I have just finished my EYFS placement, having spent two weeks in a mixed Nursery-Reception unit within a primary school in inner-city Manchester. Each class has its own area within the unit, and these small carpeted zones have their own interactive whiteboards. There is a range of IT equipment available for the children to use as part of continuous provision, including the Walkie Talkies I have blogged about before, headphones, Bee-Bots, iPads and chunky, child-friendly cameras. Each week, staff set 'rainbow challenges' for the children, which they can choose to complete during their free-flow time. One of these challenges is usually a Computing challenge. Examples include 'Can you draw a tree on the whiteboard?', 'Can you use the phones to record a message?', 'Can you use the iPads to take a photo of your friend?'. These challenges help the children to explore many of the aspects of the Early Years curriculum, from Communication and Language (typing on a computer, speaking into a recorder etc), to Understanding the World (finding out how computers work, using tech to find out about the world around us) and Expressive Arts and Design (photography, design etc). The 'Creating and Thinking Critically' aspect of the EY curriculum can also be seen as linked to computational thinking. Key aspects of this, such as problem solving, pattern making and evaluation, are seen in many activities within the setting, from Maths games to free-play. Children work together to move objects, work out how to carry toys across the room or create patterns with blocks. Role play areas include toy-versions of technology, from a plastic cash register to a pretend microwave. Using these items as part of their play enables children to become comfortable with technology in the everyday world. They also see staff using computers, iPads, photocopiers and other school technology. I had a look at some Computing books whilst spending time in the setting. The best of these was The Little Book of ICT. Although published in 2005, the ideas included in the book are fantastic. I especially liked the clear links made to the EYFS curriculum. I took some photos of the book, and have included them below. iPads are used as part of continuous observation and assessment, replacing the traditional post-it-notes methods that is used in many Early Years settings. The school have bought into the 2Simple app, which allows staff to take photos and record written observations of children, and match these to the areas of the EYFS curriculum. They also use SIMS to take registers and record safeguarding information, and School Pupil Tracker to record whole-school assessment. The school has a Sure Start centre on site and I was very impressed to see displays and leaflets which aim to educate parents about e-safety. This included information on how to keep children safe, but also advice for parents themselves. Free lessons are available for parents to learn how to use computers and the internet, and advisors help with the production of CVs, covering letters and online applications. However, I do not believe that Computing should be overused in Early Years settings. A lot of children have a large amount of screen-time at home, and there is a very strong argument for the EYFS to be focused on outdoor and creative play. Jane Healy, who wrote Failure to Connect in 1999, argued that overuse of technology may reduce the impact of this vital explorative learning time, and harm normal child development. This argument still rings true today, and so Early Years practitioners need to be careful when and where they use technology in their settings. Links and Bibliography
Early Years Framework (statutory) - www.tinyurl.com/ov25yku Development Matters (non-statutory guidance) - www.gov.gg/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=104249&p=0 2simple - tracking and observation software for EYFS settings - www.2simple.com Trythall, A, (2005) The Little Book of ICT, London: Featherstone Education Ltd. Healy, J. (1999) Failure to Connect, How Computers Affect Our Children's Minds, New York: Simon and Schuster.
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I was back with Year One in my placement school today, which was fantastic! I was able to try out some of the new strategies and subject knowledge I have gained in university classes, and gain extra school-based experience before my formal GPP period begins. I will be writing much more about Computing in the school, but I wanted to write a quick post about the Computing lesson I was present for today. We introduced Book Creator, a school-friendly app which allows students to create their own books, comics, magazines and albums, in preparation for making our own superhero stories next week. The children have been learning about superheroes across the curriculum, and basing a lot of their work around the storybook Super Kid, by Claire Freedman. The class teacher was introduced to Book Creator at her previous school, and has been trained how to deliver the app to KS1. She used a link with the interactive whiteboard to demonstrate how you would open the app, start a new book, and choose a pen for drawing. The children were then sent away in pairs to share an iPad and work out the rest for themselves. This 'tinkering time' was highly effective - the children were immediately engaged and worked out how to use the app almost without any teacher-input. This example of self-directed, collaborative learning produced much greater results than I have seen in similar, teacher-led sessions. Within ten minutes, the children had worked out how to add sound, import photos, change colours and textures, and had started to turn their scribbled pages into 'stories'. This was very impressive, as my class teacher spent perhaps two minutes explaining on the carpet, and was then free to circulate the class for the rest of the session. I enjoyed using Book Creator, and look forward to our future computing sessions. The final superhero stories will be sent home, but I would love to use the app to produce books for the classroom, and include these in a reading corner. This is something I have seen in EYFS, where children are encouraged to make and consume their own books, but I have not seen this is KS1. This is something I will be researching and bearing in mind for my NQT year. Links Using Book Creator in School - www.bookcreator.com/education Apple Store Link - www.itunes.apple.com/gb/app/book-creator-for-ipad-create/id442378070?mt=8 Super Kid, by Claire Freedman - www.amazon.co.uk/Superkid-Claire-Freedman/dp/1407124064 I have been scouring charity shops for interesting children's books to help enhance my literacy course. One of the books I picked up was 'Stampy's Lovely Book' by Joseph Garrett (2015) an activity annual themed around a character from Minecraft. Stampy the Cat shares games, online tips, recipes and offline activities related to his 'Lovely World' within Minecraft.
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