Picture above from.
<a href="https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/children-reading-books-white-background_25673934.htm#query=education%20clipart&position=1&from_view=keyword&track=ais">Image by brgfx</a> on Freepik
Reflective practice in Early years.
How can we can implement being a reflective practice and a reflective practitioner?
Introductions
I have worked in early years for over 23 years. I have been many roles from assistant, deputy, supervisor, room lead and manager I also went back to university and did a level 4 in childcare higher education.
As the new term approaches and new systems, strategies and children are going to be beginning. I turn my attention to what has worked and what we could improve on.
That could be anything from planning and activities offered, transitions and new starter settling in to reassures changes and sorting.
I begin to think about what we will offer the children and what impact this will have on their learning.
This is also the time I use to reflect on all areas of development and how we could change, add too, or scaffold learning in the up and coming terms.
One thing about this process that jumps out at me is how invaluable being a reflective practitioner is. As part of ongoing practice but also for in the moment learning.
What is a reflective practitioner?
A ‘reflective practitioner is someone who will look back on practice
This should including your planning, Activities and the learning environment.
As a practitioner you have to think what went well and what would you so different?.
In the document “birth to Five matters” it puts great importance in reflecting on all areas of our practice to improve the learning opportunities offered within it.
This is also represented in parts of “plan, do, review” and the “three i’s” This helps us as practitioners on an individual scale and pitch activities and learning to have the best impact on practice, development and learning.
Tips for Practitioners =
• Reflect on what you know,
• Reflect on what you have noticed
• Reflect on what you understood,
• planned for regarding the Learning environment and Children’s development.
• What are the children learning from or building on from the opportunities.
Having a reflective practice allows practitioners to develop a critical understanding of their own practice. It can also highlight needs for future training and personal development to be better equipped in areas that need addressing or strengthening. Practitioners should work together to observe, practice, assess, listen and talk about children’s learning and development. This sometimes means stepping back and looking at your practice from a different view point.
Hopefully by doing this we can offer better opportunities with deeper learning impact at every step if the children’s and Practitioners time within the setting. It gives us time to change or enhance children’s learning in the moment and in an individualised way. Through the planning and assessment cycle we can highlight areas of practice we need to improve or build on. This helps our setting embrace change and trying things in new ways not just because it worked before.
Being a reflective practitioner helps breed the foundations for Lifelong learning is directly linked in the Characteristics of Effective Learning in the EYFS document. How children learn and what learning environments you offer has a direct impact on practice. Observations if recorded when they are meaningful, can help tell us what the children understand and on what level to pitch future learning experiences.
“Writing about your experiences will help you to make sense of them, so that your understanding lasts and contributes to your lifelong Learning.” (Howatson-Jones: Reflective Practice in Nursing, 2010:120)
So I see being a reflective practitioner as a tool to gain better insight into what we offer and why. It also helps us keep the children’s learning at the center of the practice and provision we offer the children in our care.
Tips
• Develop a good listening ear
• Be a good role model.
• Have spaces within your setting to enable listening and talking.
• We can use positive passionate strategies that make it easier to listen and talk
• We can use role play, interactive stories and books to look deeper in to teach children how to also be reflective on their own behaviour, learning or strategies
It is useful to keep these things in mind when being a reflective practitioner within a reflective practice.
What does your provision look like its very best?
What stands out in your setting and why?
What strategies and plans for learning help you learn best?
How would you like to learn and in what environments and situations do you learn best?
Through a reflective learning lenses we can see the importance of being a reflective practice and engage with the reflection possess in early years and beyond. This in turn aloes us to be great reflective practitioners.
Tips with children
How could you have done that differently?
Did you enjoy that activity? What did you like best?
Shall we think together about the things we might need for that?
How does that make you feel?
The main take from all this is that we need to empower ourselves first and build on our self
confidence that as a practitioner we are offering the best opportunities to explore learning in our
setting. It allows us to be forever updating and adding to the learning experiences and
opportunities we are offering the children and communities that access our setting. It builds
learning environment that practitioners and families can be proud of. I hope this has been helpful.
Links
https://birthto5matters.org.uk/
https://www.gov.uk/early-years-foundation-stage
Future reading.
- Reflective Practice in the Early Years, Michael Reed
- Reflective Practice and Early Years Professionalism, Linking Theory and Practice, Jennie Lindon
- Developing Reflective Practice in the Early Years, Alice Paige-Smith
Picture below
<a href=https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/children-are-reading-books-stack-books_25540002.htm#query=education%20clipart&position=3&from_view=keyword&track=ais>Image by brgfx</a> on Freepik
Add comment
Comments