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Topic “Early Years (0-5yrs)”
Early Years (0 to 5 years)
Nose
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Nose graphic.
Letter set (i h j k)
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Set of four letters (i, h, j, k).
Part of a letter rainbow
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First few letters of a letter rainbow.
Letter rainbow
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Letter rainbow.
because sentence frame
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Three part sentence frame example linking phrases with because.
have-am-will table
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Table to help choose the right words to use for past, present and future tenses.
understand and use less for quantity
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Less food 3 soft toys Plastic tea set Plastic food |
| Avoid working on "less" and "more" together as there is a risk that the child may confuse them. When the child is able to use "less" and "more" on separate occasions in separate activities, you can then use both together in this activity - e.g. ask "More/less banana here?" and so on. |
| Fruit Salad Two bowls and fruit to cut into fruit salad | You could do this activity at snack time - sharing some fruit between two or more children. | |
| Using "less" with various materials See-through plastic cups Materials to put in them, for example: water beans sand pegs bricks pens Optional: symbol for 'less' - this can help to reinforce the concept for some children. If you don't already have one, you can get a symbol for "less" through the Commtap Symboliser. | You need to make the learning very visible. Allow the child to explore materials and give time to respond to questions. Give lots of opportunity for repetition. Provide a central group of items against which 'less' can be compared. Avoid working on "less" and "more" together as there is a risk that the child may confuse them. When the child is able to use "less" and "more" on separate occasions in separate activities, you can then use both together in this activity: use three beakers, have more in one beaker and less in another (than the central beaker). | |
| Sharing out materials Materials, for example: beans sand pegs bricks pens Symbol for 'less' 2 different coloured sheets If you don't already have one, you can get a symbol for "less" through the Commtap Symboliser. | Avoid working on "less" and "more" together as there is a risk that the child may confuse them. When the child is able to use "less" and "more" on separate occasions in separate activities, you can then use both together in this activity: use three sheets, have more in one sheet and less on the other (than the central sheet). | |
| Biscuit decorating Biscuits Something to sprinkle on to them | Avoid working on "less" and "more" together as there is a risk that the child may confuse them. |
consistently acts on objects
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Playing with action toys Drum Jack in a box Pop-up toys Toys which need to be squeezed or a button pushed to produce an effect | Sit in the child's sight line in a quiet room and choose an action type toy to have on your lap. Gain the child's attention by stroking their face/clapping your hands or calling their name. Use the toy. Show happiness and/or surprise as you do so. Wait to see if the child makes a move to request a repeat. Repeat the action if the child requests. If the child does not request a repeat do the action again as above. After a few repeats take the child's hand and help the child activate the toy. Gradually reduce the amount of help you give the child to activate the toy. Can the child activate the toy independently if you show the child the toy? Move on to a different toy and follow the procedure above. | Work in short bursts. Keep the experience fun and light hearted. Give the child enough time to explore the toys and enough time to try to use the toy themselves. Give lots of praise for any success. |
| Snack time Small edible treats (biscuits/fruit/crisps) Transparent container with a lid. | You want the child to be able to open the container independently and help themselves. Give lots of time to explore the objects and praise for any success. Give lots of opportunities to learn by repeating the activity. | |
| Favourite toy Small toys e.g. car/squashy ball |
Activities to encourage the use of 'first', 'next' and 'last' when describing a sequence of events.
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Sequencing cards - sets of 3 picture sequencing cards - you will need to source these. | 1. Choose a set of three cards and mix them up. 2. Ask your child to sort the pictures in the order that they happened. If your child finds this hard, put them in order together. Match them to the symbols. 3. Describe what is happening in the pictures using the words first, next and last - you can point to the symbols as you say the words. 4. Encourage your child to describe what is happening using the words first, next and last. | If the child finds it difficult to remember whether to put the pictures in order from left to right, or right to left, you can draw a large arrow (→) on the sheet. Numbering the boxes 1-3 can also help. |
| Photo sequencing |
|
Identify key information in stories with question prompts
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Story String String Pegs Who-what-where-what prompt sheet using symbols, colour-coded:
Who (orange) What (i.e. objects - green) Where (red) What (i.e. actions - yellow)
Picture cards in separate bags or envelopes follows: Who envelope: e.g. various people, animals, monsters, spacemen, football players What (objects) envelope: e.g. football, car, rocket, computer, stick, box, bicycle Where envelope: e.g. park, mountain, house, beach What (actions) envelope: e.g. jump, sleep, fly, fall, cry, drive You could also use the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint to get picture symbols for these items. | 1. Pick a card from each envelope and peg them onto the string. 2. Make up a simple story which has everything on the string in it. 3. Have the child recap the main parts of the story to you, using the prompt sheet. 4. Take it in turns to make up the story, but have the child do the retell of it every time. | |
| Story Retell A familiar story, and key pictures of who, where, what and what happened in the story. (You might be able to photocopy this from a book). Who-what-where-what prompt sheet using symbols, colour-coded:
Who (orange) What (i.e. objects - green) Where (red) What (i.e. actions - yellow) You could use the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint to get symbols. | Example: Goldilocks - book Pictures: Who: Goldilocks, 3 bears Where: house, forest What things: porridge, chair, bed What happened: hot, walking, eating, breaking, sleeping, come back, run away You could vary this by watch short clips of film / computer programmes instead of having the book. | |
| Walk the walk A wind up toy (e.g. Simon the Sheep) Pictures of things it might see or do on its walk Who-what-where-what prompt sheet using symbols, colour-coded:
Who (orange) What (i.e. objects - green) Where (red) What (i.e. actions - yellow) You could use the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint to get symbols. | ||
| Any story or recount of an event Who-what-where-what prompt sheet using symbols, colour-coded:
Who (orange) What (i.e. objects - green) Where (red) What (i.e. actions - yellow) You could use the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint to get symbols. |
Tongue placement for t, d and k, g
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Diagram for tongue placement for t, d and k, g.
Tongue in and out faces
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Two faces - one with and one without the tongue sticking out.
Lilly pad
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Lilly pad image.
Plastic duck
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A plastic duck image.
Four ducks
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Four ducks - with initial 'd'.
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