Planning

[Rea]

Hi, a while ago I mentioned on a post which I just cant find now that I'd changed our planning again, and no matter what I was told by who ever, it was working for us and I was keeping it! Well our EYDPC (?) came just before we broke up and she wants a copy of my planning, loved it, said it was good, am I overjoyed? Yes!

If I can work out how to put it on here I will do. It's a very simple format, with the week writen out showing all the equipment and activities for that week, with a smiley face next to the activities that are the focus for the week, these then have an activity plan. And thats it, I have struggled for years to find a simple, effective format and now i've got nothing to do, planning for next term was done in a thrice.

[Sue R]

Well done you!!!

 

Just hurry up and post it, so we can all share!

 

Sue

[Rea]

Here goes

[Guest]

I can't open that document. What kind is it? I don't recognise the file type.

[Guest]

I can't open it either

[Gezabel]

Nor me!

 

I get a message saying 'invalid menu handle' (that's after I have selected the open option)

[Guest]

I (with my husband's help!) saved it on my desk top, and then opened it in Word.

 

Thanks, Rea.

[Guest]

Thanks for posting that plan. hope you dont mind me having a look, i too had problems opening it, but i think it is due to me running windows 98, and the document coming from XP maybe, i aways have the same problem with things my Dad sends me. So i attatched it to an email and sent it to my Dad who kindly opened it and sent it back in acrobat reader,(kind Daddy)

Big thankyou for posting that , i was feeling a bit down, i have loads of NVQ 3 to do, and have not done any planning for next term yet...

you have saved my life, i can now just adapt it to suit my age group, and goal requirements..

so happy now

[Beau]

Rea,

Tried everything but I can't get it to open either.

[Sue R]

Sorry, me neither !!

 

Sue

[Susan]

HI Rea, I can!

its written in microsoft works, folks.

 

Well done!

[Guest]

no folks- i still can't get to read it. Will someone esle upload what they have managed to download? Does this make sense? I have not got works but i use word.

Please , please help

[Guest]

Try this i dont know if it will work, or if i have done it right. i opened this with acrobat reader.

File0096.pdf

[Guest]

yes yes yes oh yes it did work denise!!!!

[Guest]

thank you rea and thank you denise for transfering the file to adobe format.

Cheers

[Guest]

glad i could help,

[Guest]

Well done rea - both for the simple and effective planning - and for standing your ground re: changing what you know works for you and your team.

 

Is this planning for a nursery?

 

Harricroft

[Guest]

Woh!!I could get in to see it!What a very simple idea,glad it works so well for you!!When I did ours for the recent inspection it was very complicated,this seems so easy.I will keep this on file in case I ever have to do it again(helped the group out as no manager!)

[Rea]

It's for a playgroup which is in a church hall. We have to put all stuff away at end of each session so the plan tells us what equipment to get out each day, but with out being set in stone, it merely ensures we rotate the equipment from the cupboard. Obviously the plan can change depending on what the children want, one little boy at the moment only wants the cars, so no doubt they will be out all term. I havent put physical on because I forgot (I 've had a cold, foggy brain) anyway we havent got an outdoor area so we rotate bikes, climbing frame and slide, balancing equipment, tunnels, balls and skittles etc, but sometimes leave the area free for what ever the children want to do , chalking on the floor, running, having picnics, anything. As to not doing a plan that suits someone else, it's only recently that I've felt brave enough to be like this, always tried to implement any advice given before now, but it hasnt worked, then on the Birmingham Council web site I found a page called 'managing planning' this is what it says ''

Planning is an essential aspect of teachers’ work. All teachers need to plan what they will teach and how they will teach it, but spending excessive time on long, detailed plans doesn’t necessarily lead to better learning and teaching. There is no prescribed format or length; for example, all that OfSTED specify is that “teachers plan effectively, using clear objectives that children understand”.

 

Time should be used for aspects of planning that are going to be useful for your own purposes, and which have a direct impact upon the quality of learning and teaching. Don’t spend time producing documentation that does not meet these criteria. And don’t feel you have to start with a blank sheet when planning for the week ahead - experience can and should be shared and there are many resources available that provide useful starting points and greatly reduce planning time.

And that did it for me

[Guest]

hear hear well done rea

your planning has given most of us a startng point. I know what i'm going to do acc to topic but the week to week planing is dependatn on the weekend planning and what has worked/not worked the week before. but if you have to clear up everyhting at the end of day it must make life easier if everyone knew what was going out for the week. do you change or amend planning closer to the day if things change?

Do you have only 3 focus tasks a week. How do yu decide who does that? what do yur other staff 'do' when one is at a focus task?

How have things progressed with you proposed move to the school? Personally- Words like Touch- barge pole come to mind.

[Rea]

When the staff aren't on a focused activity they are 'crowd control' There are only 4 of us which is why there is only 3 focused activities, we do them over the week to accomodate the children who only come to two sessions, only two children come to more than 4 sessions. These children get to do the focused activities and spend time at self choosen tasks or alse we arrange for anything else they want. We used to change the equipment daily but found that there was no chance for the children to consolidate their learning on anything when things changed so quickly so we're putting the same stuff out all week now (possibly change things a little, depending on what the response is). Ob's during the sessions help to decide what we change.

The move to school is still seen as a good idea by chair but no decisions have to be taken yet. I will probably hang up my boots when that happens and move onto something else, still in childcare but somewhere else, I've just sent for an application form to be a play volunteer at the childrens hospital, so who knows?

[Guest alisonjayne]

Help I still can't open it, tried both files and no luck I just end up with a blank screen, it's a shame as I would love to have seen you plans. Will try again

Alison

[Guest]

have you got abod acrobat on your computer. right click on the file and download. Then close the download completed message and go into your documnets or where ever yu have downloaded and saved the programme. Then open the the document. if it stil doesn't work try opeing the adobe programme and then open the document through the adobe.

Best of luck

This is not for rea's original download but for the adobe acrobat file that was put in later by denise

[Guest alisonjayne]

thanks Leo,

have managed to open it now. I like the plan Rea and love the addition of smiley faces for the focused activities, how old are the children in your setting Rea?

Ali

[Beau]

Rea,

really good and simple. I know I've found myself bogged down by trying to plan for too many focus activities when there's only me, then feeling like a failure. I think you're right in keeping this to a minimum and focussing on responding to the children more. Keep up the good work. (Love the smiley face idea too )

[hali]

Well done Rea good feeling isnt it..............

[Rea]

It's a brilliant feeling Hali, I started years ago using the examples from the pink folder as they stood, then tried adapting them, and did my own layout, but we were forever having problems especially as we did'nt always know what equipment to put out. Like the bit I found on the Birmingham web site says, planning only really has to work for us.

Sorry you're all having problems opening it, cant remedy it I'm afraid, signiture and avatar are all too true!

[hali]

I didnt have a problem Rea.opened straight away.....

[Rea]

Alison, our children are from 2.5 to school age. I tried an activity last term but it didnt work primarily because the younger ones didnt get it and caused loads of disruption. It would be nice to have seperate areas for some things but it's not possible in our church hall. It's a shame because when the older ones want a story thats more than a lift the flap book, it gets disturbed, I've tried splitting them into groups but then everyone and his dog starts wandering around between the different stories and makes more disruption. Feel like a headless chicken sometimes! But

[Rea]

...I started so I'll finish (dont know what I pressed then) ...But after doing it for 8 years I've kinda got used to it.