Have had the great pleasure of working with lots of lovely settings over the last couple of weeks, with two in particular focussing on the development of skills in Continuous Provision and objective led planning. Last week I made a visit to Dee Point Primary School to work with the very lovely Lindsay and her team. Lindsay is the new Early Years Coordinator a this 2 form entry primary and manages the Early Years team which includes Nursery and Reception. Lindsay and I have worked together before she went to Dee Point and talked lots about objective led planning and how it works so, when she started her new role she was keen to put her ideas into practice. My … Read More
ANOTHER Assessment Idea – Orbit
I had a week in Hampshire last week finishing off the first Leading Foundation Stage Practitioner project with Jodie, Tim, Helen and Amey. They are all doing some really brilliant stuff. I will post some of what they are doing soon, but before I do, I thought you might be interested in this. It is a FREE assessment app by Orbit. Not only can you record live events and link them to assessment you can also share your ongoing assessments with parents and carers using a link. I have not used it or seen it used, but have been sent the link by several people since my last post, all of whom recommend it – so thought it would be … Read More
Early Years Assessment App
Now I know that not everyone in Early Years has got an iPhone or and iPad but there are a growing number of setting that I work in where the staff have been given one for teaching and assessment and they are a really useful tool. They not only create high level interest and engagement from children there are LOADS of appropriate apps and games that you can use to actually impact on teaching and learning rather than 'just playing' (not that 'just playing' is always a bad thing!) Here an iPad is being used for some phonic group work. Don't worry, the grip has been duly noted and acted upon! Even the 'pinkness' of the iPad cover wasn't putting … Read More
Play Pods in action by Juliet Robertson
If you haven't come across the Creative Star blog 'I am a teacher get me OUTSIDE here!' or Juliet before then you really need to pay her a visit here and have a look. There are loads of great ideas to inspire you and your children in your outdoor environment This is what Juliet says about herself and her blog I'm an education consultant who is passionate about getting children outside. This blog is my way of getting too many outdoor ideas and thoughts out of my head to make room for more to appear! Still teach 1 day per week to keep my hands dirty and my mind fresh! Aside from this I run a lot training courses, workshops … Read More