Overview of learning 7

Example of literacy planning and resourcing 7

What we want children to learn (Development matters)

Use talk to organise, sequence and clarify thinking, ideas, feelings and events

Related Early Learning Goals

Count reliably up to 10 everyday objects - Mathematical Development (MD)

Use language such as 'greater', 'smaller', 'heavier' or 'lighter' to compare quantities - Mathematical Development (MD)

Possible contexts

Use everyday experiences such as cooking, constructing models, drawing and painting.
Ask children to think in advance about how they will accomplish a task. Talk through and sequence the stages.
Provide opportunities for children to retell events that are important to them.
Provide opportunities for children to reflect on and develop their learning experiences.
Share the ideas and experiences represented in books and encourage children to relate them to their own experiences, ideas and feelings.

Example of adult-led activities

Context: Making models

Celebrate the children's model making or constructions.

Ask the children to show each other their models, telling each other if they are something in particular, if they do something and how they do it, and how they made their model.

Start a display with the children showing the smaller models. The children could photograph others for including in the display.

Encourage children to mark-make or photograph the different stages of their model making. Share their results and provide opportunities for them to explain to visiting children and adults to the classroom what they did and how their model works.

In construction and model making encourage the children to explain to each other how they made their models or parts of their models so that others can be helped by their ideas. Model, following their explanations and helping them to clarify the process for others to follow.

Adult role

Provide opportunities for children to communicate thoughts, ideas and feelings and build up relationships with adults and each other.
Provide time and opportunities to develop spoken language through conversations between children and adults, both one to one and in small groups, with particular awareness of, and sensitivity to, the needs of children learning English as an additional language, using their home language when appropriate.
Scaffold children's spoken language, recasting sentences, providing models, extending ideas, etc. to help children clarify thoughts, ideas, feelings and events.
Help children to structure tasks individually and collaboratively.
Help children to organise their thinking by using pictures, photographs, story boards, etc.
Involve children in planning, recording and reflecting on experiences, for example through the use of video.

Opportunities for children to explore and apply

Provide opportunities for children to retell events that are important to them. Scaffold their language so that they are able to describe the event, their thoughts and their feelings.
Provide opportunities for the children to reflect on and develop their learning experiences both at home and in the setting; use photographs, talking photo albums, slide-shows to share with families as they arrive or depart, made books, drawings, video, etc.
Share the ideas and experiences represented in books and encourage the children in relating them to their own experiences, ideas and feelings. Use stories to focus children's attention on predictions and explanations, for example 'What will she have to do now?' 'Why did the boat tip over?' and general patterns, for example what generally happens to 'good' and 'wicked' characters at the end of stories.
Encourage children to talk about events from home and prompt hem to tell their families about things they have done in their setting.
Ask children to think in advance about how they will accomplish a task. Talk through and sequence the stages.

Adult role

Make a language and literacy rich environment. For an audit see Early Reading Audit.
Provide opportunities for children to communicate thoughts, ideas and feelings and build up relationships with adults and with each other.
Provide time and opportunities to develop spoken language through conversations between children and adults, both one to one and in small groups, with particular awareness of, and sensitivity to, the needs of children learning English as an additional language, using their home language when appropriate.
Provide story and rhyme sacks with books, objects, tapes, CD-ROMs, etc. Model uses and make available for play. Extend into puppetry, 'small world' or role-play.
Scaffold children's spoken language, recasting sentences, providing models, extending ideas, etc. to help children clarify thoughts, ideas, feelings and events.
Help children to structure tasks individually and collaboratively.
Help children to organise their thinking by using pictures, photographs, story boards, etc.
Involve children in planning, recording and reflecting on experiences, for example through the use of video.

Look, listen and note

How do children use talk to reflect upon, clarify, sequence and think about present and past experiences, ideas and feelings?
Can they link one thing to another to explain and anticipate things? For example: We won't play outside today because it's too windy...you might get blown away. Last time some branches got blown off.
How do they use talk to plan and organise an activity?

Assessment opportunities

Observe how children use talk to reflect, for example recalling personal events.
Are children able to sequence an idea or event?
Observe how children are able to describe how to do something, for example to get to the top of a climbing frame or to make a tape play.