Early Years Courses 2015   (for booking see below)

Outstanding Ideas for Developing Communication & Language in EYFS

• Leeds - Double Tree Hotel, Granary Wharf, 2 Wharf Approach, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS1 4BR. 0113 241 1000. on Wednesday 11th March 2015 10am to 3.45pm. Price £135 (plus VAT) including lunch and coffee.
• Birmingham Area - Beckett's Farm (A. E. Beckett & Sons Ltd), Heath Farm, Alcester Road, Wythall, Birmingham, B47 6AJ on Thursday 19th March 2015  10am to 3.45pm. Price £150 (plus VAT) including lunch and coffee

This new course will:

• Look in detail at the Early Years Outcomes for Communication & Language.
• Raise practitioners awareness and understanding of children’s communication and language.
• Help practitioners become more aware of language as an essential pre-requisite for all future learning.
• Help practitioners understand how their own communicative behaviour affects children’s ability to communicate.
• Develop a range of exciting and stimulating activities to help children learn to listen attentively and speak clearly and confidently through both child initiated & adult led learning with some additional thoughts on indoor & outdoor environments.
• Think about promoting language for thinking, big questions & the use of plan, do, review.
• Focus on developing sustained shared thinking, what it is and how to develop it.

EYFS: Child Initiated Learning, Continuous Provision & The Characteristics of Effective Learning

• Lancashire – Ribby Hall Conference Centre, Ribby Road, Wrea Green, Preston PR4 2PR Wednesday 25th March 2015, 10am to 3.45pm. Price £130 (plus VAT) including lunch & coffee.

This course looks at the EYFS statutory requirement to provide a balance of adult led and child initiated learning. The course will consider:

• What freely chosen or child initiated learning implies.
• How child initiated learning can be offered through a range of continuous provision in the indoor environment.
• The nature of basic continuous provision and how this might be set up, maintained & planned for in order to identify potential learning outcomes.
• Enhancement of basic continuous provision.
• Challenge for children whose learning needs to be extended (adult initiated or open ended learning).
• An in depth look at the three characteristics of effective learning & how they relate to child initiated learning.
• Short & medium term planning for continuous provision, enhancement & challenge.

Meeting the Needs of 2 Year Olds in the Maintained Sector

• Lancashire – Ribby Hall Conference Centre, Ribby Road, Wrea Green, Preston PR4 2PR Tuesday 3rd February 2015, 10am to 3.45pm. Price £130 (plus VAT) including lunch & coffee.

Many maintained sector schools are now taking children from the age of two. This course is designed to raise practitioners awareness of the very specific needs of two year olds in relation to:

• The standards for early years teacher & their implication for practice.
• An appropriate learning environment inside & outside.
• The provision of a range of learning experiences.
• Observation, assessment, planning & evidencing learning for 2-3 year olds including 2+ check.
• Attachment theory & the key person system.

Developing Outstanding Early Years Practitioners

• Manchester - Madeleine Lindley Training & Conference Centre, Broadgate, Broadway Business Park, Chadderton, Oldham OL9 9XA on Wednesday 25th February 2015, 10am to 3.45pm. Price £130 (plus VAT) including lunch & coffee.

Staff in early years do not just play & wash up paint pots. Their role is fundamental in ensuring young children reach their maximum educational potential and access social justice.

This course provides leaders, managers & practitioners with a detailed overview of how to develop teaching & teaching assistants as outstanding & reflective practitioners.

The course explores the concept of reflective practice for management & practitioners to ensure the needs of children are best met. The course looks how observation of practitioners needs can be related to performance management & ongoing professional development and where relevant broken down into in depth coaching programmes which are crucial to ensure all staff have the skills necessary to promote effective learning for all children.

The course considers the requirements of the EYFS statutory framework and Ofsted in relation to effective practice.

The Adult Role in Supporting & Extending Children’s Learning in EYFS

• Sheffield - The Double Tree Hotel (by Hilton Sheffield Park), Chesterfield Road South, Sheffield S8 8BW on Thursday 12th March 2015 10am to 3.45pm. Price £150 (plus VAT) including lunch & coffee.

This full day course is aimed at raising adults awareness of the many & varied roles they play when working in early years classrooms. The course is suitable for teaching & non-teaching staff.

The course explores: supporting child initiated & adult directed teaching, using ongoing observation & assessment to identify next steps in learning, asking quality questions & developing children’s vocabulary, promoting independence & positive behavior, the crucial development of early years knowledge & understanding including child development and knowledge of the key person system & its importance.

Ultimate Outdoor Learning in EYFS - Contrasting not Duplicating

• Southampton - De Vere Venues New Place, High Street, Shirrell Heath, Southampton, Hampshire SO32 2JY on Thursday 5th March 2015 10am to 3.45pm.  Price £160 (plus VAT) including lunch and coffee.
• Liverpool – The De Vere Village Hotel Liverpool, Fallows Way, Whiston L35 1RZ on Tuesday 24th March 2015, 10am to 3.45pm. Price £130 (plus VAT) including lunch & coffee.

This completely new course looks at the essential nature & long term advantages of offering high quality, challenging outdoor learning. The course will:

Explores the pedagogy behind outdoor learning providing practitioners with solid philosophical justification useful for coaching, senior management, Ofsted & parents. • Examines the critical role of the adult in supporting learning outdoors.
• Examines ultimate outdoor provision & learning with common sense ideas as to how to put this into practice in the delegate’s provision.
• Identifies what is basic to effective outdoor learning and moves onto consider the essential elements of provision.
• Provides many practical examples of effective provision.
• Considers hazard, risk taking and challenge.
• Explores on-going learning experiences & planning for effective outdoor learning (short & medium term revised May 2013).
• Promotes the use of stories as a starting point for developing early learning in the outdoors developing plods (possible lines of development) and following children’s learning needs & interests.

Outstanding Ideas to Develop Early Writing in EYFS

• London - etc.venues, 57 North Wharf Road, Paddington, London W2 1LA on Wednesday 18th March 2015, 10am to 3.45pm. Price £180 (plus VAT) including lunch & coffee.

This completely new course will consider the fundamentals that need to be in place in child initiated & adult directed teaching to ensure children become confident writers. The course will:

• Provide opportunities for practitioners to reflect on the ways to promote & develop early writing for young children in nursery & reception classes.
• Suggest strategies for the development of staff knowledge of the processes involved in meeting the individual needs of children.
• Consider the nature of enhanced/enriched provision to support writing & how to challenge more able writers in FS.
• Look at promoting a positive image of writing for all children whilst also meeting the needs of boys.
• Investigate the nature of interactive writing situations & stimulating creative writing.
• Explore the teaching of writing from a developmental perspective.

Course Booking:
Please e-mail the following details to kathy.bigio@yahoo.co.uk

• School name, address & telephone number:
• Order No:
• Participant Name:
• Course name:
• Course date:

In School Advice & Training

We offer customised consultancy & training nationally & internationally for settings, schools & networks of schools. This includes on-site training and/or observation & evaluation of the schools foundation stage practice. All of the above courses can be delivered in your school for your staff. Prices on application.

All the above & following courses can be delivered in your school or for your network of schools:

Kathy Bigio Limited,
Early Years Advice & Training
1, Dovecote, Clayton-le-Woods, Lancs, PR6 7AY.
kathy.bigio@yahoo.co.uk      www.kathybigio.com      Telephone 0772 589 6063