Rationale Statement : The Development And Implementation Of The Curriculum

The practitioner in an early years setting supporting children’s play learning and development is extremely important, as play helps stimulate the child’s brain, supports their needs on an educational level, as well as helping them with social difficulties such as building relationships, developing them and helping them gain confidence. Many people believe that a child learns best when they are motivated, such as Fredrich Froebel. He believed that children benefitted from all types of play. The McMillan sisters believed that outdoor play was extra important as they studied children who played and slept outside and discovered that they were the happier and healthier children in comparison to those who only played inside.

In order to apply theories and models of child development to support children’s development we must get to know each individual child by building a good relationship with the children through play, communication and answering to their personal needs. Observation and assessment is also key so that we know what each child is capable of and what they are working towards/could be encouraged towards. Good communication with parents is also beneficial as it helps the carer to see what the child is doing at home and to identify if there are things they do or don’t do at nursery that is different from home. It also helps to work out ways of encouraging development at home and at nursery.

Theories of development and frameworks to support development are incredibly important to us working with children and young people. They help us to understand children, how they react to things/situations, their behaviour and the ways they learn. Different theories and ways of working with children have come together to provide frameworks for children’s care, such as Early year’s foundation stage (EYFS) which is used within all child care settings. This encourages us to work together, help and check the development of babies, children and young people, to keep them healthy and safe. It promotes teaching and learning to

As an early years practitioner you will recognise that children’s play is closely linked to their learning and development. Children learn in so many different ways but you will notice that they learn mainly through play. When children are able to do many different activity’s that allows them to lean but have fun at the same time thy will find what they are doing fun and will engage the children. It is important that when in you your setting you set up a variety of educational activity’s this way the children will be able to choose freely what they want to do.

I believe that as an early childhood educator my goal will be to promote the physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development of each child. I also believe that play should be the base of learning since children learn best by doing. I believe that a balance between teacher-directed and child-initiated activities is essential balance can be developed by using the developmentally appropriate practice approach, which means that activities should be “appropriate for each child and relevant to the child’s ability, needs and interests, also including the child’s family and being respectful to the child’s culture.

* Babies and young children are vulnerable and very dependent on their parents and carers. Therefore as well as provide and children’s learning and development it is also essential that we support the physical care, keep them safe and meet their nutritional needs.

It is very important to recognise that parents and practitioners have different kinds of relationships with the children in their care. Practitioners need to develop consistent, warm and affectionate relationships with children especially babies but they should not seek to replace the parents. Babies need to be with the same people each and every day to develop social relationships. This is why the EYFS requires all early years settings and schools to implement a key person system. Parents and practitioners have one thing in common that is very important: they all want the best for the child. The roles involved are not the same yet they are complementary. Parents know their own child best. Practitioners have knowledge of general child development.

The early years framework emphasises a personal and individual approach to learning and development because valuing a child’s individuality, ideas and feelings is an important part of developing an individual approach to the learning and development. A child has universal physical needs such as food, drink and shelter and psychological needs such as love, affection, security, friendship which are essential to maintaining their quality of life. In recognising and trying to meet an individual child’s needs each child’s age, physical maturity, intellectual abilities, emotional development, social skills and past experiences and relationships need to be considered.

“Early roots of play as a best practice for early learning was documented by Plato, a Greek philosopher, who insisted that play is considered a natural activity of childhood.”(Ingrid Crowther, 2011, Pg. 2) Early Childhood Education is a term that refers to educational programs that are devoted to children from birth to the age of eight. “Children of this age learn by exploring and investigating; therefore, their environment should support and encourage this process.”(Rebecca Isbell and Betty Exelby, 2001, Pg. 11) Early childhood environments should be attractive and exciting. These environments should allow children to work and play using proper resources, materials, and tools.

Educators can facilitate the children with different materials and environments in the classrooms that are in the early learning centres. The children need to develop their minds cognitively. “Children actively construct knowledge as they manipulate and explore their world” (Berk 2007). Children are needing to develop their abilities through their play experiences, and also through their play experiences, they can develop appropriately. Early childhood education plays a large part in a child's early development.

For the children’s learning to be successful, parent involvement is critical. An orientation will occur prior to the children attending. Parents will be updated with the day care policies, the lay out of the day care, the expectations and the introduction of their child care provider. This is done to allow both the parent and child care provider to get to know each other and allows them both the opportunity to discuss the care the child will need. It is very important for communication between the parent and the day care staff to be consistent. Parent involvement can provide feedback to the parent in regards to what the children are learning daily. This helps with their child’s assessment of the program to

Research has proven that the debate of “nature vs nurture” is obsolete, with development being the product of both a unique genetic endowment as well as the influence of the environment (Shonkoff, 2003), and that the first five years of a child are crucial to learning and behaviour modification (Blakemore & Frith, 2008). It is therefore incumbent on families and teachers to provide an environment conducive and stimulating for children to grow and learn within. In response to these crucial findings, guidelines and frameworks like the Early Years Learning Framework (“EYLF”) and the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (“VEYLDF”) have been developed to incorporate play-based learning and teaching.

This paper will discuss various forms of caregivers, parenting styles, and early childhood education. Topics covered are:

Think about your early childhood education (or your child’s early education), was it flexible to suit individual learning experiences or were children required to conform to the teacher’s methods of teaching? If you answered the latter, do you think the former would improve the quality of education? The initial years of education are crucial to learning, development and growth, during these first years children’s experiences shape their learning methods and they are able to learn rapidly, for this, early childhood educators must use teaching methods that are suitable for each child. Teachers must consider the attitude they bring to the classroom; how it affects children’s learning and the value, of the information and knowledge that

Secondly, it is important to consider the strengths of naturalistic observation as a method. This was identified when the child was consistently moving and doing different activities that allowed me to understand how he communicates with other children, how he behaves and what he learns from others. In the play setting the child was able to develop his thinking and according to the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families (DOH, 2000) through social relationships, the child was encouraged to express his feelings, emotions, which was achieved by the setting creating an enjoyment environment.