The four-year-olds at Framlingham Sir Robert Hitcham’s Primary School in Suffolk take their ICT work very seriously: computers, robots, musical keyboards, tape recorders, cash registers and telephones are part of their classroom environment. ICT in the Foundation Stage Curriculum is a neglected area in many schools. It is still common to hear teachers arguing that ICT has little relevance to children at this stage.

Andrew Trythall, ICT co-ordinator at Sir Robert Hitcham’s does not agree. The school, declared a Beacon School a couple of years ago, specialises in ICT, especially at the foundation stage. A visit to the classrooms dispels any idea that children would be better off playing with sand and water. These are not neglected, but they use ICT as well. “We are giving the children real experiences with real ICT, the whole gamut, not just computers,” says Andrew.

He sees his work and that of his colleagues - Lora Cann, June Stockdale and Sally Goddard - as research. They are discovering the potential for primary ICT and what they find they are pleased to share. Andrew believes the Pixie, from Swallow Systems, is particularly useful for introducing the concept of simple programming. “We have been using it for five years. Foundation children struggle with a Roamer because that has more complex instructions. We like the Pixie because it is simple. It will do forward, back, left and right. It also has a timer. With Pixie, it is just ‘press the forward button three times, off it will go for three squares’. It is also a great help with counting skills.”

Mybot is from Lego. The concept is based on programmable bricks, which you place on the Mybot to tell it what to be - say, a car. Because of sensors that react to its environment, the Mybot responds as it moves and if it is a car, it will even make accelerating noises. It has an alarm system which can be activated if someone picks it up and there is a fuel gauge which you can fill and which will run down over time - all valuable cause and effect indicators.

The extensive schemes of work ensure progression. In the writing strand at the first stage, a child sits with the teacher or learning support assistant with an overlay keyboard that is pictorially based. The child can use the keyboard to create a sentence. “At the same time, we start to encourage the child to use the conventional keyboard. We have a Concept Keyboard overlay that has all the letters and, for instance, we encourage the children to colour in the letters that make up their name. At the end of foundation, they are using the Concept Keyboard independently. It is still picture-based and they have the text on the screen and the pictures on the overlay, so they associate the two.”

Andrew’s research indicates that using a mouse is difficult for some foundation children because sophisticated motor skills are needed. “We have been looking at input devices for small children. Some children really struggle using large mice - we used to have a roller ball, but it is difficult to draw with that. The next thing we are going to look at are graphics tablets and pens.”

The Beacon School status means that they have a responsibility to other schools. “The money that we get because we are a Beacon School we see as a bank to help other schools in the locality. We ask what kind of ICT support they need. Once we have done that, we can work out which courses are necessary and which equipment they will need - data-logging, for instance. We knew many small schools could not afford pound;200 for data-logging equipment when they have an ICT budget of pound;50. We invite partner schools to come to Framlingham and we give them the training and the equipment. We also pay the supply cover. This year we will be giving training on the programmable bricks as well as a supply of the bricks to take away.”

Andrew and the headteacher are keen to work with learning support assistants to ensure that they acquire ICT skills. They run a Clicker4 course that assistants from around the area can attend.

“They have an enthusiasm for education and learning,” says Andrew. “They get to the nitty gritty and get going with things. They can have a strong, highly focused objective and get to grips with detailed ICT work. They all have such interest and once they have learned they go back to school to enthuse people there. Most cascading goes down. Ours goes up from the assistants to the teachers.”

The extraordinary website produced by the school fills a gap in this area of learning and it is well on the way to being a major national resource. Sites that give inspiration and ICT resources for early years foundation work are not thick on the ground. Generosity is the word that comes to mind. They have worked hard researching materials but they share with everyone else. If you still think that ICT has limitations at the foundation stage of learning, then this site might make you think again.

Framlingham Sir Robert Hitcham’s Primary School, College Road, Framlingham, Suffolk, IP13 9EP. Tel: 01728-723354. Fax: 01728 724834.

www.hitchams.suffolk.sch.ukfoundation