EYFS

Early Years at St Stephen’s

A happy start to a lifelong love of learning

At St Stephen’s CE Primary School in Bradford, we know how important your child’s first experiences of school are.

Our Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides a happy, caring and exciting environment where children feel safe, build confidence and develop a love of learning.

From Nursery through to Reception, our experienced Early Years team gets to know every child as an individual, working closely with families to help them Nurture, Grow and Flourish.

Learning through play and discovery

Children learn best when they are interested, active and having fun.

Our Early Years classrooms and outdoor areas are carefully designed to encourage children to explore, talk, create, investigate and play.

Alongside purposeful play, children enjoy carefully planned teaching that develops the knowledge and skills they need for the next stage of school.

Reading, language and maths

We place a strong emphasis on the foundations that make a real difference to children’s future learning.

Children enjoy stories, songs, rhymes and conversations every day, helping them develop their vocabulary, confidence and communication skills.

In Reception, systematic phonics teaching helps children take their first important steps towards becoming confident readers and writers.

Through games, practical activities and everyday experiences, children also develop a strong understanding of numbers, patterns, shape and early mathematics.

Growing in confidence and independence

Early Years is about much more than learning to read, write and count.

We help children learn how to make friends, share, communicate, make choices, solve problems and become increasingly independent.

We encourage children to be curious, ask questions and keep trying when something is difficult. These skills help them become confident learners who are ready for the next stage of their education.

Every child matters

Every child starts school with different experiences, strengths and needs.

Our Early Years teachers carefully get to know each child so that we can provide the right support and challenge. We have high expectations for every child and want everyone to experience success.

For children who are learning English as an additional language (EAL), our language-rich Early Years environment provides lots of opportunities to listen, talk, learn new vocabulary and develop confidence in English.

Working with families

Parents and carers are a vital part of their child’s education.

We want families to feel welcomed, informed and involved from the moment their child joins St Stephen’s. By building strong relationships between home and school, we can give children the best possible start.

Nursery and Reception in Bradford

If you are looking for a Nursery, Reception place or primary school in Bradford, we would love you to discover Early Years at St Stephen’s CE Primary School.

Come and see our learning environments, meet our Early Years team and find out how we help every child begin their school journey feeling happy, confident and ready to flourish.