Individual child weekly planning help!

**squeely wheely** · 06-04-2013, 06:39 PM

I need some help with weekly planning please. I planned last week and some of the activities, although they were age appropriate and next steps the child showed no interest whatsoever. Basically from development matters his next step is Beginning to organise and categorise objects (numbers) so i got some fruit, people cars, and explained how they were the same, but he just didn't have the concentration, or just didn't feel like doing the activity. Now what i'm wondering is should I be keeping that activity to introduce this concept to him, because I get the impression he's just not quite there yet (if you know what I mean) or should I be planning a completely different activity based on Beginning to organise and categorise objects (numbers). huuummmmm any advice would be great!
Thanks!

**Carolc** · 06-04-2013, 06:55 PM

I would revisit the activity next week and see how he does then. Like you say he might not have been interested the day you did it Xx

**moggy** · 06-04-2013, 07:43 PM

Right, I would put away DM completely and look at the child.

What do they like to do? Plan ONLY for things they do like to do, and even then keep it flexible and only a vague plan so that you can be spontaneous on the day- if they pick up a toy and start going off on in a direction with it then great, go with it, build on it, forget any plan!

As for DM- well, maybe the child will start 'Beginning to organise and categorise objects (numbers)' sometime soon, maybe they do not, maybe they do some other fantastic developmental milestone that you were not expecting and that is not written in DM at all. Don't worry about it, step back and look at the child- are they generally at the stage appropriate to their age? Are they happy, engaged and developing generally over all? Yes? Great, you are doing a fantastic job... put the book away.

DM: It is not a bible. It does not cover everything a child will do or even everything a child should do. It includes many things a perfectly bright and well developed child may never do.

Personally I never write next steps from DM. I write them directly from the observation I made: such as: ''Obs: Child 'A' did xxx and tried to xxx. Next step: introduce more xxx and tools such as xxx to encourge xxx''... or whatever. You know what your children can do, you know what they like, you know what is the obvious next developmental stage. The writers of DM do not know your children, they do not know what they are interested in, they are only looking at general national possible stages of 'generic' (ie: non-existent) children. Trust in your own knowledge.

**squeely wheely** · 06-04-2013, 08:39 PM

Originally Posted by moggy

Right, I would put away DM completely and look at the child.

What do they like to do? Plan ONLY for things they do like to do, and even then keep it flexible and only a vague plan so that you can be spontaneous on the day- if they pick up a toy and start going off on in a direction with it then great, go with it, build on it, forget any plan!

As for DM- well, maybe the child will start 'Beginning to organise and categorise objects (numbers)' sometime soon, maybe they do not, maybe they do some other fantastic developmental milestone that you were not expecting and that is not written in DM at all. Don't worry about it, step back and look at the child- are they generally at the stage appropriate to their age? Are they happy, engaged and developing generally over all? Yes? Great, you are doing a fantastic job... put the book away.

DM: It is not a bible. It does not cover everything a child will do or even everything a child should do. It includes many things a perfectly bright and well developed child may never do.

Personally I never write next steps from DM. I write them directly from the observation I made: such as: ''Obs: Child 'A' did xxx and tried to xxx. Next step: introduce more xxx and tools such as xxx to encourge xxx''... or whatever. You know what your children can do, you know what they like, you know what is the obvious next developmental stage. The writers of DM do not know your children, they do not know what they are interested in, they are only looking at general national possible stages of 'generic' (ie: non-existent) children. Trust in your own knowledge.

ohhh that's interesting, so this boy loves things with steering wheels, little tikes cars, boats if he see's one it's his! so would you do something like (and this is very quickly off the top of my head) make a car and steering wheel with him out of a nappy box or something and get him to paint his own car? physical dev. expressive arts and design etc.... so you make up your own dm list so to speak. and you never know in time he might start parking the cars together eg; 'Beginning to organise and categorise objects .....lol

**Zoomie** · 06-04-2013, 09:27 PM

Originally Posted by squeely wheely

'Beginning to organise and categorise objects .....lol

So when this child helps to tidy up, is he able to put most of the correct toys in the correct boxes ?

If so, job done, then just build up on it.

**moggy** · 07-04-2013, 07:20 AM

Originally Posted by squeely wheely

ohhh that's interesting, so this boy loves things with steering wheels, little tikes cars, boats if he see's one it's his! so would you do something like (and this is very quickly off the top of my head) make a car and steering wheel with him out of a nappy box or something and get him to paint his own car? physical dev. expressive arts and design etc.... so you make up your own dm list so to speak. and you never know in time he might start parking the cars together eg; 'Beginning to organise and categorise objects .....lol

Exactly, brilliant example.