At Gad’s Hill School, our One Curriculum provides a consistent, connected journey from Early Years to Year 11. It begins in EYFS, where the Early Years team lead a purposeful and nurturing environment focused on the Early Learning Goals. EYFS is the core foundation of our curriculum, where children develop essential skills through purposeful play and exploration.
We prioritise strong home-school communication using Tapestry, which enables ongoing parental engagement and shared celebration of progress. This partnership helps build trust and supports each child’s development.
Play with purpose is central to our EYFS approach. Through carefully planned continuous provision, children lead their learning, develop independence, and grow in confidence. The Early Year’s team champion child-initiated play, which allows children to explore interests and build self-regulation, skills that are essential beyond the early years.
As pupils move through the Lower School, play remains a key learning tool. It evolves into rich, engaging tasks, such as collaborative investigations and problem-solving activities, that continue to nurture curiosity and creativity.
Our One Curriculum ensures that learning builds seamlessly across all key stages, offering every pupil a consistent, purposeful, and inspiring educational experience from their very first days at school.
Understanding the World (UW)
Understanding the World is one of the four specific areas of learning in the EYFS framework. It helps children begin to make sense of the world around them and lays the foundation for science learning in Key Stage 1.
At Gads Hill, we encourage children to explore, observe, and investigate their surroundings—both indoors and outdoors. They learn about people, places, technology, and the environment through hands-on experiences that spark curiosity. We support them in asking questions, noticing patterns and changes, and finding simple answers through enquiry-based learning.
These early experiences are vital for building strong scientific skills and knowledge. By providing high-quality learning environments and carefully planned activities, we nurture children’s excitement and curiosity, inspiring a sense of awe and wonder about the world they live in.
