The foundation of a philosophy

The Foundation Phase will provide young children with a curriculum which is more appropriate to their stage of development. It offers an approach that caters for their individual needs. Such an approach will, I am sure, lead to a reduction in disaffection and will encourage more students to stay on at school and become lifelong learners.

That approach shapes the philosophy and content of the Foundation Phase curriculum - a curriculum that, through its seven areas of learning, is sufficiently flexible to allow staff at a local level to prepare experiences which cater for the needs of their children; a curriculum that builds on what children can do and what they bring to the learning environment; a curriculum that provides a broad and balanced basis for children's learning and development.

As we know, within the early years it is the way children access the curriculum that is important rather that the content, and the process that young children go through is more important than the end product. With the Foundation Phase we now have an education model which is based on learning through play and real experiences in both the indoor and outdoor learning environments.

The Foundation Phase brings with it a new approach and philosophy. But it is not just about play; it is about providing more appropriate and relevant opportunities for children to learn and develop. And play forms a crucial part of those opportunities - play that is well planned, helps children to think and make sense of the world around them, enables them to be creative and to investigate and explore different materials, and provides them with opportunities to experiment and predict outcomes.

Children learn when they are playing and the Foundation Phase will enable them to acquire the skills to learn how to learn.