The Traditional Model and Its Challenges
For a long time, focused activities in a group session would attempt to teach a new concept, a new skill etc. and then the role of Provision would be to support embedding this new learning.
A typical focused learning session often involves a teacher sitting on a chair, facing all thirty children in the group, and delivering information. The topic might range from explaining bonfire night to discussing Christmas traditions or observing seasonal changes. In this format, the children are generally expected to sit, listen, and absorb the information. The teacher might use visual aids, like an interactive whiteboard or a book, but it remains a mostly passive experience for the children. The lesson itself may be personalised to the children but in all likelihood, it will be taken from a wider curriculum document. For young children to really understand or connect with the concept, they need to have some foundation to relate it to. For instance, trying to teach about Christmas to children who have either never celebrated it, have experienced a different type of celebration, or celebrate other events altogether, can make it difficult for them to grasp the lesson. This lack of differentiation becomes more challenging in large groups where there’s little chance to tailor the approach for each child. Even when the group is smaller, reliance on visual aids alone isn’t enough to create a meaningful learning experience especially as their starting points will be so broad!
Why Challenge Areas Don’t Always Work
The resources provided in Provision may be placed to access independently to better understand the focused learning taught on the carpet. For example, a book about Christmas may be placed out, a wealth of Christmas paraphernalia may be laid out etc. However, another common practice is setting up challenge areas—specific spots in the room where children can try new activities independently. The intent is for children to ‘problem solve’ using their new skills/knowledge. This could be anything from answering a series of number sentences to unlock a range of padlocks, complete a pattern in a tuff spot tray or follow instructions to make playdough. These areas often attract the more confident children, who complete the tasks and receive praise or rewards, like stickers. While this can be motivating, it doesn’t always reach every child effectively.The issue is that these challenge tasks are often too simple for children who are ready for more, while too challenging for those who need extra support. In environments without peers or adults readily available to help, children who find these activities difficult might avoid them altogether. This means that only a small portion of the group ends up benefiting, leaving others without the support they need to progress.
Understanding the Constraints in Primary Schools
In some primary schools, especially those with strict curriculum demands, the expectation is that even the youngest children will transition from lesson to lesson, often on the carpet, with one focused input after another. This is largely because of the narrow curriculum and the need to cover content in the most efficient way possible. In these cases, the teaching often has a strong emphasis on control and structure, as it allows practitioners to feel that they’re delivering what the curriculum demands.There’s a level of pragmatism here. Phonics and maths, for example, are structured and focused in their teaching approaches, and rightly so, given the foundational skills they cover. However, when it comes to other areas in the Early Years, there isn’t necessarily a need for these tightly controlled focus activities. Often, practitioners fall into the habit of these routines to maintain a sense of order and control, especially in settings where they feel pressured to “deliver” the curriculum. Unfortunately, when children struggle to learn within these setups, practitioners aren’t always available to scaffold. So in essence, these children have missed out!
Moving Towards a Practitioner-Led Model
Instead of relying only on these passive, control-focused sessions and independent challenge areas, we might consider a new approach where practitioners are more engaged in the provision itself. This doesn’t mean we need to sit children down for long, formal lessons—quite the opposite. Short, purposeful interactions can be more impactful and occur naturally throughout the day.
Examples:-
Baking as a Learning Activity: Setting up a baking activity with a practitioner who sits with a child, guiding them through specific tasks, like measuring flour or counting eggs, helps build confidence in numbers and quantities in a hands-on way.-
Learning Through Books: During reading, a practitioner could work with a small group, focusing on specific pages and prompting discussion, opening up conversation and making connections between the story and the child’s experiences.-
Role-Playing to Develop Language Skills: In role-play, practitioners engage in storytelling, asking children to count items or practise new words, supporting language development in an engaging, responsive way.
Provision-Based Learning with Practitioner Guidance
The goal is for practitioners to be skilled enough to recognise when learning is naturally happening in provision areas and step in to support it. This might mean introducing new materials, asking guiding questions, or encouraging children to think more deeply. For instance, if a child is building with blocks, the practitioner may engage in open-ended conversations around the construction and provide resources that match the journey this child is on.
Balancing Structure and Flexibility
While structured teaching is valuable for subjects like phonics and maths, which have specific learning targets, there’s no need to impose the same rigidity on all areas of early learning. Learning doesn’t always need to happen in a controlled setting or as a strictly guided activity. Through well-placed interventions, practitioners can help children explore, learn, and grow in an environment that’s both supportive and flexible, creating a continuous provision model that works for every child.
Final points
It is common for settings to have a lot of things going on constantly. This could be structure programmes of support where children learn the room, nappy changing, snack times etc. These times can become interruptions to the time practitioners and children have together. The passing of information in provision can only happen when there is sufficient time. The lowering or ratios in some settings, removal of staff and tightening of timetables means that this places a lot of pressure on remaining staff. However, we must recognise that this approach to learning is the most impactful and sacrificing it for another carpet time is less effective and detrimental in the long run.
BONUS:
Below I discuss how to appropriately pitch challenge when working in the provision with the children:
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