Cambridge University invites practitioners to share their experiences of working with two-to-five-year-olds

The Early Years Library, set up by the Centre for Play in Education, Development and Learning (PEDAL) at the University of Cambridge alongside the Early Intervention Foundation (EIF) and funded by the Nuffield Foundation, aims to bring together individual elements of successful early interventions in a guide for practitioners.

The guide will consist of a curated collection of small practices designed to support planning and problem-solving that will enable practitioners to take into account the needs of their children, setting and community when choosing which of the practices to use and when to fit them into their routines.

It will be available free of charge and will include activities to help practitioners support children’s social-emotional learning, maths and literacy skills. 

Examples of practices to support social-emotional learning in the area of emotional knowledge that will feature in the guide include:

• PRACTICE 1: Practitioners use mirrors with children to mimic different emotion-based facial expressions - could encourage this during role play, e.g. ‘Are the pirates making angry faces? Can you see your angry face in the mirror?’

• PRACTICE 2: Practitioners talk with children about characters’ emotions in stories - use during storytime, e.g. ‘How does Billy feel? How would you feel if this happened?’

• PRACTICE 3: Practitioners demonstrate emotion-based facial expressions and tone then label them for children - Use in a variety of situations, e.g. ‘How am I feeling right now? What does it mean when I make this face?’

PEDAL and EIF are looking for practitioners at all levels from both PVI and maintained settings, including childminders, who work or have worked with children between the ages of two and five to join a panel or focus groups to share their experiences and help inform development of the guide.

 'Input from practitioners will be key to designing an effective guide'

Sara Baker, project lead and reader in developmental psychology and education at PEDAL, said, ‘We’re very excited about developing the Early Years Library from the strong evidence base of successful early interventions. The input from early years practitioners will be key to designing an accessible and effective guide to practice.’

Sarah Hardy, an early years teacher at Honey Pot Nursery in Garston and a member of the project’s initial panel discussions, added, ‘Being a member of the panel has been really beneficial as I have been able to connect with other practitioners in different areas of the early years sector to discuss similarities and differences in practice. I think the Early Years Library will have a significant impact, particularly in supporting apprentices within my setting in developing their practice to support the individual needs of a child or group of children.’

• Those interested in contributing their experiences and knowledge to the project should contact Anna Jackson, research assistant at the University of Cambridge, by email at EarlyYearsLibrary@educ.cam.ac.uk