EYMP 1.1ac[1.1] Explain the legal status and principles of the relevant early years frameworks, and how national and local guidance materials are used in settings.
The government is interested in the care and education of children and it realised its potential impact on children. The four nations that form the United Kingdom have slightly different approaches to the planning and delivery of early years education and all the four nations are quite at the beginning of working with their frameworks.
In 2008 in England the EYFS has appeared and it introduces the statutory curriculum for children under 5 years of age who are cared for or educated outside their homes. In consequence the framework applies to nurseries, pre-schools, schools, child-minders, after-school clubs etc. and the way they are funded is of no relevance in the appliance of the framework.
The EYFS does not only apply as an “education programme”, but it also incorporates the welfare requirements.
In England, there are six areas of learning which practitioners must plan for:
* Creative development;
* Personal, social and emotional development;
* Communication, language and literacy;
* Problem-solving, reasoning and numeracy;
* Knowledge and understanding of the world;
* Physical development.
At the end of their reception year, children are assessed by their teacher who will complete an early years profile that consists of “thirteen different scales that link to the early learning goals from the areas of learning”.
But although there are some differences in between the way the government of every nation deals with early learning education, there are also some common features:
* Partnership and involvement with parents;
* Learning through active play;
* Need for children to have opportunities for child-initiated and adult-directed activities;
* Education programme is to be delivered holistically although divided into areas of learning;
* Importance of assessing children’s...