Qualification: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Diploma for the Early Years Educator
Unit: Unit 3.2: Plan, lead and review play opportunities which support children’s learning and development in relation to current frameworks
Learning outcome: Be able to plan play opportunities
Assessment criteria: Differentiate planned play opportunities to meet the individual needs of the children in own setting in relation to current frameworks
One of the core principles of the EYFS is that:
“Children learn and develop well in enabling environments with teaching and support from adults, who respond to their individual interests and needs and help them to build their learning over time. Children benefit from a strong partnership between practitioners and parents and/or carers. “
EYFS Overarching Principles
Therefore, Early Years practitioners must ensure that planned play activities meet the individual needs of each child.
That means that a child’s unique needs and preferences must be considered when planning play activities.
For example, suppose you are planning a painting activity for a child that uses a wheelchair. In that case, it should be taken into consideration how the child will have the same opportunities to participate in the activity as other children. You may consider if the arms of the child’s wheelchair fit under the table or if the arms can be removed so that the child can sit close enough.
Similarly, each child’s interests should be taken into account. For example, if a child enjoys messy play, the activity might be adapted so that finger-painting is encouraged instead of using brushes for mark-making.