When people ask me what I miss most about being in the classroom, my answer, apart from saying how much I miss the children, is planning. Needless to say, most people find this surprising. However, I used to find planning exciting. To me, it was about finding the most stimulating ways to engage children in the learning process, and I used to find sharing ideas, gathering resources and the problem-solving aspect of it an enjoyable part of the job.
I can honestly say that I never saw it as a chore, or something to be endured. Ultimately, I saw it as my role to plan for all the children to succeed, and for all of them to be included in the most imaginative and enjoyable ways possible.
It seems to me that few people feel this way now, whatever the context in which they work. Planning seems hard work, rather than an opportunity to use creativity and imagination. There are numerous reasons for this. I can't remember my planning being 'monitored' or put under the close scrutiny of a senior manager, although my headteacher took an active interest in what was going on in my classroom. The advent of Ofsted has added a dimension to people's lives that causes a high degree of stress.
However, I do hope to show in this and the next article in this series that planning can still be exciting, and that we can use our creativity to ensure appropriate learning opportunities for the children. I hope to demonstrate that the boxes and lines on the forms that we are compelled to fill in can create a climbing frame to play on, rather than bars to cage us in.
CHALLENGES AND PROBLEMS
For many practitioners, the issue of planning has been further complicated by the introduction of the EYFS and its strong (and legally binding) emphasis on planning from children's interests. This seems to contradict the 'topic' or 'theme' approach favoured by so many settings, and has left many people unsure of how to plan learning experiences for the children without some kind of 'hook' to hang them on.
One of the invaluable things about this shift in emphasis is the way it has raised the level of debate about how we plan, what we plan and, perhaps most importantly of all, who our planning is for.
It is crucial to understand that we have never been required to 'do a topic', so in that regard, nothing has changed. Clearly, any topic at all has always been inappropriate for babies and toddlers, and justifying it for older children is also debatable. The problem has often been that the topic becomes all-consuming, invading every area of provision so that children have to role-play, build, paint, write and construct around an adult-chosen theme for perhaps half a term or more.
Children who are interested in the chosen topic are fortunate and will be able to display high levels of involvement; children for whom the topic seems irrelevant will not achieve so highly.
It can be especially difficult in schools, where a 'rolling programme' is in place and practitioners may come into conflict with those who work with older age groups.
I once knew of a reception class teacher who was 'not allowed' to talk about birth and christenings, because it was to be covered in Year 2! And this was at a time when many of the children in her class were in families with young babies. Constraints like this only serve to make both learning and teaching extraordinarily difficult.
I do understand that there is an argument in favour of a topic approach that suggests it supports children in being able to make connections between different areas of learning. The counter-argument is, of course, that the connections in a topic are adult-defined. We all make connections in our learning on a daily basis, without a topic to support us. We need to respect the intelligence of young children and believe that they are able to make links in a variety of ways, not just through artificial links imposed by the practitioner.
The work of Chris Athey, Cathy Nutbrown and others on schemas has gone some considerable way to helping adults view learning from a different perspective. Equally, the notion of 'learning journeys' has encouraged adults to look at children individually, rather than in large groups. We shall return to both these concepts in a later article in this series.
Despite the popularity of topics, they can cause problems for people in their planning, as they leave little room for flexibility, and the focus becomes the topic or theme, rather than the learning that is taking place.
To give an example, imagine that the topic is 'Bears'. The role-play area has been designated as the Three Bears' house, children are painting pictures of bears, there are bears in the dolls' house and the activity in construction is to make a new chair for Baby Bear. This is not necessarily a 'bad' activity in itself, as it undoubtedly brings in Personal, Social and Emotional Development and Problem Solving, as well as Knowledge and Understanding of the World.
Perhaps the practitioner decides to ask the children to create instructions for making Baby Bear's chair. In the practitioner's planning is something like this: 'children to design and make a chair for Baby Bear'. My question is 'What if you don't want to make a chair for Baby Bear?' If you are a child who has plenty of excellent ideas for creating and building, this could be a task that limits you.
AT THE HEART OF PLANNING
We need to go back to thinking about the question that should lie at the heart of our planning: 'What is it we want the children to get better at?' If this was our focus, then we would write in our planning: 'Focus on the construction area as a place for designing and building.' This would lead us to contemplate how we would attract all the children to that area, over a period of time. There would be an emphasis on the quality of resources provided, and the role of the adult in the activity. Outcomes would be diverse, and there is a likelihood that more children would engage positively with the task.
Children could be asked to write instructions for the model that they had made, and everyone's thinking would be extended. In addition, the adults would not 'feel guilty' (an expression I hear used a lot by EYFS practitioners) if not all children had made a chair for Baby Bear.
Planning should, first and foremost, be for the children with whom we work. It is not for us, our managers, our headteacher or even Ofsted, although clearly such people would want to take an interest in it. We need to be planning with the nature and needs of the children uppermost in our minds.
In my experience, this notion has caused dismay and confusion in some quarters. Comments such as 'We don't plan for them any more' and 'There are no topics now, they can do what they like' and even 'We don't have to teach them' are commonplace.
However, this clearly is not the case. A free-for-all environment would not promote emotional well-being or cognitive development. None of the principles that underpin the EYFS would be put into practice in such a situation. What needs to be more clearly understood is that adults have an invaluable role in planning for an environment where children are able to initiate their own learning opportunities and pursue their own interests, often because the environment is inviting enough for them to do so.
One of the difficulties is, of course, that educational institutions are themselves 'adult-initiated', as are the Early Learning Goals. I find it difficult to imagine that any young children would choose such a curriculum for themselves! Equally, the age of children that the EYFS encompasses would, outside of an educational establishment, experience a far more favourable adult:child ratio, except in the case of childminders.
Our challenge is to match our planning to the nature and the needs of he children. This does not have to be difficult. At the heart of our planning must lie an environment (both emotional and physical) in which children are free to move about, and encouraged to develop their curiosity and imagination, both indoors and outside.
OBSERVATIONS AND CONTINUOUS PROVISION
The EYFS clearly states that our planning should begin with observations of the children. It follows, therefore, that we need to provide an environment in which children can be observed being successful.
At the heart of the planning framework lies our 'continuous provision' - the aspects of provision that can readily be enhanced to reflect the concerns, needs, hopes and interests of a diverse group of young children. Once this has been established, practitioners can use their observations to develop certain areas to support future learning.
An interest in birthdays, for example, could lead to the provision of a Birthday Card Number Line in the home corner, cake frills, candle holders and cake cases, and wrapping paper, string and labels offered alongside junk modelling. Blank cards might also be provided in the graphics area, so that children can make birthday cards of their own. Some children, who enjoy transporting, might wish to take on the role of postal delivery workers. The book corner could be enhanced with stories, poems and songs focusing on birthday celebrations.
This might well sound like a topic on birthdays, but the difference is that it would have been planned as a result of observations of the children, not because an adult had taken the decision to pursue this train of thought three months previously!
- Next month a closer look at long-, medium- and short-term planning and both adult-led and child-initiated learning.
CONTINUOUS PROVISION
Role play: An area for imaginative play. This may be a domestic environment, particularly for younger children, a representation of 'real life' (for example, a post office or a cafe) or an imaginative place, such as a dragon's den or a spaceship.
Dressing-up clothes might be incorporated and fabrics provided for children to create their own costumes. Ideally, particularly in the latter part of the EYFS, children should be encouraged to make decisions regarding the content of the role-play area, and be encouraged to build it with the practitioner, so promoting a sense of ownership and responsibility.
Small-world play: A place where miniature environments can be constructed and explored. Children should have access to a variety of small-world equipment and be encouraged to create their own small worlds. They will need a supply of bases, inhabitants and materials with which to create buildings and scenery.
Sand: Sand is one of the most open-ended and flexible resources available. Children need access to sand in a variety of containers and a variety of contexts, including outdoors. They need to be able to dig, sieve, build, bury and mix it with water. It is an ideal context in which to explore properties of materials and create small worlds.
Water: Water needs to be offered on both large and small scales. Children need to be able to tip, pour, carry and sprinkle it. Practitioners should ensure that children can explore water in all its forms: rain, snow, ice and even fog. The water area needs to be readily accessible and easy to maintain, so that organisational issues do not prevent the children using it effectively.
Construction: A construction area offers a range of materials with which to build, including junk modelling. Children should be encouraged to select from and return materials to well-labelled and accessible containers. It is inappropriate for adults to select resources for children to use, as this can limit thinking and reduce creativity.
Creative area: This is a space where children can explore ways of representing the world around them and exploring the world of the imagination. While certain techniques may be taught (for example, mixing powder paint to the correct consistency, or paper tearing), the creative area should be a place where children are free to explore and experiment, and combine materials if they choose to.
Graphics area: This is a place where children can make marks, explore writing and produce a range of texts for a variety of audiences and purposes. It should contain paper and card in a range of colours, shapes and sizes, as well as ready-made books for children to use. Writing implements should be attractive and, where possible, there should be access to a computer.
Book area: The book area should be welcoming and attractive. Toys and props may also be incorporated, along with comics, magazines and a CD player and headphones. Children should be able to use the books freely and should be encouraged to use them in other forms of play (for example, reading a story about trains when playing with the train set).
The outdoors: It is possible that all of the above provision will be reflected outside. This will depend on the outdoor space available to individual settings. It is vital not to attempt to replicate indoor continuous provision but rather look at the unique opportunities that can be offered outside - large-scale water play, den-building, mark-making on a grand scale and so on.
FURTHER READING
Cathy Nutbrown, 'Threads of Thinking' (Sage Publications)
