FS1 UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD COURSE SYLLABUS

Course Outline

Overview

Understanding the World comes under the specific area of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The UW syllabus at GEMS Wesgreen International Primary School aims to support students to develop their awareness of their physical world and their community through opportunities to explore, observe and find out about people, places, technology, and the environment.

Learning Outcomes

The aims of all subjects state what a teacher may expect to teach and what a student may expect to experience and learn. These aims suggest how the student may be changed by the learning experience.

The aims of the UW Syllabus are to encourage and enable students to:

  • Know classroom areas and names
  • Has a sense of own immediate family and relations
  • Become familiar with our body
  • Become familiar with plant and insect lifecycle
  • Understand the journeys students have made local and abroad
  • Explore countries; ancient and modern
  • Learns that they have similarities and differences that connect them and distinguish them from others
  • Know the different types of occupations and the different job roles.
  • Talk about the features of their own immediate environment and how environments might vary from one another.
  • Notices differences in the environment
  • Operates mechanical toys
  • Acquires basic ICT skills
  • Recognises and describes special times or events
  • Knows that information can be retrieved from computers

 Ongoing Objectives

There are objectives that are covered and built upon throughout the year during daily interactions in the classroom and when accessing the continuous provision.

People and Communities

  • Shows interest in the lives of people who are familiar to them.
  • Remembers and talks about significant events in their own experience.
  •  Recognises and describes special times or events for family or friends.
  • Shows interest in different occupations and ways of life.
  • Knows some of the things that make them unique, and can talk about some of the similarities and differences in relation to friends or family.

The World

  • Comments and asks questions about aspects of their familiar world such as the place where they live or the natural world.
  • Can talk about some of the things they have observed such as plants, animals, natural and found objects.
  • Talks about why things happen and how things work.
  • Developing an understanding of growth, decay and changes over time.
  • Shows care and concern for living things and the environment.

Technology

  • Knows how to operate simple equipment, e.g. turns on CD player and uses remote control.
  • Shows an interest in technological toys with knobs or pulleys, or real objects such as cameras or mobile phones.
  • Shows skill in making toys work by pressing parts or lifting flaps to achieve effects such as sound, movements or new images.
  • Knows that information can be retrieved from computers

Assessment

Formative: Throughout the year, staff will observe children on a daily basis during child-initiated play and adult led interactions. The observations will help inform next steps and planning.

Next Steps