AnonyMouse_5970 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 Having read Anna Ephgrave's 'Nursery Year In Action' in the summer, we have implemented a lot of her fab ideas, and are 'planning in the moment' in practice but are unsure how to record it. Is anyone else doing this? Would you be able to describe what your written planning looks like? Thank you! 1
AnonyMouse_19762 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 Why not record as an evaluation :-) 1
AnonyMouse_5970 Posted October 26, 2015 Author Posted October 26, 2015 Thank you Speedy Gonzales! Why not record as an evaluation :-) Is that how you work? Or just an idea?
AnonyMouse_19762 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 A bit of both - I do have some written daily planning - not massively detailed - so my daily evaluation contains detail - all staff contribute :-) 1
AnonyMouse_5970 Posted October 26, 2015 Author Posted October 26, 2015 (edited) So do you evaluate the provision and what the children did in general...so that informs the next day's plan? Then what individual children did is recorded as obs? Hope you don't mind me bombarding you! Edited to say - when do you do this? At the end of the session or as you go along. We are full daycare so would be hard to find the time during the day. Edited October 26, 2015 by Stargrower
AnonyMouse_14268 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 I am in the middle of this book and have started to try and incorporate in the moment planning. We are kind of between planning our CP and AL activities but to also to include in the moment planning. After YEARS of copious planning sheets I am really down to the bare basics but need something which I can write more evidence on. Job for half term, so will watch this thread with interest. 1
AnonyMouse_5970 Posted October 26, 2015 Author Posted October 26, 2015 I am in the middle of this book and have started to try and incorporate in the moment planning. We are kind of between planning our CP and AL activities but to also to include in the moment planning. After YEARS of copious planning sheets I am really down to the bare basics but need something which I can write more evidence on. Job for half term, so will watch this thread with interest. That sounds like exactly where we are too! Our written plan has got a bit too minimal I think, so am thinking about ideas. Sunnyday's idea of recording as an evaluation appeals and I think it would work but I don't know when we would do this as we run 8 - 6 so not sure how I could spare people to do it. Keep the ideas coming! :1b 1
AnonyMouse_19802 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 Having read Anna Ephgrave's 'Nursery Year In Action' in the summer, we have implemented a lot of her fab ideas, and are 'planning in the moment' in practice but are unsure how to record it. Is anyone else doing this? Would you be able to describe what your written planning looks like? Thank you! We too are just starting out on this journey.........At the moment our written plans are 'just for us' - not recorded for time! We have a white board, on this goes continuous provision enhancements for the week, our Objective for the week and then we pin up 3 Focus Childrens Learning Journey Sheets. I hope that these sheets will 'show' how we used 'planning in the moment' and turned them into 'teachable moments'. Then like Sunnyday suggested we put things in the evaluation (we only do end of week) that went well or not so well! We are trying to get away from accumulating masses of planning sheets, 'Working In The Moment'. If and when anyone turns up ( yes, you know who) and wants to question it, I hope we will be confident in explaining how it works and they can see the LJ sheets, and lovely photos on Tapestry!! Well thats the theory but I have decided to work a way that makes us happy, the children progress through their own chosen activities and NOT to satisfy a random visitor!! Brave New World??....... 3
AnonyMouse_14268 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 That sounds like exactly where we are too! Our written plan has got a bit too minimal I think, so am thinking about ideas. Sunnyday's idea of recording as an evaluation appeals and I think it would work but I don't know when we would do this as we run 8 - 6 so not sure how I could spare people to do it. Keep the ideas coming! :1b When I have something down on paper I will share!! 1
AnonyMouse_5970 Posted October 26, 2015 Author Posted October 26, 2015 We are trying to get away from accumulating masses of planning sheets, 'Working In The Moment'. If and when anyone turns up ( yes, you know who) and wants to question it, I hope we will be confident in explaining how it works and they can see the LJ sheets, and lovely photos on Tapestry!! Well thats the theory but I have decided to work a way that makes us happy, the children progress through their own chosen activities and NOT to satisfy a random visitor!! Brave New World??....... Couldn't agree more Rafa. It has to work in practice for us as settings not just to keep The Powers That Be happy! We were inspected in May so haven't got that hanging over us and it's been quite liberating to try and think about new ways of working without having to worry about explaining ourselves. 3
AnonyMouse_4562 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 Hi! I went on Anna Ephgrave's course last week - 'A Nursery Year in Action' and am even more enthused about it than ever. Messages from her: You do not need ANY PRE-PLANNING. She believes that the environment should pretty much stay the same IF the levels of involvement are high. Any enhancement should be from a response to children's needs or interest so can go on the 'Planning in the moment' sheet. She said that she does not use this sheet for under 3s as she uses it to record interactions to groups, however, she does also recommend that you change it to suit your needs and setting. So for us, we record both group and individual interactions including those that the response is a change in provision including enhancements - so sometimes we have just observed something and our response would be to provide something else or change a routine etc (sometimes that day, sometimes the day after or a couple of days after if we can't get hold of the resources. For example, we were making a den the other day and the pegs weren't staying on because they weren't big enough. So my response was 'provide bigger pegs' and these have arrived ready for after half-term). This all gets recorded on the 1 sheet - I don't want too many sheets hanging around. In the days of the week boxes we record the story of the day and any changes to the provision. I still do plan little group activities for the end of the session so that this time is not 'random' (including phonics) and we have 2 objective led plans which last 1 to 2 weeks. In terms of when to write, you could get your staff to record on sticky notes and just stick them to the sheet - so that they don't need to physically come to the sheet to write down the interactions and responses? For me the 'Planning in the moment' sheet is both your planning and your evaluation. I got rid of environment/CP plans years ago as it just feels like a box filling exercise - nobody likes an empty box! If your environment is rich and matched well to your children's needs (not suggesting that yours is not!) then it should just need a few tweaks here and there. I used to spend ours pondering over enhancements after I had supported a child or observed them, but now IF NECESSARY I try to provide them then and there, and they are the things that come naturally and not just because I feel that I must enhance! Have a try and see how it goes. Green Hippo x 5
AnonyMouse_7120 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 Retrospective Planning Oct15.docx I bought this book just to see 'what all the fuss' was about and couldn't put it down, I've now bought one each for all staff and put it down to 'in house' training expenses (it's not like much other training is available anymore). Here's a sheet I've come up with, also running it alongside a basic OLP for large groups/letters and sounds, I'm not sure staff are quite ready for completely retrospective just yet...maybe after they've read the books ;-p though I'm not sure how much to record is going to be 'too much' 4
AnonyMouse_5970 Posted October 26, 2015 Author Posted October 26, 2015 Thanks for all that info green hippo. I would have loved to have gone on the course too, but it wasn't possible - maybe next time. It's all becoming a bit clearer now, it's just a case of finding what works best for us and getting everyone on board. Can I just ask what you mean by recording both group and individual interactions? Thanks again! :1b
AnonyMouse_5970 Posted October 26, 2015 Author Posted October 26, 2015 Retrospective Planning Oct15.docx I bought this book just to see 'what all the fuss' was about and couldn't put it down, I've now bought one each for all staff and put it down to 'in house' training expenses (it's not like much other training is available anymore). Here's a sheet I've come up with, also running it alongside a basic OLP for large groups/letters and sounds, I'm not sure staff are quite ready for completely retrospective just yet...maybe after they've read the books ;-p though I'm not sure how much to record is going to be 'too much' I bought multiple copies too! I like your sheet - have you used it yet? Do / will you write on it through the day or at the end?
AnonyMouse_7120 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 (edited) we put it up last week for people to add to..I think it was good for staff to see just how much they do 'teach', which is why I worried that we might end of with reams of it, I'm thinking of giving them a small notepad next week and asking them to record quick notes to show what they teach and then the following week to make notes when they see/hear another staff member teach ...as part of the training lol I like green hippos idea of stick it notes, or maybe labels that fit the boxes (or change boxes to fit labels) as staff become more familiar maybe just a blank sheet to stick them on might work...but to begin with I think it might be good for them to record the 'what' was observed and 'why' they interacted/did what they did....what do think ? I'm not sure they're quite ready for the messiness of the LJ pages though lol just as well we use Tap. Edited October 26, 2015 by Mouseketeer 1
AnonyMouse_4562 Posted October 26, 2015 Posted October 26, 2015 When Anna was explaining how she uses the 'Planning in the moment' sheet she told us that in her setting they record adult-child interactions and responses that happen with a group of children. Anything individual, that is significant, would be recorded as an observation. She did stress that we should develop our own sheet that suits our setting or at least interpret her boxes how we want to! Green Hippo x 3
AnonyMouse_39602 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Planning was a recurrent theme in recent staff appraisals - basically they don't like ' my off the cuff' attitude. We have very loose planning , we have a focus story and some activities relating to the phonic of the week. Everything else was CP and I continually modelled and encouraged staff to extend and enhance and plan in the moment . Staff at one time planned a week each but IMO it was always about what could be done , lots of ideas but execution lacked , They want everything written down and still find it difficult to extend . So it was agreed in my appraisal to let staff get on with it and I stepped back for the 2 weeks before half term , they have a ' planning book' and the deputy collates the ideas they all have put forward. I lent my Anna ephgrave book to my deputy to assist as I though this may help but it seems like staff still want spoon feeding as to what goes out . The planning for outdoors is zero and this is the area I said they need to think about and next steps but it seems lost ! I feel that it is probably down to my leadership skills and me expecting everyone to think like me , help please 1
AnonyMouse_23964 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Lashes2508 I feel that you could be talking about my setting. I have exactly the same issues. I try to approach it from different angles to be met by stony faces, shoulders dropped and silence. Will watch for replies with interest. 4
AnonyMouse_39602 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 What's frustrating ISp is that they can do the job , they are good but apart from one they all said it was confidence , I do my upmost to make them feel confident but I suppose confidence is a personal thing , I want them to be inspired not retired into doing the same thing day in day out following a piece of paper, they say it's because I can just do it off the cuff and they can't but I believe they could ! Frustrating ! 2
AnonyMouse_39998 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Lashes2508 I feel that you could be talking about my setting. I have exactly the same issues. I try to approach it from different angles to be met by stony faces, shoulders dropped and silence. Will watch for replies with interest. do you get the eye rolling too? :blink: 4
AnonyMouse_7120 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 I did an 'in house' training evening for them all on the thinking behind retrospective planning, supervisions showed they felt there was to much paperwork and to many planned activities a week to get through (though I remember a time when every activity you planned had to have an activity sheet prepared with the who, what,why,how) ...I started with a board that just said 'what do we want our planning to achieve' and 2 sub- headings of children and staff, I didn't think anyone was going to speak to begin with, but thankfully I had a student in who is very confident with thoughts and ideas who got the ball rolling, I put the emphasis on how much 'teaching' they already do and how that doesn't get recognised and this way it will, They will all have the book and some tasks to carry out before we have a review meeting, I do have an OLP sheet for large group activities over the week (as it fits with our routine) a L&S activity box, and days of the week X areas if anyone feels they really need to include a pre-planned small group activity...but I hope this will only be used as a transition to being fully child initiated. 1
AnonyMouse_23964 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 do you get the eye rolling too? :blink: - and the sideways glances to each other, so obvious that there have been 'conversations' about the subject!! 6
AnonyMouse_4562 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 I think we've all probably been in or are currently in a situation where we are having to convince people of the way forward! We are the ones that are actively reading, seeking advice, keeping ourselves up-to-date but unfortunately not everyone is so interested, motivated or passionate about early years. Many people have worked in a certain way for years, often at different settings and it is a massive change of thinking. This was of working isn't just a different way to plan, it's a belief in a different way of working and some people find change to this scale very challenging. When I spoke to Anna she was very clear about it being 'our' journey. Your setting will not be an exact replica of Anna's so you have to find your own way. And remember that it is a JOURNEY. In my mind, I would just go in and work exactly like Anna and everyone would understand and support what we are thinking but you have to work towards your goal. In my setting we have 2 objective led planning sheets per week or fortnight and I do still plan small group time at the end of the session, Some of the reason for this is because I think it is expected of me by the school but also because I have seen how these small group activities have benefited the children and helped them while in child-initiated play. Often we use this time to introduce skills, different resources, model writing etc and then the children can practise (and do!) what they have learnt in their child-initiated play. This isn't Anna's way of working but it's working for us at this time. I am thinking of moving away from planning activities for PSE and C&L and these are often less 'natural' and harder to make engaging - things you have to teach while it's happening. What I do is make sure that all the adults are available to interact with child-initiated play and record this and any further responses on the In the Moment planning form. We have moved away from individual next steps and do focus children. Maybe the answer for you is do work towards your goal. Make a few compromises e.g. could 1 member of staff plan 1 thing for each day? Or if you still have next steps, can they go to the children and try to teach them with what they are doing? Could you observe them working with a child and show them how they have taught a child and how to record it on the sheet. Good Luck, Green Hippo x 8
AnonyMouse_7120 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Just as well we are made of tough stuff ....I've moved things around in the setting this week, all knew but not one of them offered any help but I know one for sure will be vocal in her opinions when it comes to telling me and the rest of the staff what's wrong with it ....unfortunately that's the deputy :-( 2
AnonyMouse_7120 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 (edited) Thanks green hippo..I feel confident that this will work and actually make the staff lives easier...we did the focus child planning before but with 60+ we found it seemed a long time until it was their 'go' again, the 2 focus next steps over half term works well, we can send this out to parents via tap with ideas to support learning at home, we invite them to add a 3rd(ofsted box parent partnerships ticked), it gives much longer to observe how well the child is achieving the intention but through their engagement and play rather than our 10 minute small group remit. Edited October 28, 2015 by Mouseketeer
AnonyMouse_665 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Thank you everyone for being so honest. It really is great to know that everyone is in the same boat always tweeking planning and having issues with staff. I have gone from outstanding to requires improvement. Dont worry about me its a big wake up call for my staff to realise what I have been trying to implement for what seems for ever needs to happen and they cant just sit back and continue with what they were doing. Ofsted require so much more evidence now than five years ago. Keep up the good work we do it because we are passionate about our jobs with or with out the help of others. buttercup 5
AnonyMouse_7120 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 You to Buttercup, sure you'll get it sorted and hopefully your staff will come aboard with what you are trying to achieve...hopefully mine will to :-/ beating head against brick wall comes to mind though lol 4
AnonyMouse_4562 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 With the focus children, Anna recommends doing 10% of your group per week. So what ever size your group each child would be done every term. X 1
AnonyMouse_19802 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Just as well we are made of tough stuff ....I've moved things around in the setting this week, all knew but not one of them offered any help but I know one for sure will be vocal in her opinions when it comes to telling me and the rest of the staff what's wrong with it ....unfortunately that's the deputy :-( Empathise Mouseketeer, I have 'transformed' areas before, with staff walking in and not noticing!!! Grrrrrr 1
AnonyMouse_19802 Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 With the focus children, Anna recommends doing 10% of your group per week. So what ever size your group each child would be done every term. X Ahhh thats interesting. We have started the term with 3 focus children a week (our 10%) but started to panic and have talked about each keyperson having one of their own children each week as a focus child as began to feel that maybe once a term was a bit 'lite'. Could be because we so used to observing so many children so many times!!?? 2
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