How can staff best manage Early Years children and the Quality Circle Time Model?
I am head of a large Nursery Centre and appear to be hitting barriers to successful circle time. For the past year we have been operating the sanctions system using large visual displays. Within the 3-5 year old stage we have three open plan playrooms and for most of the nursery session the children move freely selecting activities. However tracking whether or not children follow the golden rules is difficult for staff. Part of the problem is that out of twelve staff only two have had access to circle time training. I am keen to resolve these difficulties as I firmly believe that personal and social development underpins everything we do and is key to a child's success later in life. Can you advise me how to overcome this problem?
Jenny: I always feel slightly anxious when nursery schools talk to me about my rewards and sanctions system. There is a section on using Golden Time with Early Years children in our book “Better Behaviour through Golden Time”.
You are right it is much easier if I can get a consultant to teach a school than try and describe it on the cold page! I am not sure how you are doing it but it involves a large happy golden sun with yellow pegs and each child’s face on the peg. This sun represents the 10 minute Golden Time that all the children will experience before they go home that day. Next to the sun is a warning symbol ie. it’s a lovely sun with a cloud passing over his face. If a child breaks the golden rule the peg is placed on the ‘warning sun’ with a gentle statement from the adult, “Do you know what golden rule you are breaking now? You are breaking the one of being gentle – if you stop kicking we will bring you back to the happy sun – if you kick again you will go to the sad cloud”. A sad cloud completes the visual display. If after a few minutes the child comes back to the golden rules the peg is brought back to the happy golden sun and everyone enjoys Golden Time. If, however, he or she chooses to break another golden rule the peg is placed on the warning symbol and then later that day when the class has 5 or 10 minutes “Golden Time” which usually involves simple party games. The child, who broke the golden rule, sits and observes a 1 minute sand timer. After 1 minute he is bought back within the Golden Time with a smile. Unfortunately, in the book I forgot to say that the pegs must be bought back to the golden sun before the children go home. In this way no parents will ever see the system actually operating and they will not know which children have kept the golden rules and those who have not! You see, even trying to explain it above is hard.
On a training day a consultant will show suns and clouds and talk through with each school their particular needs. If you are an open plan school the staff would need spend time on this system prior to operating it to iron out your own particular issues. If you met together all the staff concerned could voice their worries or apprehensions. So, I think that you are right, you do all need training. The most cost-effective, value added training is to get together with lots of other nurseries and share the cost of the day. We will take up to 100 delegates and even ask you to bring in a class of nursery children for people to observe in the afternoon. Per head our training is incredibly good value!!
On another note we have some absolutely fantastic early years resources. We have ‘Stepping Stones’ a two year programmes of circle lesson plans of PSHE lesson plans for 3 – 5 year olds; We have ‘Ring of Confidence’ to help build resilience through circle time and, I have co-authored ‘Here We Go Round’ which shows how you can use circle time to meet the 6 early learning goals. We also have a range of puppets to help young children discuss a range of issues. So, do get in touch if we can help. If not, I hope that the above has given you some clues! Sometimes though I do my own model a disservice by trying to write it all down because it so much easier to demonstrate it and talk it through. Thank you so much for your enthusiasm and your vision.
Related Tags »
Tell a friend
Enter yours and a friends name to send them this page.
