Aiding transition from Reception to KS1 through shared role play

Transcription

1 Case Study Establishment name: Lancashire no. 01/024 Contact name: St Bernadette's Catholic Primary School Mrs Anne Bramhall Telephone no Award granted: Project title: Good Practice Aiding transition from Reception to KS1 through shared role play Project summary Our project focussing on developing a shared role play area to aid transition from Foundation Stage to Key Stage 1 has been very successful. The children have had time and space to develop speaking and listening skills through the effective use of carefully planned role play experiences, skills which will, in turn, develop reading and writing. We created a flexible workspace which can be changed and adapted throughout the year Staff in Foundation and K.S.1 work as a team to plan the role play around a different topic each term which is led by each class in turn. The role play is designed to provide continuity in teaching and learning for the pupils across Foundation and Key Stage1. We have noticed that all children enjoy the activities and are keen to take responsibility for developing and using the role play. Parents report that their children speak enthusiastically about their role play experiences and the topics covered, and many children have contributed resources from home. Specific aspect of practice to be accredited? Helping children to enjoy and achieve by aiding transition from Foundation to Key Stage 1. This will be achieved through a more practical play-based curriculum in Key Stage 1 ensuring continuity in method of independent learning and exploration.

2 Aspect of Every Child Matters addressed: Be healthy Stay Safe Enjoy and achieve Make a positive contribution Achieve economic well-being What were you hoping to achieve? A smooth transition from Foundation to Key Stage 1 Continuity in teaching and learning for pupils Children more confident to use a range of language and vocabulary Time and space to develop speaking and listening skills, which will, in turn, develop reading and writing skills. Practitioners have opportunities to observe and guide the children through roleplay. How did you identify the need for this practice? This project came about as a result of an earlier project focussing on EAL children in KS1. Using a creative, multi-sensory approach the children worked together to produce an interactive alphabet which was displayed in the library. It became apparent that the impact of the project was beneficial to almost all children in Foundation stage. The EAL children in Y1 who used this resource also made good progress. Because of the huge impact this project produced, it was decided to further develop a shared area for role play to aid transition between Foundation, Year 1 and Year 2. Briefly describe the main characteristics of the school? St. Bernadette's is a voluntary aided Catholic school with 154 pupils. The school is on the south side of Lancaster next to St Bernadette's Church; school and parish community links are very strong. Lancaster University and the University of Cumbria are close by, resulting in a high percentage of pupils with EAL. Due to its inclusive nature the school also caters for a higher than average percentage of pupils with SEN. Parents are encouraged to become involved in their children's learning by helping out in school. What did you do? July 07 - building project to create space for a shared role play area to be used by FS and KS1 children. Sept 07 - EAL Project across FS and KS1. April 08 - it was agreed to further develop a shared area for role play to be used by Foundation, Year1 and Year2. Page 2 of 6

3 Summer Term 08 - Foundation and Key Stage 1 teachers became involved in the Transition Learning Team project and attended training. Inset day Foundation and Key Stage 1 teachers worked together to produce a long term plan for the coming year, and identify links between topics in FS Y1 and Y2. This involved KS1 teachers incorporating the EYFS six areas of learning into their own planning and identifying where shared role play could be used progressively to develop creativity across the curriculum. Resources for Autumn Term topic, 'The Hospital', were purchased. Autumn Term 08 Staff meetings to involve TAs in planning and setting up role-play. Children introduced to the topic using a variety of resources including ICT, library and visits from professionals. Children involved in planning and making resources and setting up the area according to their age and ability. Children were trained in small groups in the appropriate use of the area. A timetable was introduced. Each class used the area in small groups and this was further developed in their own classroom; e.g. hot seating, artwork, links with the classroom role-play, discussion of photographs on IWB, writing opportunities cross-curricular links. Staff evaluated progress and adapted resources. Spring and Summer Terms 09 Role-play changed to Garden Centre for Spring and Paris for the Summer term Teachers evaluated project so far and reported back to Transition Learning Project at final meeting. Which members of the establishment and/or wider community have been involved and what was their role? Led by FS and KS1 teachers. TAs: collectively setting up the area, training the children and playing with the children in role. All staff: making formal and informal assessments and observations. Autumn term: health professionals; midwife, nurse, school nurse, talked to the children about their roles. School cook talked about a healthy diet. Spring term: Manager of a local garden centre worked with the children, children visited the centre and out of school gardening club began. Page 3 of 6

4 Summer term: French student worked with children. Staff shared own experiences of Paris. As children already have lessons in basic French, they were encouraged to use the vocabulary in the role-play. Children were involved in decision making and evaluated their play in their own class through discussion and hot seating. Students from the University of Cumbria observed and photographed children and fed back to class teachers as part of a project. Parents were encouraged to contribute to resources and discuss experiences. How has the progress of the project been monitored and evaluated? Discussion with FS and KS1 staff about pupil progress in terms of involvement, planning how to modify the area to develop progression and continuity. Talking to children after each session. Feedback from TA or student working with the group. Children taking on responsibility for their own learning. How has the practice been modified or improved during development? As the children get used to the role play we further develop it by setting problems designed to promote discussion and enhance their learning. As a result of hot seating children were focussed about their role, knowing that they would have to answer questions from other pupils on return to the class. Role play area changed each term to link with topics in FS and KS1. Autumn - Hospital Spring - Garden Centre Summer - Travel/Paris Feedback from TAs highlighted the need to modify the training school to enable TAs to model interactions in role. In response to children's interests we modified the role-play in Autumn 09 to include an animal hospital involving the RSPCA with a view to improving the standards of writing at KS1. Especially for boys. What has been the impact of the project on pupils learning, achievement or enjoyment and how has this been measured? Pupils in KS1 have had the opportunity to develop their language skills through interaction with others in a large, structured area outside their classroom. This has confirmed our view that it is possible to promote a more practical play-based curriculum in KS1, which ensures continuity in method of independent learning and exploration. Results from the EYFSP indicate that our school has performed significantly better Page 4 of 6

5 that the Lancashire average score particularly in PSED and CLL (source Lancashire LSIP) The children are enthusiastic about taking on a role and acting out their own real life experiences. Each class has made resources for the role-play which all pupils have enjoyed using. Positive comments from parents show that children have been keen to further develop their learning at home. What are the next stages in the development process? To embed speaking and listening through role play as an important aspect of transition between classes. To encourage the children to provide written feedback at the end of each topic. Older pupils might like to provide further suggestions as to how to improve. To develop opportunities for older pupils to become involved in role play, as mentors to younger ones. To raise an awareness of the impact of role play on building confidence in speaking and listening at all levels. To continue to tailor the role play to meet the needs of certain groups when these are identified, e.g.; EAL, SEN, boys, girls, Gifted and Talented. What aspects of this practice may be useful for other establishments to consider? The importance of working as a team to develop transition. That Early Years style of leaning and provision can be effectively transferred into Y1 and Y2, and these year groups can then take this learning into a more formal setting back in their own classrooms. That speaking and listening is an important tool to enable children to improve their writing. Talking has an important role to play in the learning and development of all. Any other comments: The project has highlighted role-play as an essential tool for learning in KS1, particularly in year 2. Before the project each class had a small role-play area linked specifically to topics in that class. As a result of planning and organising a shared role-play area, we have succeeded in extending the learning environment to allow children to take responsibility for their own learning, interacting with pupils and adults from other classes. Page 5 of 6

6 The impact of adults playing in role with the children is that the play can be structured and guided when appropriate, especially where children have speech and language problems or English as a second language. We feel that working closely as a team has been very beneficial for both staff and pupils. Everyone involved has been very excited by this project. We feel that this provides us with good assessment opportunities and therefore, we can develop differentiation early in KS1. The project is continually changing as we evaluate its impact and identify new opportunities to further enrich pupils' learning, based on observations, EYFSP and KS1 PIPs. Page 6 of 6