During the summer break I found myself reflecting deeply on my professional learning journey during the last academic year, helping me to consolidate my plans for the autumn term.
I wrote in depth about noticing how ordinary moments in everyday life help us to teach the early years curriculum. I considered the negative influence of photography in early years and the need to put down the camera and remain ‘in the moment’ with the children. I wrote about the benefit of simplifying provision on offer, with a simple curriculum that focuses on what really matters, with a particular emphasis on avoiding the performativity that social media can encourage.
At the time, each of these blogs felt like reflections. In hindsight, these were all leading to the same conclusion.
Recently, my son, a teacher, said something that really resonated for me:
“Two things can be true at once.”
I’d never heard of this expression before, or thought about it, but the more I’ve considered that simple statement, the more I’ve realised how much this applies to early years practice.