Over the past few months, we’ve gathered some of our favourite new resources and recommendations curated by the Bristol & Beyond Stronger Practice Hub. Dive into insightful blog posts, explore new resources and guidance, watch training from experienced voices in the sector. We’ve also selected online network events that tie in with our top picks for you to come along to.
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Let’s dive in…
Communication, Language and Literacy
Firstly, we would like to start by highlighting this guidance report by the EEF. This guidance offers early years professionals seven practical evidence-based recommendations to provide every child – but particularly those from disadvantaged homes – with a high quality and well-rounded grounding in early literacy, language and communication.
Drilling further into one of the recommendations, Dr. Julian Grenier has written a blog: Improving Early Education through everyday interactions. He revisits two strategies: back-and-forth conversation with children to promote their communication and using scaffolding to develop their thinking and learning. And he introduces the EEF’s guidance on Improving early education through high-quality interactions.
This explains how we can enhance back and forth conversations using the ShREC approach. And it introduces the STAIRS approach to scaffolding. Here at Bristol & Beyond SPH, we got quite excited about the potential of this scaffolding strategy. It uses the ‘Goldilocks principle’: not too much and not too little, and enables educators to provide a level of challenge for children that is ‘just right’. Scaffolding is one of the most important interactions that promotes learning, and this strategy will help all practitioners to become successful scaffolders.
Join us for upcoming courses:
If you would like to reflect and explore how we can become more evidence informed in our everyday practice in C,L&L, then you can join our twilight webinars with Ali Carrington and guest Nicola Cherry:
- Evidence-Informed Practice for Communication and Language on 4 November, 4 – 5.30pm
- Evidence-Informed Practice for Early Literacy on 21 November, 4 – 5.30pm
Read more and book through our Communication, Language and Literacy Network.
The Magic of Emerging Literacy in the EYs
Ali Carrington, our C,L&L Network lead has written this blog, which highlights “the importance of creating engaging and supportive environments that cater to children’s developmental needs, emphasizing evidence-based approaches like storytelling, sound-letter mapping, and interactive reading to unlock the ‘magic code’ of literacy.” Read the full Blog.
Physical Development and Making the most of our Environments
Making the Most of Outdoor Environments in Early Childhood Settings,
by Millie Colwey for Community Playthings.
Millie Colwey is a childminder, runs a nursery and is one of our SPH Partners.
She explains; “It has never been a more important time to reflect upon and develop the outdoor environments that babies and young children access in early years settings. Whether you have a spacious, natural garden or a tiny, inner-city space, all gardens have the potential to be rich learning environments that support a child’s health, sense of well-being and their development across the curriculum……Being physically active not only promotes health, it is also essential for a child’s brain development.” Read the full Blog.
Nurturing Growth – The Importance of Physical Development in 2-year-olds,
Katy Taylor is a senior room leader for the Rising 2’s Group at Daisy Chain nursery and wrote this Blog for our SPH.
“Understanding the significance of the physical development of 2-year-olds helps parents, caregivers, and educators provide the necessary support for healthy growth throughout childhood and, later, adult life. At this age, toddlers experience rapid changes in their gross and fine motor skills, learning to run, jump, climb, and manipulate objects with increasing precision. These early physical milestones lay the groundwork for future skills, and supporting this development is key to fostering healthy, active, and confident children.” Read the full Blog.
The EEF have published their Physical Development theme in the Evidence Store, and this short blog introduces it.
What do we know about Physical Development in the Early Years?
Join us for upcoming courses:
If you’d like help exploring the EEF physical development theme and how you can make use of it, join us for this online event.
Do you work with Two year olds? What makes them unique? Read more and book our upcoming: ‘Being Two’ online workshops on 21 and 26 November, and 5 December, 9.30 – 11.30am.
Mental Health and PSED
The Education Endowment Foundation (EFF) have published a new resource:
How to Support Children’s Mental Health and Well-being in the Early Years
This guidance document suggests the role can we play as educators to support children to ‘becoming mentally healthier’. It outlines 3 approaches: Developing a secure and supportive climate; Caring for bodies and minds; Developing self knowledge and autonomy. And it links to the PSED and Self-Regulation themes in the Evidence store for practice examples.
The EEF Evidence Store has helpful summaries for each of the 6 themes. If you haven’t explored the Evidence Store yet, these are a good place to start.
Self-Regulation and Executive Function Summary.
Personal, Social and Emotional Development Summary.
We also think that the Self-regulation section of the Birth to 5 Matters guidance is also excellent and worth a read.
And we liked this Blog too!
Yes, Mental Health Includes Babies by Zero to Three
“Brain development in the prenatal and first three years of life advances at rates that exceed any other time period. This window of infancy and early childhood provides optimal opportunities to build healthy brain development, support the earliest relationships, and promote infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH).”
Join us for upcoming courses:
Beyond Behaviour: Understanding and Responding to Children’s Behaviour
on 27 November, 4-6pm
Relationship Mapping with Jacqui Lewis
on 10 December, 4-6pm
You can also watch our recorded webinar, to find out about a new audit tool to help develop children’s personal, social and emotional wellbeing in your setting.
Eight to Relate Panel Webinar with Suzanne Zeedyk
🗓️Upcoming Network Events
Join our Early Years Networks to discover and share insights and collaborate with fellow childminders and practitioners. These Stronger Practice Hub networks include access to local and regional professional development events and a supportive community for ongoing learning within the Early Years sector.
For a full list of upcoming events, you can download and share this: What’s Coming Up Poster
And you can view and register for all our events on our website.
Thank you so much again for being a part of our community, and do share any useful resources with us, and we will try and include your suggestions in a future newsletter.
Best Wishes,
Anna and the SPH Team