SEF help

**mumofone** · 01-11-2015, 07:26 PM

I'm writing my SEF and find that I'm listing what I do which I believe to be good(!), but I'm having trouble saying how well I do these things and how it impacts on the children's learning and development. Can anyone give me any pointers or help please?! :-)

**Lal** · 01-11-2015, 08:24 PM

I'm watching with interest....I struggle with evaluating myself.

**sing-low** · 01-11-2015, 10:29 PM

Originally Posted by mumofone

I'm writing my SEF and find that I'm listing what I do which I believe to be good(!), but I'm having trouble saying how well I do these things and how it impacts on the children's learning and development. Can anyone give me any pointers or help please?! :-)

Can you give us an example?

**mumofone** · 02-11-2015, 07:54 AM

Originally Posted by sing-low

Can you give us an example?

Ok , so far maths teaching in the section "quality of teaching" I've put what resources I have and what we do for maths such as baking and sand and water play, play games such as snakes and ladders, dominoes, I have shape sorter puzzles, abacus's, hopscotch mat in the garden etc etc but this just states what I own and not how it directly benefits the children and their learning which is where I get stuck (maybe because I'm new to childcare I don't know?)...

**BallyH** · 02-11-2015, 09:42 AM

Originally Posted by mumofone

Ok , so far maths teaching in the section "quality of teaching" I've put what resources I have and what we do for maths such as baking and sand and water play, play games such as snakes and ladders, dominoes, I have shape sorter puzzles, abacus's, hopscotch mat in the garden etc etc but this just states what I own and not how it directly benefits the children and their learning which is where I get stuck (maybe because I'm new to childcare I don't know?)...

With what you have quoted I would try and make it more personal, without mentioning names. For example you could say that as you played hopscotch with X his mum mentioned how his coordination has improved so much that he how is able to ride his bike without stabilisers (as in hopscotch you do have to be able to balance to hop, skip accurately. Etc). Or you bought the abacus because one of you mindees was playing with it at the childrens centre and you noticed that their interest in numbers has improved. Plus you mentined this to his parents on collection and let them borrow the abacus for the weekend and they may now put it on his xmas list. Or that you recently read in a childcare magazine that weighing flour helps hand to eye coordination plus number recall and recognition (we all know this already but Ofsted need to know you know) so you now do a cooking activity every other day and also have purchased new children's knives so they can be more independent as they chop and peel the vegetables for dinner now. Etc, etc. Lots of reflection and examples of how an activity worked last month for one group of children but through observing a new set you realised that xyz didn't work this time so you will tweak it to suit the new child's needs.

Others will give you more ideas bit this is generally how my sef reads. Lots of examples at how I have improved individual childrens learning and development through feedback/ideas from their parents and other resources. And yes it will take some time to type it all.

You have to come across as confident but occassionally mention 'something' didn't work and that you noticed it didn't work and say how you resolved it, or how next time you will do xyz. Relfection, reflection.

**BallyH** · 02-11-2015, 09:43 AM

Originally Posted by MOH

With what you have quoted I would try and make it more personal, without mentioning names. For example you could say that as you played hopscotch with X his mum mentioned how his coordination has improved so much that he how is able to ride his bike without stabilisers (as in hopscotch you do have to be able to balance to hop, skip accurately. Etc). Or you bought the abacus because one of you mindees was playing with it at the childrens centre and you noticed that their interest in numbers has improved. Plus you mentined this to his parents on collection and let them borrow the abacus for the weekend and they may now put it on his xmas list. Or that you recently read in a childcare magazine that weighing flour helps hand to eye coordination plus number recall and recognition (we all know this already but Ofsted need to know you know) so you now do a cooking activity every other day and also have purchased new children's knives so they can be more independent as they chop and peel the vegetables for dinner now. Etc, etc. Lots of reflection and examples of how an activity worked last month for one group of children but through observing a new set you realised that xyz didn't work this time so you will tweak it to suit the new child's needs.

Others will give you more ideas bit this is generally how my sef reads. Lots of examples at how I have improved individual childrens learning and development through feedback/ideas from their parents and other resources. And yes it will take some time to type it all.

You have to come across as confident but occassionally mention 'something' didn't work and that you noticed it didn't work and say how you resolved it, or how next time you will do xyz. Relfection, reflection.

The examples you use have to be true. Once you start thinking the ideas will come flooding in.