Reception Timetable

[KST]

Hi,

 

I'm new the forum! I have spent all afternoon looking through different posts and its so nice to have found somewhere like this!

I've just completed my NQT year in reception, we had 45 children in the setting and I was team teaching with an experienced teacher who very structured in her approach - in fact it horrified me! I tackfully raised question with this and gradually throughout the year introduced changes. From september we just have 1 intake of 30 children and I am doing it on my own (yay!!)

 

However, no one in my school shares an understanding of EYFS and although my head has great confidence in me I have a few questions I am hoping someone can help with...

 

As nearly half of my class will be mornings only to christmas, I am struggling to work out a timetable which allows for the part time children to experience everything. I have attached a possible timetable, which I would be greatful if people can comment on.

 

I run my sessions with having 1 adult led activity at a time, while the other adult is free to make observations, modelling play etc and where possible have free flow with outdoors. I have blocked in when i will organise my daily focus sessions on carpets (phonics, PSRN, circle time etc) and then shown which focus the adult led tasks will have. Just wondered if this is too structured and I shouldn't put which area of learning the adult led task will be, which is difficult when lots of the learning is cross-curricular? Also I have adult led tasks happening throughout the day, should I maybe have some time left purely for CI learning. The children are doing CI learning all day except when pulled for their 20 minute adult led activities.

 

Sorry for rambling, hope this makes sense!

New_Timetable_autumn_term_option_2.doc

[mundia]

Hi there KST, welcome to the forum and do make yourself at home

 

Its always tricky if you have a mixture if part and full time children, I am presuming that your part time children are the younger ones?

 

Its great that you have planned for an adult to be playing with the children, scaffolding learning etc, I used to ensure that sometimes that adult was me! I learned so much more abut them when I was engaged with their play and the TA liked to sometimes do some more focussed work.. it worked well.

 

I sure that as you readaround the forum you will find many conversations about this to help clarify your thinking.

[Susan]

Welcome to the forum, KST.

 

I like that timetable, although I am a bit concerned that you may find you are a bit too static for a bit too long at the beginning of your morning but give it a go and see how you get on. Will you have opportunities for music and art etc with your part timers, you may need to think about giving them another focus time at some point?

 

Do you need the playtime as that seems to cut into your day quite a lot and maybe time better spent "working"?

 

You have indicated that your timetable is flexible and may e subject to change so dont be afraid to make the changes you need although be careful to keep your rules and expectations appropriate and consistent and it may be that you will need to spend a few weeks consolidating these before your children can cope with PRSN and CLLD as you have indicated. Time spent now on this sort of PSE will pay dividends later on.

 

Good Luck.

[Pimms o'clock?]

I think that this it is illegal. I'm sure all children in Reception class have to be full time within two weeks of the start of term. Correct me if I am wrong but thats the way it is in Kent, schools found out phasing in over a longer period have been made to change.

[kittycat1279]

I think that this it is illegal. I'm sure all children in Reception class have to be full time within two weeks of the start of term. Correct me if I am wrong but thats the way it is in Kent, schools found out phasing in over a longer period have been made to change.

 

No it's not illegal, The requirement is that they need to be doing 5 sessions by the second week which must be at least 2 and a half hours long. We have adjusted our timings to take this into account but our summers don't start full time until December.

 

As for the timetable, i agree with what susan has said. I think the only additional thing is that it does still seem a little structured for their first few weeks at school. I would approach any timetable flexibly depending on what the children could cope with.

 

Good luck

Edited August 14, 2009 by SP61HJ

[KST]

No it's not illegal, The requirement is that they need to be doing 5 sessions by the second week which must be at least 2 and a half hours long. We have adjusted our timings to take this into account but our summers don't start full time until December.

 

I can only assume its not illegal as I think it was our county council (Norfolk) who informed us who is full time/part time. The children that turn 5 after February are part time (mornings only) until Christmas. Yes it would be easier if they all started at the same time!

[KST]

Welcome to the forum, KST.

 

I like that timetable, although I am a bit concerned that you may find you are a bit too static for a bit too long at the beginning of your morning but give it a go and see how you get on. Will you have opportunities for music and art etc with your part timers, you may need to think about giving them another focus time at some point?

 

Do you need the playtime as that seems to cut into your day quite a lot and maybe time better spent "working"?

 

You have indicated that your timetable is flexible and may e subject to change so dont be afraid to make the changes you need although be careful to keep your rules and expectations appropriate and consistent and it may be that you will need to spend a few weeks consolidating these before your children can cope with PRSN and CLLD as you have indicated. Time spent now on this sort of PSE will pay dividends later on.

 

Good Luck.

 

Thank you for your speedy and helpful replies! Yes I agree that the part timers will need to have creative/music sessions, think I will have to be flexible with timetable to enable the part timers to experience everything, that is where it is so hard!

 

And yes I totally agree about what you said about playtimes. Basically last year the reception children were going to assembly everyday, having whole class snack time, having a morning and afternoon play. I have worked very hard to get it this year so children don't go to assembly (except the celebration assembly on friday) or afternoon play and I am implementing a rolling snack bar in the hope it will enable children longer periods of uninterrupted play (CI learning). The view from other staff at my school is that I am alienating my class from the rest of the school - no one really gets EYFS! Its frustrating! I may be brave and try to suggest scraping morning play too.

 

Also the first few weeks won't follow the timetable as we will be doing lots of observations and some baseline assessments.

 

Thanks again for your comments and welcoming me to the forum!

[Susan]

HI KST, its very difficult if you are one form entry and on one level I would agree with your colleagues but on another playtime is a very big and scary place when you're small and every thing is new.

 

I scrapped playtime many years ago when I was FS Co in a big school, the 90 littlies in reception were not missing out on 15 mins away from the playground with 180 other bigger yr1&2s and they met up at lunchtime!

However, in the small school I have moved too, I did feel there was a place for mixing at playtime. So it can be about ethos too and that is important, after all presumably the parents choose this school!?

 

In the LEA I currently work in, the younger children do not even start until after Christmas when they come in for half a day until Feb half term. The older children also do part time until Christmas in our school. In other schools in the county all children start in September and full time!! The legalities are compulsary eductaion in the term after the child's fifth birthday.

[Guest]

Hi

I was under the impresssion that children had to attend a daily act of worship/assembly once they reached the age of 5, or does that depend on the county? I feel though that most assemblies go over the heads of the Reception class if it's a whole school assembly.

Helen

[KST]

Hi

I was under the impresssion that children had to attend a daily act of worship/assembly once they reached the age of 5, or does that depend on the county? I feel though that most assemblies go over the heads of the Reception class if it's a whole school assembly.

Helen

 

I think they are supposed to have daily worship but I have negotiated that I will do a short one as a class - do other people think this ok and appropriate? I just felt that as we go up to year 6 that most assemblies were over the heads of our reception children.

[KST]

HI KST, its very difficult if you are one form entry and on one level I would agree with your colleagues but on another playtime is a very big and scary place when you're small and every thing is new.

 

I scrapped playtime many years ago when I was FS Co in a big school, the 90 littlies in reception were not missing out on 15 mins away from the playground with 180 other bigger yr1&2s and they met up at lunchtime!

However, in the small school I have moved too, I did feel there was a place for mixing at playtime. So it can be about ethos too and that is important, after all presumably the parents choose this school!?

 

In the LEA I currently work in, the younger children do not even start until after Christmas when they come in for half a day until Feb half term. The older children also do part time until Christmas in our school. In other schools in the county all children start in September and full time!! The legalities are compulsary eductaion in the term after the child's fifth birthday.

 

Its great to get some feedback, especially based on your experience as I don't really have much myself yet! Our school goes up year 6 so the playground does seem even scarier! The children socialise with the other children at lunchtime too and it is nice for them to experience the whole school atmosphere and get to know other teachers in the school so I suppose it is about getting a balance. I think as a single form entry it is more isolating than if it was Foundation stage unit or nursery attached.

[Guest]

Hi, i am also in a small school and have mixed R and Y1's. I have been involved in a transition research project for Y1's about continuing play based curriculum for them. The first thing that the researcher said was to scrap stopping as a whole class for snack time, as the children should be able to have a long period of CI play. We have at least 2 hours of CI play where groups of children are pulled out for AF groups. We were ofsteded in Novemebr and one of the things said was there was not enough time for extended play!!! We have never been out for playtime since I have been at the school, as we have access to the outside area continually. I always felt that the reason we had a playtime was to get some fresh air and stretch our legs, but our children have that all the time so it didn't seem necessary. We now don't stop to have snack altogether and the children just have it when they want and cross their names off the list.

 

I also felt that we were becoming a bit isolated from the rest of the school, although we do go to assemblies, so we do buddy reading once a fortnight with our Y5/6 class so the little ones get to know some big ones - it has been lovely and the older children have made bookmarks and bracelets and alsorts of things for their buddy reader. My children are so excited if they've played with their buddy reader at lunch time (although some of them have become a bit stalkerish!!!)

 

I have also had the problem of most children being part time and felt the same as you do that I didnt want them only to be doing CLL and PSRN, so I ended up doing One CLL, one PSRN, one PE, one topic based - art, scie etc in the mornings and having the other CLL and PSRN in the afternoons.

[KST]

Hi, i am also in a small school and have mixed R and Y1's. I have been involved in a transition research project for Y1's about continuing play based curriculum for them. The first thing that the researcher said was to scrap stopping as a whole class for snack time, as the children should be able to have a long period of CI play. We have at least 2 hours of CI play where groups of children are pulled out for AF groups. We were ofsteded in Novemebr and one of the things said was there was not enough time for extended play!!! We have never been out for playtime since I have been at the school, as we have access to the outside area continually. I always felt that the reason we had a playtime was to get some fresh air and stretch our legs, but our children have that all the time so it didn't seem necessary. We now don't stop to have snack altogether and the children just have it when they want and cross their names off the list.

 

I also felt that we were becoming a bit isolated from the rest of the school, although we do go to assemblies, so we do buddy reading once a fortnight with our Y5/6 class so the little ones get to know some big ones - it has been lovely and the older children have made bookmarks and bracelets and alsorts of things for their buddy reader. My children are so excited if they've played with their buddy reader at lunch time (although some of them have become a bit stalkerish!!!)

 

I have also had the problem of most children being part time and felt the same as you do that I didnt want them only to be doing CLL and PSRN, so I ended up doing One CLL, one PSRN, one PE, one topic based - art, scie etc in the mornings and having the other CLL and PSRN in the afternoons.

 

Thanks Sunbeam, your practice sounds fantastic! The buddy readers sounds like a fantastic way to integrate with the other children, will suggest that at our school.

Yes I guess I will have to do some of the CLL and PSRN in afternoon, I just didnt want the part timers to get behind on anything.

Also great to hear that you have moved to a playbased set up for year 1 too, I Wish my school would do that!