My team and I met on Saturday for a staff training event, hosted by Graeme and I, at a local hotel, where I delivered training on ‘Extending the Reggio Approach’ For inspiration to change we have used the book, The Hundred Languages of Children, by editors from The International Reggio Exchange, a recent visit to another Reggio setting and our new policy on care of the under twos, following the cross-party manifesto agenda ‘1001 Critical Days’

The aim of the session was to look at our curriculum and ask how we can deliver a more child-led and creative curriculum, whilst ensuring that children are supported to continue to achieve in all areas and one which is compliant in its delivery of the EYFS. Quite a task I think you will agree.
The session was very positive with all of my team excited by the prospect of change and willing to adapt practice to accommodate new ideas.
This is what we will do;
• All planning will be ‘loose’ and will be used as a starting point only
• What children tell us and what we observe will be explored and if children are interested this will become a project
• Observations will be on-going throughout the day and these WILL form the basis of all suggested topics
• How long the topic will last will be directly related to children’s interest
• Topics will be revisited and ‘reframed’ over the course of the days and weeks to discover if there is more we can learn from the topic
• What parents tell us children are interested in will be ‘offered’ back to children to test their interest
• There may be several small topics being investigated at one time as key persons will allow their key children to develop ideas and test their hypothesis
What we need from parents,
• Anecdotal information about what you have done and what your child enjoys
• Resources, anything at all you think other children would love to explore, an old shoe, a box, a broken clock, an unused old calculator
What else you need to know.
• We deliver Jolly Phonics and fully support reading for all.
• We recognise the importance of literacy which, is supported through naturally occurring activities and events
• To support a natural love of literacy, from September 2016, we will introduce ‘Messaggerie’ the process of using individual mail boxes and message exchange
• We recognise the importance of mathematics, this is supported through child-led activities and projects
• All areas of the EYFS is covered in topics children are interested in
• As is now, any adult-led activities will be ‘Participation by Invitation’