Dr Maulfry Worthington

I shall be out of the country thank goodness, visiting my brother's family in Canada.

It's important that teachers and practitioners are aware that children's mathematics doesn't only occur in adult-planned activities or lessons. The mathematical thinking they freely communicate in their play is hugely valuable for their developing understanding.

www.childrens-mathematics.net

Four year old Mason drew on his 'funds of knowledge'
as he wrote a string of letters and numerals, reading
"SK, 714bp10". Lifting his spy gadget to his face he
explained "SK is to keep the password safe. To switch it
on you have to say '714bp10' - and you have to read it
backwards for 'off'"!

I think it's more likely to be a drop-off in freedoms as children go through the school system, so that they are empowered and have agency throughout.

It's not just inspections but the restrictive influence it has had on schools and settings, on curricula, and the highly directed ways in which it should be taught.

Teachers are professionals with degrees, yet they have little freedom to teach in ways that are TRULY in children's best interests!

Couldn't agree more! I think most parents want their children to go to their nearest school, and that their wish is that their child will be happy at school. That's it, in a nutshell!

Earlier in my career schools had inspections from HMIs (not sure if they still exist). I recall them as friendly and supportive, and certainly nothing resembling the nightmare Juggernaut that OfSTED has become!

Does OfSTED really do any good? They have done irreparable damage - for what end?!

I could weep.

Moving TV last night (and tonight) about the 'Mother and Baby homes scandal in England.

The impact it had on one young mother who was 16 at the time was horrendous. She said they were accused of being whores and prostitutes, and she had believed she was worthless all of her life.

I cried.

School-based nurseries are NOT the way to go! They are at risk of top-down approaches led by headteachers and subject leaders who want inappropriate practices and unrealistic demands on young children. Please, let them be children and not mini primary children!

‪Isaac, (4 years, 6 months) was playing 'Builders'. On a play
cheque he wrote a reversed and inverted letter 'a' to signify “£500.00 for all the jobs I've done at my house".

Young children begin to differentiate letter and numerical symbols in meaningful contexts such as their own pretend play.

I'm totally with you there, Pam!

Of course it's an elephant - I can see its trunk!

It’s an elephant!

Three-year-old Sam was watching as Bradley played with a calculator, talking about and writing numerals. Sam decided to copy what Bradley was doing, and made his own marks, making a connection between the technology, numerals and writing something down.

Young children need understanding, kindness, open-ended time to play and to make sense of the world, which is why all our research focuses on Children's Mathematical Graphics.

See: www.childrens-mathematics.net

Agreed! And the mathematical equivalent (of 'written' maths) is Children's Mathematical Graphics. See:

www.childrens-mathematics.net
turbologo.com/designs/8095...

The government wants neat and legible handwriting and spelling from Reception - writing that looks as though an older primary child has written.
This is inappropriate for young children! They are in the Foundation phase, and should be free to choose how to communicate through emergent writing,

According to the 'Writing Framework', 'emergent writing' means:

Children experimenting with mark-making or playing at writing before they formally start writing.

But it's a logical and highly valuable way of young children meaning-making with marks, signs and symbols.

Hooray for the teacher who created the classroom culture in which the children are free to do this!

“I’ve drawn the Taj Mahal by a beautiful rainbow river”

‘They’re so beautiful’ I respond

“Do you know what the numbers are?” the child asks

“The doors?”

“No…they are the way I drew them,
I started with 1, I did 2, and 3 and 4 and 5 and 6
and then I glued them on the river”

Language has its own special genres. And your toddler is working to master them all.

Thread 🧵

When the education system demands things that aren't developmentally appropriate, you end up creating issues not solving them. Young children are not meant to be static for long periods of time. If we insist they are, we create 'behaviour problems' that are actually just children behaving normally.

Is there anyone in the current American government or legal system who is decent, and who is not corrupt?!!

And this from the President of America!!

Mine looks the same, and after a lot of hunting I found its name.

Mine looks the same, and after a lot of hunting I found its name.

Lovely! I think this rose is Felice de Perpetue (there should be an accent on the final'e').

And Russia!

And he says 'Now is the time for peace'?!