Do your early years’ classroom spaces truly reflect your vision for learning? Have they come together by accident or been carefully planned to offer rich, meaningful and joyful experiences for young children? In the early years, young children learn through a wonderful mix of dynamic, hands-on learning experiences supported by highly skilled adults who have...
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Why Quality Environments Matter in Early Years
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Exploring Powerful Learning Through Domestic Role Play
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Young children have a natural interest in their own lives and their own circle of experience. They will often seek out opportunities to play imaginatively with familiar contexts, exploring the relationships between key people in their lives and the actions that surround them on a daily basis. This powerful drive to learn about their own...
...read moreCurriculum Design in EYFS/KS1: Progression, Planning & Practicalities
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Are you currently reviewing your Early Years curriculum? Wondering if it is progressive? Perhaps you’re even in a spin with where to start!...
...read moreEarly Years Update May 2024: A call to action
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The last few weeks have seen the DfE launch its latest round of consultations related to the EYFS. Although it may appear that the proposed changes will impact on some working with the early years sector more than others, we would encourage all stakeholders to participate and give as loud a voice as possible for...
...read moreBuilding on Children’s Interests in the EYFS
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Why is this Important? Anyone who has ever spent quality time alongside young children will know that their drive to learn is often powered by their own interests and fascinations. Attempting to teach young children without acknowledging these interests and their prior experiences, can be frustrating for everyone involved and can lead to missed valuable...
...read moreTop Tips for Effective Tidy-Up Times in the EYFS
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How is tidy up time viewed at your school or setting? Is it seen as a race, rushing to finish tidying so that the learning can continue, or do you have a different approach? Being effective at tidy up time isn’t about speed (well, not always!) – at Early Excellence we believe it’s more about...
...read moreEYFS Updates January 2024: Changes and News
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January 4th 2024, saw a significant change with the EYFS. There are now two distinct versions of the EYFS framework: one tailored specifically for childminders, and the other designed for group and school-based providers, with both versions also integrating the amendments introduced in the September 2023 update. In light of this division into separation of...
...read moreProviding a Language Rich Curriculum in the EYFS
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Moreso than ever, language and talk has become the new hot topic of conversation in settings everywhere. Talk is a key aspect in building strong relationships, developing communication and language skills, and challenging thinking. Practice which values talk needs to be carefully planned and requires skilful adult interaction Juliet Clark, Assistant Headteacher and EYFS Leader...
...read moreEYFS Updates October 2023: Changes and News
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The end of October 2023 saw the publication of two key DfE documents focusing on the EYFS. Regulatory Changes On October 27th the DfE published its response to the consultation on proposed regulatory changes. It is anticipated that a revised version of the EYFS will be published in January 2024 to reflect these changes....
...read morePlanning Ahead: Building on Children’s Starting Points in the EYFS
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It’s that busy time of year again where you’ve received a brand new cohort of children and have undoubtedly spent most of your time getting to know them as individuals and building those positive relationships with the children in your class. You will have been observing and understanding the children as learners: their starting points,...
...read moreNurturing Children’s Self-Confidence and Security in the EYFS
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Personal, Social and Emotional Development is, quite rightly, one of the prime areas of learning in the EYFS and, now more than ever, our practice should reflect this. With this in mind, there are a number of key principles that teachers and practitioners can use to create practice with the children’s emotional wellbeing at its...
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New to Teaching the EYFS?
Survival Guide Part 1: Getting to Know Everyone
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As an ECT, starting a new teaching job is exciting, and a chance to put into practice so many ideas that you have seen and heard about through training and teaching practices. As you step into your new classroom, your head will be buzzing with lots of plans and ideas and there will be all...
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New to Teaching the EYFS?
Survival Guide Part 2: Establishing Systems & Routines
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In part one of our ECT blog we outlined some of the fundamental relationships that need to be formed and nurtured when working in the EYFS environments. Now, let’s look beyond those relationships and begin to look at some of the other key things you’ll need to consider. As a new teacher, it can be...
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New to Teaching the EYFS?
Survival Guide Part 3: Making Time for Teaching
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In part three of our ECT series, we are going to focus on the role of the adult in the Early Years Foundation Stage. As part of this we will be exploring the balancing act that is teaching in the early years. From whole class teaching and small group work to facilitating and scaffolding a...
...read moreMaximising Learning in Continuous Provision – Domestic Role Play in EYFS
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A Home Corner is the most familiar experience the children can have. It relates directly to their own lives and their interests and is something that all children have in common regardless of their cultural background or previous experience. Every child can recreate experiences they have at home and with careful planning and the support...
...read moreWorking with the Revised EYFS: Less is More?
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Last week the DfE released three short videos titled Implementing the Early Years Foundation Stage Reforms. Using a combination of views from practitioners and leaders in Early Adopter schools and Ofsted, they aim to address a range of concerns and to offer a degree of reassurance. The voices are positive and present the case that...
...read morePutting the New EYFS Framework into Practice
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So, hopefully you’re all set. You’ve attended the training on the new EYFS framework, you’ve read the documentation, followed the many online debates and now, finally you’re ready to put the framework into practice- your practice. What are the key things that you’ll need to focus on? Well, there are all sorts of things that...
...read moreMoving Forward: Exploring Changes, Challenges and Opportunities in the EYFS
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Back in the summer I was kindly asked by Nursery World to offer some thoughts on how things had changed since the pandemic; the impact this was having on everyday life, our families, our friends, ourselves and the children we work with. Few could have imagined where we would be now and how the many...
...read moreMeaningful Mathematics, A Focus on EYFS Pedagogy
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If we want children to successfully embed a range of mathematical concepts then we really need to reflect on our pedagogy first. Effective teaching of mathematics in the EYFS doesn’t just happen on the carpet, or at the group table, but rather acknowledges that it is meaningful, physical exploration of concepts that enables them to...
...read moreEYFS in Lockdown – Meaningful Learning Opportunities in the Home
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From Zoom meetings and Facetime chats to online activity ideas and YouTube story times, technology has provided us with the ability to stay connected with family, friends and our classes with relative ease during this lockdown period. Understandably, most of our responses as EYFS teachers during the current crisis, have been based around the use...
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