Amid the debate about the national evaluation of Sure Start and the review of the teaching of reading, which will lead to a focus on phonics as the primary method for very young children, it would be a good idea for those policymakers and commentators who are shouting loudest to take note of the findings of some of the pioneers featured in our child development series. This week we look at the life and work of Vivian Gussin Paley, who has been observing children and their play for many years ('A long hard look', pages 12-13). Vivian's dissection of the importance of fantasy play, storytelling and storyacting to children is not a passing fad, but a powerful and knowledgeable reflection enabled by her use of the classroom as an 'all-consuming laboratory'. Hers is the sort of work that should be informing educational policy and strategies.
Amid the debate about the national evaluation of Sure Start and the review of the teaching of reading, which will lead to a focus on phonics as the primary method for very young children, it would be a good idea for those policymakers and commentators who are shouting loudest to take note of the findings of some of the pioneers featured in our child development series.
This week we look at the life and work of Vivian Gussin Paley, who has been observing children and their play for many years ('A long hard look', pages 12-13). Vivian's dissection of the importance of fantasy play, storytelling and storyacting to children is not a passing fad, but a powerful and knowledgeable reflection enabled by her use of the classroom as an 'all-consuming laboratory'. Hers is the sort of work that should be informing educational policy and strategies.
Unfortunately, nurseries are still having to fight for children's right to play outdoors freely. We report on the Hampshire pre-school limited to two half-hour periods a day after complaints from a neighbour (News, page 5).
Outdoor space is still not a requirement for registration of settings, and is not even mandatory for new children's centres. It seems that there's still an assumption that children shouldn't be seen or heard in our neighbourhoods.
