Woodlands Emerging Curriculum Plans

As part of authentic planning for children (group and individual), it needs to involve a variety of observations, analysis, critical reflection, intentional and spontaneous planning, implementation and reflection.

Click on me to hear the different elements of Woodlands programming and planning.

Yearly Planning Calendar:

Planning checklist 1st half of the year with guides attached
Planning checklist 2nd half of the year with guides attached

Planning room wall display. 

Room wall display example:

Click on me to print out termly reflection coloured boxes.

Were to find the planning documents.

Woodlands Early Learning Programming and planning in action and why we have the templates we do:
https://stonly.com/sl/b6445833-71dc-4ac9-8874-f54112ef4912/Steps/

What is Woodlands Early Learning Framework? please see visual guide link:
https://stonly.com/sl/d960c055-0801-40b2-a87b-dd0b4c4c0fc5/Steps/

Implementation of learning, this link includes teaching strategies and techniques.
Click link ⬆️ 

“Knowledgeable and skilful educators are integral to the environment creating the right conditions to enable children to progressively become more capable learners.”
(Learning to Learn: Positive dispositions as a ‘learning curriculum).

As part of authentic planning cycle for children (group and individual), it needs to involve a variety of observations, analysis, critical reflection, intentional and spontaneous planning, implementation and reflection. By collating authentic data and quality programming and planning, it is a valuable way that captures children’s voices and ideas through meaningful learning as it ensures that we all are provided with the correct skills and tools with having a clear understanding on how to collect data that supports each child individually and as a group.

When thinking about children's learning planning, and supporting families through their learning journey, we all have a responsibility to teach and empower as it is essential that we all have a clear understanding of how it needs to be embedded and why. All educators at Woodlands ELC needs to understand how the planning works and why we do what we do, we all have a responsibility ensure children are empowered and have the ability to lead their future learning that sets them up for success.

Planning steps: January until July:

1. Formative assessment (optional to share to families) 

2. Positive partnership with family (share to families)

3. Analysis of learning and evaluation (share to families)

4. Individual goal planning (share to families)

5. Group focus planning (emerging curriculum) (share to families)

6.  Analysis of learning and evaluation (optional) (share to families)

7. Summative Assessment (share to families)

Planning steps: July until December: repeat process. 

1. Formative assessment (optional to share to families) 

2. Positive partnership with family (share to families)

3. Analysis of learning and evaluation (share to families)

4. Individual goal planning (share to families)

5. Group focus planning (emerging curriculum) (share to families)

6.  Analysis of learning and evaluation (optional) (share to families)

7. Summative Assessment (share to families)

NOTE: Observations and data collection happens through all aspects of planning. 

Positive Partnership's with families guide:
Extended parent partnership guide for parent meetings.

Formative Assessment.
Assessment ‘for children’s learning’, also known as formative assessment, is when information about what children know, can do and understand is gathered and analysed to inform pedagogy and planning.
This is a useful tool for educators to be able to clearly identify the child's learning abilities that will support you to identify the leaning focus (individual goal) the child needs at that time.
The formative assessment will help the educator create an 'individual goal' for each child and is a way for the educator to build on their knowledge about the child's current abilities and what learning is important to focus on, that supports the child's development in that moment of their learning.
This information collected is data that you can use when in the parent partnership meeting. 
It is to be done twice a year at the minimum, in January and in July.

This document is preferred to not to be shared with families, as there could be information in there that they may not agree with, however, you know the families you have in your Campus best, and if you feel that by shearing this document would support your conversation, then share the information respectfully and be mindful of the language you use with families. 

Extended Guide on a Formative Assessment:
https://stonly.com/sl/8afeecea-68ac-41f4-9267-4d5509b4c0f8/Steps/

Observations.

Through the planning cycle, observations are done and collected throughout the whole processes of children's group and individual learning cycles all year round. Observations are about observing each child and authentically collecting information on children's current knowledge as a group and individually with ensuring you are identifying children's, strengths, skills, abilities, interests as well as culture and background identities.

Observations can take place during every day rituals, as the child interacts with their peers through learning activities/experiences, or during spontaneous learning throughout the day with small or large groups of children, or through solitary play. For meaningful observations, Educator and Teachers need to be authentically listening and capturing children’s voices and learning interests.

Observations are completed on Playground under the 'observation' tab on the left side, then select 'new'.  (Please see below link to access how and where you can find this process).

You can document observations on the reflection template, using the data from parent partnership conversations through formal and informal meeting, through the QIP, under 'spontaneous learning', through recording videos and images on Playground and or the 'unfolding of learning' on the curriculum.

Remember when documenting observations, note down only what you have seen and heard, focus on the facts, don't be judgemental and don’t allow your views, values, feelings or background influence what you note during the observation.

Minimum Observation requirements: 

Extended Guides on Observations: 

Detailed written guide:
Observation documentation.
Click link ⬆️ 

Children visual guide:
https://stonly.com/sl/b1a71510-ac70-4186-9f7f-b80a44bf0773/Steps/

Linking the group observations into the correct folder: 

https://stonly.com/sl/b1a71510-ac70-4186-9f7f-b80a44bf0773/Steps/ 

Analysis and evaluation stage/form of reflection: 
Extended guide for analysis and evaluation of children's learning. 
Click link ⬆️ 

This stage requires the educator to analyse the information gathered through previous observation, online data collection, parent conversation, teacher/educator strategies and the formative assessment's.
The analysis/evaluation process draws on the insights related to each child’s learning development needs in a respectful and inclusive way.
The educator not only needs to reflect on what the child has been learning about, but also how the learning journey for each child has come together, with having a deeper understanding of learning, for example, if a group of children are engaged in play-dough, look at what is it about the play-dough that they are engaged in, or what are they creating with the play-dough. Ensure the learning is linked to an approved learning framework (EYLF or VEYLDF).

NOTE: The Analysis of learning and evaluation document screenshotted below is optional because this online form is used for you to be able to gather the large number of evidence you have been gathering over a long period of time to clarify the children's learning intentions. It is for you as the planner to ensure clarity of what you are working on to your team to ensure children are being supported with achieving and working towards the learning they need. 
Based on your analysis of learning and critical reflection, what will you follow through with to further support the child's development skills based on their interests?

• Through the child's learning, has the team been able to support child's wellbeing and provided safe modelling practices through their learning development? 
• While analysing that data collected, the educator might think about some analysing questions like:What does this information tell us about the child‘s learning development while evaluating the evidence (written, images, videos, notes) collected?

Planning: 

Once the educator has analysed the observations gathered through the documentation, the next step is to plan experiences, activities, interactions and environments that build on all children’s interests, abilities and identities based on the learning outcomes outlined in approved learning frameworks (EYLF or VEYLDF).

It is important to include the families voice and their developmental needs of their child/ren's into your planning.
Remember this is a collaboration to ensure children are set up for success. 

While planning, the educators will need to reflect on their own intentions, and teaching techniques or strategies, to ensure children are being supported for furthering learning through their developmental stages.
Planning is a visual interactive way that guides Educators and Teachers through their professional decision-making that assists in the planning and implementation, with evaluating high quality educational programs and practices within our Early Childhood settings. Planning involves choosing appropriate challenging learning strategies, resources, collaborating with the team you work in, setting up the necessary learning environments that support your documentation and the child's voice, families voice and learning needs. 

The reason for this, is when someone else walks into the room they need to be able to clearly see how the connections are formed and evolving form the curriculum plan to the learning experiences/activities set up on the floor. They need link to the children's individual and group learning goals, needs and abilities.

Implementation of learning, this link includes teaching strategies and techniques.
Click link ⬆️ 

NOTE Don't need to work at all outcomes at once, a maximum of 2 per cycle- every 3 months, should be a new individual planning cycle for each child.

Something to think about when on planning:

1. Is the planning visible and clear to every educator that comes into the room?
2. Can anyone who looks at the planning identify and easily find what each child's individual goals are and connect links with the termly plan?
3. Go into your planning time with the knowledge and clarity of what you need to to.
4. When I have finished planning, how can I best communicate this to the educators I work along-side to ensure everyone is able to talk to the planning with clarity?
5. Have I provided challenging learning experiences for the children to be able to build on their learning further and provides achievable learning ?
6. Am I setting children up for success through their learning?
7. As a group, what are the children's needs and how will I support the children to extend their learning? for example in the 3yr old room as a collective they need support around social and emotional regulation, and confidently using their oral verbal skills that support their needs and interests- this is what you build your plan on. Then the weekly/fortnightly is more focused on child's individual learning goals.
8. If children are doing the same learning activity, look at the children's interactions with a deeper lens, think about, what is it that they are going differently through this common learning experience? 

📚 Explaining how to complete the Emerging curriculum plan's and where to store them on Playgroup:

Explanation of Woodlands emerging curriculum planning
Click link ⬆️

The Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF)
Click link ⬆️

The Early Years Learning Framework V2.0, 2022
Click link ⬆️


🛑 Termly:

Tag room name before publishing to the families in your name.

🛑 Weekly/fortnightly:

Individual learning plan for children's goals.
Please don't tag your whole room in the boxes, you can divide them into weeks to ensure educators are not overwhelmed in needing to focus on everyone in 1 week or in a fortnight and to ensure that the learning delivered, is meaningful to each child and their learning style. If it is more than 4- then include it as a group learning, in the termly plan. 

Under 3yo rooms: Please do not include more than 6 children in individual goal boxes. If children have the same goal and similar interest, then you can include up to 4 children in the same individual goal box.
Over 3yo rooms: Please do not include more than 10 children in the individual goal boxes. If children have the same goal and similar interest, then you can include up to 4 children in the same individual goal box. If it is more than 4- then include it as a group learning, in the termly plan. 
Example planning in action.
Click link ⬆️ 

Implementing individual and group plans: 
Implementing individual and group plans.
Click link ⬆️

This phase of the planning cycle involves educators putting their plans in action  through the Weekly/Fortnightly plan and also through observations collected that supports children's needs, interests and abilities and that link to the learning outcomes according to approved learning frameworks. The implementation would address children’s learning routines, transitions, interactions, indoor and outdoor environments, group projects and investigations. Some questions that educators can reflect on through the implementation stage:

• Do I ensure that the program learning opportunities by using all aspects of the day? 

• Am I including families and child's voice into the program?

• Does my learning environments demonstrate play-based learning?

• Am I providing open-questioning, dispositions, engaging in shared thinking and problem-solving to extend the child’s thinking and learning?

• How does the implementation on the learning area allow children to use their choice and agency

• In what ways is the implementation of my learning plans visible?

In the above example, the educator might use strategies like intentional teaching-scaffolding, open-questioning, engaging in shared thinking and problem-solving to extend the child’s thinking and learning. 

Visual Weekly/fortnightly plan guide, how and what the documents are for:
 https://stonly.com/sl/be004436-bd62-4fcd-8159-e0e5c789e9a6/Steps/

NOTE:

What are dispositions?   
 
They are strategies that empower children to:

• Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
• To be adaptable
• Have curiosity and Imagination
• Have Initiative/Entrepreneurialism
• Support children with effective Oral and Written Communication Skills
• Empower children to access and Analyse Information Skills
• Collaborate their learning.

Written detailed guide: 
Implementing individual and group plans.
Click link ⬆️

Linking the group observations into the correct folder: 

📚 Explaining how to complete the Emerging curriculum plan's and where to store them on Playgroup:    
 Unpacking Woodlands emerging curriculum.

Go back to the analysing and evaluating stage in preparation for the Summative assessment.

Evaluating/analysis:
Extended guide for analysis and evaluation of children's learning. 
Click link ⬆️ 

This stage requires the educator to analyse the information gathered through previous observation, data collection and draw insights related to the child’s learning development. The educator not only needs to reflect on what the child has been learning about, but also how the learning formed and what came from that. Ensure the learning is linked to approved learning frameworks (EYLF or VEYLDF). Based on your analysis of learning what will you follow through with to further support the child's development skills based on their interests?

There is a section on the Termly plan and Weekly/ Fortnightly what says "Evaluation": Were the learning goals of experiences met? What worked well/what didn't? What will you do to extend the children's learning?
This is for you as Educators and Teachers to include when needing to reflect on the 'group' or 'individual' learning experiences that are/were planned.

NOTE: For the last analysis, there is a reflection piece. 

• Through the child's learning has the team been able to support child's wellbeing and provided safe modelling practices through their learning development? 

• While analysing that data collected, the educator might think about some analysing questions like:

  What does this information tell us about the child‘s learning development while evaluating the evidence (written, images, videos, notes) collected?

This document is used for you to be able to gather the large data you have collected, if you feel that you have it all under control, then you don't need to do it as you are still analysing through reflection, summative assessments, evaluation on both plans, the formative analysis and alongside your team.