Friedrich Froebel

Who was Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) Born on 21 April 1782 Friedrich Froebel was a German educator who invented the kindergarten. He believed that “play is the highest expression of human development in childhood for it alone is the free expression of what is in the child’s soul.” According to Froebel, in play children construct their […]

Feelings and behaviour booklist

Here is a list of books and resources compiled by Anni McTavish to support feelings and behaviour. Reference books Why Love Matters – how affection shapes a baby’s brain by Sue Gerhardt, Routledge How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2-7 2017 based on the bestselling […]

Crying and what it means

When children cry they are telling us something important We need to understand and listen to their tears. Supporting children when they express strong emotions and crying will support their emotional development, develop their resilience, help them to trust, separate from main carers healthily and confidently, and have high wellbeing.  Ensuring and promoting high wellbeing […]

Babies and toddlers outdoors

This content by Jan White comes from our out of print leaflet “The Sky is the Limit: Babies and Toddlers Outdoors: developing thinking, provision and practice” Babies need to be outdoors This is a time of astounding development of the senses, mind and body.  During this year, babies gradually gain command of their body, developing the […]

ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences)

ACEs: Adverse Childhood experiences On this page we will collate information we find about Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), a relatively new scientific concept impacting early childhood and our work. The more we find out about ACEs, the more we can apply it in our practice.  The science is clear, early adversity dramatically affects health across […]

Evidence and research about writing: EYFS and beyond

References and resources about cursive and joined up handwriting On our Cursive and joined up writing are not in the EYFS and Cursive and joined up writing in early years: more evidence against pages we present the evidence and argument that joined up or cursive handwriting is not part of the EYFS statutory requirements and our evidence presents the case […]

Cursive or joined up writing in early years: the case against

Cursive or joined up writing in the early years We already know that there is no mention of handwriting, joined up or cursive writing styles in the EYFS statutory requirements and none about joined up writing specifically in the EYFS Development Matters guidance. We have written about this in our Cursive and joined up writing is […]

Cursive and joined-up writing in the EYFS

Content published on 24.3.17 – not updated with references to the EYFS 2021 although the principles still apply Is joined up or cursive writing in the EYFS appropriate? There is much debate about how and when to teach handwriting and whether to introduce joined up cursive or partially cursive writing to young children as opposed […]

Cursive writing

The three pages in this section help to present the evidence for NOT teaching cursive or joined up writing in the early years. The EYFS statutory requirements (2021) do not specify anything about handwriting. The Development Matters 2021 briefly references handwriting (but not specifically cursive and joined up writing) in relation to the prime area […]

How do we increase the graduate workforce in Early Years?

DfE has just published new figures on the number of new entrants to Early Years Initial Teacher Training (EYITT).  This is the route that leads to Early Years Teacher Status, which does not have parity of career options to Qualified Teacher Status, despite requiring the same entry requirements and following a broadly similar programme of study.  […]