Ensuring Quality Transitions From Early Years’ Establishments Into Primary Schools: Putting Research Into Practice

Inverclyde Educational Psychology Services, Greenock, United Kingdom

 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.499917/full

This study focuses on preschool to primary school transitions and aims to explore the elements necessary to support these transitions and foster a nurturing environment for children. The research takes a flexible qualitative approach, promoting collaborative activities to create shared meaning.

Participants, including early years' staff, primary teachers, parents, and pupils, were recruited from a Scottish local authority to engage in qualitative and quantitative activities. Through a Person Centered Planning (PCP) approach and four identified qualitative activities, a transition timeline was co-constructed. This timeline outlines essential preparatory activities for all pupils, including those with additional support needs (ASNs), and highlights examples of excellence in practice.

The intention is to promote consistency of practice across service providers, ultimately enhancing existing procedures for transitions without replacing any positive transition work that may already exist in different contexts. By sharing this study's findings, it is hoped that the process of transitioning from early years' centers to primary schools can be made smoother and more beneficial for all involved parties.

Transitions and changes in a child's daily life can be overwhelming and anxiety-inducing. When practitioners are unaware of these anxieties, they can worsen the situation. Therefore, it is crucial to plan for and support transitions appropriately. One of the six nurture principles in relationship-based practice is supporting transitions, which can positively impact academic achievement.

To ensure successful preschool transitions, it is essential to have activities and events that bridge the gaps that might disrupt a child's learning and development. This responsibility falls on practitioners in both ECEs and receiving primary schools, as well as the broader multiagency team, including educational psychologists. Collaborative efforts among professionals maximise the chances of successful transitions. Moreover, involving parents, children, and families further enhances the process.

For my inquiry I will start with my Stages and plan accordingly and as time permit me to do so.

Aim
• To investigate what should be in place to support transitions.
• To develop a shared understanding of what makes a nurturing transition for children across providers.
• To create a document outlining the values and principles underpinning transitions for children.

Stage 1:

Ethics
Allocate and meet with educators who are willing to participate int his journey to make transitions smoother for the tamariki.
Participants will be made aware of their rights to withdraw at any time and debriefing took place for all.

Design
The overall design of a qualitative and flexible approach that takes an interactive nature to co-create shared meaning of transitions. The initial stage 1 served as an exploration regarding the next steps.

Participants
Methods of recruitment for the investigation are consistent with obtaining active and informed consent from participants. The session is intended for practitioners that included a mixture of early years’ staff, primary teachers and principals

Materials

My intended plan: Getting enough people together to formulate an action plan.

Procedure

• Working together—all practitioners have developed transitional guidance unique to them.
• Consistency of practice could be ameliorated by working from the same guidance.
• Listening carefully to identify people aspirations for positive transitions.
• Identifying strengths and solutions.
• Focusing on what could be possible rather than just what was available. Local authority resources fluctuate yet the focus needed to be upon the creativity of resources.

Hua Whenua for Matariki

A warming and inviting way to bring family and friends together to celebrate this very special date.

For generations, the Māori have relied on Matariki to plan their harvests. During this season, a cherished tradition is to come together and enjoy lovingly prepared kai (food) with our whānau (family), friends, and community.

Hua Whenua, also known as Friendship Soup, is a fantastic choice because everyone pitches in with ingredients from their pantry, fridge, or vegetable garden to create a large pot of hot, nourishing soup. Children can join in by helping gather and prepare the ingredients, which offers many opportunities to learn about Māori culture and taking care of Papatūānuku (the Earth mother).

In our version of Hua Whenua we went to our school garden to see what was ready to harvest: we found celery, kumura and some fresh herbs. We also invited everyone to bring a vegetable from home. While making the soup, we made sure to save all our vegetable peelings to feed them to our worms. This helps our vegetables grow better and tastier, and it reduces waste that would otherwise go to the landfill.

Harvesting our veggies

Let's see if we have everything for our soup?

  

We helped to peel all the veggies

Yummy, all done!!

Dished up and ready to eat!!

Perfect for the cold day!

Since Matariki is closely linked to Ranginui (the Sky father) and the stars, next time we will make tasty star-shaped croutons with cheese and herbs to accompany our soup. 

 

We used the Matariki Soup recipe from Twinkl.

 

Matariki overview Learning Slides

Introduction

Matariki, the Māori New Year, is a significant cultural celebration in New Zealand. It is a time to reflect, celebrate, and learn about the stars, nature, and Māori traditions. Incorporating Matariki into the curriculum for young learners, specifically Year 0-2 students, can be an enriching experience. In this blog post, we will explore how Matariki learning slides can be used to engaging "Learn, Create, Share" activities.

Why Matariki for Year 0-2 Students?

Matariki offers a unique opportunity to connect children with the natural world and Māori culture. Year 0-2 students are at a crucial developmental stage where they are curious, receptive to new concepts, and eager to engage in hands-on learning experiences. By integrating Matariki into their curriculum, we can foster a love for learning, build cultural understanding, and develop essential skills.

Matariki Learning Slides

Matariki learning slides are digital or printable resources that can be tailored to the specific needs of Year 0-2 students. These slides can include information about the Matariki star cluster.

Celebration time with our Science Showcase

At GTS, we're all about making learning exciting and hands-on. This term our focus during LEARN CREATE SHARE was Science, our students got to choose what they wanted to learn about in: (material world)stuff in our world, (physical world)things that move, or living things. What they did with their choices was nothing short of amazing!

We decided to show off our students' hard work with a Science Showcase, and guess what? Loads of whanau came.

 

It was a big surprise for us, but it shows just how much they care about their child's learning.

Living world - looking at invertebrates like jellyfish - they have no bones!!

Volcano on a lemon??

Material world - it's all about mixing stuff together and see what happens - the WHY?

Our students were like little scientists, showing off what they'd learned with big smiles on their faces. Everyone was so proud.

Physical world - making things move and how can we make it faster or slower. Newton's cradle - this was a very big challenge,  but we persevered and got it in the end!! A few burned fingers from the hot glue gun, but the outcome was mazing!!

Magnet fun - even a bit of magic!!

Doing art with magnets - who would have thought!?

Simple machines - making a ramp for our car we created that can really move!!

Floating - scenario was set. We have a ship and it crashed into some rocks. The ship sank. The people are safe on the island but now we have to make a boat that will float to get the people safely home - what are we going to do. What makes a boat float? It's all about the shape and the load!!!

What made this showcase special was how much everyone loved it. Whanau couldn't stop saying nice things about our teachers and students. We believe in teaching in a fun way that helps all learners. We want to make sure learning is exciting for everyone.

Let's look at our bones - we made a spine!! 

Our hands can move - each little bit of our fingers moved just like a real hand!

We don't do science like you might think. No boring lectures here! Our students get their hands dirty, because learning is messy, and have a blast doing it. They learned about cool stuff like chemicals mixing together, how things move and the wonders of nature. Every moment was a chance to learn and have fun. We are all about failures too - if we try to create and it doesn't work the first time, we can reflect and make it better.

Our students were so excited and curious. They looked like future scientists, engineers, and nature lovers. But most importantly, they looked like children who love learning and exploring.

In a world that can sometimes be confusing, it's great to know our children are getting ready to take on any challenge. The Science Showcase wasn't just about what they learned this term. It was about showing their incredible potential.

We're excited for the future and can't wait to see where their curiosity takes them. Thanks to all the whanau for their support, and congrats to our fantastic students. Together, we're making the future a little brighter and a lot more curious!

Manaiakalani Create Workshop 2 June 2023

We recently conducted a creative workshop led by our incredible Team Koru, and the experience was truly rewarding. 

The positive feedback we received from the participants was overwhelming and inspiring. They appreciated our innovative approach and unique perspective, which allowed them to explore their creative potential in a supportive environment. 

Many participants were intrigued by our practice and asked insightful questions about our methods, techniques, and the philosophy behind our work. It was gratifying to witness how our hard work and collaborative efforts were clearly evident to those observing from the outside. 

Knowing that our dedication and passion resonated with others reaffirmed our belief in the power of creativity and reinforced our commitment to fostering a vibrant and inclusive creative community.

Please have a look at our amazing slides.

4 Strategies for Sparking Critical Thinking in Young Students - EDUTOPIA 12th May 2023

Fostering investigative conversations in a junior class can be challenging but incredibly beneficial for promoting critical thinking. Let's look at some strategies:

Encourage Friendly Debate: 

Providing open-ended prompts that engage students' interest and allow them to take a stance can spark organic engagement and critical thinking. By encouraging students to share their opinions and participate in debates, they develop their ability to articulate their thoughts, provide evidence, and respectfully engage with peers. The math talk questions and picture-based discussions are great examples of how to generate interesting conversations.


Put Your Students in the Question: 

Centering students' viewpoints in a question or discussion prompt fosters deeper thinking. By personalising the topic, students are encouraged to analyse, reflect, and make connections to their own experiences. This approach enhances engagement and allows for more meaningful exploration of the subject.


Open Several Doors: 

Some students may be hesitant to participate in classroom discussions. Providing opportunities for them to express their opinions, such as using hand signals or participation cards, ensures that everyone's voice is heard. These strategies create a supportive environment where all students can contribute comfortably and encourage the conversation to flow.


Provide Discussion Sentence Starters: 

Young students often struggle to connect their contributions to their peers' ideas. Introducing sentence starters and modelling how to build upon others' thoughts helps students engage in more meaningful and connected conversations. Celebrating their correct usage of sentence stems reinforces these behaviours and encourages further growth.

Here are a few more suggestions to foster investigative conversations and critical thinking in the junior class:

Use Scaffolding Techniques: 

Provide scaffolds such as graphic organisers, visual aids, or sentence frames to support students' thinking and expression. These tools help structure their thoughts and encourage them to delve deeper into the topic.


Incorporate Real-Life Examples and Experiences: 

Relate the topic of discussion to real-life situations, experiences, or current events that are relevant and relatable to the students. This connection enhances their understanding, encourages critical thinking, and promotes engagement in the conversation.


Encourage Active Listening and Reflection: 

Emphasise the importance of active listening during discussions. Encourage students to listen attentively to their peers, ask clarifying questions, and reflect on what is being shared. This practice enhances their understanding, promotes empathy, and supports the development of critical thinking skills.


Create a Supportive Classroom Culture: 

Foster a safe and inclusive classroom environment where students feel comfortable expressing their thoughts, asking questions, and challenging ideas. Encourage mutual respect, active participation, and valuing diverse perspectives.

By implementing these strategies and providing appropriate support, teachers can create a classroom culture that nurtures investigative conversations, critical thinking, and deep learning among their junior students.

The Writing Rope

The Writing Rope - created by Joan Sedita

Let's look a the basics of each strand and what it means with an example and simple ideas. All 5 strands need to be taught for the students to become efficient writers.

1. First Strand - Critical Thinking

• Generating ideas and gathering information
• and teaching about the writing process like organising, drafting, editing and revising

- Very important in junior years to teach our children to brainstorm ideas and to let them know they have a bunch of ideas to write about and plenty of ideas to share with others

- Important to instil that they are writers and that they can do this
  Joan Sedita has broken down the writing process into 4 categories where the writing and revising parts are usually the hardest parts 

- We can also put it in 5 different categories which may be more applicable to juniors and New Entrants: 

•    THINK - I can think of an idea to share
  
  
  
•    PLAN & SAY - I can take my idea and plan what I want to share. This is because in junior classes and                     especially ESOL students, the Oral Language is so important. We know that all of our students have all these       ideas in their brain but the writing, transcribing part is going to be the hardest part for them. They are             learning how to use all the skills, e.g. writing a sentence, use punctuation, grammar and also how to physically     write down the words. Before they attempt the writing, make sure they are able to use their language orally.
  
  
  
•    DRAW & WRITE - I can draw and write my ideas on paper. Drawing is a very important part of the writing             process
  
  
   
•    EDIT & REVISE - I can re-read my story to add and fix things. At this level we have to focus on                             punctuation,  capitalisation and going back to my story and add more.
  
  
  
•    SHARE - I can share my story with all of you. We have to understand that we are not always just writing for         ourselves but also for an audience. That way we can praise and celebrate.
  
  
  

Now, during the writing process we have to focus on each step and explicitly teach each step. Let's look what it can look like:

Day 1 and Day 2 is very similar. 

Day 1- you are introducing the genre you will focus on and introduce some key points e.g. For HOW TO informative writing genre. This is a simple model you can use to introduce and the students can always refer back to it. Also look at a piece of writing to model with.

Day 2 - brainstorming day. this is our thinking step. A brainstorming sheet is useful to get all their ideas written down. Using the sheet and model how to use it as a tool to brainstorm their ideas. Ask for student feedback and making sure they understand how to use it before they go off and write. You can also fill it in together and the students can copy the ideas.

Next is the planning step. This is where you will give the students the different plan to use for different genres e.g. narrative will have a beginning, middle and end, a informative text, you will have a main idea and then jot down some details and explaining the procedural steps they need to take.

Very easy step to write - they use their planning to write their story. Here they can cross check with you if they are still following the plan for the specific genre.

For revising and editing it is easy to use a checklist to follow. Here is an example of the checklist for the HOW TO genre. Making sure that you follow all of the things. 

General editing checklist: 

2. Second strand - Syntax

• Grammar and syntactic awareness
• Sentence elaboration
• Punctuation

Grammar and syntactic awareness and sentence structure are very different in each level the students are at. This will grow and expand as they become more confident. 

In the junior levels this is what students need to focus on:

• understand what a sentence is
• write an complete sentence
• the different sentence types
• expand sentences into super sentences - this is where students can focus and explore using different punctuation and edit their sentences.

After the whole group modelling the students can go into writing centres or groups to practice as well as go over the writing and discuss.

1. Teach them about conjunction sentences - using the word and but 2 words together. It is good to model this first with the whole group because they can hear what it should sound like before they write independently.
   

   
   

   
   
   
   
2. Sentence scrambles is also good practice to look at syntax and grammar. they have to put the words in order to make sense. Decodable sentence scrambles are great because students can do these independently.
   
   
   

3. Third strand - Test Structure

• 3 different types of writing - narrative, informational and opinion writing
• paragraph structure
• organisation 
• linking and transition words

At junior level the patterns and organisation is not really applicable yet, but you can teach about the 3 different types of writing and how they are different from each other and also a few transition words. 

Explicitly teach what each genre is e.g. modelling, brainstorm ideas together and have that available when they do writing independently. Looking at features what makes a narrative and an informative text. Teach them why transition words are important and how the story will make sense if you use them correctly.

4. Fourth strand - Writing craft

• word choice
• awareness of task, audience and purpose
• literary devices

There are a couple of things we can do in the junior level. We want to make the students aware what type of writing they will be creating, Teaching each genre specifically and what it looks like through modelling and the purpose. We can expect 1-2 sentences and expanding as they grow more confident.

As literary device you can introduce direct speech - like speech bubbles during a shared reading or reading to. Explaining why they are there and why did the author do it like that.

Also using sensory details - modelling a text and pointing out the sensory details - e.g. what did we see, hear, smell, taste or felt at the beach.

We can introduce our students to some of the features they will be using later on.

5. Fifth strand - Transcription

• this is the most important part for students
• spelling 
• handwriting

As we said before the physical act of writing is the most difficult part of writing  because it is a developmental skill that many students may or may not have learned yet. 

We have to make sure while we are teaching writing they say all the wonderful ideas they have and what a sentence may look like that we also focus on spelling and handwriting. 

Through handwriting we teach automaticity  - they have so many things that is going on all at once - think about the word they want to write and breaking down the sounds, make sure they know the grapheme phoneme correspondents, then take the pencil and hold it correctly and thinking how to form the letter correctly.  

There are 2 different types of spelling: 

Inventive Spelling - during writing we have to rely on inventive spelling to get the ideas out. They are not going to be able to proficiently spell the words correctly yet because we haven't taught it to them yet. That's why our students need explicit spelling instruction during phonics. Want to teach in a systematic and sequential way - through phoneme and matching it to the corresponding graphemes. 

Resources: Sussan Jones

The Writing Rope - Joan Sedita - Session 1

The Writing Rope - Joan Sedita - Session 2

The Writing Rope - Joan Sedita - Session 3

The Writing Rope - Joan Sedita - Session 4

The Writing Rope - Joan Sedita - Session 5