EYFS Leadership
Spring term 2011
Presented by
Dulcie Leach
Education Bradford
Gail Brown
National Strategies
February 2011
Purpose of the session
Follow up to the autumn term briefing

Developing the debate.

Understanding the EYFS Ofsted schedule and judgements

All papers on BSO
Discussion points for the session
 EYFS updates.
 Monitoring the quality of teaching and learning in the EYFS.
 Conducting observations of learning.
 Evaluating play based learning.
EYFS update
Basis of the EYFS changes
Ministers have been clear that the primary objective for the Government’s
Early Years policy is to promote child development through

Funding to maintain a universal network of Sure Start Children’s Centres,
recognising the value of a socially mixed, non-stigmatised service.

Maintaining a universal entitlement to 15 hours of free early education for all 3 and 4
year olds that is free at the point of delivery

Refocusing Sure Start on the families in greatest need.

Bringing in additional resource to introduce a new entitlement to early education to
the 20% most disadvantaged 2 year olds. Provided in high quality settings.

Ensuring Graduate-led Early Years sector with well qualified practitioners to raise
the quality of day to day practice
Reviews by Clare Tickell, Graham Allen and
Frank Field
Major contributions from
 Kathy Sylva (University of Oxford) - A reflection on policy, research
and practice.
 Children’s experiences of EYFS – Sheffield University
 Impact of EYFS – Ofsted report February 2011
Frank Field: 3 December 2010
Graham Allen: 19 January 2011
Sylva report
Sylva report
Messages from the reviews

EY education works and it is cost effective

school-readiness

social mobility

breaking inter-generational cycles of child poverty
Changes to EYFS in light of reviews
 EYFS will alter in appearance
 4 themes and principles to be retained
 Areas of learning to be slimmed down.
 Assessment – Introduce 30 months. (Threeness of 3 and
fiveness of 5).
 EYFSP Early Learning Goals to reduce from 69 to 20.
Judging practice in EYFS
Learning walk
What gives you encouragement?
What gives you concern?
Play learning and interacting
The National Strategies
Play is freely chosen by the child, and is under the control of the child. The child decides how
to play, how long to sustain the play, what the play is about, who to play with. There are many
forms of play, but it is usually highly creative, open-ended and imaginative. It requires active
engagement of the players, and can be deeply satisfying.
Child-initiated activity has many characteristics in common with play, as it is wholly decided
upon by the child, based on the child’s own motivation, and remains under the child’s control. It
may involve play of many types, or it may be seen by the child as an activity with a serious
purpose to explore a project or express an idea which the child may not see as pure play. It is
set within certain expectations within an early years setting regarding responsible use of space,
time and purposes.
Adult-led activities are those which adults initiate. The activities are not play, and children are
likely not to see them as play, but they should be playful – with activities presented to children
which are as open-ended as possible, with elements of imagination and active exploration that
will increase the interest and motivation for children. As well as focused activities with groups
of children, adult-led activities include things such as greeting times, story times, songs and
even tidying up.
Department for Education
Learning – Playing - Teaching
The National Strategies
Unsupported
Childinitiated play
Focused
learning
Play with little
adult support
Adult support
for enabling
environment,
and sensitive
interaction
Adult-guided,
playful
experiential
activities
Department for Education
Highly
structured
Adultdirected, little
or no play
The National Strategies
Graham Allen – Early Intervention 2011
Department for Education
The National Strategies
‘Pre-
school children have brains that are
literally more active, more connected and
much more flexible than ours …by 3 the
little child’s brain is actually twice as
active as an adults.’
Gopnik 1999
Department for Education
The National Strategies
Enabling Environments
‘The setting up of enriched environments is critical, though it
is all too easy to make an environment over stimulating…...
The level of openness in the resource and environment
should be such that the child is able to explore boundaries,
allowing uniqueness to emerge.’
(DCSF Pascal 2006)
Department for Education
The National Strategies
Finding ‘the element’
….’they connect with something
fundamental to their sense of
identity, purpose and wellbeing’
(Robinson 2009)
Department for Education
The National Strategies
‘Children’s learning capacity is
powerfully affected by the beliefs that
they hold about themselves as
learners, and these beliefs are in part
formed by the messages we may
inadvertently and unconsciously be
giving them’
The National Strategies
‘We offered four year olds a
choice: they could redo an easy
jigsaw, or they could try an even
harder one.’
Dweck 2006
Department for Education
BREAK TIME!!!!!
Enabling Environment
1. What
is the quality of displays?
 Do they include natural materials, children’s work, direct speech, observations,
photographs, books?
 Do they support children learning EAL, G&T, SEN, gender?
 Do they value and celebrate children’s own efforts?
2. What is the quantity and quality of resources?
 Are they clean, attractive and well presented?
 How do they support age, gender, culturally diversity, EAL, G&T and SEN?
 Is the quantity proportionate to need and sufficient to enable children to progress?
 Are resources accessible to children (storage, height,continuously / regularly / rarely)?
 Covers all 6 areas of learning and provides a diverse range of play provision including book
corner, writing area, number area, role play, small world, construction, blocks , paint,
workshop / technology, sand, water, malleable materials and outside play.
Enabling Environment
Enabling Environment
 Environment video
Listening to Adult interaction
How well are adults:
Using conversation and appropriately framed questions to develop
children’s knowledge?

Enabling children to confidently predicate, asking questions,
listening appropriately and responding enthusiastically?

Valuing children’s linguistic diversity?
High level adult interaction

Has a positive tone and works directly with the children, at their level, maintaining eye
contact and engagement most of the time.

Has high but appropriate expectations of achievement and behaviour from everyone in
the setting.

Listens carefully & readily empathises with children & families demonstrating warmth,
affection and understanding.

Actively involves parents and carers in the life of the nursery.

Makes effective use of praise and feedback, showing respect and value for the child,
their judgement and both their work in progress and their finished work.

Has energy and life, sharing in and enhancing activities.

Matches provision and activity to the developing capabilities of children.

Questions skilfully and thinks out aloud to stimulate learning and dialogue.

Supports and encourages children to make choices, decisions and to experiment and
explore.
Assessment for Learning
How well are adults:
Observing and using the assessment to note children’s achievements?

Sharing the observations with children?

Developing a two communication process with children to ascertain what
they have enjoyed and what they have found difficult?
Quality of Provision
 Progress
 Behaviour
 Expectations
 Subject Knowledge
 Teaching Methods
 Differentiation
 Use of resources
 Assessment for Learning
 Questioning
Making judgments
Observation from screen.
 Note the length of time children are sat throughout
the lesson.
 Note the time on active learning task.
Changing practice
What will make the provision observed
in your school outstanding?
Strategies
Observing learning and teaching

Overall classroom practice

Adult led activities

Child led

Adult interaction scale

Child involvement rating scale

Scrutiny of children’s learning journal