We're not an educational sausage factory, we're more of a slightly unkempt allotment offering up fruit and vegetables of all shapes and sizes.
That's why we try to make it clear from the outset that we're more interested about where you child is, not where they should be, and how we can support them, not simply push them through their time with us.
Please read on to understand the ways in which we document their learning here at Free Rangers
This policy aims to make clear the process we use at Free Rangers to document your child’s learning in line with the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Our Mission Statement
At Free Rangers we recognise our individual responsibility to ensure our environment is one of kindness, enthusiasm and empathy and we are committed to ensuring each child’s happiness and wellbeing is nurtured on a daily basis.
We believe
- All children have a right to be happy
- Learning is fun
- The process of learning outweighs the product Learning must be relevant and meaningful Nature and the outdoors enhances learning Children learn through doing
- Children learn by engaging their senses Children need time to learn
- Nourishing food ensures better learning
Our ethos towards learning
At this stage it’s important for us to share with you our beliefs with regards to the assessment and formalisation of our understanding of your child’s learning.
We wholeheartedly believe that our time is better spent engaging with your child. We believe meaningful interactions bring more impact to your child’s learning than spending hours typing up observations, which as soon as they have happened, are in the past and a mere snapshot of all the wonderful thoughts, interests and interactions your child has whilst they are with us. We think you’ve joined us at Free Rangers because you feel the same.
However, the paperwork is important too. The observation, assessment and planning loop we follow is crucial in helping us be the best we can be for your child. Early Years isn’t a race and it’s not something we feel your child needs to be pushed through. Free Rangers is not a mini school, we are a setting that believes an experiential and play based learning ethos is the best way for us to support your child and ensure a love of learning.
We plan depending on your child’s interests and linking this to the EYFS helps us to reflect and ensure that we are offering up a rich variety of learning opportunities that holistically support the development of your child and also helps us to liaise with you if your child might require additional support in an area.
Initially if you have any concerns regarding your child’s learning please speak to your child’s key person. If you have further questions then the Room Leader is always available to discuss through matters.
If we wish to chat over any issues concerning your child’s learning with you, initially your child’s key person will discuss a time to meet with you and either the room leader or your child’s key person will be present, alongside Jessica Kendrick (Deputy Manager and Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator.)
It’s important to stress that we will always be honest and open with regards to your child’s learning. We identify and believe that working together with families is very important and with that in mind our door is always open and we will work tirelessly to ensure the best possible learning environment is in place for your child.
How do we document your child’s learning?
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) sets standards for the learning, development and care of children from birth to 5 years old.
All schools and Ofsted registered early years providers must follow the EYFS, including childminders, preschools, nurseries and school reception classes.
Earlier this year we transitioned from our own in-house software that documented your child’s progress in line with the EYFS (this was called The Wheel) to another online learning journal called Tapestry.
If we feel your child is not meeting their milestones or you already recognise they might need extra support before you start with us, then please do look at our Local Offer, which can be found on our website; this details how we offer additional support with those children with special educational needs and disabilities.
To access your child’s learning journal you will need to login here:
Please note that you’ll need to access your Tapestry account when you receive the email link. There is a time limit on the email and so you will be locked out of your account if you don’t initially log in within five days of receipt of the email.
Username: your email address (the email address that your nursery invoice is sent to, please inform us if you wish two email address to receive the updates.)
Password: You will be prompted to create your own password.
Please email charlotte@freerangers.org.uk, whilst Gemma Macey is on maternity leave, with your child’s name and preferred email account details if you are having trouble logging in to your child’s online journal.
Within the first four weeks of your child’s start with us, they will have observations uploaded to their secure, password protected Tapestry learning journal.
Your child’s key person will be in charge of uploading photos and written observations that not only show you what they have been up to at nursery but how that links in to where they are in line with the EYFS.
How often will I receive updates?
As practitioners we aim to achieve one detailed and focussed observation regarding your child’s learning every fortnight. Alongside this we also aim to add an additional post that is more lighthearted but will still inform you about what your child has been up to whilst they have been with us. So essentially expect one post a fortnight linking to the EYFS and one post that we think really reflects the individuality of your little person, this might be solely in written form, but we will endeavour to support our observations with images.
Please bear in mind that sometimes staffing absence and sickness might affect the timing of updates, alongside busy times throughout the term.
It is also really important to note here that when your child starts with us, we take at least a month to get to know them and carry out a baseline assessment, particularly in The Den. This means we focus on getting to know your child and settling them into our routines, so please be patient whilst we spend time doing this.
Reports that we run on Tapestry are made in conjunction with the cohort review to record where a child is with their learning in the core and specific areas of learning. This is mainly for our information to ensure that our planning is wide ranging and to ensure we highlight children or groups of children that might need targeted help in certain areas; for example speech and language development.
The Den room is one of our busiest rooms and as the year progresses and school transitions for some take place, the paperwork for this process takes priority and once again the uploading of observations may be delayed.
In all instances please do talk to your child’s key person if you have any concerns.