Key Stage 1 Rationale
Background:
In 2008 Year 1 teachers at Cholsey School began to adopt a more play-based curriculum in line with
Oxfordshire’s initiative championed by Julie Fisher. This involved a move away from more formal
whole-class delivery of lessons to a balance of teacher-led and child-led learning. The project
defines developmentally appropriate practice as
“practice that starts from the current needs, interests, and capacities of children and is rooted in
ongoing, systematic observation of each child as a learner. It is concerned with the developmental
stage each child has reached rather than making assumptions according to a child’s age.”
Due to an increase in numbers entering the school, the class structure was changed to include a Year
1 class, a mixed Year 1 and 2 class, and a Year 2 class. Children are assigned to classes strictly by
date of birth so the youngest Year 2s and oldest Year 1s are in the mixed class. As we felt it was vital
for all children to receive the same developmentally appropriate learning approach, we began to
develop our practice across the whole Key Stage.
“All of the child development literature that concerns children of this age says that the key changes in
children’s development come around the end of Year 2.”- Fisher J. Moving on to Key Stage One
(2010)
This approach has become well-established and has proved itself successful through data scrutiny.
Our Key Stage 1 results improved dramatically once the approach was firmly established in the
school. However, we are constantly reflecting on our practice and monitoring our data to ensure
that we continue to achieve the best possible outcomes.
Approach in Year 1
The children in the Year 1 class are the youngest children born in that academic year. The approach
in Year 1 therefore reflects early years’ pedagogy and the age and developmental stage of the
children.
At the beginning of Year 1, the classroom environment reflects the areas of learning children were
used to in the Foundation Stage. For example, we have a Home Corner, Creative Area, Construction
Area , etc. (see our Investigation Time Approach below for more detail) and free flow outdoors
during Investigation Time. Children are shown what equipment is available to them so that they are
able to access the areas independently and productively.
Over the course of the year, while Investigation Time remains a time for children to explore
independently and initiate their own learning, further challenges are introduced (informed by
observations and next steps) to steer play toward individuals making progress and succeeding in
meeting or exceeding learning objectives. ‘I can’ statements are written on boards in these areas
with a Level 1 and Level 2 objective (challenge) on them that children are encouraged to try, and
these also act as prompts for adults to support learning. Year 1 children are also exposed to good
role models for working/playing effectively in Investigation Time by way of the Year 2 ‘Investigation
Time Leaders’ (see below).
Literacy, maths and foundation subjects are taught in guided groups in the same way as in the Year
1/ 2 class, as outlined below.
Phonics is taught in ability groups across the Key Stage, 4 days a week for 20 minutes.
Approach in Year 1/2
Because of the geography of our classrooms, we do of course work in a very similar way to Year 1.
However, there are occasional differences in our practice which allow the children to be stretched.
For instance, an introduction to the idea of ‘challenge ‘and ‘moving learning forward’ can be
discussed early in the year, as can an approach to Investigation Time where the children are
encouraged to work on their next steps more independently.
At the beginning of the year the teachers do not do a lot of whole class teaching, preferring to work
with small groups. This allows us to get to know the children quickly and to differentiate
appropriately. These can be mixed age groups and are based entirely on the ability of the children
for a given objective, rather than on groups that the children are put into for the whole year or term.
At times during the year it will be appropriate to do extra group work with the Year 2 children,
possibly in the afternoon. Due to a differing curriculum and the levels they are required to meet, it is
important that these children are challenged. We have also found that it is important that they view
themselves slightly differently from the Year 1 children, in order for them to adopt an appropriate
learning attitude before Year 3.
Approach in Year 2
The structure of the day is very similar in Year 2 to that of the other Key Stage 1 classes. The Year 2
class may sometimes have slightly longer input times, where appropriate, for Literacy and maths but
a significant part of the day is still spent in Investigation Time. As children develop, and generally by
the time they are about 7, children are expected to begin to develop their own Investigation Time
activities as well as selecting from those provided by teachers. Year 2 children also regularly lead
Investigation Time activities as Investigation Time Leaders. The curriculum is adapted to meet the
needs and interests of the children, whilst always fostering independence, leadership and creativity.
All Year 2s, regardless of which class they are in, receive lessons in recorder playing throughout the
year. They all also have sessions in Gardening at some point in the year as well as their regular Forest
School sessions.
Investigation Time
“The place of play in Key Stage One should now be assured. We have seen that it is one of the most
powerful and motivating ways in which children aged 5-7 learn, a view supported in the final report
of the The Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum (DCSF 2009: para. 4.49):
Play is not a trivial pursuit. Drawing upon a robust evidence base, the interim report
highlighted the importance of learning through play… the purpose of play in promoting
learning and development should be made explicit and planned opportunities made to
fulfil them in the primary curriculum.
“However, for play to be of the quality necessary to be given classroom space (on the timetable as
well as in the room) it must be given the time and attention it deserves – both by children and by
teachers. The children need time to develop play that has depth and that has purpose. Teachers
need time to observe and extend the play through careful judged interventions – be they verbal or
physical. The most important message is that without play in Key Stage 1 classes, children will only
ever see one facet of their learning. With opportunities to follow their own interests and manage
their own outcomes, many children will show that they have far more potential than may previously
have been recognised or appreciated.”
Fisher J. Moving on to Key Stage One (2010)
Approach:
Investigation Time is the time during our day when children are able to explore, re-visit, consolidate,
extend their learning, make links, take ownership, research, contextualise, take risks, lead, teach,
collaborate, socialise, cooperate, evaluate, critique, and investigate. They do this in the learning
environment outlined below, with resources available for children to self-select as well as adultinitiated activities designed to meet certain objectives as appropriate.
All adults will be supporting outdoor learning in at least one Investigation Time session a week. The
role of all adults during Investigation Time is to:
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scaffold learning
question children to move their learning forward
prompt (available around the classroom)
model
observe and extend learning
re-direct
play
resource (listening to and observing where children’s learning is going in order to provide
the right resources to move play on)
make observations for planning and assessment purposes
It is important that the children learn the difference between play time and Investigation Time and
that the adults support them to do this.
The Learning Environment
Our classrooms are set up to reflect those in the Foundation stage with regards to the use of ‘Areas’.
We have a writing area equipped with a variety of writing materials and support resources such as
word mats and phonics games. We also have role play areas themed to our current topic or areas of
children’s interest, which are created and developed by the children themselves. We always strive
to include opportunities for literacy and maths objectives to be covered and explored through role
play. For example paying and giving change, writing lists or letters, etc.
Our maths area is stocked with a variety of mathematical equipment that the children are able to
self-select when appropriate, as well as having adult-initiated activities designed to meet specific
objectives left out.
We also have a large ‘making area’ offering art and design resources. These are stored in a way that
allows children to self-select materials and equipment .
Our Book Corners allow children to choose books in a comfortable environment. We have books
that are sorted by genre such as fiction, non-fiction and poetry, and books are re-stocked regularly.
We have separate areas for banded reading books that children choose with their parents/carers to
take home.
The Construction Area offers equipment of a variety of materials and levels or difficulty.
The environment is designed to promote independent learning and to be flexible around the needs
and interests of all the children.
Some areas are not permanent features but work on a rolling programme or when appropriate to
the children’s interests. These include Small World, malleable materials and music.
However, we are very flexible with our use of space and it is possible to sit all the children down to
work at tables together when necessary for activities such as the ‘Big Write’.
Prompts are available for adults on wall displays and on clipboards around the room. Staff are
encouraged to add their own key questions to displays to support others working in that area.
Observations and Assessment:
Ideally, observations and assessment are on-going, all day, every day. These should inform planning
to move children forward in their learning and planning for the children’s interests.
There are 2 types of observation:
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Observation of child initiated learning should be identifying the learning that is taking place.
This often means simply watching to see what is happening, rather than interrupting the
flow of play. At times it may be appropriate to join the play, to provide appropriate
resources to move the play on, or to scaffold the learning with a relevant question.
Observations of adult initiated learning may enable the observer to collect evidence of what
the children can do, what their gaps are, and whether they have made progress. This may
involve more dialogue to help steer the leaning and move the children forward. This sort of
observation is most commonly used when working with a group.
Both of these approaches should be used to inform the children’s next steps.
“ Adults will learn much more about children by observing them engaged in independent, self-driven
activities than they will observing them only in adult led tasks.” Julie Fisher 2010.
Our observations are now made using the 2simple application on the IPad. There are 4 IPad for KS1,
one for each classroom and one which goes with the adult supporting the outdoor learning.
This application enables adults to log a significant observation of any sort, linking it to the
appropriate children and objective, and noting details and next steps.
Questioning:
“The skilful role of the adult is to respond to what the child says by asking genuine questions – not
ones to which you already know the answer.” Julie Fisher: Moving on to Key Stage 1, 2010.
Effective questioning is used to extend children’s thinking, and therefore their learning, and comes
from tuning into what the children are doing rather than interrogating them with closed questions.
Strategies include using questions the adult does not know the answer to: “I wonder if…”; or
connecting previous and current learning: “Do you remember when we…? What do you think will
happen if this time we try…?”. They can also offer other viewpoints to encourage children to think
about their own views and be aware that others may think differently.
There are ‘Assessment for Learning’ questions displayed in the classroom to support adults when
questioning children.
Question-starter prompts are also displayed on speech bubbles in different areas of the classroom;
for example, good prompts for extending thinking in the maths area. Clipboards are available in the
classroom for staff to refer to, with relevant pages of the Numbers & Patterns document. These
relate to areas of the learning environment, giving good examples of effective questions that can be
used.
Investigation Time Leaders:
Children in Year 2, having already spent a year in Key Stage 1 and having experienced ‘Investigation
Time’ are able to become ‘Investigation Time Leaders’. Wearing an ID badge, they support younger
children by demonstrating an activity they have learnt previously, encouraging conversation, use of
appropriate vocabulary and seeing a task through to completion.
Marking & Feedback
We follow the whole school approach to marking and feedback using the ‘Tickled Pink and Growing
Green’ approach. This is used to highlight the objectives they have achieved and those which they
need to work on as their ‘next step’. We then use the next steps to formulate targets for the
children or as a focus/challenge for their Investigation Time learning.
In order to highlight the value we assign to Investigation Time learning, we award tickled pink and
growing green gems for independent progress towards targets.
Leading Learners
Cholsey Primary School has a system running throughout the school in which a group of 4-6 Leading
Learners are identified twice a year. A leaflet with more detail about our Leading Learners is
available on the school website.
Cholsey Primary School October 2014