Early years
I choose: play and communication board
Provide a visual prompt for a child to make a choice, express a basic message or indicate a preference using the communication method that works for them.
Early years class teacher
I pay attention to the small actions that help children develop control and confidence, including the movements involved in early mark-making.
Explore the collectionI teach an early years group where projects often continue over several days rather than fitting into one activity. I like to leave materials available so children can return to an idea, change it and add something new. That continuity gives me more to observe than a single finished product and helps the next invitation grow from what the group has already explored.
Planning for this kind of work means thinking about what should remain accessible and what needs an adult’s support. I look for provision ideas that can stay open without becoming complicated to prepare. Short family notes are useful too, especially when they explain what the group has been exploring and give families a clear way to continue the conversation.
I pay attention to the small actions that help children develop control and confidence, including the movements involved in early mark-making. A resource should support practice without setting an expectation that every child follows the same path. I want ideas that can be revisited, adapted and connected to the children’s own interests.
Leave project materials available for children to revisit.
Use short family notes to explain ongoing work.
Offer mark-making opportunities without imposing one pace.
Explore these templates and decide what fits your own setting.
Early years
Provide a visual prompt for a child to make a choice, express a basic message or indicate a preference using the communication method that works for them.
Languages and literacy
Let a child explore the letters in their own name through adult modelling and a choice of tracing, copying or writing.
Languages and literacy
Explore lines and shapes one path at a time, using start and finish markers while respecting each child’s pace.
Languages and literacy
Keep a child’s story at the centre through drawing and dictation, with tracing, copying or independent writing offered when useful.