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Articles Teaching and Learning

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Cross-phase articles about teaching and learning

106 articles in this category

    What does Reflective Practice look like?

    by FSF Rebecca on

    Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all? [Little Snow-White. Grimm. 1812] Generally, we view reflections as being things personally ‘reflected’ back to us: when we check our ‘look’ in a mirror ready for a night out or when …
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    What can Play contribute to Early Years Science?

    by Natalie Day on

    We know that children love to play. Play is an intrinsic developmental vehicle by which children develop a plethora of skills through physical play, playing with objects, pretence and game play. This ‘knowledge’ of the importance of play has gaine…
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    Using the TASC system in EYFS Settings

    by Belle Wallace on

    Belle Wallace, creator of the TASC framework for developing children's thinking and problem-solving skills, explains how significant the relationship is between the acquisition of language and the development of thought.
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    Using Music to Support Learning in the EYFS

    by Mary E. Maunder on

    Mary E. Maunder suggests musical activities to support young children's learning and development.
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    Understanding and Supporting Children’s Behaviour

    by Kathryn Stinton on

    I’m fascinated by children’s behaviour and the possible reasons behind it.  It can be tempting to just look at what’s on the surface (the behaviour we see) and ignore what’s happening underneath (the underlying causes) but this only leads to short …
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    Understanding and Developing Reflective Practice

    by Penny Borkett on

    This article will focus on the need for early years practitioners to develop their knowledge of reflective thinking. It will focus on some of the history and theory of reflective practice considering and discussing how theory can help develop practi…
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    The process of Reflective Practice

    by Dr Jen Colwell on

    This article is the second in the series looking at Reflection and its role in Early Years Practice. Reflection is a cyclical process. It isn’t something we ‘finish', we will always be seeking new information and new perspectives about some part o…
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    The Practicalities of Next Steps

    by FSF Rebecca on

    It comes up on the FSF sufficiently often that I have begun to wonder if we, in early years, are perhaps looking for ‘an answer’ – the Next Step ‘Holy Grail’ as it were. Sensibly, we all know that there cannot be an answer, children are all different…
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    The Importance of Young Children's Mark-making: Beginnings, Context, M…

    by Elizabeth Carruthers on

    Mark making has an important place in the development towards children's understanding of standard symbolic languages, for example mathematics and writing. This article discusses children's mark making with reference to practice and pedagogy parti…
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    The Historical Context of Outdoor Learning and the Role of the Practit…

    by Michaela Machan on

    You could be forgiven for thinking that outdoor play is a relatively new phenomenon, driven by The National Trust (2016) and their ‘50 Things to do before you’re 11¾’ project.  Children and being outside seems to be a recurrent theme in the media a…
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    The Drawings of Reception Boys: Fantasy and Frustrations

    by Emese Hall on

    Drawing is an activity that most young children enjoy and there is much evidence to show how it can offer them a powerful means of communicating their ideas, experiences and feelings. In this article, Exeter PhD student Emese Hall tells us about her …
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    The benefits of introducing STEM in the Early Years

    by Natalie Bent and Denhue Harris on

    Natalie Bent and Denhue Harris share their reflections and ideas about why we need to nurture STEM in our early years settings.
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    Teacher Choices: Visible and open to question

    by Jill McLachlan on

    As teachers, we are constantly making decisions. Choosing how to respond, to the events in any given day, is never a neutral undertaking. Our decisions have impact on not only our own experience, but also that of the children we teach and the commun…
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    Supporting parents to understand the benefits of ‘risky’ play

    by Dr. Lala Manners on

    Why has ‘risk-taking’ become such a negative concept in children’s lives – or used so loosely as to defy any purpose or definition? ‘Challenging play’ and ‘adventurous play’ are considered acceptable and essential – but ‘risky play’ causes much con…
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    Supporting Children’s Speech, Language and Communication Skills

    by Kathryn Stinton on

    Having worked with children with speech, language and communication difficulties for twenty five years I am constantly surprised when I meet typically developing pre-school children with whom I can hold complex conversations.  Children who are abl…
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    Schemas

    by Juliet Mickelburgh on

    What exactly are schemas, and how useful are they in providing the right learning environment for our very young children? This article brings together various definitions of schemas, followed by a brief description of named schemas and a discussion …
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    Reflective Practice: What is Reflection, why should it inform our prac…

    by Dr Jen Colwell on

    This article is the first in a series looking at Reflection and its role in Early Years Practice. In this paper we focus on the theory of reflection, what the potential benefits may be and what it requires of practitioners.  This series of art…
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    Reflective Practice: Research Methods

    by Dr Jen Colwell on

    If you would like to know more about how collecting evidence can support your reflective practice, or if you would like to explore the different research methods you can use in your setting, this is the article to read!  Being familiar with researc…
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    Putting the theory into practice

    by Alistair Bryce-Clegg on

    Quality Early Years practice comes from an understanding of child development and also a belief that children should play the principle role in leading their learning. What we do and how we do it is built on centuries of theory, research and succes…
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    Preparing for good transition from Reception to Year 1

    by Juliet Mickelburgh on

    We all know that feeling of starting something new: a bit excited, probably quite anxious about where everything is and what is expected of us, worried about not knowing people, the nervous butterflies in the stomach that can range from a flutter t…
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    Playful Pedagogy and Transitions in Children's Mathematics

    by Maulfry Worthington on

    The natural beginnings of written mathematics start within children's imaginative play. In this article, Maulfry Worthington describes children's mathematical graphics; children's own mathematical marks and representations, and gives examples colle…
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    Planning next steps in the moment

    by Anna Ephgrave on

    Planning for individual children is a statutory requirement.   However, such plans do not have to be written down.  A skilful practitioner is making several hundred “in the moment” plans every day.   
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    Objective-led Planning

    by Alistair Bryce-Clegg on

    Many of the FSF members follow Alistair Bryce-Clegg's blog and have attended his very popular presentations. Following a discussion here about his innovative 'objective-led planning', we invited Alistair to explain this approach.
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    Next steps, choose wisely

    by FSF Rebecca on

    This is the first article in what will be a series examining questions such as ‘What are next steps?’, ‘Who decides which next steps are appropriate?’, ‘What is the best way to record next steps?’ and ‘How often should next steps be reviewed?’
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    Individuality Matters: The Curse of Development Checklists

    by Ruksana Mohammed on

    The use of milestones in the form of development checklists do not take on the individuality of each child. They are generic and imply that all children go through the sequential process. This article aims to introduce the concept of individuality of…
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