At Little Lessons, we have a number of helpful sayings, which we use to encourage and motivate the children that we teach.
One of our most popular sayings is, 'put it in your pocket!'
We ask children to hold on to all wins, big or small by popping these into their imaginary pockets. This may look like a high mark in a spelling test, a certificate of kindness in assembly, a positive note in a reading log or a request from a new friend at school asking them to play. It is so easy for children to forget the strides that they are making.
We also encourage children to collect words and phrases that spark joy, and to save these up, in their pocket to use at just the right moment. Some children have taken this idea on even further by writing these down in a special notebook 📒 ✏️ .
Photograph Credit - Maica.
Small Acorns
What are 'small acorn days'? A day when all seems quiet and inconsequential but actually an acorn may have been planted, which could change the course of a persons life.
Perhaps it was a conversation with a friend, who offered to introduce you to someone that would end up becoming significant in your life.
A picture that you glanced at in a magazine, that encouraged you to travel.
A podcast that captured your attention and sparked an idea.
I love the quote 'do not despise the day of small things', it is often on those simple days, that acorns are planted 🌱, which later become Oak trees. At the time, you are often unaware, it is only when we look back. Every big thing you see around you started small. 🌱
An Oak tree has breadth, depth and width. But it started as a tiny acorn, planted in the ground.
I carry a little sliver acorn around with me to remind me of this.
Preparing for the Reception Year
‘The beginning is the most important part of the work’. Plato
In an ever-changing and busy world, it is so easy to lose sight of which elements to focus on when educating our very youngest children. It is often viewed that above all else, the measure of a good education is the pace at which a child learns to read, write and master numeracy skills.
I would suggest that a quality education for young children must consider much more than the standard approach of rote learning. A well-planned programme of education develops the whole child. It is of course so important for children to join their reception and Year 1 class with a sound knowledge of phonics and of numbers but we must not forget the value of the development of a child’s character, supporting each to learn simple life skills, a love of learning, and, as a result, the building of lasting self-confidence. If children are to begin their education well, (as Plato suggests) it would be beneficial to carefully consider each child’s educational foundation.
I remember vividly my first day of teacher training in New Zealand and the emphasis on the importance of setting high expectations for all children, whatever their ability. This has stayed with me throughout my career. Expectation is an incredibly powerful tool. The last 20 years in education have shaped my opinion in this regard and now my rather simple philosophy is this; if influential adults in a child’s life expect a child to succeed, they will most likely succeed. I am not promoting the development of over-confident children, more developing children with quiet self-determination for success and a core of self-confidence.
In today’s society, the idea of making a mistake is perceived as a weakness. Children must be given the opportunity to make a mistake as they grow and learn. They must be able to try new things and to take risks without repercussion. I would suggest that many of the best learning opportunities in life occur when there is the freedom to explore, create, and experiment; we know that this is how the light bulb was created or penicillin discovered.
Looking into the future and the pace of artificial intelligence, I would suggest that it is those who have been taught to think creatively and to express their ideas confidently that will be the most professionally sought after. In my experience of teaching reception age children over many years, more and more children (much more than 10 years ago) are reluctant to take a risk and this is having an impact on their learning. Some children struggle to create and participate in an art activity for fear of getting messy. Other children struggle to learn to write (especially creative writing) because they fear making spelling errors. At Little Lessons, we have a helpful saying: ‘mistakes are our friends, they help us to learn’.
So what is the best way to prepare a child for the reception year? I would suggest that we look to empowering children with key skills for the future as a starting point. We encourage children to develop an ‘I can’ mentality, building resilience and encouraging each to try new things. We teach children to take risks, to make mistakes, and to learn from these. We teach them to concentrate for extended periods of time and to persevere when the going gets tough. We catch children ‘doing the right thing’ and we abundantly praise them for it. We praise children for trying their best (I have repeated the word praise for a reason!). We support children to develop their fine motor skills so that they are empowered to write, use a computer confidently, and can hold a pencil correctly. We let each child in our care know they are valued and respected; we take time to listen to each child and to teach each to use their voice to express their needs confidently. We work on phonics, writing, and numeracy skills in fun and creative ways. We teach children manners and how to respect the world and others.
As Plato reminds us, it is the beginning that is the most important part of the work. Perhaps some underestimate how imperative the start of a child’s education is and the difference that a quality teacher can make to the future for all children.
Teaching Children to Write
One of the greatest joys professionally for me is to teach children to write. I love it! The joy when a child proudly brings me their storybook with dots, squiggles, and lots of meaning.
The very best way that you can encourage your child to work on their writing skills at home and to build writing confidence, is to have some fun.
Please see the chart below to assess how your child’s writing is developing.
My top tip is to decorate a box with beautiful wrapping paper and to fill it with interesting pens, pencils (nice and sharp) and all sorts of office type objects that your child has seen you use and would love to try for themselves e.g. envelopes, a hole punch, a variety of pens, old stamps to stick and reuse, a variety of paper or old greeting cards with the writing bit cut off and the nice plain card to write or squiggle on.
My second tip is to encourage your child to write for meaning e.g. to create a letter, to write the envelope (with help if required), and then literally to walk to the post box and post it. What would make this activity even better would be for your child to receive a letter in return. Children learn best when you can engage them in an activity that they are interested in and if the activity has meaning to them.
There is no right way, it is about having a go and having fun.
At Little Lessons, we will be work together on activities to develop each child’s fine motor skills and to build techniques for beautiful handwriting. We will be sharing some fun ideas in future posts.
This in an example of one of the assessment tools that we will use to assess your child’s writing development in our reception lessons.
Reading Lists for 7 to 8 Year Olds
We are often asked to recommend books for children in Year 3 and 4, we have listed some of our favourites below to share with you:
Anything by Roald Dahl or Dick King Smith is always popular at this age!
Flat Stanley – Jeff Brown
Danny the Champion of the World - Roald Dahl (this is one of our very favourites)
Charlotte’s Web – E B White
The Worst Witch – Jill Murphy (this was Victoria’s favourite book series, growing up)
Dog So Small – Philippa Pearce
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll
Stig of the Dump – Clive King
The Butterfly Lion – Michael Morpurgo
The Iron Man – Ted Hughes
The Midnight Fox – Betsy Byars
Inspiring a Love of Reading
A genius keeps it simple.
Children love thoughtful and simple activities. They also enjoy repeating their favourite activities over and over again. That is how we learn, by repeating patterns.
A very simple idea that I have suggested to parents over the years is to create a basket of books called ‘old favourites’. The basket may contain 8 - 10 books which I hope are well-loved, a bit thumbed, and enjoyed over and over again. There are so many beautiful children’s books out there and I have many recommendations.
My top 3 for your children would include:
The Tiger Who Came to Tea - Judith Kerr
Cuddly Duddley - Jez Alborough
The Owl Babies - Martin Waddell
The basket can be refreshed every 2 - 3 weeks but must contain at least half very well-loved, old favourites. The very best activity that you can enjoy with a young child, is to read together. If the book is simple, perhaps you may even consider it to be babyish, it doesn’t matter.
It is so important that a child knows how to hold a book correctly, understand print and the direction of text, can turn a page and understands what an author is. Familiar books can really settle a child and it is a good way to support your child to self-regulate and to calm down.
Many parents will say that one of their absolute favourite pastimes is to settle down and enjoy a great book together. When I was a child, one of my fondest memories is being read a bedtime story by my mother. ‘Just one more chapter…’ I used to ask. What a simple and wonderful way to teach your child to embrace a love of reading and the joy that a book can bring.