How the EYFS links to the National Curriculum

Over the past few weeks I have been observing within a KS1 classroom and seeing how intense the teaching is in comparison to the largely play-based teaching in preschool. In an effort to understand this better, I have downloaded the National Curriculum so I can see what the expectations are of children’s learning in Year 1 and beyond. The following table is a brief overview of my understanding of how the different areas of learning in the EYFS link to the subjects contained within the National Curriculum, and their similarities and differences.

Early Years Foundation Stage	National Curriculum KS1+
Personal, social and emotional development This is considered an area of high importance. The Key Person approach contributes to the children’s wellbeing and staff are expected to support children’s emotional development as a matter of priority. By the end of the EYFS children are expected to be self-confident and self-aware, manage their feelings and behaviour in an appropriate way and be able to make relationships with other children and adults.	There is no specific subject to support children’s PSED. The curriculum begins with a broad statement explaining the need for schools to deliver all the subjects within an environment which supports children’s personal, social and emotional needs so it is overarching and should be embedded in every lesson that teachers deliver – within the ethos of the school and the values and beliefs held by the teachers.
Physical development This is also a prime area. Early years settings should always have opportunities for physical play both indoors and outdoors. By the end of the EYFS children are expected to be able to coordinate themselves with gross and fine motor skills. They are expected to be able to manage their own personal hygiene needs and understand the need for a healthy diet.	This becomes physical education and is the final subject to be included on the subject list. Children are expected to develop their strength, agility and coordination, dance and participate both competitively and cooperatively. The KS1 programme of study is less than half an A4 page for the entire two years, although the statements of expectation are wide ranging.
Communication and language The final prime area. Staff need to ensure that they communicate with children in developmentally appropriate ways and encourage children’s communication, both with adults and their peers. Children are expected to have developed their ability to listen and respond to instructions, pay attention when being spoken to, understand what is being said to them and speak in order to communicate their own thoughts and ideas by the end of the EYFS.	The subject of English should be the obvious choice to continue this prime area. However, childrens’ spoken word and ability to listen is almost ignored within this large subject section. There is one sentence: ‘Teachers should ensure that their teaching develops pupils’ oral vocabulary as well as their ability to understand and use a variety of grammatical structures, giving particular support to pupils whose oral language skills are insufficiently developed.’ (p.20) This assumes that children are already able to communicate well with adults and peers.
Literacy A specific area with less priority, although the expectations are high. For literacy, children need to learn how to read – demonstrating a good phonic knowledge and the ability to decode words by the end of the EYFS. They also need to learn how to write these words and create sentences. In order for children to attain the early learning goals, they will need a strong systematic synthetic phonics teaching programme in Reception to get them to the level they need to be to start in Year 1.	English moves literacy on in leaps and bounds. There are six pages in the programme of study, making it the most important subject of the curriculum. Children are expected to develop their reading – phonic knowledge and comprehension, and writing – transcription, composition, vocabulary, grammar and punctuation. There are copious pages of details which are a statutory requirement, with so much for teachers to cram in to just one year of teaching – with spellings included. It seems that the ability to read and write becomes the most important focus as it enables the learning in all of the other subjects.
Mathematics Another specific area, given less priority, although again the expectations are high. Children are expected by the end of the EYFS to learn how to count and do simple number problems. They also need to know mathematical language referring to shape, space and measures.	Mathematics is a subject of high importance, comprising five pages of the Year 1 programme of study. Children are expected to learn about number – place value, addition and subtraction, multiplication and division, fractions, measurement and geometry – both properties of shapes and position/direction. This leads directly on from the learning in the EYFS, although children will need that foundational knowledge of number to effectively engage in the programme of study for KS1.
Understanding the World A specific area. Children are expected to be able to talk about the lives of others, be interested in and explore the world around them and show an interest in utilising technology by the end of the EYFS.	This is split into a number of subjects: science, geography, history and computing. The Year 1 programme of study for science sets out the expectation for children to learn about animals (including humans), everyday materials and seasonal changes. They need to do this within the KS1 statutory requirement to work scientifically. Geography and history correspond well with ‘topic’ work, and for computing children need to learn how to use programs effectively to retrieve and display information.
Expressive arts and design A specific area. This area is more about processes than products, so children are expected to have had the opportunity to explore a variety of creative resources to design, create and use their imaginations. This is far more about the environment and appropriate resourcing by the staff than the children having specific outcomes.	This splits into three subjects: art and design, design and technology and music. Between the three different subjects, the programmes of study amount to about two pages for KS1. Children are expected to have access to creative materials, tools to manipulate them and knowledge of how to use them. They are also expected to gain a musical knowledge, listen to music, sing, play instruments and begin composing their own music.

The information contained in the table above I find incredibly interesting. I can see that the National Curriculum has set the standard for the attainment within the EYFS, so although we may fight against the unrealistic and inappropriate early learning goals, really it is the National Curriculum which needs to shift the learning expectations so that the Early Years can be relieved of the burden of inappropriate teaching.

In light of this realisation, I feel that I need to ensure I do not become trapped in this system which is pushing formal teaching further and further down the age ranges. I know what is appropriate for the children in my care at preschool, and this term while I’ve been doing my maths assessments (using an appropriate play based approach to assessing), I’ve noticed that there are quite a lot of children going to school in September who cannot recite numbers 1-10 and do not count with 1-1 correspondence. Because children have to be able to do this (up to 20) by the end of Reception, this makes me feel like I should be doing more at preschool to give them less to work for in their Reception year, for which they will quite clearly come home very tired every day from the sheer amount of information being put into their brains! But I need to be careful that this doesn’t happen, because responding to the pressure from higher up by challenging children too far will damage their ability or motivation to want to learn at all.

With regards to Literacy/English, the jump during the Reception year from being non-readers to being readers is huge. I understand that at this age children do have a large capacity to learn and they are able, in most cases, to pick things up and apply their knowledge well. However, the pressure placed on the teachers to ensure that by the time children go into Year 1 they are already able to decode words and write their own means that children need to make that transition in just one year.

Reception is a key year group in this whole scenario, it almost needs its own column in between the EYFS and the National Curriculum because that is the year when children need to start making that transition to more formal learning. But do they?! This is all according to the British Government. The more I learn about the education system and reflect on it, the more I think that children are getting a raw deal in all of this.

There are plenty of movements regarding early education and changing the expectations placed on children, some of whom I will list here. If you are interested and would like further information, please click on the links.

http://www.savechildhood.net/

http://www.toomuchtoosoon.org/

http://www.betterwithoutbaseline.org.uk/

http://www.upstart.scot/

A letter to my younger self

To my younger self,

I can't fault your enthusiasm and dedication, but you don't know everything so please listen to me because what I have to say to you is important.

Firstly, I know you love working with children and have read all the legislation, written your own policies and founded a pretty good childminding business, but your knowledge is not great enough to be an early years advisor or inspector, not yet. Your bordering on arrogant confidence will get you nowhere, so seriously, just shut up and study. Studying is the best thing you could do; it will open your eyes and broaden your perspective beyond that which you could ever anticipate. It will show you that your knowledge is so small in comparison to the knowledge that can be gained, and it will show you that being a graduate is far more than just a piece of paper.

Secondly, paperwork is not the be all and end all. It's good to have paperwork in place, but keep it simple and concentrate on actually interacting with the children rather than trying to constantly audit everything. There are times for allowing the children to freely explore their environment, and there are times to interact and explore it with them. Those moments when you begin to extend their world and possibilities are the most exciting and rewarding moments that will stay with you for the rest of your life.

Thirdly, it is okay to move on. You may feel stuck in a job role you created for yourself and feel very proud of, but letting go is okay to do. In fact, it's beneficial. Some people may be upset or hurt by your decision, but if you are as dear to them as they are to you, they will understand and support your decision. Learn to work as part of a team. Learn to understand and accept the views of others in a humble and kind way. Learn to accept that you have much to learn, and absorb all you can from those around you who are inspiring.

And finally, enjoy your children. Yes, the balance between work/study/family is tough, and I am not saying it will ever be easy. But you have to take those moments to capture the beauty in your children and enjoy them for who they are. If you find that you are becoming stressed and pulled in too many directions, put the books down and hug your children. They will need it as much as you!

Love from me.

Research proposal: children moving house

Something happened at Preschool a while ago which struck me, and has remained with me since. I was conversing with a small boy who had moved house over the weekend, and as he came into Preschool he had a very big smile on his face. I asked what it was like at his new house. He responded excitedly, "I've still got my two cats!" He then lifted up his jumper to proudly display his favourite avengers t-shirt - "and I've still got the same favourite t-shirt!"

What struck me, is that no-one had prepared the child for the idea that when we move house, our possessions go with us. Having mentioned this story, I've had feedback from several others of a similar scenario with other children - in fact, one child had thought her parents were leaving her behind on her own in the old house until they explained the process in more detail!

So, to that end, I have decided to investigate this particular transition as part of my BA (hons) Early Years final module with the Open University, which requires me to do a literature review on a subject of my choice and then plan a research project. The outcome of my research will result in a book to add to my 'Transition Story Books' range (see www.transitionstorybooks.co.uk for more information), with the intention of providing children with a fuller understanding of moving house and avoiding attaching negative emotions to this transition. In this way, not only will the research hopefully unpick the feelings children have about moving house within the write up, but it will also prompt positive action within the Early years sector and enable a smoother transition for children and their whole families as a consequence.

If you would like to contribute any stories relevant to this subject, please contact me on est19@uni.brighton.ac.uk, thank you.

Moving forward: whichever government we have!

Election day is fast approaching and I'm sure most of us are reading through policies and trying to decide who will best promote our rights and needs in order to make our voting decision.

I have made it my mission to continue on my chosen path regardless of which man ends up running this country, purely because I know that what we, the Early Years workforce, are doing is the ultimate career in terms of enabling a better society for the future. Yes, I'm against creating robots and people who will just do as they are told - but I am totally for children growing up to be happy, accepted/accepting and positive about the society they live in.

So, to this end, I am continuing my studies as I believe there is always more to learn. This week marks the final assignment of my BA in Early Years, an exam in June, then come September I shall be embarking on an adventure which is Early Years Initial Teacher Training (EYITT) at Brighton University.

The past ten years have taught me so many things. Working on my own as a childminder showed me the challenges of being alone and wholly responsible for children's wellbeing. Working as part of the large team at Reflections Nursery was a truly enlightening experience, and opened my eyes to the reality of how tricky a balancing act it can be to provide exceptional educational experiences alongside exceptional care (and the organisation of it all!). Now part of a smaller team providing preschool care and education in a  church based setting, I can see the challenges of needing to pack away every day and share the space with other groups. All of these experiences have given me a wealth of information which I can now use to clarify my own ethos, bring my thoughts together and prove that I can be a good teacher for Early Years children.

So when I qualify, what next? Where will the government benchmarks be by the end of the next academic year? All I know is that children will always be children, and I will always want the best for them. Therefore, whoever wins this election, I shall stand firm and continue to champion children. Because their voices need to continue being heard.

Researching children's thoughts and perspectives - the Mosaic Approach

I'm on to my first research project for E210, the final year of the Early Years Foundation Degree with the Open University. The study is certainly a lot harder than previous years and I have to admit to struggling to fit it all in around a long and busy working week as well as being Mum too! But it is, as ever, very interesting and I look forward to learning more as I go along, building on that bank of knowledge and using it to make positive changes to the way I do things. But despite being interested and excited to learn, I have to ensure I'm not thinking about it all too much as the last thing the children need is for me to be constantly thinking while I should be engaging with them (and I am guilty of being a deep thinker!) Finding a healthy balance is what's needed!

This module is all about the Mosaic Approach (see here... http://www.amazon.co.uk/Listening-Young-Children-Mosaic-Approach/dp/1900990628). It is a way of listening to children by using a variety of methods, for example letting children take photographs of things which interest them, taking them on a tour of the setting to see what they want to show you, talking with them (child conferencing) and looking through photos together to see how they respond. It's a way of gaining a deeper understanding of children's perspectives and consequently being able to make changes to improve the experiences children have.

How do you implement changes to your own personal practice or to the setting policies/procedures/layout? Do you think, oh I don't like that, let's change it? Or do you think, oh the children don't like that, let's change it? Personally I will readily admit to resorting to the former on many occasions, particularly when I was childminding. I would decide that maybe because it was winter now I would take down the current display and put up wintery things on the board instead. In most cases this would probably be okay, but what if the children really liked the previous display? What if they didn't make any comments at all about the wintery one? It is this which the Mosaic Approach intends to transform. Find out from children what their thoughts are, and make changes according to their perspectives. And this isn't just an approach to fix problems, as one might think to use it. It's for a positive impact for all children, regardless of whether a problem is apparent or not. 

Another point I would need to make is that we all have our own preconceived ideas and when researching children's thoughts, these ideas and values need to be suppressed as we take on board what the children are telling us and view it as objectively as possible. Subjectivity is unavoidable but we can at least try to put our own thoughts to one side and REALLY listen to the children. And also listen to each other, because colleagues can be very helpful at enabling us to see things from another perspective. Ask your colleagues what they see you do, what they think you're good at, what they think you could improve on. Constructive feedback can be difficult to swallow but if you really listen to what is being said and understand why it was necessary feedback, it's a lesson learnt and your practice should improve.

Having said all this, I have to point out that I am not an expert, I am merely studying early childhood and learning how to support children through this crucially important stage of their lives. I have got a long way to go and I'm aware that there is always something new to learn.