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venus89
17-05-2010, 12:38 PM
I had a slightly surreal morning this morning. My mindee is 2 next month so his mum is beginning to think about preschool. She's narrowed it down to two - the preschool my kids went to and another on, which is the nursery part of a local prep school, and asked me to go along with her and LO to the nursery for a return visit as I spend the most time with him. I found that very flattering and off we went this morning (in my three free hour per week!) to have a look.....

The nursery is ver cute - they have little uniforms and loads of space. The kids all look happy and clean and we were impressed with it, excepting an apparent disregard for security......

What was interesting for e though was seeing how they work. Tbh I had to bite my lips a few times to keep from asking EYFS questions! I've come away with a few ideas for my setting and one of them is to do more to teach letters. I teach them very informally - through play, through road signs, and generally child led but I'm toying with the idea of having a weekly letter to focus on and wondering if anyone else does that? If so, do you think it has any impact on children who aren't with you many hours?

I was thinking we could have a pictures of the letter and things it starts with to colour in, mark making, letter hunts etc. Basically all thie things I currently do but I suppose more formally. But I don't know if parents would be put off by that?

miss mopple
17-05-2010, 12:41 PM
I've contemplated the same thing and may intrduce it soon as my 3yr old mindee is really interested in letters and learning DD"s jolly phonics with her. I think if the kids are having fun with it then go for it :thumbsup:

loocyloo
17-05-2010, 12:44 PM
i'm going to have an intensive go with a LO i have - he starts school in september and is not interested in the slightest!

he has been doing it at preschool and we've carried on looking for things that start with a particular sound, but he isn't that interested!

we've got the jolly phonics cd from elc, so, as he loves music, i'm going to play that lots ... and hope!

venus89
17-05-2010, 01:00 PM
Are jolly phonics good? My kids learned with Letterland.....

Do you think if they learned with Jolly Phonics but their school did something different it wouldn't matter?

mum26
17-05-2010, 01:02 PM
I'm really interested in the replies that you receive to this as I was under the impression that having a 'letter of the week' was frowned upon. I know I attended a Letters & Sounds training and the early years teacher said that we shouldn't be doing it. However, last year children I cared for were really interested in colours although were having trouble identifying different ones. We had colours of the week and the children loved it and it did help with their learning so this seems quite similar. Also one of the mindees' mums has said to me that she thought I would be teaching her letters - I do but in a very everyday low key manner using the phonic way of saying them - when she is interested - through songs, when we look at stories etc.

grindal
17-05-2010, 01:05 PM
I thought most schools did Jolly Phonics now - i know they all do where we live.
My DS1 and 2 love playing junior scrabble. DS2 is just 2 and a half but knows most of the letters already.
I think letter of the week is a good idea as long as learning letters is not overshadowing other aspects of learning. I went on a course recently where they said it was far more important that pre school children could listen to and answer questions about a story than recognise letters.
When I then mentioned it to a friend who is a primary school head she said letter and number recognition were the most important skills!

venus89
17-05-2010, 01:13 PM
mum26 - now that's really interesting..... I'd never have imagined it was frowned upon, so long as it doesn't become a big deal. I'd not done it before for childminding because to be honest it never occurred to me! But with my own kids I did teach them slightly more formally - we had the workbooks and worksheets as well as crafts and Letterland, plus singing etc. The reason why I quite like the idea is that then the parents know we're working on such and such a letter this week and can reinforce what we do at home.....

Grindal - you're probably right there. And if I make sure that there are other letter resources available, whetehr I do a letter of the week or not, then I guess it wouldn't be an issue.

I think they're both important. Of course it's good for childrento sit still, to listen, to ask and answer questions about stories and about the world. But going to school with a knowledge of the letter sounds and names gives children such an enormous head start.....

sillysausage
17-05-2010, 01:13 PM
I do letters when the children start to show interest. We always have an alphabet frieze up and I put up different alphabet posters (we have one of animals, one of foods and one multicultural one). We also have two electronic alphabet toys.
I don't do a letter of the week as it takes a long time to go through the alphabet, though like others we will have colour of the week when I have a mindee who is around 18 months to 2 years and they're starting to show an interest in colours. Much easier to plan a variety of activities around colours to interest a range of ages than to use letters.

Tink
17-05-2010, 01:27 PM
I have a Lo aged 4 who has just started school nursery.
I went in and spoke to his teacher who informed me that tey use Jolly Phonics to practice letter sounds, so we worked together and she gave me some sheets and now we work together and i've started using it with the Lo's and they have picked up on it really well.

AnnieM
17-05-2010, 01:39 PM
Rather than a letter of the week (as it would take a long time to get through them all) I have been putting together alphabet bags, I got some small cotton drawstring bags and printed the letter of the alphabet on the front using transfer paper, I have then put inside a magnetic letter and as many things as I could find beginning with the initial letter, or having the letter in the word as in the case of x, I scour charity shops and carboot sale rummage boxes for little bits and usually get several for about 20p. I will just continue adding to them as and when I find things. I have also put in laminated pictures of the letter and associated items which would be hard to find in object form and a laminated blank write on letter so they also start to learn how to form the letter, using dry wipe pens. The children really enjoy emptying them, even the 6 year old, who then gets the task of finding all the right things to go into the right bags. :thumbsup:

venus89
17-05-2010, 01:42 PM
I have a Lo aged 4 who has just started school nursery.
I went in and spoke to his teacher who informed me that tey use Jolly Phonics to practice letter sounds, so we worked together and she gave me some sheets and now we work together and i've started using it with the Lo's and they have picked up on it really well.

I was thinking about trying to do it with the preschool. 2 of mine go to the same preschool. One is really into letters at the moment, and one is a little bit. And because we walk to school and have to stop at every road sign to look a the letters even the not 2 year old will stop and go 'letters' and I'll name them for him.....

pinky33
17-05-2010, 02:11 PM
For gods sake don't do any writing with them and let Mrs O know, I have 2 pre school kids and she went mental saying only mark making, not allowed to help them form letters to teach them their name or anything. She saidbecause of this I would only get good and not outstanding and put it as a reccomendation.

Their mum was furious with me as said this is what she expected me to do.

I was a nanny for 13 years before childminding so not like I didn't have a clue about what I was doing.

Sorry for the rant still a touchy subject for me. I did letter of the week ect as this was how I was working with the parent and nursery.

Hazel

venus89
17-05-2010, 03:12 PM
For gods sake don't do any writing with them and let Mrs O know, I have 2 pre school kids and she went mental saying only mark making, not allowed to help them form letters to teach them their name or anything. She saidbecause of this I would only get good and not outstanding and put it as a reccomendation.

Their mum was furious with me as said this is what she expected me to do.

I was a nanny for 13 years before childminding so not like I didn't have a clue about what I was doing.

Sorry for the rant still a touchy subject for me. I did letter of the week ect as this was how I was working with the parent and nursery.

Hazel

:eek: But that's so stupid! I'm not surprised it's a sore point. I appreciate we're not qualified teachers but surely there's nothing wrong in helping them learn their letters when they want to? Daft!

sillysausage
17-05-2010, 04:34 PM
For gods sake don't do any writing with them and let Mrs O know, I have 2 pre school kids and she went mental saying only mark making, not allowed to help them form letters to teach them their name or anything. She saidbecause of this I would only get good and not outstanding and put it as a reccomendation.

I'm sorry but if an inspector had said that to me I would have complained about it. Surely we are supposed to go with the flow! If a child shows interest what's wrong with encouraging them? My 4 yr old mindee has been able to write her name for over a year now. She just started copying what I wrote at the corner of her pictures, then she would go and get her name card from the coat pegs to copy it. She's reading now, and writing simple phonetic words. Nursery have put her on the scheme that they use in reception. Children won't write until they are ready to write!

sarak31
17-05-2010, 06:22 PM
I've taught in the past and would recommend getting the letters and sounds pack used in schools (you can get for free from the governments publications site)
http://nationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/node/84969
Phase 1 and 2 would be suitable for pre schoolers. One of the problems children find when learning to read in school is the sounds they have been taught for the letters aren't the same as the letters & sounds programme - eg. they've been taught for 'f' to say 'fer' instead of a soft 'f'. There is a CD Rom with the pack if you send off for it to be sent to you where you can hear someone saying all the sounds.

It is really similar to jolly phonics but you have to pay for all that stuff and this is free! There is a big booklet with lots of ideas for activities in there too.

pinky33
17-05-2010, 06:51 PM
I am making a complaint at the moment, was told I was outstanding standard but that she simply doesn't give them to newbies, she said we do 150% but to be happy with good as she only ever gives satisfactory!

When I called ofsted they said put in a complaint because it was evident from my report I was down graded for no reason and that they are carefully watching all the Mrs O's at the moment.