Our Curriculum & Ethos

From the moment your child joins South Hill Park Pre-school, our dedicated staff will help them practice and develop skills for a successful future through a learning-through-play approach.  By providing a supportive, enriching environment where we plan in the moment and focus on each child’s individual interests, abilities, and needs, we support your child to progress and achieve, so by the time they move on to school, they will be well-prepared, confident, and capable.

Our curriculum is built around strong Parent partnerships, knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and Development Matters as well as the following attributes that we believe contribute to successful and happy children.  

• Resilience, Confidence, and Independence 

Helping children develop these qualities ensures they can face challenges with a positive mindset and grow into capable individuals.

• Effective Communication Skills

Encouraging children to express themselves and understand others is crucial for building relationships and succeeding in school and life.

• Making Healthy, Safe, and Respectful Choices

Teaching children to make wise decisions helps them stay safe and healthy, and fosters respect for themselves and others.

• A Desire to Explore and Learn

Nurturing curiosity and a love for learning sets the foundation for lifelong educational success.

• Achieving Good Physical Development

Ensuring children develop strong physical skills supports overall health and well-being.

Parent partnerships: We create a strong support system for each child’s development and a nurturing environment where children can thrive, by working closely with parents and actively involving them in their child’s education. We recognise that parents are the first and most influential educators in a child's life, and their insights are invaluable.The health and well-being of each child is of paramount importance and we can only achieve excellent welfare standards for each one if parents help us to understand.  

Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and Development Matters: We work with the EYFS and Development Matters Frameworks to ensure each child receives a quality experience that supports their development and learning. They promote teaching and learning to ensure children’s ‘school readiness’ and give children a broad range of knowledge and skills that provide the right foundation for good future progress through school and life. We implement the 7 areas of learning, Personal Social and Emotional Development (PSED) Communication and Language (CL), Physical Development (PD), Literacy (L), Maths (M), Understanding of the World (UTW) and Expressive Arts and Desgin (EAD), through purposeful play and a mix of adult-led and child-initiated activity. 

Learning through play: We recognise that play is essential for a child’s development, building their confidence as they learn to explore, to think about problems, and relate to others. Children learn by leading their own play, and by taking part in play which is supported by adults.  We respond to each child’s emerging needs and interests, guiding their development through warm, positive interaction. 

Planning in the moment: Young children live in the here and now. If adults are to make a real difference to their learning, they need to seize the moments when children first show curiosity and support their next steps immediately. At Pre-school we work in the same way; we do not make curriculum plans weeks in advance because we do not know what the children will want or need. Every time an adult looks at, or listens to a child they are assessing and planning how to respond. These assessments and plans are based on the adult’s observations of that child ‘in the moment’, and also draw on any previous knowledge of the child. The adult will respond and interact accordingly and support the child to develop. Our main priority is playing and interacting with the children and planning as we go along.