Learning

Our Curriculum

The aim of our curriculum is to support all the children at Ash Park Childcare in being equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to explore and understand the world around them.

We do this by embedding the Development Matters guidance to support both the children’s holistic development, whilst focusing the curriculum on books to support and develop their love of reading, and their communication and language skills, and their personal, social and emotional development.

Through the use of key activities and stories, the practitioners’ professional judgement and a well thought out provision, with engaging adults; whom support both adult-led and child-led learning opportunities through all activities, we feel the children are best equipped for future development.

Our Pedagogy

At Ash Park, we believe that ‘play is the language of childhood’ and the best way for children to be learning. We recognise play as giving all children the opportunity to gain and embed new skills, develop their understanding, language and create independent lifelong learners.

Through play, we support our children to build their confidence and independence. Through our interactions and planning we empower children to choose, to reason, to reflect, imagine and empathise.

We have a variety of elements to our pedagogy and together they underpin our philosophy and support us as a team to provide engaging and captivating learning experiences. The pedagogy is designed to strengthen our children’s educational success, throughout a variety of experiences and approaches.

Through the 3 theorists, we have ensured that our curriculum and practice, meet the requirements set in the Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework, which is supported by the non-statutory guidance ‘Development Matters.’

The theorists, that are embedded throughout our Nursery are:

Elizabeth Jarmen

Jarmen’s approach encourages creating calm, homely spaces for children, that do not overstimulate children by removing ‘visual noise.’ We provide natural and neutral environments, with clear and consistent routines, encouraging children to make their own choices, in a safe and secure environment.

Friedrich Froebel

Froebel’s play theory focuses on 5 key principles;

Learning through Play
Respect the individual’s Developmental Pace
Practitioner Knowledge
Classroom Environment
Importance of Movement

At Ash Park, children have the opportunity to access purposeful learning, tailored to the interests of individual children. We recognise that children learn differently and at different rates, and support children to set pace for themselves.

Our practitioners ensure children are encouraged to make mistakes, so that they can learn through trial and error and deepen their understanding. Our learning environment throughout the Nursery is carefully designed with resources that are optimal for each child’s age of development and places emphasis on the value of finger play, songs and dance.

Vygotsky

Vygotsky’s approach to learning, focuses primarily on imaginative play; believing play promotes cognitive, social, and emotional development in children and develops independent learners.

At Ash Park our children learn through play, doing and asking questions, interacting with others and engaging with purposeful resources, all supported by highly skilled practitioners. We believe, that play leads to creative thinking and through what they are doing children can reflect on what they are wanting to achieve, to solve problems and engage with the world around them.

Our pedagogy will continue to be reviewed to best meet the needs of our children.

Our Vision

At Ash Park Childcare, we strive ourselves to provide:

A safe, caring and stimulating environment, where children learn and develop. We ensure our children are independent, curious, creative and resilient learners, developing confidence and give them the skills to communicate effectively.

We demonstrate this through appropriate, responsive, open-ended and challenging learning opportunities. Making the best of all the resources we have available to us, including the community around us.

Planning and Teaching

At Ash Park, we are passionate about nurturing every child's potential and supporting them to thrive within our setting. We create fun, engaging experiences that spark curiosity, inspire creativity, and encourage little minds to grow, learn, and develop each day.

Our activities are carefully planned to reflect each child's individual next steps, identified through detailed observations and summative assessments. Every member of staff tailors learning opportunities to meet the needs of their key children, ensuring personalised support and meaningful progress.

Each term, we track children's development to ensure all staff are fully informed about individual achievements and goals. This collaborative approach allows us to work together in supporting every child's journey and celebrating their progress.

All rooms follow the Ash Park curriculum, alongside age-appropriate learning frameworks that outline key milestones and skills. This ensures children are confidently prepared as they move on to the next stage of their learning and development.

We focus on carefully planned topics throughout each term, based on the time of year and special occasions, to provide meaningful and engaging learning experiences for the children as well as child-led play and interests.