The characteristics of effective learning and the under 2’s
The characteristics of effective learning are a key element in the early year’s foundation stage. They detail the ways in which children should be learning from their environment, experiences and activities. Children up to the age of five should all be displaying the characteristics of effective learning every day.
Ofsted like to see evidence of how children are supported in their explorations and that practitioners are fully aware of the characteristics of effective learning and how each individual child explores these.
The characteristics of effective learning are split into three main areas and then three sub sections within each area. These are ‘playing and exploring’ which shows how the child is engaging, ‘Actively learning’ which shows the motivation behind the child’s learning, and finally ‘creating and thinking critically’ this shows the thought processes behind learning and new achievements. A more detailed article about the characteristics of effective learning can be found here.
When looking at each of these areas it can at first appear the children under 2 are unable achieve the creating and thinking critically elements to the characteristics of effective learning because they are unable to vocally discuss the thinking behind the choices they are making. However this does not mean that they are not creating and critically thinking it just means practitioners need to be aware of what they are and to look for the signs that this is happening.
The under 2’s
It can be incredibly difficult to believe that a child at 18 months will plan and make decisions about how to approach a challenge or make predictions however they regularly do this each time they change activity or move to explore a new area in the room.
As discussed above it takes a knowledgeable practitioner to be able to effectively observe a child and to identify the signs of when a child is learning through the characteristics of effective learning. It may be useful to display the characteristics of effective learning train around the nursery or early years rooms to remind practitioners what they should be observing and what the environment should enable. Another useful tool to aid practitioners may be to use characteristics of effective learning cards. These can be kept on observation boards to remind them again of what they should be looking for and supporting.
This is very clear to see when children are exploring their schemas. An example of this might be a child whose schema is transporting. This schema may be so strong that a child has decided they would like transport a very large teddy to the other side of the room. The first characteristic of effective learning displayed is the prediction that they will be able to move the teddy that is almost equal to their own size. They may then test their idea to see if they can do it, as they try, they may carry the teddy is different ways or try lifting, dragging, or getting a friend to help. These will decisions will all involve different thinking and will mean the child is using a variety of different methods to learn.
Practitioners are the key
When thinking about the characteristics of effective learning the key to ensuring the setting is doing their best to support and promote these are having knowledgeable practitioners. The environment and activities need to ensure they enable all of the characteristics to be explored. Practitioners need to then be able to identify when a child is using the characteristics and use this inform future planning to create further opportunities or to make changes to the environment.