EYFS learning and development

All early years providers must, by law meet the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The Practice Guidance and supporting resources provide information and advice to help practitioners meet the EYFS Principles in a way which reflects the needs of the individual children in their care and is appropriate to their setting.

The EYFS principles are grouped into four themes:

1. A unique child
   Every child is a competent learner from birth who can be resilient, capable, confident and self-assured.
2. Positive relationships
   Children learn to be strong and independent from a base of loving and secure relationships with parents and/or a key person.
3. Enabling environments
   The environment plays a key role in supporting and extending children’s development and learning.
4. Learning and development
   Children develop and learn in different ways and at different rates and all areas of learning and development are equally important and inter-connected.

There are six areas of learning and development, which are equally important, connected and underpinned by the above Principles of the EYFS.

• Personal, social and emotional development
• Communication, language and literacy
• Problem solving, reasoning and numeracy
• Knowledge and understanding of the world
• Physical development
• Creative development

None of these areas of learning and development can be delivered in isolation from the others. They are equally important and depend on each other to support a rounded approach to child development. All the areas must be delivered through planned, purposeful play, with a balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities.

Children are competent learners from birth and develop and learn in a wide variety of ways. All practitioners should, therefore, look carefully at the children in their care, consider their needs, their interests, and their stages of development and use all of this information to help plan a challenging and enjoyable experience.