Curriculum Topics

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

·        Developing a positive self-image

·        Learning to work and play

·        Increasing confidence and independence

·        Learning how to share and cooperate

·        Socialising with children and adults

·        Exploring needs and feelings sensitively

·        Appropriate behaviour

·        The difference between right and wrong

·        Learning about and from people of other cultures and their beliefs

·        The importance of care and concern for people and our environment

·        Having opportunities for problem- solving

Communication, Language and Literacy

·        Using communication, language and literacy through the medium of both Irish and English

·        Developing children's listening skills

·        Children talking about their lives

·        Increasing their vocabulary

·        Sharing and discussing stories, songs, rhymes and poems

·        Appreciation of books and stories

·        Learning how to use and understand books

·        The recognition of their name and familiar words

·        Letter sounds and shape

·        Increasing their confidence as writers

Mathematical Development

·        Using and enjoying mathematical language and mathematical learning in everyday life

·        Colours, shape and size

·        Recognizing and making patterns

·        Using numbers in games, activities, stories and songs

·        Comparing, sorting, matching and ordering objects

·        Number knowledge from 1 to 10

·        Solving practical problems

·        Early mental mathematics: one more and one less

Knowledge and Understanding of the World

·        Explaining living things/ objects and events

·        Observing similarity, difference and change

·        Discussing their observations and ideas

·        Answering their questions

·        Experimenting with a variety of materials and equipment

·        Indoor/outdoor activities that stimulate interest and curiosity

Creative development

·        Exploring sound, songs and music

·        Using all the senses to investigate their world

·        Providing structured and independent art activities

·        Increasing their ability to use their imagination and their existing knowledge

·        Expressing their ideas and feeling through art, music, dance, stories and play

·        Encouraging imaginative play, especially role play

Physical development

·        Introducing the language of movement

·        Their ability to move confidently and imaginatively

·        Developing their control and co-ordination

·        Increasing their skills with balls, hoops, bikes etc

·        Improving their balancing, climbing and jumping skills

·        Enabling children to work independently, in pairs and as part of a larger group or team

·        Handling and using tools safely and with control

·        Frequent physical activity indoors and outdoors