EYFS Assessment

Assessment in Early Years

At Cambridge Road, we use the Development Matters statements around the seven areas of learning and development to make judgements of the children’s progress and achievement.

Assessment in the Early Years is a continuous process. Assessment is made using teacher knowledge, practical activities, observations and photographs. Each child has their own individual ‘Learning Journey’ book. The observations made are used to help inform the staff of children’s next steps and we use this information to ensure that future planning reflects identified needs.

At Cambridge Road, the children have a baseline assessment on entry to the school and then are assessed termly using the Development Matters statements as a guide across the 7 areas of learning. Teachers use their professional judgement on the “best fit” for each child’s development by looking at the broad age and stage, that best matches their achievements.

Children are assessed against the broad age bands:

· Birth – Three

· 3–4-year-olds

· Reception

Statutory Assessments EYFS

The Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA) is a short, one-on-one assessment taken by children in Reception (the first year of primary school in England, age 4–5), within the first six weeks of starting school.

Purpose:

  • It establishes a starting point to measure each child’s progress through primary school, all the way to the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6).

  • It is not a test for the child to pass or fail. Instead, it helps the government measure school progress fairly.

Key features:

  • Focuses on early maths, language, and communication skills.

  • Takes around 20 minutes per child.

  • Done individually with a teacher or teaching assistant.

  • Children often see it as a game or activity – it's designed to be play-based and stress-free.

Important:

  • No scores are shared with parents.

  • It doesn’t affect how a child is taught or placed in school.

  • Schools use it for national progress measures, not for ranking children.

Staff then look which stage within the age band the child is working:

· Emerging - When this is the best fit stage for a child but there are elements where the child is still working in the stage below.

· Within - When this is the best fit stage for a child, they are becoming very confident at this level but have not yet begun to move into the next stage.

· Secure - When this is the best fit stage for a child, they are confident at this level and you are starting look to the next stage to plan their next steps.

For those children, that maybe falling behind, staff use the ‘Observational checkpoints’ to help further support their development.

The Early Years Profile Assessment assesses children across 7 areas of learning, made up of 17 specific goals and is mainly undertaken at the end of the year. 

1. Prime Areas:

  • Communication and Language

    • Listening, Attention and Understanding

    • Speaking

  • Physical Development

    • Gross Motor Skills

    • Fine Motor Skills

  • Personal, Social and Emotional Development

    • Self-Regulation

    • Managing Self

    • Building Relationships

2. Specific Areas:

  • Literacy

    • Comprehension

    • Word Reading

    • Writing

  • Mathematics

    • Number

    • Numerical Patterns

  • Understanding the World

    • Past and Present

    • People, Culture and Communities

    • The Natural World

  • Expressive Arts and Design

    • Creating with Materials

    • Being Imaginative and Expressive

A child is considered to have a Good Level of Development (GLD) if they meet the expected level in the prime areas and in literacy and mathematics.

Key notes:

  • Helps Year 1 teachers understand where children are in their learning.

  • Provides a national picture of how children are developing by the end of the EYFS.

  • Informs parents about their child’s progress and readiness for Key Stage 1.