Nursery World - Good Practice

How one setting introduced ‘In The Moment Planning’ to ensure that child-led play and activities are not interrupted and children feel valued and listened to. By Dawn Rigby

Children are given time to follow their interests, resulting in less challenging behaviour

I am a great believer in the power of play. Play motivates all areas of learning and stimulates our desire for learning. Children have so much fun when playing that they don’t realise they are learning. Throughout my years working in early years, I truly have seen how play is the best way for children to learn – is the way they learn.

Play can be spontaneous – we cannot plan for play. Play is flexible – it can go anywhere and be anything. Play is unique to each individual child. Play is joyful.

Anna Ephgrave tells us that ‘In The Moment Planning’ is nothing new. Parents do it, quite naturally, all the time. It is what skilful practitioners have always done – responding to children in a way that is unique to them, reacting to their unique interests in that moment.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included