Reflections by Alison Hanson, Warwickshire-based Childminder *The following guest post represents the author’s personal view and does not necessarily represent the view of the Birmingham Early Years Networks (BEYN) as a whole. Any issues or questions arising from the content of this post should, therefore, be directed to the author and not BEYN. Interested in writing a guest post for the BEYN blog? Visit the Write for Us page for more info. HEART Midlands Stronger Practice Hub certainly lived up to their name this month, curating their first two-day Early Years Conference with a heart-warming ..read more

Project Background The Early Years Foundation Stage states:   “The development of children’s spoken language underpins all seven areas of learning and development. Children’s back-and-forth interactions from an early age form the foundations for language and cognitive development.” — 2023:8   During the past two years, Birmingham Early Years Networks (BEYN) has been working in partnership with The Rep in Birmingham and in particular Becky, a drama practitioner, by offering story-based drama workshops to Early Years settings in Birmingham. Through story and drama, the focus has been o ..read more

This article from Dr Katherine Gulliver, lecturer and researcher at Plymouth Institute of Education, explores the findings of a review on special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision in the early years, particularly focusing on Reception in England. Despite the play-based and child-centric approach, there is concern that favouring formal learning will lead to the exclusion of pupils with SEND. The study emphasizes the need for inclusive pedagogies and a play-based, relational approach in reception, contrasting with the formalisation often seen in Year 1. embracing inclusive teac ..read more

Claire Fitzgerald - Area Lead (HEART - Midlands Stronger Practice Hub), DfE Mentor Programme I’ve always had the drive to push myself, personally and professionally. This is why I left Childminding in 2014 to go and pursue a career in teaching. I was so thankful to take the time out of my Early Years career and to understand how the practical element of my roles sat alongside the theory side. I thoroughly enjoyed my degree and three years came and went so quickly that before I knew it I was back out into the world of work. I was ready and raring to start a new career putting theory into pract ..read more

From the Heart of the City is a new series sharing practice from across Birmingham. Are you doing something in your setting that you’d like to share with the community? We’d love to hear about it! Get in touch today. Woodwork at Highters Heath Nursery School After attending a woodword course with Pete Moorhouse, Elaine Williams, a teaching assistant at Highters Heath Nursery School, took on responsibility for leading this area of the curriculum. In this blog, the first in our ‘From the Heart of the City’ series, Elaine shares some of her thoughts and experiences as well as what the children sa ..read more

41 Childminders + 121 Children, 1 week, 5 sessions. Maths normally doesn’t make people happy… but this kind of maths does! The HEART Midlands Stronger Practice Hub has partnered with Claire Fitzgerald, Area Lead for Childminders in the Midlands, to develop a suite of stay-and-play sessions specifically for childminders! New childminder stay-and-play provision has been developed to help meet the unmet needs of childminders in Birmingham who had become isolated post-pandemic and were struggling to find stay-and-play sessions to attend. Childminders said that many of the stay-and-play groups the ..read more

Written by Safiaya Abowath-Tulloch, Early Years Consultant (EYC) for Inclusion Hello Birmingham Childminders! I am elated to announce the Birmingham Childminder Network, formally known as the Childminder Inclusion Network has partnered with HEART Midlands Stronger Practice Hubs (SPH). This is a wonderful and exciting partnership for Birmingham childminders and childminders in the West Midlands to connect, collaborate, strengthen local networks, and improve outcomes for children. The collaboration with HEART Midlands SPH presents an exhilarating opportunity for childminders to be in the know a ..read more

Since our first blog about the world of early years acronyms there have been changes. New acronyms have appeared and some have changed – so read on and see how many you know! CAUTION: Attempting to read this story if you don’t work in the early years may lead to severe confusion and a possible headache! You have been warned… If you need a bit of help, scroll down for a glossary or download our updated Early Years Acronyms Cheat Sheet. Are you sitting comfortably? Let’s begin… So, FYI, J4F, BY&M… Picture the imaginary scene. A number of people are sitting in the room - parents, carers, pra ..read more

Emma Payne from the Birmingham Scrapstore shares how the Scrapstore can support early years settings to get started with loose parts play. *The following guest post represents the author’s personal view and does not necessarily represent the view of the Birmingham Early Years Networks (BEYN) as a whole. Any issues or questions arising from the content of this post should, therefore, be directed to the author and not BEYN. Interested in writing a guest post for the BEYN blog? Visit the Write for Us page for more info. Loose Parts Play The concept of ‘loose parts play’ was originally created in ..read more

The Early Years Developing Local Provision (DLP) project is delighted to be working in partnership with Attention Autism to build a sustainable approach for children in the early years with emerging social, communication, and interaction needs. *This blog is based on information from the Attention Birmingham project outline from Attention Autism 2022. The Attention Birmingham project is designed to give early years leaders and their practitioner teams the information and practical expertise to develop inclusion experiences. The project presents ideas combined with practical strategies in work ..read more