The Early Years Foundation Stage – or EYFS as it is commonly known – lays the essential groundwork for young children’s future learning and development.
While the early years may seem like “just play”, this developmentally appropriate learning style forms the basis for all future growth. The EYFS harnesses the power of open-ended, hands-on activities to establish the necessary skills that last a lifetime.
In this blog post, we’ll discuss what the Early Years Foundation Stage framework involves and how you as parents can engage your children in activities that lay the foundation for school.
What Is the Early Years Foundation Stage?
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the comprehensive framework that sets standards for learning, development, and care for children from birth to 5 years old.
It ensures that all children receive quality education and care during this stage of their development to help them achieve their age goals. And to guarantee this, as parents you need to start following this framework with your children before they join school. And EYFS framework covers 7 areas of learning and development that are important for a child’s readiness for school.
First, we’ll explore the aspects that EYFS covers in children’s early learning goals and journey.
How do the Aspects of EYFS Lay the Groundwork for Learning?
EYFS covers all aspects that help your child grow and learn in the best way for young children – through play, hands-on experiences, and focusing on their abilities and needs. Some aspects that the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) covers to develop your child’s future success are:
Development Aspects:
The EYFS framework considers children’s development holistically, covering not just cognitive skills but also social, emotional, and physical development.
Children’s learning styles:
The EYFS recognizes that young children learn best through play, exploration, and hands-on experiences. It encourages learning through a balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities.
Key skill goals:
The EYFS sets clear goals for key skills that lay the foundations for future learning, like language, math, literacy, personal, and social skills. This helps to ensure that children are on track as they progress.
Promotes wellbeing:
The EYFS covers not just what children learn, but also how they feel, to support their physical and mental health, self-esteem, emotional well-being, and confidence that sets them up for success.
Safeguards welfare:
Early Years Foundation Stage EYFS sets clear standards for children’s health, safety, and wellbeing, as well as staff qualifications and training to help protect children’s developmental needs during these important early years.
Best Early Years Foundation Stage activities:
As parents, knowing how to stimulate and challenge young minds enables you to maximize the developmental benefits of the critical early years.
Here are the best, and yet the easiest, Early Years Foundation Stage activities to do:
Communication Activities:
With young children, communication activities should be short, simple, repetitive, and multi-sensory to expose children to rich language through everyday interactions and play, such as:
- Role-play.
- Word games.
- Talking about pictures.
- Making up sentences.
Physical Activities:
Providing a variety of movements, sensory and self-care experiences throughout the day can help children progress. Some activities for your children are:
- Outdoor play.
- Obstacle courses.
- Movement games.
- Finger play.
- Catching and throwing.
- Yoga and mindfulness.
Personal, Social, and Emotional Activities:
Early years are a crucial time for learning personal social and emotional development skills that set the foundation for future relationships, self-confidence, and wellbeing. Some activities are:
- Role-play to develop social skills through imaginary play.
- Circle time to build attention and self-regulation skills.
- Art projects to develop self-expression, patience, and the ability to work independently but near peers.
- Problem-solving to develop reasoning and resilience.
- Demonstrate calmly dealing with frustrations and asking for help appropriately.
Literacy and Mathematics Activities:
The key of this aspect is to incorporate literacy and develop strong Mathematical skills into everyday activities, routines, and play in a meaningful and engaging way to practice skills with hands-on materials, for example:
- Reading books.
- Finger rhymes and rhyming games.
- Writing names.
- Word games.
- Shape recognition.
- Counting objects.
- Following and making patterns.
Expressive Arts and Design Activities:
The goal of expressive arts and design activities is to encourage children’s creativity, self-expression, and imagination.
Open-ended, process-focused art experiences are most appropriate for early years through:
- Drawing and painting.
- Play dough.
- Dramatic play.
- Building with blocks.
- Natural materials.
EYFS recognizes that young children learn best through play and hands-on activities and experiences so these activities are incorporated into all 7 areas in a fun, engaging, and interactive way to support children’s holistic development and learning, not to forget the Active Learning Strategies.
How can parents support their child’s development?
At Maadi Narmer School, we believe that the parent’s role along with the school’s efforts should complete each other, therefore here are some tips to help you support your child:
- Play with your child daily through pretend play, reading books, crafts, etc. to make learning fun!
- Talk to/with your child through having conversations, asking questions, and describing what you’re doing to boost vocabulary.
- Give your child opportunities to make simple decisions and do things by themselves to help them build confidence and self-care skills.
- Model positive behaviors because children learn from observing adults.
- Communicate with teachers by sharing information to help them understand and support your child best.
- Set clear rules and boundaries and provide a proper level of stability for your child to grow and learn.
Simple daily interactions and activities at home can effectively help your child’s development. Work together with educators by sharing insights and reinforcing skills at home. Your involvement makes a difference!
Recommended books to understand EYFS:
Here are 4 books to help parents understand the Early Years Foundation Stage:
1. Zero to Five: by Tracy Cutchlow
Zero to Five by Tracy Cutchlow is guiding busy parents on joyfully nurturing all aspects of a child’s development from birth to five through simple developmental activities, playful routines, and fostering bonds.
2. Tender Beginnings: by Amy Webb
Tender Beginnings is a practical guide for new parents on nurturing their babies’ first year of development, from bonding and nutrition to motor skills and language. Simple everyday activities to stimulate all areas of growth while building a strong emotional foundation for life.
3. The Importance of Being Little: by Erika Christakis
If you have a child approaching preschool age and are determining the right learning environment for them, this book is very helpful. It guides parents through the optimal preschool scenario and the objectives preschool should aim to achieve.
4. What If Everybody Understood Child Development? by Rae Pica
Illuminating the complex journey of child development from 0 to 6 in straightforward terms, empowering parents and caregivers with vital knowledge and strategies to nurture every experience into opportunities for growth.
These books offer a good mix of comprehensive guides to the EYFS as a whole, along with targeted information aimed specifically at helping parents understand and contribute to their child’s early education.
