Tag: Enfield Nursery

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Alphablocks Research Lab Annual Research Report Early Years Education Pre-School Learning Research on Early Years Development

Alphablocks Research Lab: 2025 Report

Executive Summary

In 2025, Alphablocks Research Lab continued its mission to advance the science of child development and mental health.

This year, the lab focused on how early environments influence learning and mental health throughout development, from childhood to adolescence. Using large-scale data from population cohorts, longitudinal surveys, and neuroimaging scans, our work examined how social safety, parenting, inequality, cognition, and digital environments influence children’s development.

Below we summarise this year’s research by theme.

2025 in Review

  • Celebrating 10 Years!
  • New site in Hadley Wood – now in its 2nd year.
  • Twice Rated “Outstanding” by Ofsted (2018, 2024).
  • BBC-Pearson Early Years Team of the Year (2025).
  • New Projects by Alphablocks Research Lab.
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Books for children Cockfosters Nursery Early Mathematics Early Years Education Early Years Foundation Stage Hadley Wood Nursery Support learning at home

Supporting Your Child’s Reception Journey: A Guide for Parents

A young girl holding a whiteboard with the words 'dog' and 'cat' written on it, while a boy beside her is focused on his own task. They are in a classroom environment, engaged in learning activities.

The Reception year is a pivotal time in every child’s educational journey. It builds on the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework and marks the transition to more structured learning. As a parent, understanding what’s expected during this year can help you prepare your child for success, emotionally, socially, and academically.

To help parents feel more confident and well-informed, a fantastic new resource, Starting Reception, offers clear guidance on what to expect and how to support your child during this exciting transition. Here is an outline of the key areas of development aligned with that guidance:

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Alphablocks Research Lab Early Years Education Pre-School Learning Reggio Emilia Support learning at home

The co-development of spatial ability and emotion regulation in children: implications for early years education

At Alphablocks Research Lab, we are dedicated to advancing our understanding of early childhood learning and development. We are excited to share insights from our latest study, “Feeling the Distance: The Relationship Between Emotion Regulation and Spatial Ability in Childhood,” recently published in the leading journal Development and Psychopathology. This collaborative research by Prof. Eirini Flouri of the UCL Institute of Education and our Director, Dr Dimitris Tsomokos, sheds new light on how children’s spatial skills intertwine with their ability to regulate emotions, and vice versa. In this post, we describe the main findings of this study and discuss their implications for early years education.

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Cockfosters Nursery Early Mathematics Early Years Education Early Years Foundation Stage Early Years STEM Science Technology Engineering & Mathematics Enfield Nursery Forest Schools Hadley Wood Nursery Ofsted outstanding Pre-School Learning Reading for early years Reggio Emilia

Ofsted: Outstanding in all areas

Alphablocks Nursery School was inspected by Ofsted in the Summer Term of 2024. Our school is pleased to announce the results of this latest inspection by Ofsted, which can be read in full here:

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Books for children Early Years Education Enfield Nursery Hadley Wood Nursery High Scope early years approach Pre-School Learning Reading for early years Support learning at home Support learning at home

Supporting Your Child’s Learning at Home: Fairy tales old and new

Books form a central part of our educational approach at Alphablocks Nursery School. They are used to support us in planning the learning experiences offered in the classroom. This half term we have chosen Traditional Fairy Tales as our central theme.

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