Early Years - Nursery and Reception

Our aim at Dover Court International School, is to give your child the best possible start on their educational journey. We believe that by providing a balance between child-initiated and adult-led activities, we offer a curriculum that meets the individual needs and interests of all children. In Nursery and Reception, children learn through our Early Years Curriculum, developed within the framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). Through consultation with Early Excellence advisors in the UK, our Early Years Provision has been developed in line with research and best practice in the UK. We believe in the power of collaborative learning and the benefits of tailoring lessons to different learning styles.

There are seven areas of learning and development that shape our curriculum. All areas of learning and development are important and inter-connected. They are explored through topics that capture the children’s interest and excite them. The first three areas are considered the Prime Areas and a stronger emphasis is put on these.

• Personal, Social and Emotional Development
• Communication and Language
• Physical Development
• Literacy
• Mathematics
• Understanding the World
• Expressive Arts and Design

Our EYFS classes share several large outdoor learning areas, which act as extensions to the classrooms and give us the opportunity to expand the range of activities students access on a daily basis. Small class sizes allow our teachers to focus on each child, giving them a more personalised education and helping them through any academic or social challenges they may encounter.

To enable holistic development, children in EYFS are introduced to Mandarin, Music, Physical Education, Swimming and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in age appropriate lessons delivered by our specialist teachers.

All Mandarin lessons are taught by native language specialists, through thematic units and topics, developed to make the learning engaging. Speaking and listening skills are embedded using language games, songs, rhymes or poems, stories, repetitions, role-play and hands-on activities.

The music curriculum at Dover Court has been designed to ensure students of all ages and abilities have access to high quality music-making through a range of practical activities. Our curriculum has been designed with input from the Nord Anglia Juilliard Creative Classroom which gives children a unique opportunity to access these specially-designed resources.

Our dedicated PE department make Physical Education and swimming both fun and challenging. The skills taught are transferable and not taught in isolation and help the children develop their spatial awareness and improve their gross and fine motor skills.

In their classroom children have access to recordable whiteboards, iPads, BeeBots and cameras which enhance and support their learning and give them opportunities to interact with technology in a safe and purposeful manner, supervised and guided by our teachers.

We believe that a strong home school partnership provides children with the confidence to progress and succeed. We work closely with you, communicating regularly to ensure that your child is at the centre of our relationship. We use the SeeSaw programme in the classroom which allows you to connect with your child’s learning and we send weekly updates to provide an overview of the whole class activities. We hold parent teacher conferences each term as well as sending home a termly report.