Independent Education Consultancy Amanda Kemp BA(Hons), MontDip, AdvMontDip

Schools and Nurseries:                               Home  |  Solutions   |  Child Oriented Environment |  What we do |  Contact Us

Working with schools and nurseries The consultancy can bring new ideas and solutions to perennial problems, from motivating staff to re-designing the work space to encourage inspired learning.   Illustrations of a class pond trip We are able to trouble-shoot on areas such as the National Standards and current legislation, and talk you and your staff through areas that need to be addressed before an Ofsted inspection. We can bring in new approaches to planning and recording, provide empathetic training to your classroom assistants and Nursery Nurses, and galvanise parents into supporting new initiatives. Can you help our school to find solutions within the expectations of the National Curriculum? Yes, our consultancy work includes any temporary management role/ troubleshooting for nurseries and preparatory schools. We might expect to revise policies, linking these to the latest Ofsted requirements devise an EAL response across all ages train staff in Child Protection and Risk Assessment review Health & Safety matters train staff in Safer Food Better Business; Birth to Three; Every Child Matters etc review curriculum planning and ensure teaching and classroom support staff understand the requirements of the Foundation Stage, Early Learning Goals, KS1 and KS2 develop parent newsletters/ hold seminars for parents review catering and hygiene practices assist permanent staff in identifying special educational needs and writing workable IEPs hold a reports training evening for staff, to make sure all staff understand the requirements of report writing. We incorporate a workshop approach to access positive and accurate language, and help new staff understand the school's corporate response to reporting. encourage music through a seminar on Music for All, showing staff how to devise songs and short plays for end of term presentations This type of role is taken on by Meaningful Schooling on a contractual basis, paid at a daily rate or by separate negotiation Can you help us improve our policies and record keeping? Yes. We have the skills and experience to improve policies, and ensure your setting offers the best documentation, not simply for inspectors to examine, but for your staff to comprehend and implement on a daily basis. A policy only becomes good practice when staff understand the expectations of the document. Training your staff in the implementation of a new policy is therefore essential, and we view that as our role too. Can you show us how to motivate our staff? Yes, we believe the answer to these problems is in our own responsiveness. All staff need to know their work is valued, and to see a real career progression on offer to them. Meaningful Schooling meets with each staff member individually for a Profiling Session, encouraging them to look ahead and plan for their future. We offer Staff Portfolios to help teacher and manager chart career development, consider further training and make informed choices. Can you show us how to prepare a more child-oriented environment? Yes. We can offer day and half-day seminars for your staff to understand how a child views his own classroom, and to train staff in meeting the child's needs as he himself perceives them. A Montessori Morning for staff and parents can also provide a lot of food for thought, and considers best practice from room layout to appropriate and inclusive language. These mornings have in the past provoked a lot of enthusiastic discussion. While the morning focuses heavily on Montessori Education, other theorists are also covered. "Childhood constitutes the most important element in an adult's life, for it is in his early years that a man is made."                Maria Montessori What we do 1. Nursery B asked us in to run motivational sessions for staff on new approaches to Art and Craft, as they felt the same tired resources were ordered in and the same end products displayed term after term on the display boards. Parents too seemed depressed by the art provision  and were often loath to take the children’s paintings home, or complained about the use of the same paint colours each week. We came in and ran a morning on Creativity. We got the staff members to explore clay, weaving, batik and marbling. We made puppets and fashioned nests, we got into collage and investigated a wide range of paint techniques. We considered paint colours, and using paint creatively with other media such as sequins, feathers, confetti, shells or pebbles. We discussed display boards, their value and their pitfalls. We linked our discussions back to the Birth to Three curriculum, and considered ways in which staff could improve their planning to allow greater scope for creativity and spontaneity. The group went away with lots of ideas and a box full of samples of work they had produced that day. The Nursery Manager feels things have improved vastly: in place of displays created largely by staff, they now have a rich display area, augmented by lots of photos of the children involved in painting, moulding, and experimenting with sand, paint, water and glue. A recent wall represented the colour RED, with items brought in by the children from home and used to make a glorious collage which covered every inch of the board. A member of staff brought in red roses, red foil crackers, and paper poppies for a novel display surround. Visitors have commented on the impact of the display, and parents have wanted to know: What next? 2. Nursery C is part of a thriving Pre-Prep school in a busy market town. Although its provision is generally very good the Reception Teacher was disappointed to discover very little time being invested in Music for the 3-5 year olds. The nursery staff appeared to lack confidence in singing, and while there was a large chest full of percussion instruments, the staff felt tentative about using them as the drums and shakers tended to “over-excite” the children. Meaningful Schooling came and spent two mornings in class with the Nursery to get a feel for their provision generally, and their music curriculum in particular. At the end of the two visits the consultant met with the School Head, and the Nursery Manager to plan a way forward. the percussion collection was overhauled and some of the larger items removed a few jingle bells and finger cymbals were put out on the shelves for children to explore at any time the school invested in a number of chime bars for the children to explore independently a broad range of music including Mozart and Raffi was provided for the classroom CD player, and the music was put on as a cue for the start and end of the sessions three members of staff were sent on a Kodaly Music workshop. Other members of staff attended a Nursery Music workshop organized by the consultancy. The School Head is very happy with the revised provision. The children are able to access music at all times, and the staff are much more confident about singing with the children. Children are noticeably singing and humming as they work, and the music has impacted very positively on other areas of their Early Years curriculum. The consultancy has suggested the nursery look at enriching their Music & Movement provision as well.

(c) Amanda Kemp 2007          Home  |  Top of Page  |  Solutions  |  Child Oriented Environment |  What we do |  Contact Us