Essential childminding daily diary?

[VeggieSausage]

Hi all, I have just browsed the Esential childminding daily diary and it seemsto incorporate the daily diary with the learning journey making there no need to do two - what does everyone think about this - it seems like a good idea?

[sarah707]

I haven't seen the ECM diary but I am sure it will be good because the person who has designed it is a clever lady.

However if what you think is right I am not sure I would want to send the LJ home every night in case it got lost or damaged.

Plus some parents don't want a diary but they all have a LJ...

Hth

[Pauline]

I'm soon going to be having a copy to review so I will let you know what it is like

In the mean time Kay from ECM is going to pop along and answer you.

[Catalogue]

Thats a great question as you're right not all parents will bring it backwards and forwards. For these parents you can still use the diary but leave it out on the table with a pen for them to read and contribute to if they wish. This will save any problems of it being lost or forgotten and still allows you to make provisions for sharing information with parents, even if they aren't interested.

An alternative is to charge parents for the diary, incoporate the cost into the monthly fees or ask for a deposit. Depending on the parent you may wish to use different methods for different parents.

I'm very lucky that my parents are all on the ball and each send their child in with a bag, which the daily diary is kept in, then even if they haven't looked at it that evening it's still there for me in the morning.

Sometimes my parents give me information verbally, by text message or email. I write this in the parents section of the diary as although they haven't written it themselves it is still classed as sharing information.

Regarding the learning journey's this part is completely up to you and how you work best. I still use the tracker books to date the individual stepping stones, but all my observations are recorded in the diary now so that parents can see them as well and simply because the diary is always on the table or in my travel bag. I have noticed the parents have started to add their own comments which they didn't do with the scrapbooks (as they hardly ever saw them) and also the children love sticking their reward stickers and photos in the diary. Some of them even spend time colouring in the faces, which gives me a chance to ask which ones they think I should tick! The scrapbooks for me are now a waste of time. Artwork is all stored in their 'development box' and given to parents in a big folder every now and then (like they do in schools).

I hope this helps a bit and also shows how flexible the diary can be, there really isn't a 'right' way of using it.

Kay x

[Polly2]

Hi Kay
I have just bought a diary to try out and it looks excellent. But I just wanted to ask how I would go about using it for a child that only comes say 3 days a week. Do I just leave the 2 days blank each week and move onto the next weekly planning page..or what would you suggest? I don't want to waste pages!

Thanks

[BuggsieMoo]

Hi
Im using one on my full timer and I cant see personally how the LJ is in it. Yes it has a small space for a tiny bit of planning and obs but no space for photos, work etc. I still do a seperate LJ.
BuggsieMoo x

[Catalogue]

Hi Polly2,

It really does depend on your own recording styles. I also have a child who does 3 days a week so I use the extra two pages for a few things;

Mainly I stick her photos on the pages (a combination of ones I've taken & ones she's taken)
This week she wanted to draw round her hand and decorate it, so that was cut out and stuck on one of the pages with post it notes showing some of her comments
I also let her stick her reward stickers on the pages with novelty shaped post it notes stating what the sticker was for.

I think of it as being a 6 month diary, so whether I use all the pages or not it still lasts the same amount of time. I know it can seem like a waste but it works on the same principle as normal diaries in that they have to have pages for every day of the week. I hope this helps

Kay x

[Catalogue]

Hi
Im using one on my full timer and I cant see personally how the LJ is in it. Yes it has a small space for a tiny bit of planning and obs but no space for photos, work etc. I still do a seperate LJ.
BuggsieMoo x

Hi BuggsieMoo,

This will depend on the length and frequency of your observations. The obervations page is a double sided A5 page, therefore space for a minimum of 2 observations per week with a standard printed sized photo, or one long in depth focused observation or lots of little observations with pogo photos or no photos.

I don't stick whole artwork in the diary as it is too big, this is kept in the child's box file or displayed on the wall until it is sent home. You could alternatively have a scrapbook specifically for sticking in artwork. I personaly find that I don't have mountains of artwork, most of the things we create are objects or large scale pictures. I steer away from templates and printables as much as possible (this is a whole other debate) and many of the drawings/paintings/sticky crafts are displayed then sent home. The photos of the child actually participating in the activity are what I tend to stick into their diary/use to evdience observations rather than the finished artwork.

With regards to planning, my detailed planning is filled in using my specific planning template to plan for all of the children. The planning pages in the diary are used simply to let the parents know what we are doing that day for example I have a trip each day i.e toddler group, the park, a childminder drop in session or a day trip, then I write the main activity for the day but without any detail i.e, baking cakes, valentines crafts, making dens and so on. The rest of the planning doesn't need to be written out twice. This simply gives the parents an idea of what their child is doing each day.

Having said all of that it is of course completely up to the individual childminder on how they use the diary and whether it is simply a daily diary to work in partnership with parents or whether it incorporates the child's development as well. I find that so much of the information I write in the diary actually forms a record of the child's development I consider it to save time writing the same information out twice & it builds up a complete profile of the child rather than random observations to evidence particular stepping stones.

I'm a bit hesitant to give specific examples of how to use the dairy as there isn't one method and which ever way you use it to begin with will undoubtedly grow and develop over time anyway.

Kay x

[Polly2]

Hi Polly2,

It really does depend on your own recording styles. I also have a child who does 3 days a week so I use the extra two pages for a few things;

Mainly I stick her photos on the pages (a combination of ones I've taken & ones she's taken)
This week she wanted to draw round her hand and decorate it, so that was cut out and stuck on one of the pages with post it notes showing some of her comments
I also let her stick her reward stickers on the pages with novelty shaped post it notes stating what the sticker was for.

I think of it as being a 6 month diary, so whether I use all the pages or not it still lasts the same amount of time. I know it can seem like a waste but it works on the same principle as normal diaries in that they have to have pages for every day of the week. I hope this helps

Kay x

Thank you Kay - this helps a lot, I think I am going to have to actually try it out to see how it works for me, but if I can move away from the scrapbooks I am doing now then that will be good as I feel that parents don't really bother to look at them whereas with your book I can really get them involved.

By the way - we have LOVED making your draft excluders from the winter mag - the children love them - one parent said her little boy could not be parted from it and took it to bed

[Catalogue]

Definitely use it and see how it goes, you will probably change how you use it quite a lot which shows you are continuously thinking of new methods of recording and improving on your exisitng practice all the time. Ofsted love that!

Im so pleased they liked the draft excluders, thank you for that feedback, it's really great to know that the children enjoy the ideas. I love that one took it to bed lol! and of course don't forget to write that in the diary - PSED feeling a sense of achievement, being proud of their work and showing a sense of security, not to mention communication with parents - if you write mums comment in the diary you have evidenced the continuity of that activity between your setting and home!

Kay x

[BuggsieMoo]

Hi BuggsieMoo,

This will depend on the length and frequency of your observations. The obervations page is a double sided A5 page, therefore space for a minimum of 2 observations per week with a standard printed sized photo, or one long in depth focused observation or lots of little observations with pogo photos or no photos.

I don't stick whole artwork in the diary as it is too big, this is kept in the child's box file or displayed on the wall until it is sent home. You could alternatively have a scrapbook specifically for sticking in artwork. I personaly find that I don't have mountains of artwork, most of the things we create are objects or large scale pictures. I steer away from templates and printables as much as possible (this is a whole other debate) and many of the drawings/paintings/sticky crafts are displayed then sent home. The photos of the child actually participating in the activity are what I tend to stick into their diary/use to evdience observations rather than the finished artwork.

With regards to planning, my detailed planning is filled in using my specific planning template to plan for all of the children. The planning pages in the diary are used simply to let the parents know what we are doing that day for example I have a trip each day i.e toddler group, the park, a childminder drop in session or a day trip, then I write the main activity for the day but without any detail i.e, baking cakes, valentines crafts, making dens and so on. The rest of the planning doesn't need to be written out twice. This simply gives the parents an idea of what their child is doing each day.

Having said all of that it is of course completely up to the individual childminder on how they use the diary and whether it is simply a daily diary to work in partnership with parents or whether it incorporates the child's development as well. I find that so much of the information I write in the diary actually forms a record of the child's development I consider it to save time writing the same information out twice & it builds up a complete profile of the child rather than random observations to evidence particular stepping stones.

I'm a bit hesitant to give specific examples of how to use the dairy as there isn't one method and which ever way you use it to begin with will undoubtedly grow and develop over time anyway.

Kay x

Hi Kay

Dont get me wrong, I think the diary is FAB and certainly one of my best buys. I do quite a few obs and my learning journeys (as we call them here) are in an A4 ring binder. Some work goes home and some goes in the file linked to developmental matters and the EYFS areas so that I have something to hand to show Ofsted as well. I just cant see it as a LJ cos I put so much into my LJ and my parents are really happy with this. I do send artwork home in huge plastic files (with the zip top as I have 100's of them) at the end of each term.

The mum who I use this with really loves the diary - although I wish she would be a bit more forthcoming in writing in it. I do however do like you do and write her comments in the parents pages. Ive also provide overnight as I am adding that in there as well in the weekend section.

My only draw back is I wish the observation and weekend pages had lines as I am rubbish at writing on plan paper!

BuggsieMoo x

[Catalogue]

Lol! I know what you mean about writing without lines!

Your LJ's sound well established, so hopefully the diary will simply act as an additional resource which will complement these in some way.

I like the idea of putting the overnight care in the weekend section

Kay x

[Crafty Chris]

Hi all, never heard of this diary but it sounds good, where can i get one
Chris x

[claire & steve]

sounds great a diary and lj great... where can we get these from please

[Pauline]

you can win one through the Forum - just look on the competitions page There is also a link if you want to buy one too.

[claire & steve]

can anyone give a review of these diarys, they are quite alot of money every 6 months but if ofsted like them and they are easy to use they are probably worth every penny ....

[Pauline]

can anyone give a review of these diarys, they are quite alot of money every 6 months but if ofsted like them and they are easy to use they are probably worth every penny ....

I've done a review just having had a look at one. I only got it last week so it is not a working review.

As they were only published in December 2011 I doubt there will have been an Ofsted inspection where they were being used yet.

Review here on main website: http://childmindinghelp.co.uk/bookreviews.html

Hope it helps.

[Sarahbelle]

I've ordered one of these because I am interested enough to want a look. At least, I think I've ordered one. I went on the website and filled out the form and submitted it but haven't had an email confirmation. Anyone know how long it takes to hear anything?