4 themes & 6 areas - help!

[Helen79]

Sorry if this has been covered already but I'm struggling to understand how the 4 themes - a unique child, positive relationships, enabling environments & learning and development fit together with the 6 areas - pse, cll, kuw, pd, cd & psrn.

All my planning & observations are based around the 6 areas but I haven't done any paperwork concerned with the 4 themes & not sure what I should be doing?

Any ideas?

[sarah707]

Hello and welcome!

There are 16 principles of the Eyfs - there are cards in the pack to talk about them.

1 of the 16 principles is '6 areas of learning and development.'

You must have all 16 principles firmly in place when you are caring for children. Think of them as your long, long term planning and make sure you do your best to meet each one.

You will then find the 6 areas of learning and devleopment useful for observations and planning.

Hope this explains :D

[Chatterbox Childcare]

Think Sarah has said it all.

[Trouble]

:ohdear: :ohdear: i dont think it will ever sink in

i get the 6 areas of learning got them of to an art

but the linking in gets me i have a mental block can you tell:rolleyes:

[sue m]

Oh me too and I've had it explained a few times now! :(

[mrs c]

Snap - sometimes when its been explained I think I've got a better understanding of it but an hour later - nope! :(

[Ripeberry]

So you need to remember the number 16,4 and 6. 4 themes, 16 commitments and 6 areas of learning and development. Are you first proper inspection do they ask you to list every single one off by heart? :panic: My mind goes blank sometimes even when i know the answer!
I just worry i'm going to fluff everything!:(

[Helen79]

Thanks for the replies. I *think* I understand the principles now but what do I actually do with them?

I understand the 6 areas of learning & development & have loads of paperwork about these, each child's folder has a page for each with obs I do & daily/weekly planning is based on them & their next steps.

but what do I do with the other 15 principles & what paperwork do I need to have to show that I'm covering them?
Should my policies & procedures be based on them or should they be included in my daily planning & obs?

I think I'm getting confused as I'm used to the old birth to 3 matters & some of the terminolgy is the same but in relation to different things iykwim.

[Lady Haha]

I just get more and more confused with this!!!:(

I thought all we had to do was the observations, writtenup with photo and linked to 6 themes (not all on one ob!). Then plan next stage of developement and do next observation.....Mr or Mrs Ofsted is gonna sack me I can see it!

[Chanelle]

Okay, the EY Principles are split into 4 'complimentry' themes ....
A unique child
possitive relationships
enabling environments
learning and development

you have each of those split into 4 areas which are called themes and comitments


in Enabling Environments for example ... you have Observation, assessment and planning ... tyis is covered by the titles :)

you also have 'The Wider Context' - this is liasing with different agences, communicaing with parents ... nurseries/schools ...


in A Unique Child- Inclusive Practice - this is covered through your Policies for example - Inclusion Policy ... Equal Opportunities Policy etc ...

Is this making sense?? To show you are covering these areas you could have a file which is headed with each of tghe principles andhave copies of how you are covering them ... then add to it as you go along and understand it easier . You are basically covering most of them without even relaising but you need to work a way of showing hoq you cover it that is easier for you to understand. This is how I will probably do mine.

I hope this is all making sense and I havent confused you more lol

And please correct me if I am wrong here. :)

[hectors house]

I only understand the 6 areas of learning aswell and do my observations using the ages and stages chart in the practical guidance EYFS booklet but reading something from our county childcare advisor today (a ticklist on what you do), it said "The EYFS profiles are filled out consistenly against the 13 scales"

Why do they have to have so many sub headings and categories - eventually found 13 scales at the back of the Stat Framework book - but what the :censored: do I do with them?

Sorry didn't mean to worry anyone else, maybe you all had the 13 scales mentioned in your EYFS - but we didn't in Somerset!

[sarah707]

I only understand the 6 areas of learning aswell and do my observations using the ages and stages chart in the practical guidance EYFS booklet but reading something from our county childcare advisor today (a ticklist on what you do), it said "The EYFS profiles are filled out consistenly against the 13 scales"

Why do they have to have so many sub headings and categories - eventually found 13 scales at the back of the Stat Framework book - but what the :censored: do I do with them?

Sorry didn't mean to worry anyone else, maybe you all had the 13 scales mentioned in your EYFS - but we didn't in Somerset!

Ok, some numbers...

There are 16 principles of the eyfs... you should have a poster somewhere in the pack and there are cards for each one...

You need to look at each of the 16 principles in turn and make sure you are meeting them. Each one is broken down into 3 parts, so check those as well.

The final (16th) principle is principle 4.4 ... the 6 areas of learning and develpoment... you use that every day when y ou plan and assess.

All 16 are equally important, so you must have them all in place but they are not all directly relevant to observations etc...

Using these 6 areas of learning and development you work with children until they get to the end of reception year at school - officially the August after their 5th birthday.

At the end of reception year, the main provider (usually reception teacher at school) has to fill in a form for the Local Education Authority and Government.

This form plots the child's learning and development against the 13 Assessment scales for each area ... so Psed has 13, Cll has 13 etc. This is not the childminder's job although the Eyfs does say that teachers might ask for our input (hmmm not holding my breath on that one!)

Does that help? :D

[Helen79]

Thanks for the replys.

I understand it now but how do we document that we are meeting the other 15 principles? I've looked through them all & I'm sure that I am meeting them but don't know how or if I need to have paperwork for all of them?

[Chanelle]

I too would like to know this ... could we have a folder with tabs for each of the 16 commitments ?

[sarah707]

It's all part of your Every Child Matters agenda portfolio...

You will see at the bottom of the principles cards they all have links to different parts of ECM...

So as you put your portfolio together, think about how you are meeting each one and show your evidence.

hth :D

[Chanelle]

How do you show yours Sarah ?

I dont understand how you show the evidence? Do you write a pragraph of how you are covering each part? or do u add sheets or copies of your policies etc ... ?

I am a lil confused of the evidence? :confused: lol

[Helen79]

I don't have an every child matters portfolio :panic:

I have 3 folders: my Morton Michel folder with all paperwork like contacts, child details, weekly planning, policies, procedures & risk assessments

& 1 folder for each child (I only have 2 mindees) as a learning journey

& thats all the paperwork I have.

[Chanelle]

Do you have a Health & Safety Folder with all your Risk Assessments, fire drills, Safety Checks, etc in ?

[Helen79]

All my health & safety stuff just goes into my Morton Michel folder. I don't use a lot of what was already in the folder so have made room in it for all the stuff I do need.
I probably should do a separate health & safety folder but I'm not that organised yet.

[Chanelle]

I am still working my way through mine too. I am still trying to decide what types of folders to have also. I have so far

** Planning, Assessment Obs Folder
(I will take childs work out of this and into a seperate thin file to present to the parent to keep confidentiality)

** Health & Safety Folder
To hold Fire Escape Evacs , risk assessments, Safety checks etc

** Policies - All in one folder

** Childminder Welcome Pack
to show parents when they visit/commit

Not sure if I have missed anything tho lol

Each child will have a seperate file locked away to keep their policy sheet signed, permision sheet, contracts, etc ....

I just hope I have done it all right lol

[hectors house]

Thanks Sarah for letting me know that I can ignore the 13 scales part - reading the comments on the other 15 principles that most of us have forgotten about - are you saying I can just cross reference the numbers on the cards to my portfolio which is arranged into the 5 ECM headings?

If so that shouldn't take too much time - maybe light at the end of the tunnel yet!:clapping:

[watgem]

I have been really worried about these too as I understand the 6 areas of learning and development and can evidence it in my planning and the learning journeys but its the rest of it, I have tried linking it in with my policies, using the reference at the bottom of each pip card which links the card to the ecm outcomes and which is how I organise my policies iyswim and have decided to make a photo album and have linked the photos to the pip cards, not all the pip cards are covered though but I couldn't think of another way to evidence them- perhaps through our daily routines-am not sure:laughing: