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Buckinghamshire Early Years Conference 2024
Join us for a day of engaging and interactive practical sessions led by team of early years experts, and inspiring keynote speeches.
During the conference you will hear from insightful and knowledgeable experts and take part in engaging and interactive workshops.
There will be a marketplace where you can gain information that can support you and the children you work with.
There will also be opportunities to network with other staff and settings to share knowledge and ideas.
Building a Unique Curriculum
A coherently planned and well-sequenced curriculum enables children to make progress by knowing more, understanding more and being able to do more. In the early years, the curriculum enables all children to make progress in the areas of learning. In this way, early education provides the building blocks of knowledge for subjects that children will study in later years. (Ofsted, Best Start in Life: Settling the Scene, November 2022)
This session will focus on how to build a unique curriculum, what needs to be considered when planning one, as well as how to put your curriculum into practice.
Communication & Language 3 - 5 years
This training is to support practitioners
- To understand the importance of communication and language for children’s wider development and future attainment
- To maximise opportunities to develop children’s communication and language skills
- To recognise a high-quality adult: child interaction
- Gain ideas to develop your setting to provide rich communication and language
Communication and Language for Babies & Very Young Children
Getting it right from the start ...... This is a brand new course exploring supporting communication and language from babies onwards.
As communication is vital to all other areas of development it is vital that we get it right from the start to ensure that all children can reach their full potential.
The aims of the training are
- To understand stages of young children’s communication and language development
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To develop strategies to support young children’s communication and language development including those with EAL and speech and language difficulties
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To be able to work with parents and other professionals to support speech hand language development in very young children.
Developing Early Mark Makers
This training is designed specifically for Practitioners in Preschools and Nurseries.
Laying the foundations to develop keen and enthusiastic mark makers in nurseries and preschools.
Practitioners will focus on the first steps of early literacy and will explore the development of gross motor skills to mark making. We will consider the experiences and activities that will enable children to secure these core skills to become enthusiastic mark makers. We will consider the importance of communication and language, physical skills and how these impact children’s ability to mark make. There will be links to the revised EYFS Statutory Framework and Early Years Inspection Framework.
- To understand how to encourage and motivate early writers
- To understand the key skills children need in order to be able to write
- To gain practical ideas to develop writing for 2 - 4 year olds
- To understand the adults role in supporting early writing
- To understand how to promote literacy through creating an enabling environment
Excelling Outdoors - Beyond the Back Garden
Bespoke for Buckinghamshire Childminders
This course will demonstrate how to plan, resource and support children’s learning outside. It engages learners in a series of practical and fun activities that allow childminders to confidently include outdoor play, incorporating risk and challenge, to make learning through play more exciting. The ideas are based on current research and practice to improve learning outcomes. This course will focus on risk and challenge and all areas of learning and development from the EYFS. As a result of attending this course you will have discussed the following:
- To increase practitioner knowledge and confidence of delivering engaging and challenging EYFS experiences outside.
- To plan and implement quality learning outside, including those arising spontaneously, tailored to meet the needs and development of the children.
- To understand the benefits of risk and challenge and how to support this for children and any assistants you may employ.
EYFS Profile Professional Dialogue Meeting
These events are aimed at Reception class teachers.
This professional dialogue meeting will give those reception teachers completing the EYFSP for 2025 the opportunity to discuss the early learning goals as well as their judgements to ensure accuracy and consistency in EYFS profile for parents and year one teachers. The course will use the EYFS profile handbook, it will have an element of evidence sharing through professional dialogue.
Training Objectives:
- Support reception teachers to complete the EYFS profile for 2025
- Facilitate practitioners to engage in professional dialogue with colleagues
- Discuss key aspects of the early learning goals
Learning Outcomes:
- Practitioners are aware of expectations for EYFSP 2025
- Practitioners feel confident to make accurate EYFSP judgements
- Practitioners have a greater understanding of the early learning goals
Foundation in Phonics
Children’s literacy skills in school are generally influenced by their earlier experiences. Adults working with younger children can support them to develop a strong foundation from which to learn the specific skills needed to be successful readers and writers. This session will explore ideas for developing children’s early phonics skills through:
Adult-led activities
Fun, practical games
Resources which can be differentiated depending on a child’s age and stage of development
Getting started - Support for Early Career teachers in Early Years
This brand new course, consisting of 4 face to face meetings throughout the year, have been designed to provide a highly informative introduction to teaching and learning in the Early Years and will help to support ECTs at the beginning of their career. Bespoke training and discussions to include:
- Autumn: Session 1 - Continuous provision and the enabling environment, successful transitions and structuring the day. An opportunity for careful and reasoned considerations about the learning environment which you provide. Reflect on how carefully planned routines, organisation and resources promote a broad range of learning and development opportunities.
- Spring: Session 2 - Enhancing the environment based on the skills your children need to develop and have been taught so far, including the use of Buckinghamshire Early Years audit tools.
- Summer 1: Session 3 - Professional dialogue around the EYFSP
- Summer 2: Session 4 – Reflection and celebration of the year.
Leading the Early Years with Confidence
This course is aimed at Early Years Managers and Leaders in the EYFS and will identify the key changes within the revised EYFS statutory framework. Through discussions we will explore effective ways to develop a shared understanding of what is quality practice within EYFS and effective strategies to improve teaching across a team. It will look at the requirements of Ofsted and how both the EYFS framework and Ofsted inspection framework work together, identifying key features of both documents. We will reflect on current trends, curriculum, and the enabling environment to enrich your professional knowledge of outstanding early years and focus on how to shape actions for the future development of your EYFS.
The evaluation form will measure how well training objectives were met – please ensure to add minimum of 3
- Update of key revisions to the EYFS
- Explore what is quality provision in Early Years
- Explore aspects of the EIF
- Reflect on current Ofsted trends
- Gain a greater understanding of the curriculum and curriculum planning.
Nurturing Successful Writers
This course is designed specifically for Practitioners in Reception
How to develop enthusiastic and independent writers from early mark making to confident writing in reception.
This course will explore how to develop enthusiastic and independent writers from early mark making to confident writing. Practitioners will focus on the first steps of early Literacy and will explore the development from early mark making to independent writing. We will reflect on the interconnected relationship between phonics and early writing and consider the experiences and activities that will enable children to secure these connections to become enthusiastic, confident, and independent writers. We will consider how to best support vulnerable groups.
- To gain teaching strategies and practical ideas to develop and support writing indoors and outdoors
- To plan teaching opportunities to support children make connections between phonics and writing
- To understand how to promote literacy through creating an enabling environment.
Practitioners New to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)
This course is designed for practitioners new to a setting and new to the EYFS. Suitable for childminders, nursery and preschool staff and those working in school in the Early Years.
- Gain an overview of the ‘Statutory Framework for the EYFS’ and other non-statutory documentation
- Observation, assessment and planning a cycle
- Ensure that the characteristics of effective teaching & learning are at the heart of your practice
- Cultural Capital and implementing a curriculum within the setting
- Understand what we mean by adult-led and child-initiated activities
- Understand the importance of partnership with parents and others
- How to create an enabling environment
Supporting the well-being of children in the Early Years
This half day course will explore risk and protective factors that promote positive mental health for all children. It will look at ways to identify need and the role of practitioners in providing support for children’s mental health and well-being.
This training will give practitioners confidence in identifying children that are struggling with their well-being and the opportunity to consider ways to enhance practice to support these children.