Observation is an essential part of early years daily practice in all kinds of settings, from the baby room to the end of reception. To be effective, observation requires staff to have or develop skills in observing and writing up observations quickly and efficiently. These skills are not difficult to learn, and once acquired, they go towards making the job of working with young children even more exciting.
The following pages take practitioners through the observation process, explaining what and how to observe and record and how to feed the observations into their planning.
What to look for
The starting point for observing has to be linked to a practitioner's knowledge of child development. What kinds of skills and processes would you expect to see in a child of this age? For example, for children aged under two, the following areas of development are likely to be of greatest importance:
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