I had the privilege of attending the most recent meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Childcare and Early Education at Westminster on Wednesday 29th June. The theme of the meeting was 'a levelling up opportunity' and we …
Last week the revised EYFS was released, with changes to the educational programmes, and to the Early Learning Goals (ELGs).
In this Coffee Break we take a moment to reflect on each of the revised programmes, the place where the EYFS…
Prior to the EYFS 2021, reception teachers would examine the mountain of evidence they had collected on the children and use the exemplification materials to compare attainment, before making a judgement for each ELG.
The new exemplifi…
Gaming and eSports were in the news last week after a survey conducted by gaming accessory company, HyperX, revealed over half of children would like to see gaming on their curriculum.
Now, I am going to ignore the blatant bias of the…
As a few countries begin to reopen schools and nurseries, cautiously moving forwards into a new way of life alongside COVID-19, there has been speculation about what a return to learning in a setting will look like in the UK.
The wellb…
Nichole Hughes, Early Years and Key Stage teacher, education consultant supporting parents, and a parent herself, shares her reflections on encouraging play at home.
‘Play? Play is not learning! How are you learning? It’s j…
Maths to 18 will equip young people with the quantitative and statistical skills that they will need for the jobs of today and the future.
This includes having the right skills to feel confident with finances in later life, including …
Did you know there was an International Day of Maths? I must admit, I had no idea. It is on 14th March every year and invites schools and children to celebrate maths around a particular theme. This year the theme is Maths is Everywhere.
…
I am a list maker. Anyone who lives or works with me knows that I write them obsessively. On post-it notes, in my diary, in little books, on scraps of paper.
I think they might drive the people around me a bit crazy…
I have lists…
For teaching staff, this term has been a turbulent one. The frequent changes to policy, provision and practice and considerations for the safety and wellbeing of children and staff has led many to feel wholly unsettled. On a daily basis, s…
When schools opened their doors to Reception, Year 1 and 6 back in June this year, the guidance was for smaller classes and, where possible, to keep windows and doors open to allow for greater ventilation. This guidance continued once scho…
It was the 25th anniversary of World Book Day recently. With the wonderful offer of a book token for every child, at the heart of this celebration of reading is a mission to make reading together and reading for pleasure a habit for life.
…
Show me someone who isn’t family.
Ram Dass, spiritual teacher and psychologist
Every year on 15th May the United Nations leads celebrations for the International Day of Families. The UN recognises the family as the basic u…
It seems timely, as we begin another new learning year, to reflect on the link between the early stages of a child’s learning and the impact this can have on their outcomes as school leavers at 16. Here we bring together a research repor…
Across the country, and the world, education teams are fragmented. Schools and early years settings are closed, some to all children, and many to all but the children of key workers and those who are vulnerable. Every school setting has or…
For this coffee break I wanted to talk about a topic I saw online which I found very interesting: Desks.
I know what you’re thinking. Desks? How can desks be interesting. Well, it’s all a matter of perspective. And, interestingly,…
If you work in early years, you will know that the new Development Matters non-statutory guidance document was published on Thursday last week. The guidance accompanies the new EYFS Framework, allowing early adopters can use both this year…
The words we are using about the global predicament we find ourselves in are changing. Instead of ‘back to normal’ we hear ‘the new norm’. We are realising we must adapt, embrace change and transition to a ‘post-lockdown’ socie…
On Thursday this week it is International Dance Day (29th April 2020). This festival celebrates dance as a global ‘language’ and seeks to share the joy of dance with others. All around us we see dance being used as a form of communicat…
When Michael Rosen wrote this tweet I’m sure he wasn’t expecting the backlash that he got from some people.
I’m sure it was never his intention to make out that teachers were not experts in teaching. He himself comes from a fam…
We have a great responsibility as educators: to our children, their families and our colleagues. And beyond that, to our communities, and to society. The role of the early years professional, and of school staff, is far reaching.
But t…
According to the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT), 7.58% of our children are affected by Developmental Language Disorder. DLD is a type of Speech, Language and Communication Need (SLCN) that affects the way that ch…
It’s generally considered a fairly miserable event when the clocks go back at the end of October. It’s the start of a period that can often mean leaving for work in the dark and returning home to the same. This tends to coincide with…
Last week’s Coffee Break highlighted podcasts as a useful way to keep yourself up to date with the latest news, theories and discussions in education. This week it is the turn of the article or blog post as a way to get your CPD fix with…
The world is filled with uncertainty, educators are on the frontline, and anxiety is a familiar feeling for everyone. When everything around us is wobbling, it can be hard to concentrate, to reach beyond the things we have to do each day, t…
