Professor Tina Bruce, visiting professor at the University of North London, praised the early years curriculum in Scotland for its focus on learning through play and its recognition of the importance of child observation.
Professor Bruce has recently completed working with a group of 14 nursery schools, nursery classes, children's centres, the Family Centre and Books for Babies in Edinburgh. She said, 'Scotland has taken a very sensible approach in the way it has kept faith with time-honoured good practice, at the same time as having introduced cutting-edge good practice.
'Three-and four-year-olds are in the nursery together and tend to move up to primary school when they are five. Younger children can watch the older ones doing more complex activities and so children are able to learn from each other while they play.
'There is a huge emphasis on play which is of vital importance. I believe in Scotland there is a better understanding of how children learn through play, because there is a culture of observation-based assessment. Early years practitioners really know the children in their care.
'The project we ran was very exciting because 14 different setting worked together and I would like to see more of that joint work in the rest of Britain.'
The settings participated in joint training in-service days around the theme of Learning Through Play. Each centre tackled the theme through a variety of topics culminating in an exhibition which was such a success that there are plans to extend it.
Craigmillar Children's Centre took the theme 'All About Me' and children put together books with photographs of themselves at play in the centre and also at home. Children's House Nursery School chose a hospital project. Head teacher Maureen Baker said, 'We set up a hospital corner and there was a lot of role play where the staff intervened sensitively.
'The children had the freedom to play, but staff would help develop it by offering props or entering into the play with them. There was a lot of literacy involved, with the children writing get-well-soon cards, checking people into the reception area and writing prescriptions.'