January 2022 Parenta magazine

Child-led learning
Situation
Example of practitioner
leading or taking over
an activity
Example of the
practitioner
facilitating and
extending the learning
Explanation
In the revised EYFS, early years practitioners should consider “the individual needs, interests and
development of each child in their care and use this information to plan a challenging and enjoyable
experience for each child in all areas of learning and development.”
A child picks up some blocks
and begins to put them into a
box.
The practitioner says, “I see you
are counting the blocks, let me
help” and counts the blocks with
the child.
The practitioner goes over and
asks “I see you are playing
with the blocks. Are you using
them for something special?”
When the child explains that
they are ‘picking potatoes’, the
practitioner joins in and asks
if there are other vegetables
that the child wants to harvest.
In the first instance the
practitioner has assumed the
child was counting and taken
over. In the second example, the
practitioner has interacted with
the child without assuming what
is going on. They allowed the
child to explain their idea and
then joined in, extending the
activity to other vegetables.
A child draws a picture of a tree
which is red and yellow.
The practitioner notices and
says, “That’s a lovely tree, but
trees are not red and yellow.
What colour are trees normally?”
The practitioner notices and
asks, “Those are interesting
colours, why did you choose
those for this picture?”
In the first instance, the
practitioner is naming the colours
but also placing limitations on the
child’s imagination. In the second
instance, the practitioner opens
up the conversation for the child
to explain.
One key word here is “interests”, which
means things that the child is interested
in and motivated by, be that a model
car, a bird in the tree or the glinting
reflection of light on a carpet. These are
important because they motivate children
to explore, ask questions, and stimulates
them in a natural way. But the things that
children are interested in can sometimes
be overlooked in favour of national
curriculums, parental preferences, cultural
bias and goals and expectations dictated
by other people.
Child-led or child-initiated learning can
redress this balance and put the child’s
interests back at the heart of their world.
What is child-led learning?
Child-led learning happens when a child
chooses an activity to do at a particular
time rather than have an adult choose
for them. It assumes that each person is
a unique expression of themselves and
has individual and valid approaches to
learning that are right for them, leading
to a meaningful learning experience. An
example could be when a child picks up a
pen and begins exploring what marks they
can make, or when a child’s imagination
is captured playing with some cardboard
boxes, or when a child chooses to explore
an outdoor environment, looking under
rocks to see what is there. The potential for
the child to learn is almost endless since
they are free to move from one learning
experience to another. The opposite of
child-led learning would be a controlled
classroom where there are set learning
goals that need to be covered and the
children are only allowed to do the tasks
assigned them by the teacher.
Tips to encourage child-led
learning in your setting
Be prepared – ensure your
environment is inviting
The key to being spontaneous with
children is sometimes to be well prepared.
If all your toys, pens and paper are
neatly stored away until the practitioner
decides that she wants to use them, then
the opportunities for children to explore
using these resources will be limited. Your
resources therefore need to be organised
but easily accessible for the children. Don’t
worry too much either if resources get
moved from one area to another, such as
a child taking some blocks into the outdoor
area. You want to be teaching them
adaptability and creative thinking rather
than limiting their choices or ideas.
Train practitioners to observe and
interact
Child-led learning is not the same as a
‘hands-off’ approach to teaching. It does
not mean practitioners have time off to
catch up on paperwork whilst the children
play on their own. Child-led learning at
its best has a high degree of practitioner
involvement but this involvement needs to
be measured and follow the child’s lead.
It is important not to try to manipulate the
child into following the adult’s agenda.
Practitioners need to be able to first
observe the children at play and identify
the moments where they can extend or
augment the child’s learning through
joining in with the activity, taking the lead
from the child, or by posing high-quality
questions which lead the child to develop
their higher-order thinking.
Learning to identify higher-order thinking
questions is a skill that you can train your
practitioners to do. Bloom’s taxonomy was
one of the original frameworks to identify
educational goals, but can be applied in the
early years too since it encourages students
not to just remember and regurgitate
information, but to solve problems, adapt
the situation and create something
completely new.
Make time but don’t worry about
time
A child-led learning moment could last a
few seconds or a whole day. The length
of time does not matter but the quality of
the time and the quality of the interactions
between practitioners and children do. You
may already have free play or child-led
learning time scheduled into your day but
think about doing this if not. Remember too
that you can follow a child’s lead at anytime
if it is appropriate and safe to do so.
Reflect and improve
Take a moment to reflect after a childled
learning experience and think about
whether you could extend their learning
through a different activity later in the
day or in the week. For example, if the
child was building a boat in the sandpit,
is there a way you could introduce this
topic later in the day at storytime or when
mark-making for example. Practitioners
should take the time to introduce new
vocabulary and to encourage speaking
and conversations to help children make
links to other areas of the curriculum, as
is encouraging physicality, movement and
social interactions with others.
A word about SEND
When working with children with SEND,
it is important to really understand the
needs of these pupils and to accommodate
them during child-led learning time. Some
children with SEND are less able to cope
with unstructured time than other children
and can become anxious or fretful if
they are not sure what to do or what is
happening. These children may require a
greater degree of support and guidance,
or some help in starting out. Some children,
such as those with autism, may become
completely engrossed in an activity that
they are interested in, to the exclusion
of everything else, so it is vital that you
understand the different needs and make
plans for SEND children too.
The great thing about child-led learning
is that it plays into a holistic programme
of education which will allow the child to
develop across all the areas of learning in
the EYFS and more.
More information
• https://www.readingrockets.org/
article/how-increase-higher-orderthinking
• https://www.teachstarter.com/gb/
blog/higher-order-thinking-in-theclassroom-and-why-it-matters-2/
• https://www.teachwire.net/news/
how-to-implement-child-led-learningin-your-early-years-setting
• https://www.teachingexpertise.com/
articles/child-initiated-learning/
12 January 2022 | parenta.com
parenta.com | January 2022 13