Nursery and kindergarten term planning?

Question

hi, I have just opened a private nursery and as a full time teacher and manager I am struggling to find the time to be creative with my planning. Do you know of any sites that provide long,med and short term plans for 3 - 5 years?

thanks in advance

Ceyda

Answer 1

If you're in the UK, when the EYFS comes in in September, all practitioners working with children should be involved in planning for them, so help them to get used to it now by letting them plan for their own key children. They should be in the best position to do it as they will know the children best!

The EYFS guidance (www.standards.gov.uk) gives some good advice on planning. It suggests you have core provision as your long term plan, enhancements to it as your medium term and then individual planning for short term. You should be providing 80% child led and only 20% adult led activities, so alot of your planning should be based on what your children have shown an interest in, a lot should be through core provision, and some of it will be retrospective.

There's no way round it really - I run my own nursery and spend about three hours a week at home buried under a pile of planning files. You can't really use anyone else's planning because it won't fit your children and your setting.

Good luck anyway! :-)

Answer 2

Mailbox magazine plans seasonally.  You can also find books at teacher education stores by them and other similar publishers that pretty much lay it all out for you.

Answer 3

www.underfives.co.uk have examples of long, medium and short term as well as ideas for themes.

www.nurseryworld.co.uk have archives from the magazine and if you use the search you can find old themes and ideas.

Problem with using websites is that its not very personal to your setting or children but they are good place to start if in a fluster.

If you are struggling to find time maybe you should speak to an early years advisor from your LEA?

Answer 4

I don't know of any sites (there again i have not thought to look)  Have you tried the nursery world magazine - we use them for planning in the nursery i manage - there are all sorts of ideas in there for different activities  - My nursery has 3 rooms and the planning is done by the team - they do it once a week at the end of the day when the nursery is quiet - the rooms take it in turns and look after each others children

I would not have time to do it myself - train them up to do it themselves - this also works well as they can plan it around the children's interests

Have fun