Learning
Communication and Language
Children in our EYFS develop their communication and language skills through daily interactions, play and routine activities. Adults model clear language, introduce new vocabulary and encourage children to talk about what they are doing and feeling. Stories, songs, rhymes and group discussions help children to listen, understand and respond to others.
Sign Club
In Term 3, Reception children also take part in daily 'Sign Club', where they learn signs and songs using the Signalong programme, supporting communication, listening skills, and understanding of language in a fun and engaging way.
Additional Communication and Language support
In Reception, all children are assessed on entry using the Speech Link Language Assessment, which helps to identify their strengths and any areas for support. From these results, Language Link groups are created to provide targeted support for children who may be struggling with their language development. Across EYFS, children’s language is further enriched through story times and the use of weekly vocabulary: Reception focus on Words of the Week and Nursery explore a Word of the Week.
Children who are identified by adults as having speech difficulties will take part in a Speech Link assessment. Following this, children receive targeted one-to-one interventions to support them in working towards their individual speech targets.
We run 'Time to Talk', where targeted pupils receive extra one-to-one or small-group time with an adult during child-led sessions. It helps ensure pupils are developing their speech and language skills and builds their confidence to communicate with others.
Physical Development
Mighty Muscle
In EYFS, children take part in daily Mighty Muscle sessions to support both fine and gross motor development. Fine motor activities include threading, cutting, playdough work, mark-making, and using small tools, helping children to strengthen the small muscles in their hands and fingers. Gross motor activities, such as climbing, balancing, running, and jumping, support overall coordination and body strength.
Write Dance
In Reception, children take part in Write Dance sessions, which combine movement, music, and mark-making to develop fine motor control, coordination, and early writing skills. Through fun, rhythm-based activities, children strengthen the muscles in their hands and learn the foundations for letter formation while enjoying creative, active learning.
BEAM
The BEAM programme is designed to support children in developing their gross motor skills through fun, structured activities that focus on balance, coordination, strength, and spatial awareness. In Reception, children take part in BEAM during Term 2, helping them to gain confidence in movement and improve core stability, which supports their overall physical development. Children who continue to need additional support after completing the programme receive BEAM as an intervention, ensuring they get extra guidance to strengthen their gross motor skills and reach their full potential.
Handwriting
In Reception, children take part in daily handwriting lessons once they have developed the correct pencil grip in most cases. These lessons follow the progression of the Letter-Join scheme, helping children to form letters accurately and consistently, and to develop fluency and control in their writing. By practising regularly in a structured way, children gain confidence and independence in their handwriting, building strong foundations for clear, legible writing as they progress through school.
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
In EYFS, children develop their personal, social and emotional skills by using a Colour Monster regulation station in the classroom. The Colour Monster helps children recognise and name their feelings by linking emotions to different colours in a simple and visual way. This supports children to talk about how they are feeling and begin to manage their emotions with adult support. Using the regulation station helps children build confidence, develop self-awareness and learn how to express their feelings positively, supporting their wellbeing and relationships with others.
Daily routines, such as tidying up, snack time and group activities, help our EYFS children to learn independence and self-care skills. Regular circle time and story time support children to talk about their feelings, listen to others and understand emotions. Positive relationships with adults help children feel safe and confident, while gentle guidance supports them to manage their behaviour, build friendships and develop a positive sense of themselves.
Literacy
Nursery
In Nursery, literacy learning begins by developing strong pre-writing skills in line with the Birth to 5 Matters framework. Each week, children are introduced to a focus text, which supports language development, listening skills and a love of stories. Children are supported from an early age to build the foundations for reading and writing through activities that develop fine motor control, hand strength and coordination. Through mark-making, drawing, sensory play and everyday writing opportunities, children gain confidence in holding tools and expressing their ideas, supporting their literacy development.
Reception
The I’m a Clever Writer scheme uses a clear skills ladder that supports children to develop their writing step by step throughout the year. Each week, learning is linked to a focus book, which provides a meaningful context for writing and inspires children’s ideas. Children begin by strengthening core skills such as mark-making, letter formation and phonics knowledge, before progressing to writing words, captions and simple sentences. As confidence grows, children are encouraged to apply these skills independently across different areas of learning. This structured and progressive approach supports children to work towards and achieve the Writing Early Learning Goal by the end of Reception, ensuring they are well prepared for the next stage of their learning journey.
Vocabulary
Children develop their language skills through the explicit teaching of vocabulary across Early Years. In Nursery, children are introduced to a Word of the Week, carefully chosen from the weekly focus book to help develop understanding and use of new language. In Reception, this is built upon through Words of the Week, also taken from the focus book, encouraging children to use a wider range of vocabulary in their speaking and writing. This consistent approach supports children to develop confident communication skills and a strong foundation for literacy.
hd cw reception skills ladder st margaret s at troy town 3 .pdf
Developing a Lifelong Love for Reading
In EYFS, children develop a lifelong love of reading through daily story times with their class teacher, where they enjoy listening to a wide range of stories and begin to explore language, rhythm, and imagination. Their enjoyment of books is further supported through Mystery Reader sessions, where a family member from the class visits to read a story, creating excitement and a sense of connection around reading. These experiences help children to see reading as fun, engaging, and part of everyday life, laying strong foundations for literacy and a love of books.
Child-Led Writing
In EYFS, children have many opportunities to practise writing as part of child-led learning, helping them to apply skills in meaningful contexts. Writing can be found in the art area, where children label their creations or make observational drawings; in role play, where they write shopping lists, menus, or letters; and on the literacy shelf, where they can explore mark-making, cards, and story writing. These activities encourage creativity, independence, and confidence with writing, showing children how literacy is part of everyday learning and play.
Phonics
In Nursery, children begin by exploring pre-phonics skills, which lay the foundation for early reading and writing. They take part in listening games, rhythm and rhyme activities, and explore sounds through songs and stories, helping them to distinguish different sounds and develop phonological awareness. Children also practice oral blending and segmenting through fun, playful activities. From Term 5, Nursery children begin the Read Write Inc. (RWI) programme to introduce early letter sounds in a more structured way. In Reception, children continue their phonics learning from the start of the school year with the RWI programme, building on the foundations from Nursery. For more information on how we teach phonics and support reading, please see our dedicated Phonics page.
Maths
Nursery
In Nursery, children begin their early mathematical learning through play and everyday experiences, following the Birth to 5 Matters framework. They explore counting, sorting, matching, and simple shape and pattern activities, developing a strong foundation in number, spatial awareness, and problem-solving skills. Practical activities, songs, and games help children to understand mathematical concepts in a fun and engaging way.
Reception
In Reception, children follow the Mastering Number programme, which builds on these early skills to develop a deep understanding of number, calculation and mathematical reasoning. This structured approach supports children to become confident mathematicians, ready to meet the Early Learning Goals by the end of Reception.
https://www.ncetm.org.uk/in-the-classroom/early-years/
Ten Town
Ten Town is a programme used in EYFS to help children develop their early maths skills, especially number formation. Through fun songs, stories and characters, children learn to recognise numbers, understand their value, and practise writing them correctly. The programme supports children to build confidence with counting and number formation in a playful and engaging way.
Understanding the World
Understanding the World is woven through our weekly literacy sessions using our Book of the Week. Carefully chosen stories help children explore different people, places and experiences, encouraging curiosity and discussion about the world around them. In addition, children take part in regular workshops led by external agencies such as Kent Fire and Rescue, Kent Police, The Dogs Trust and Medway Road Safety. These experiences help children learn about safety, community roles and real-life situations in a meaningful and engaging way.
Children in EYFS take part in weekly Forest School sessions, which give them regular opportunities to learn outdoors in a natural environment. These sessions support children to build confidence, independence and resilience as they explore, take safe risks and solve problems. Forest School also encourages teamwork, communication and respect for nature, while supporting physical development and wellbeing.
Expressive Arts and Design
Expressive Arts and Design is also woven through the weekly literacy theme, allowing children to explore stories in creative and meaningful ways. Through art, music, role play and design activities linked to the Book of the Week, children are encouraged to express their ideas, thoughts and feelings.
