Planning Help With Two Year Olds

[Guest]

Hi

Please can anyone help.

I have just started working with two's.

I am the main person in the room and it's my responsibility to do the plans.

At the moment i am planning using observations that we have done during the day. Focusing on a few children in a week.

I look at the EYFS and if theres areas that they are not covering then i focus on that.

I am not sure if this is right or not. The last thing i want to do is let these children down. If children initiate play i.e want other resources out we will run with this and i note this down on my plan. In the EYFS do children have to cover everything? I just begin to think i know what i am doing and then lose my why. HELP! I feel like i should go back to basics and learn every thing from the beginning again if any one can help i would be very grateful.

[lashes2508]

Hi , stop panicking and doubting your self - it's being reflective - providing good provision , variety and enabling children to develop with in the environment is all good , do you have young 2 year old ?? ie just turned 2? have you had any training support with 0-3 yrs

It is important to have a cosy space and always a domestic role play - as long as activities are allowing development for communication, creativity etc its all good.

I fret regarding planning but my Ey dev officer put my mind at rest and understood all i wanted to do and why.

Think its always good to ask yourself why and listen to your answer

[Guest]

Hi

Thank you for your reply.

We provide all the normal resources, home corner, creative, construction etc.

Then i try to put out resources such as shapes and jigsaws if thats an area where children need targeting.

I do work with children who have just turned two. I love this new job and responsibility, it's just as a team we never find the time to get together so it all falls to me and as we have OFSTED due in July so I want to get this right. If a child shows an interest in something e.g cars I try and plan with this in mind to include counting and painting with cars etc. I have trained and worked with 3-4 year old's the two's are new. I thought it was going to be all nappy changing and tears but its been a real eye opener so far.

[lashes2508]

Nerak , do you have an early years advisor you can ask to visit and give advice, we have one that specialises in 0-3 , it sounds like your doing everthing right and i agree its not all nappies and tears, we take from 2.5 yrs but have recently got a little boy who is 2.3 . I think you should just do it as you go along from week to week or seek further assistance

[Smiles]

We have a 0 - 3 advisor who comes in to the setting and advises in our area.

smiles

[Guest]

I will have to ask if we have a early years adviser. Thank you all for your help feel a bit better about it now.

[finleysmaid]

for my tuppenceworth i tend to think of planning for my littlies as more generic than for the rest of the group...so if maisie is interested in painting then lots of painting activities and if johnnie is interested in cars then lots of different car set ups (tunnels/slides/differnt bases.textures/outside/around a zoo etc etc) i am much less interested in what they can count or how many colours they know but i do want them to have fantastic language skills. You need to also keep in mind that they are egocentic and probably unable to share...but they can take supported turn taking...an important task for when they are with the older group.

[Guest]

Thank you thats a good point I did speak to a colleague who said the same thing. She thought I was on the right lines but needed to concentrate on what the children are interested in doing and plan around this. My problem is looking at the statements in the EYFS to see where they are at. I am not sure if I need to cover every statement or not before I say a child is secure at say 16-26 months. I get it all right in my head then start questioning what i am doing.

[finleysmaid]

Thank you thats a good point I did speak to a colleague who said the same thing. She thought I was on the right lines but needed to concentrate on what the children are interested in doing and plan around this. My problem is looking at the statements in the EYFS to see where they are at. I am not sure if I need to cover every statement or not before I say a child is secure at say 16-26 months. I get it all right in my head then start questioning what i am doing.

i think you need to be careful to ensure that the eyfs is not just a 'tick' list ...it is not so much the have they covered everything but what does it show! Having said that we do use the development matters as a tracking sheet ...how old are the children when they start with your room and when they finish? if they are making 8 months progress in 8 months then you can ensure all the areas are covered...if you see what i mean