The impact of parental engagement on children’s early years education is well known. Good relationships help families understand what is going on behind their child’s activities in settings, empowering them to continue the good work at home. In turn, good home learning environments have significant influence on children’s later academic success.
The Covid-19 lockdown drastically reduced the number of children attending settings, changed the working lives of early years staff, and removed important face-to-face communication with families. Routines were disrupted and children’s social lives changed unrecognisably. Suddenly, parents became sole carers and playmates while juggling home and work.
As many took up their role as unqualified educators, they worried about how they would support their children’s learning and well-being. Families needed professional support more than ever. How could the sector provide a service when established forms of family contact had been cut off and staff were facing their own challenges?
COMING ON BOARD
Little Owls, Leeds
In Leeds, Little Owls is a network of 29 nurseries attached to local authority Children’s Centres. Employing more than 400 staff, they provide childcare and early education each day to around 3,000 children aged between three months and five years, with 85 per cent of enrolled families using their free entitlement. Most of Little Owls’ nurseries are highly diverse; settings with more than 20 languages are not uncommon.
Fourteen Little Owls hub-sites stayed open when lockdown was announced in March, providing care for around 200 eligible children. Behind the scenes, staff were busy maintaining links with families who stopped attending nursery. Although levels of engagement pre-Covid were generally good, the means of engagement changed radically as opportunities for face-to-face contact waned and the use of digital platforms skyrocketed.
On Facebook, Little Owls shared home learning ideas, digital events and local and national updates. Nursery staff showed creativity and confidence as they broadcast free and easy activities – for example, stories and songs, puppet shows, competitions, Makaton sign-of-the-day, and photos of the activities happening in nursery.
Prompted by the interest in these posts, settings also posted parent-targeted content, such as showing the protective measures in settings, breastfeeding support, and information to support children’s transitions to school – for example, videos from teachers introducing themselves.
Tailored home learning
Little Owls continued to use the online learning journal Tapestry to reinforce home learning and to provide a more personal level of support. As parents added information about how their children engaged with the activities, practitioners tailored home learning suggestions to link with children’s next steps.
Children with EAL enjoyed sharing activities in their home language with other families via Tapestry. It also provided additional support for children with SEND. One setting provided bespoke support for a child with autism who was missing the close relationship with his key person. The practitioner was able to show how to use visual prompts to his mother.
Parental feedback was very positive and engagement increased substantially. Amanda Ashe, Children’s Centre and Early Start lead for Leeds City Council, reports that parents became more proactive in posting their activities with their children, where usage had been more passive previously. This provided a stepping-off point for wider social engagement.
‘During lockdown, parents posted their own observations and activities with their children, engaging with us, asking us questions, and commenting on what we’ve written,’ she says.
There has been a rise in the number of families using Tapestry, including those who had never accessed it before. One manager said, ‘Tapestry has been hugely significant in supporting individuals’ well-being – during a period of isolation it has provided a sense of purpose, direction and support.’
Crucially, several settings commented that parents’ confidence had soared in several areas: in using online platforms, in their understanding of the importance of play, and of the EYFS curriculum.
OFFLINE AND ONLINE
Sheringham Nursery School, London
Sheringham Nursery School and Children’s Centre is in the London borough of Newham – the worst-affected area in the UK during lockdown. With a temporary morgue at one end of Newham, and the emergency Nightingale Hospital at the other, the pandemic led to a devastating level of deaths and ill-health in a neighbourhood with poor and overcrowded housing, high levels of child poverty, and the most diverse population in Europe.
Sheringham kept in touch with families experiencing serious difficulties via regular video and voice calls. These calls often led to emergency referrals to food banks and deliveries of baby essentials.
The majority of Sheringham families are of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indian heritage. Some parents are at the early stages of learning English, and most families don’t have internet access. But, since nearly every family has a smartphone, the nursery team used WhatsApp Broadcasts to stay in touch and to post short tips and links to YouTube videos.
As the weeks rolled by and engagement increased, the team sought feedback from families. Many parents said seeing their key person on YouTube was exciting for their child. On the other hand, long messages with suggestions for home activities did not go down so well. YouTube statistics revealed that any video over a couple of minutes long would not be watched, whereas shorter videos of songs, nursery rhymes and staff reading books were very popular.
Every family was given a set of simple home learning materials; for example, a packet of seeds, compost and a plant pot. The team working with key-worker children posted short films modelling planting the seeds, and encouraging the children to paint and draw.
Later in the summer, Sheringham worked with resources-lending service Boromi (www.boromi.co.uk) to send out weekly boxes of play materials. Again, these were supported with short videos and messages to help parents make best use of the activities. Staff wanted to make sure all children and their families were supported, whatever choice parents made about coming back to nursery.
LOOKING AHEAD
The experience of both Little Owls and Sheringham during lockdown has fundamentally shaped how they will work with families in the future. Videos which encourage participation (such as songs and rhymes) or that model activities are watched the most. Sharing resources works much better if accompanied by clear suggestions and examples of how to use them.
Sheringham found that many parents reported playing more with their children, chatting more and sharing books more. Nearly 60 per cent of parents noticed that their children would sustain playing with them over a longer period of time in July compared to April.
Perhaps most encouraging is that 75 per cent of parents rated the support they received as excellent, and 25 per cent as good. That is almost certainly because they were listened to, and saw approaches being modified in response.
Maintaining digital resources requires staff time and expertise. During lockdown, staff who were self-isolating could provide online support for parents from home. Several settings plan to embrace digital platforms as an integral part of the admissions process for new families, as an everyday part of nursery life. However, processes will need to be reviewed when staff are back in settings and there is less non-contact time available.
Some parents will need to be supported with the technology, and literacy levels will mean others may struggle to access information. Settings are aware of the need to monitor this and ensure all families enjoy the same opportunities.
As circumstances shift again in September, settings are keen to see whether the increase in digital engagement continues, and whether it transfers to greater face-to-face engagement. Were the closer links that formed during lockdown due to parents having more time, needing connection during a period of isolation, or because children were bored?
But although digital media can nurture fruitful relationships, not all families can engage in this way. For one mother in Leeds who had stopped all contact with nursery during lockdown, a knock on the door with a home learning pack transformed the relationship. She now rings nursery every couple of days to ask for more resources and provide updates on her child’s learning. As Ms Ashe says, ‘You wouldn’t believe that something so small would make such a difference.’
Tips for increasing engagement
- Use of a range of connected channels – both online (through digital platforms) and offline (for example, home learning packs).
- Keep videos short, participatory and personal: songs, rhymes and staff reading books are popular.
- Accompany resources with clear suggestions and examples of how to use them.
- Take advantage of online communication, which can be more flexible and non-threatening for parents than conversations at the nursery door.
- Monitor user statistics, keep talking to families, and use their feedback to modify engagement strategies.
- Embed your preferred digital channels in inductions during the admissions process.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dr Catherine Davies is an associate professor in linguistics, University of Leeds; Dr Louise Tracey is a senior research fellow at the department of education, University of York; and Dr Julian Grenier is head teacher, Sheringham Nursery School and Children’s Centre, London (see also pages 14-17)
