Keyworker Groups

[Smiles]

How often do you do your Keyworker groups. Staff want to do them every day so some would have group time with their children on a daily basis and therefor have five focus observation every week. This seems rather a lot and very rigid - they will add up with a lot of observations. Any thoughts

 

smiles

[Inge]

we don't have them,

staff observe while the children are engaged in play and will sit with a group for a focus activity, but it can be any children in that group, not just key children... They will interact during play if they want to observe something in particular with a key child .. that way all staff know all children well, so if and when key person is not there it really does not affect the children greatly.

 

Forgot to say 1 focus activity per day.. take turns as to who runs it.. or we use staff strengths.

Inge

Edited September 11, 2008 by Inge

[Beau]

We didn't do them either. We tended to have a focus activity running during the session in one of the existing areas or a planned music/drama/activity/baking session. With these, circle time and story time I felt that getting the children to do even more adult led activities was detrimental.

[dublinbay]

We don't do them either..........same as Inge on what we do do.

[Guest]

We don't have keyworker times but small group sessions daily. Staff take the groups on a rota basis and have any children, not just their keyworker group. As with others it gives us all the opportunity to get to know the children. We also have activities going on around the pre-school which children can become involved in if they wish to.

Linda

[Guest]

We do have keyworker group times and we have them twice aday.

 

They are based on listening and communiation skills and all activitie are planned to enhance these skills.

 

We have one straight after register in the morning and another one just before they go home at lunch time. They last for 10 - 15 min each.

 

During the moring any adult can play with any child and interact with them.

 

We also have keyworker groups for music/dance time etc. All of the children take part in these activities at the same time, but they sit/stand at mats with there keyworker. We find this way that you can observe your children on a regular basis and see how well they are achieving and whether than can atually do what others say they can!

 

Does that make sense

[Guest]

we don't have them,

staff observe while the children are engaged in play and will sit with a group for a focus activity, but it can be any children in that group, not just key children... They will interact during play if they want to observe something in particular with a key child .. that way all staff know all children well, so if and when key person is not there it really does not affect the children greatly.

 

Forgot to say 1 focus activity per day.. take turns as to who runs it.. or we use staff strengths.

Inge

 

 

We do exactly the same as Inge

mrsb

[hali]

our 4 yr olds have a 10 min group each day and the 3 -4 once per week inbetween that they do focused activities.

[Smiles]

We never used to have Keyworker groups and did as many of you do have focus activites and one staff memeber would record the observations and a;; taff would do catch it observations of children. Staff now feel the need to have Keyworker group time every day with there own children. Some members of stsff will have betweem six to eight children and many of them two years olds. Im not sure that it is practical to expect a staff me,ber too do any meamingful observations on this number in one group and record them. mybe the answer would be too do the groups twice during a session

 

smiles

[Guest]

I'm sure that retrospective notes on an activity are acceptable, especially with a group of this size and of their age.... The hands on bit has to be the most important and what practitioner doesn't carry all the information in their heads anyway. With 2 year olds its going to be active learning and a well prepared practitioner will know what her objectives are and what she's looking out for. The 'paper trail' isn't the overriding factor, for us at least! Be creative, use a camera, tape recorder, whiteboard to scribble notes on, post-its - I know you know all the possibilities, its being brave enough to do it!