Looking Inwards at Our Practice.
Over recent months, we have been reflecting deeply on what our children truly need in this post-Covid landscape. Like many early years settings, we are noticing that transitions can feel harder, attention shifts quickly and emotional regulation sometimes needs more adult support. National findings echo this. The Child of the North Preschool Years report highlights reduced communication and emotional regulation in young children compared with pre-pandemic groups (Centre for Young Lives & N8 Research Partnership, 2024).
These reflections have strengthened our commitment to simplifying our mornings, making routines more predictable and building an enabling environment that allows us to respond immediately. Today, just like yesterday, clearly showed why this approach works so well for our children.
A Routine That Anchors the Day.
With support from our son, George Hall (BA Hons QTS), a local primary school teacher who helps us with our educational IT, our Smart Board now quietly anchors the flow of the morning.
Each part of the routine brings up a picture and jingle, Story Time, Finger Gym, Tooth Brushing, Movement Break and Bucket Time etc. These are supported by music where appropriate, for tooth brushing, the toothbrush image and jingle appear first, we pause to gather what we need, and then the tooth-brushing song begins. Alexa gives a five-minute warning, and we turn our sand timer to help the children prepare for change.
These simple cues give the children confidence, predictability and a calm sense of “I know what comes next,” which this cohort benefits from enormously.
Yesterday’s Learning: Following Feelings and Keeping It Simple…
Yesterday, the day began with a child talking about feeling scared of shadows. Because our environment is set up so we can respond instantly, we moved straight into ‘Mog and the V.E.T.’ as our story, not planned, but chosen in the moment.
From that one choice, an entire sequence of meaningful learning unfolded:
• Drawing cats
• Exploring emotions using our Emotion Play-Doh rollers
• Sequencing the story with now, next, then.
• Linking to vet role-play
• Revisiting Australian animals and earlier learning on our termly theme, ‘Around the World’.
It was the kind of day that demonstrated the heart of the EYFS principles, a responsive adult, an enabling environment, time to follow each unique child’s lead, and rich relationships that hold everything together.
And none of it required complicated setups. Just books, pencils, Play-Doh and time.
Today’s Learning: ‘Owl Babies’ and Big Feelings…
This morning followed the same pattern of responsiveness. Recent conversations about feeling scared led naturally to Owl Babies at Story Time. Because the Smart Board had already signalled that it was story time, the children were calm and ready, even though the book choice itself was completely in the moment.
We talked about owls living in a tree, linked back to Mog hunting mice, counted the owl babies and explored who might be oldest. A comment about the missing daddy created a gentle moment to talk about different types of families. We revisited big feelings, rhyming words and the idea that “Mummy always comes back.” An unexpected question about what age people can stay home alone showed how engaged the children were.
From there, learning unfolded simply and beautifully:
• Drawing owls using circles and triangles
• Exploring chalk and paint together
• Linking kinetic sand play to the “night time” sky
• Retelling the story through small-world play
Again- simple materials, but incredibly rich learning.
What These Two Days Show Us.
Across both days, the same pattern has emerged:
1. Simple resources create deeper learning.
Books, drawing materials, Play-Doh and small-world toys have supported emotional understanding, sequencing, maths, fine motor control and story-telling.
2. The enabling environment matters.
Because everything is accessible, we don’t lose the moment gathering things. We can respond immediately and meaningfully.
3. Predictable routines free children to become deeply engaged in their learning.
The Smart Board visuals, jingles and five-minute warnings help transitions run smoothly and reduce anxiety.
4. The richest moments come from following the children.
Both days were built almost entirely from the children’s comments, feelings, questions and fascinations.
5. Instagram-style provision is not what this cohort needs.
Over-themed trays and elaborate setups can look impressive, but they do not always support deeper learning. Our children thrive with clear routines, responsive adults, rich conversation and resources that let them return to ideas again and again.
Emotional Literacy, British Values and Wider Curriculum Links…
Although our approach is simple, it is never superficial. Emotional literacy is woven naturally through everything we do, rather than added as a token gesture. Today this was clear in the way children used words such as scared, anxious and sad in their play after our story discussions, showing genuine understanding and emotional recall. Moments in ‘Owl Babies’ also gave us rich opportunities to explore trust, comfort and care, linking sensitively to British Values through ideas of belonging, family diversity and showing respect. When the children wondered whether the owls could be “left alone,” we were able to link this thoughtfully to real-world safeguarding principles in an age-appropriate way, reinforcing that rules exist to keep everyone safe. These are the small, meaningful interactions that demonstrate how emotional development, British Values and early safeguarding awareness can be embedded authentically across the day, not as standalone activities, but as part of high-quality early years practice.
Thoughts for Practitioners…
Once again, these days remind us that early years practice doesn’t need to be complicated to be powerful. What matters most is:
• Time
• Space
• Predictability
• Responsive adults
• Open-ended materials
• The confidence to let learning unfold
A story, mark-making resources, Play-Doh, sand and an attentive adult can cover more of the EYFS than any staged photo could ever capture.
And, just as I reflected in my Autumn Reflections blog, outstanding practice does not come from carefully curated “Instagram trays” or expensive curiosity set-ups. It comes from professional judgement, responsiveness in the moment and an enabling environment that lets us reach the right resource at the right time. Today’s rich discussions about feelings, shadows, different families and even who might be the “oldest owl” did not appear because of costly materials. They appeared because we were able to listen, notice and respond.
In the end, the most powerful moments in early years come from skilled adults, not from money — and keeping things simple continues to make the biggest impact.
Reference.
Centre for Young Lives and N8 Research Partnership (2024). Child of the North Preschool Years: An evidence-based approach to supporting children in the preschool years.
Available at: https://www.n8research.org.uk/media/CotN_Preschool_Report_9.pdf