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Euan Robson MSP, Deputy Minister for Education and Young
People, spoke at the national conference to launch the ICT
Strategy for Early Years.
Our intention is to help you the practitioners to enrich the experiences of the young children you work with, through the meaningful and appropriate use of a broad range of resources that are captured under the term ‘information and communications technologies’, or ICT for short. The words
‘meaningful’ and ‘appropriate’ are essential here.
Although we may not always realise it, children interact with ICT on a daily basis.
Whether it be helping mum at the supermarket by using the electronic scales for the fruit, getting their picture taken or listening to a CD, children are engaging with ICT like never before. And the notion of drawing upon children’s day-to-day experiences to aid their enjoyment and learning during the early years is not a new one. Indeed, this underpins the Curriculum Framework for Children 3 to 5 . Incorporating ICT into early years settings in a constructive, enjoyable and satisfying way offers us the chance to make children’s experiences all the more meaningful and fulfilling.
ICT has a great capacity to enable children to engage positively in imaginative and active learning. The instant feedback it offers and the opportunity to present ideas in dynamic and stimulating ways is immensely valuable. The skills children develop through their play and exploration with ICT will work to enhance the learning that they so readily undertake at this age and will help equip them for successful learning throughout their education. It is therefore important for their immediate and future benefit that we help children build on their abundant curiosity about ICT and make their early years experiences enlightening and meaningful to the world they inhabit. This is the message that we hope the Policy Framework makes clear and that the other components of our ICT Strategy for Early Years will help you to take forward. And to make sure that you are supported properly we are investing £3 million over the next two years alone into the roll-out of our four-part strategy.
Fundamental to enabling children to share in the benefits ICT offers, is the development of confidence, awareness and knowledge amongst early years practitioners like yourselves. Over recent years your sector has become increasingly well trained and qualified and our early years services are of an exceptionally high standard. We are rightly proud of our enthusiasm and commitment to strive for continual improvement so as to make sure children receive the best possible start in life. But in order to do this, we recognise that you need support, especially in such innovative areas as ICT.
As such the strategy has been devised with staff development as its key focus. Your feedback will be sought throughout the next three years by Learning and Teaching
Scotland and I know they are also keen to hear your views and ideas at any time.
Furthermore, there will be an external evaluation of the implementation of the strategy.
And I understand that HMIE and the Care Commission, along with the Executive’s research teams, will be looking to monitor the impact of the strategy and the benefit that it has for children’s early years experiences. I have no doubt that your involvement in the strategy, by way of an active commitment to understand and harness the full potential that ICT has to offer, will be of great benefit to Scotland’s children both during their early years and throughout their lives.
Launch of Early Learning, Forward Thinking 1
Editorial 2
ICT in Early Years 2–5
EECERA Professional Day for Practitioners 6–13
Learning and Teaching Scotland Publications 14–15
Care and Learning for Children Birth to Three 16
abc

No-one can doubt that these are exciting times for early years practitioners in
Scotland. This edition of Early Years’ Matters concentrates on three current initiatives that have aroused international interest.
At the ministerial launch of the ‘ICT Strategy for Early Years’ one speaker described the work as ‘cutting edge’. In this issue project manager Sarah Peers describes the national strategy and how it will be implemented.
The EECERA Practitioners’ Day offered international researchers an opportunity to hear about work being undertaken in a small number of Scottish nurseries – a snapshot of much of the good practice that exists throughout the country. In the future we hope to offer many more practitioners the opportunity to share their work.
Finally, the Care and Learning for Children Birth to 3 consultation paper considers the best approach to supporting our youngest children’s development. The consultation asks how the paper sits in a wider context, how it promotes effective practice and whether it explores the most important themes.
Early Years’ Matters aims to address current concerns in a thought-provoking way.
Further information is available on Early Years Online, www.LTScotland.org.uk/ earlyyears, your website – waiting for your feedback and your thoughts: a place where you can share your expertise.
Scotland is a small country with much good practice – let us share and support each other. No-one has all the answers but we can begin to discuss the questions.
Eileen Carmichael , Development Officer
Wayne Galloway , Content Editor
Early Years Online
E-mail: earlyyearscontenteditor@LTScotland.org.uk
Stuart Robertson
Team Leader
New Educational Developments
Scottish Executive Education Department
The strategy contained in Early
Learning, Forward Thinking is the key to ensuring that each Scottish child gets the best start in life by being allowed to develop twenty first century skills in a twenty first century learning environment.
The Minister wished to ensure that policy making was firmly based on research. The literature review ICT in Pre-school: A ‘Benign Addition’?
, which concluded that, from the research point of view, very little was known about ICT in the early years led to Come back in two years! A
study of the use of ICT in pre-school settings during spring and summer
2002 . The title Come back in two years!
indicated the widespread enthusiasm,
thirst for knowledge and belief in the potential of ICT among early years practitioners. However the report also indicated there had been insufficient training in how to integrate ICT in early year settings.
These findings were replicated in the analysis of the national questionnaire. Now a policy framework is being published that will address these concerns.
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The ICT S tr at egy f or Ear y Y ear s
Sarah Peers, Project Manager for ICT in Early Years, tells us: ‘The ICT Strategy for Early Years has four components:
• the document Early Learning, Forward Thinking: The Policy Framework for Early Years . This sets out the framework and background to the ICT
Strategy for Early Years. It is based around principles from the Curriculum Framework for Children 3 to 5 and explores the aims to which we need to be working. It reflects on the relevance of ICT in the early years context and provides an overview of effective use of technologies in this setting.
• a programme of training and support for the early years workforce. This will deliver a pool of trainers in each local authority area who will work to drive forward professional development for all members of the workforce in relation to ICT.
• a range of support and guidance materials for early years staff. Current good practice both here and abroad will be shared and case studies used to inform the delivery of the Policy Framework.
• a process of monitoring and evaluation. This is to appraise the impact of the strategy.
Approximately 5000 copies have already been distributed to early years centres and the strategy is available online at www.ltscotland.org.uk/earlyyears
Professor Stephen Heppell
In a wide-ranging keynote address
Stephen Heppell, Director of Ultralab, asked us to look to the e-learning future children might experience.
Contrasting the simple workshop manual for Bleriot’s monoplane with the ultracomplicated manual for a jumbo jet he asked the audience to consider the question ‘What does the workshop manual for learning look like?’ He suggested that ‘it would be enormously complicated but likely to contain
Early Learning, Forward Thinking as one chapter in such a manual for today’s learning’ and added ‘the document is exactly right in making children’s learning delightful’.
Without the expertise and wisdom of practitioners and their detailed understanding of what makes good learning we don’t move forward at all.
‘Staff members use wisdom, judgement and professionalism. Early years practice is about getting children off the ground and lighting the fuse. Early
years is the impetus for learning. Children have inextinguishable enthusiasm and absolute confidence. They accept that getting things wrong is just part of learning. There are no limits on ambition in early years.’
But there can be barriers to children’s learning. ‘Your role as practitioners is to remove the barriers to learning.’ The use of technology can play a vital part in doing this. Stephen illustrated this in a number of ways. First, with a video clip of a two-year-old using a computer who, when asked why she liked this, replied ‘You can do things you can’t do in any another way’.
Stephen also illustrated this theme by talking about ways in which children, who cannot yet read or write, can use video cameras to put across their views of the world.
Children with significant speech and language difficulties, who communicate using visual systems,
can use the added power of picture messaging through mobile phones to enhance their communication with others. Working alongside young children as they are involved in the design of small robots, can encourage children to reflect on their learning and gain insights into themselves. ‘When we get the technology right the limits which we impose on children’s learning turn out not to be there at all.’
Around the world people are experimenting with ways of using technology to support learning – from new technologies used in the design of school buildings, to innovative ways of taking learning into the community and the community into learning. These are shared learning needs that the use of technology can help to meet.
Stephen pointed out some of the reasons why he felt that Scotland was at present in the forefront of these developments. Factors such as cultural confidence, a clear view of the new economy, a small enough population, and an Executive that was committed to education, all are important in this process.
We need to take the enthusiasm of early learning years and ensure that the dampening chill weather of later schooling doesn’t extinguish it. We have to ensure that when the rocket takes off it doesn’t hit the ceiling. It’s a big task, but the big task is started here.
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Val Cox, Head of Early Education and Childcare Division, SEED, shared the findings from a May 2003 international conference entitled ‘Early Learning in the Knowledge Society’.
Some 19 countries were present to review the use of ICT in early education and to identify how policy can be strengthened.
Each of the core concepts that were identified from the European perspective have been addressed in developing this strategy in
Scotland.
• The general inadequacy of research: research had been commissioned by LT Scotland.
• The need for resources: £3m made available by SEED.
• The importance of developing a curriculum that supports a coherent ICT strategy: the broad-based curriculum framework for children 3–5 is well placed to integrate ICT developments.
• Practitioner training: training will be made available for staff at all levels of experience.
She continued:
Closing the conference Mike Baughan, Chief Executive of
Learning and Teaching Scotland, spoke about implementing the four aims in the strategy.
We need to use our knowledge of children’s learning to help us to use ICT to its full potential.
To develop pedagogy and practice in the use of ICT
We need to make sure that ICT is embedded throughout the curriculum, so that children use these technologies in meaningful contexts and we need to make sure that practitioners have opportunities to participate in debate about how, when and in what way to use ICT to best effect.
To reflect and promote equality and inclusive practice
ICT can often provide access strategies and opportunities for individual children’s learning that would not be possible without
ICT. But a wide definition of inclusion means also that we can take up new opportunities that ICT can offer, in working with parents and other professionals, in supporting and valuing cultural diversities, and in maximising the potential of ICT to support continuity in children’s learning.
To ensure all children have access to and the opportunity to learn about and with information and communications technologies
We need to ensure that the particular needs of the voluntary sector are taken into account. At a policy level, we also need to consider the wider issues of internet and intranet availability, particularly to make sure that early years establishments are included in Spark, the Scottish schools intranet.
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To develop, fund and support professional development for all staff
Funding for a wide-ranging programme of staff development for all early years practitioners is available and we need to start with valuing the present expertise and commitment of early years practitioners, and build on this to increase their confidence and skills.
Professor Tom Wilson OBE, Chair
Learning and Teaching Scotland

Jan Baxter, a pre-school teacher from Falkirk Council, records her impressions of the first early years masterclass.
I arrived at Stirling Management Centre on the Monday morning in
September full of enthusiasm and I can honestly say that I left, unbelievably, even more enthusiastic than I started. (My colleagues and family will vouch for that.) What a week! It was very busy, with long days-starting at 9.00 a.m. and not finishing on the whole until 6.30–7.00
in the evening but at no time did I ‘clock watch’. I found the workshops stimulating and informative and, in the main, interactive.
Squirrels on video?
Looking at ICT as another tool for learning and how it can be incorporated into what we are already doing and not parking children in front of a computer was the underlying theme. There was a wide range of resources to explore and consider how they could be used in nursery settings. We had the opportunity to work with interactive whiteboards. How wonderful would it be if every nursery had one of these – children playing together collaboratively with technology? (No more the cry of ‘It’s my turn for the mouse!’) I especially enjoyed the digital camera workshops, a particular interest of mine but a word of warning – do not try to video the resident squirrels as they are not very good at posing for the camera. One of the workshops was about learning styles. Interesting enough to find out more about your own learning styles but very thought provoking as to how the children in your own setting learn.
Working together
It was also interesting to meet people from other education departments and share ideas and good practice and how we saw the way forward regarding ICT. The opportunity to work collaboratively in a small group for the final presentation was excellent as we worked very well as a team, using each other’s strengths and valuing each person’s contributions. (Isn’t that what we do so well in early years?)
On a more mundane note, but one that is equally important: the accommodation was of a high standard, as was the food and general attitude of the conference centre staff. The Learning and Teaching
Scotland staff were also very accommodating and made sure every thing you needed for workshops, presentations, etc., was available, including any technological assistance required, for example help was at hand if you wanted to insert any digital video work into your presentation and had not done that before.
Digital futures
Since returning to my own job I have kept up my enthusiasm by attending SETT and the ICT Strategy launch and have already planned with my line manager the way forward regarding resources, training, etc. I am presently piloting a digital camera in the nurseries I support. I have also had hours of enjoyment with the new laptop, which has the latest version of PowerPoint to name but one thing, and the free digital editing software (my dogs are now movie stars) and, of course, I am now using that expertise in the nurseries where the children have already shot, edited, added their choice of transitions, etc., to their own video.
All that remains to say is that I think we are at a very interesting and innovative time in early years and that ICT is another tool that we can use to promote successful lifelong learning in our children.
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The European Early Childhood Education Research
Association 13th Annual Conference was held in September in
Glasgow this year, and an important part of this event was the
Professional Day for Practitioners, which was held on Saturday
6 September, the final day of the conference.
These provided an exciting opportunity to offer an event to practitioners that would inform about new initiatives and emerging trends in early years across Scotland and allow early years work being developed in different areas of Scotland to be shared.
Learning and Teaching Scotland planned the Professional
Day for Practitioners in association with the University of
Strathclyde, linking in with the main theme of the EECERA
Conference, ‘Quality in Early Childhood Education, Possible
Childhoods: Relationships and Choices’.
The main strands of the EECERA conference included:
• Children’s Voices
• Children and Families
• Relationships
• Learning Dispositions
• Rights and Responsibilities
• ICT in Early Years Education.
Practitioner Day presentations looked at a range of issues, including developing documentation approaches to the curriculum, respectful care of babies, supporting young children’s rights and enhancing how children learn through ICT in the early years. All presentations made reference to current research that has influenced their work as well as information on how the work has had impact on practice, questions for the future and the ways forward being explored.
The following pages include information about the Practitioner
Day presentations. Fuller information will be available in a new publication in the Early Education Support Series titled
‘Celebrating Early Years Thinking and Practice Scotland 2003’.
The Kidsmart project is currently running in 14 early years establishments in
Inverclyde. The project was piloted in Rainbow Family Centre in Port
Glasgow. This centre offers 46 places for children aged 2–5.
This work has been informed by the research carried out by Professor Iram Siraj-Blatchford at the Institute of Education, University of London and John Siraj-Blatchford at Cambridge
University and by recent research carried out by the heads of establishments involved in the
Kidsmart project.
Staff members have become much more aware of the role that ICT plays and will continue to play in their child’s learning. The use of ICT in early years establishments presented new opportunities for staff to become involved in partnership with parents. Comments from some of the parents involved illustrated that initially they were really intimidated by ICT but having being involved in the project their understanding of ICT and its impact on their lives had been significant.
The challenge for early years establishments in
Inverclyde will be to ensure that the ICT Policy for
Early Years is well supported with high-quality training for practitioners. An infrastructure that will support the pace of development will be put in place and will become part of the seamless transition that takes account of continuity and progression in children’s learning, integrated with all other aspects of the early years curriculum.
Joint training with parents and staff was a key feature of this project and the key aims included:
• developing pedagogy and practice together
• taking account of individual children’s learning styles
• how adults carried out their role
• developing planning and recording of ICT in the early years curriculum.
The way forward with this project is to take all of the successful areas of good practice and develop them further across all early years establishments in Inverclyde.
6
Anne Rourke
Pre-5 Quality Development Officer
Education Services
Inverclyde Council
105 Dalrymple Street
Greenock
PA15 1HT
E-mail: anne.rouke@inverclyde.gov.uk
Wendy Armstrong,
Development Officer, ICT in Early Years, spoke about the development of the ICT in Early Years strategy covered elsewhere in this newsletter.

The challenge for nurseries was to take the conceptual framework of documentation and develop their own ways of using documentation relevant to our own cultural settings.
The study is supported by a research consultant with knowledge of the
Reggio Emilia approach.
The photographs below show details of a series of mixed media collages created by children attending Fintry Nursery.
The finished work was hung at the window.
Key aims included:
• developing different types of documentation to enable educators, children and parents to see children’s learning, namely learning stories, dialogue displays, models, planning books/charts, personal books, mind-mapping charts, displays
• exploring the use of multimedia tools to make learning visible, namely digital cameras, camcorders, dictaphones, tape recorders
• supporting staff through staff development courses and through group meetings to help them develop a framework for documentation relevant to their own setting
• developing methods for planning the curriculum that included planning and consulting with children, parents and staff
• encouraging staff to look deeply at their practice and question and review their own philosophy in the light of their knowledge gained through studying and exploring the Reggio Emilia experience
• continuing to explore and develop our use of documentation and to analyse the documentation more deeply
• seeing how this documentation can link with children going into
Primary 1
• trying to devise ways of documenting that could link between nursery and home.
Reflecting on documentation so far:
• through using a documentation approach staff have become aware of the importance of observing and listening closely to children and parents and to each other and are able to use information gathered to take forward children’s learning
• we now are becoming more aware of the need to document only chosen areas of learning at one time making sure that over the year we are trying to cover all areas of the curriculum
• we have realised that, like the children, we are constantly learning and that at times this can be a slightly scary experience as we launch ourselves into new ideas and ways of working
• we realise that staff have to understand the purpose of documentation and the value, which comes from it, for ourselves, for the children and for parents/carers
• trying to involve parents in their children’s learning has been identified as a priority and we hope to devise more ways to link documentation with the home.
We have become aware of the impact that documentation has had on our practice. We need to ensure adequate levels of training are made available for any setting about to undertake the documentation pathway to learning.
We are on the pathway and are continuing along it wherever it may lead. It is a challenging and exciting experience to look forward to, and share with other early years educators.
Rosellen Dick, Fintry Nursery and Marian Kayes, Doune Nursery, share some of their documentation on the next two pages.
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8
Fintry Nursery, a school-based establishment is located in a converted schoolhouse within Fintry Primary School grounds.
The nursery operates mornings only and can cater for 20 children per session. The nursery shares the premises with an out-of-school club and with a mother-and-toddler group that uses the premises in the afternoons.
Conversations become part of the documentation.
Looking at the holes in a tree trunk
Cameron:
Educator:
Liam:
Cameron:
Jade:
Educator:
Emily:
Educator:
Emily:
‘LOOK at this hole. Fairies could go in here.’
‘How could the fairies get up to the top of the tree?’
‘Don’t you know they can fly?’
‘NO, they use ladders.’
‘They go up the steps inside the tree.’
‘Look at these bumpy bits and branches on the tree. What would the fairies use these for?’
‘It’s where they sleep.’
‘… on what?’
‘On the little branches they bend them together to make a bed.’
Visiting a ruined tower
Educator:
Isla:
Educator:
Emily:
Educator:
Mia:
Educator:
Emily:
Cameron:
Liam:
Educator:
Cameron W:
‘Look at this old place.’
‘It’s a ruined castle.’
‘And who would have lived in this castle?’
‘A fairy like in Sleeping Beauty.’
‘I wonder what her name was.’
‘Cathy.’
‘Was she a good or a bad fairy?’
‘She was good. Cathy’s nice.’
‘I think a wicked fairy lived here her name was Carabos. She put a spell on the castle and all the animals the pigs and chickens fell asleep.’
‘Don’t forget the princess and everyone else fell asleep too.’
‘Why does no-one live here now?’
‘Because there is no roof and the walls are all broken.’
Fintry Nursery used these everyday objects to stimulate children’s imagination and creativity.
EECERA Practitioners Day delegates sharing their experiences.

Doune Nursery is a stand-alone, purpose-built, flexible provision with a role of 60 children aged 3–5 years.
The children are looking at a new construction in the primary school garden.
Keir:
Rachel:
Rebecca:
Keir:
‘It’s a willow den.’
‘I like it.’
‘Looks like a snail.’
‘Got doors you can run in.’
Grace: ‘I think it’s a cave animals live in.’
Chloe D-B: ‘I think it’s a dolphin.’
Eilidth:
Mark:
James:
‘It could be a house.’
‘It could be a shark.’
‘I think it looks like a hippopotamus.’
Following a discussion with the children about what there should be in the garden area, the children produced this mind map of their ideas. They then went on to vote on what should be planted.
Rory: ‘I think it looks like a shell.’
Educator: ‘Why can’t we run inside and
Keir: grab everything.’
‘Rope would untie – it would fall
Rory:
Mark: down or poke you in the eye.’
‘It would hurt yourself and get blood.’ Following the visit the children began to design their very own willow den.
‘It might go in your mouth or nose.’
Educator: ‘What would happen if everybody ran in it from each end?’
Keir: ‘You would go bang.’
Educator: ‘Today Peter and Marian are to going to go and pick up the new shed. Sophie’s Dad is going to help us build it with Peter. What
Sam: could we put in our shed?’
‘We could put tools in it.’
Madeline: ‘We could put toys in it.’
Sophie:
Conor:
‘We could put saws in there.’
‘I have a garage. We keep bikes and the car in it.’
Educator: ‘What sort of things would you like to do in there?’
Madeline: ‘We could have chairs.’
Sam:
Jack S:
‘Cut wood in it.’
‘We could put the workbench in to saw the wood and have nails,
Conor: sticks and a hammer.’
‘We could make a castle.’
Educator: ‘Yes, what could we pretend our shed was – could we make it look
Conor:
Emma: different to a shed?’
‘Make it a castle.’
‘Caravanette.’
Alex Mac: ‘A lorry.’
Madeline: ‘It could be a nursery.’
Morag: ‘I’ll be the nursery lady.’
Sam:
Conor:
‘How about a boat.’
‘A submarine.’
Educator: ‘Let’s go away and have a think. We could ask Mummies and
Daddies too, and we’ll talk about it again once the shed is here next week.’
For further information about Developing a Documentation Approach contact:
Pat Wharton
Senior Early Years Childhood Link Officer
Children’s Services
Stirling Council
Room 206
Viewforth
Stirling
FK8 2ET
Tel: 01786 442659
E-mail: whartonp@stirling.gov.uk
This book, made from handmade paper, was created and written by children at Doune
Nursery.
9

Context
The centre is a day-care nursery attached to a college of higher education in central Scotland, which offers places to the children of college students.
The nursery is a partner provider for South Lanarkshire Council and has provision for babies from 4 months to children of 5 years old with an out-of-school club.
The work itself
This research examined how the nursery could promote respectful care of young babies whilst supporting both their parents and the nursery staff.
The nursery opened in September 2001 and this work was undertaken to ensure that the nursery provided:
Kraemer
• high-quality care and education for individual babies
• appropriate support to parents embarking on or returning to study
• training and support to the practitioners who care for the very youngest children.
The work was important, as the many pieces of research from across Europe the UK and the US offered conflicting findings on appropriate care for babies and also the effects of day care on very young children. It seemed therefore crucial that we clarified what we wanted to achieve for babies, parents and staff in the nursery.
Observations, interviews, questionnaires and the study of video evidence allowed all participants, babies, parents and staff to be heard and be a part of this collaborative venture. Staff members were supported through regular appraisal, time for reflection and discussion and a professional development programme.
Key aims included:
• acknowledging and using the skills and knowledge of the baby room staff
• supporting practitioners and encouraging them to ‘hear the voices’ of the babies in their care
• encouraging staff to explore their own values and practice wisdom in the light of key theoretical concepts about the care of very young children and in the light of their own observations
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• creating a climate of respectful care throughout the nursery
• creating a high quality care and learning environment for babies
• establishing continuous professional development opportunities to support staff in all of the above.
The way forward
Staff identified areas of practice that were successful and areas where changes in practice would be beneficial. Most importantly, they also became more attuned to the needs and rights of babies and continue to develop ways of ensuring that babies’ voices are heard.
Nutbrown
Discussion on respectful care has taken place throughout the nursery and is also being looked at in the context of its after-school care programme.
Collaboration with parents has and will remain a main focus of all the nursery’s work, as will the importance of ensuring that staff can access relevant, continuing professional development opportunities that support and challenge them and encourage them to ask ‘Why?’.
Contact
Barbara Dale
Bell Nursery
Bell College of Higher Education
Hamilton
ML3 OJB
Tel: 01698 894443
E-mail: b.dale@bell.ac.uk
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12
The Right t o Be Me: A Pr ting Childr en U actitioner nder 3 Y ear s T ool f or ear s of A g
Context
Recognition of the limited availability of material to support the learning, development and welfare of children 0–3 combined with the diversity of support for children 0–3 through community nurseries, childminders and, for the most vulnerable young children, the Authority’s Day Carer Service coupled with the Council’s Charter of Rights set the ethos for this East Ayrshire development.
The work itself
A working group was established that reflected the range of services, experience, skills and interests from the wider Early
Years Service in East Ayrshire, to develop a practitioner’s tool for working with children 0–3 years.
The aim was to produce a document that would be accessible to the childcare workforce working with children under 3 years and parents. Following a literature search and review of the key influences in the development of good early years’ practice the group agreed the rights of children and the development of self would be the key messages for practitioners.
Clare Warden from Mindstretchers was commissioned to write the document, building on the work already undertaken and with editorial control remaining with the group.
The end product is a readable document based on the undernoted set of rights.
These rights are:
• to be part of a group
• to be cared for
• to be treated with respect
• to a sense of wellbeing
• to have someone to communicate with
• to have time to learn
• to be encouraged to use sensory learning
• to move
• to explore and discover
• to be in a safe environment.
To support staff in the implementation of this framework, consideration has been given to their training and developmental needs and the use of resources for children aged 0–3 years.
Key considerations have been:
• to ensure that staff and students have an understanding of the way young children learn
• to assist staff to reflect on how we encourage children to feel good about themselves
• to provide new experiences for young children in settings where they feel secure and have familiar adults and objects around them.
Contact
Kay Gilmour, Head of Community Support
East Ayrshire Council
London Road HQ
London Road
Kilmarnock
KA3 7BU
Tel: 01563 576104
E-mail: kay.gilmour@east-ayrshire.gov.uk
Janie Allen, Principal Officer (Early Years)
East Ayrshire Council
London Road HQ
London Road
Kilmarnock
KA3 7BU
Tel: 01563 576185
E-mail: janie.allen@east-ayrshire.gov.uk

Pr actitioner d a y Précis
Anne Hughes, Vice Dean, Faculty of Education, University of
Strathclyde particularly that these had been developed in ways that were relevant for presenters’ own areas of practice.
The conference theme raised a number of issues and questions about:
• the Potential of Childhood
• the Actual Quality of Childhood
• Investment in Childhood that were explored through the key strands of the conference.
Considering childhood in these ways brings with it the need to investigate, describe and evaluate the lived experience of the child.
Conclusion
The professional community has a key role in researching and developing its own practice and sharing the outcomes of this with other practitioners, policy makers and researchers. Issues and questions identified in practice can lead to more extensive research across other contexts and locations.
Research can identify knowledge that can act as a challenge or support to current and developing practice. The research community and the professional community can be partners.
This idea of giving an account and finding a voice are key strands to emerge in the Practitioner Day presentations. I was impressed by the way in which similar themes emerged in these presentations, but This process began at the EECERA Professional Day for Practitioners and will continue as people share their inquiries and their development work.
13

ICT in Pre-school: A ‘Benign Addition’? – P00JFD – Price: £3.75 (VAT zero rated)
This literature review examines the research evidence for the ways in which children and practitioners can make use of ICT for learning, both by supporting children’s development and as a means of facilitating the work of practitioners. The focus of concern in the literature is predominantly with childrens’ experiences and learning. The review concentrates on ICT and pre-school experiences from the perspective of the children.
Come back in two years! – P00JFP – Price: £3.75 (VAT zero rated)
Come back in two years!
addresses the lack of practice-based evidence, highlighted in ICT in Pre-school: A ‘Benign
Addition’?
, by observing playroom resources and activities, and gathers the perspectives of staff and children in seven early years settings within Scotland.
Early Learning, Forward Thinking: A Staff Development Pack for Practitioners – P00JFZ –
Price: £8.00 (VAT zero rated)
These materials have been devised to support staff discussions and reflections on the use of ICT within early years settings. They relate closely to the principles that underpin the Policy Framework, and allow staff to reflect on their present practice and suggest how and when the use of ICT might add value to children’s learning. The pack comprises; the Policy
Framework, staff development materials and a reference pack.
These publications are available at www.LTScotland.org.uk/earlyyears or can be ordered from 0800 100 297.
Early Years Online has collected a range of high-quality educational websites for use in your setting. The sites have been categorised into four of the key areas of development set out in A Curriculum Framework for Children 3 to 5 .
The online team is always looking for new sites to add to this valuable resource and welcomes your suggestions. E-mail
EarlyYearsContentEditor@LTScotland.org.uk with details of any sites that you would like to see included.
You can browse the sites by logging on to: www.ltscotland.org.uk/earlyyears/weblinksdirectory.asp
Early Years online has a new ‘Features’ section. The current feature supports the Scottish Executive’s ‘Home Reading
Initiative’.
It contains information that will be useful for early years practitioners who want to work with parents to encourage young children’s reading. The feature is based on information provided by Mark Lambert of the Scottish Book Trust. There is also a practitioner interview for those who wish to learn more about how to set up and manage a story sack library.
You can access the feature by visiting: www.ltscotland.org.uk/earlyyears/features.asp
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Learning and Teaching Scotland’s Early Years Resource
Catalogue for 2003/2004 is now available. The catalogue contains a range of software titles, ICT staff development courses and publications for early years staff. Request your free copy from LT Scotland. Further details are available from www.ltscotland.org.uk/earlyyears/eyresourcecatalogue.asp
Some people are very confused about the issues concerning the legal use of software. It is however very straightforward – if you want to install and run software on your computer you must have a licence.
In this first edition available as a PDF or as a printed publication, you will read about the risks of using illegal software, how to spot illegal software – and that can be difficult in itself – and some suggestions on how to manage your software licences in your workplace and in the classroom. The guide can be downloaded free at www.ltscotland.org.uk/files/ softwarelicensing.pdf
Early Years Online’s free monthly e-mail bulletin will keep you up to date with new additions to the site. The bulletin contains details of news and events relevant to all interested in the care and education of children 0–8 years. New publications, features and additions to the site are also highlighted. To subscribe simply visit www.ltscotland.org.uk/earlyyears/Emailbulletin.asp and enter your e-mail address. You can unsubscribe at any time and your address will not be passed to any other organisations.
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Care a nd Learning f or Children Birth to Three
Have you responded yet?
not before, that care and learning are inseparable and that the care and wellbeing of children is the concern of everybody.
Care and Learning for Children Birth to Three is currently out for consultation, both in print and online at www.LTScotland.org.uk/earlyyears
It is important that all those involved in the wellbeing, care and education of babies and young children have guidance that sets a context for high-quality care and education and identifies key features that support and promote sensitive and well-informed approaches.
Care and Learning for Children Birth to Three ,
Learning and Teaching Scotland, 2003
The final document will be published from April 2004 onwards and will include photographs of children and examples from practice that help to further illustrate the importance of all children having a sense of belonging, a feeling of being welcome, important and valued.
For further information on please contact:
Care and Learning for Children Birth to Three
The consultation period for Care and Learning for Children Birth to Three is between 1 September and 24 November 2003. During this time
Learning and Teaching Scotland wants to learn what a wide range of people concerned with services for young children thinks about the document.
Regional seminars are being held in October in Edinburgh,
Inverness and Glasgow to gather views and encourage individuals and organisations to respond to the consultation.
Juliet Hancock
Early Years Development Officer,
Emerging Trends
Learning and Teaching Scotland
Gardyne Road
Dundee
DD5 1NY
E-mail: j.hancock@LTScotland.org.uk
Care and Learning for Children
Birth to Three is based on the key features of ‘respect’,
‘responsive care’ and
‘relationships’ and is designed to act as guidance for adults involved in caring for babies and young children. It recognises that learning begins at the moment a child is born, if
This is the fourth edition of Early Years’ Matters and we would really welcome your views. Are there areas which you are particularly interested in? Are there any articles which you would like to see feature in our next edition? Do you have something innovative and exciting which you could share with us?
Please give your views and comments and send to: Liz Paterson , Principal Curriculum Officer, Early Years,
Learning and Teaching Scotland, 74 Victoria Crescent Road, Glasgow G12 9JN. E-mail: l.paterson@LTScotland.org.uk
Name: ___________________________
Establishment: ____________________
E-mail: ___________________________