Created for Valentine’s day, but can be used any time. Match the two halves of a broken heart using the written number and a dot (heart) pattern. Differentiate by printing on different coloured piece of paper for each page or the same coloured paper for more challenge.

I created these tins for use in my former nursery where they were enjoyed by children aged 2.5 years to school age. On one side are the ladybirds with 0 - 5 spots and on the reverse the number is written. The tins were left on one of the radiators and the children accessed them when they chose. Sometimes I would find some very curious things in the counting boxes but more often than not the quantity would match the number of spots on the ladybird. Keywords: EYFS, Curriculum for Excellence, Early Numeracy, Numbers, Counting, Nursery, Reception

Mini plenaries are a type of formative assessment and are a great way to review progress of learning during a lesson. It also allows pupils opportunities for self reflection. "Teachers have also begun to be more flexible in introducing effective ‘mini plenaries’ at critical points in a lesson to review progress, clarify misunderstandings and move the work forward (OFSTED Dec. 2003)". Just ask a pupil to select a card and in so doing will feel like they are taking responsibility for their own learning. Just print out 9 copies of page 1 of the PDF and return to the printer for double sided printing and then print out pages 2-10. It is best to print out the cards on thick paper/thin card. I have laminated my set for durability. There are five sets available from my TES shop, the only difference is the back design, the actually mini plenary suggestions are the same. This is the yellow backed design. Keywords: formative assessment, mini plenaries, plenary, assessment.

Slide created as part of a a test review when the results revealed that a large number of pupils had labelled mitochondria in sperm as chloroplasts. This clipart/slide was created to help address this misconception. Keywords: sperm, mitochondria, chloroplast, misconception.

To support children who are at an early developmental stage with their communication skills - in particular understanding (one/two information carrying words), I will differentiate my speech. This is a tip sheet that I give to parents/guardians so that they can use the same strategy at home. For information, we use EKLAN EYBIC to assess understanding, this assessment is used to determine how many information carrying words a child can follow in a message.

This is the form I created for use in my setting’s ‘Child of concern’ meetings. It enables us to record why we are concerned, the potential implications and the quality teaching strategies we will use as a class team to support that child’s development. Linked to the 3 prime areas of the EYFS.

If a child is exhibiting a particular behaviour and you want to identify why it is occurring and what the child may be communicating, an ABC table can help. It is an observational tool, we have ours uploaded to sharepoint so that anyone can access it, and complete it on an iPad shortly after a behaviour occurred. Alternatively you can print it out and have it close at hand within the classroom. The antecedent is what happened just before the behaviour occurred. You may want to include factors such as the noise level in the classroom, how busy it was, temperature, proximity to others The behaviour is what occurred e.g. ‘child x’ knocked the books deliberately off the shelf. . The consequence is what happened immediately after the behaviour. This is both for the child that exhibited the behaviour and to those who were affect by it. It can also include the effect on the environment.

An experiment I created as part of an Advent challenge but can be fun at any point in the festive season. I made these up as packs to send home to do at home as a family activity. Resources required: Balloon Tissue paper Angel outline Simply trace the outline of the angel onto the tissue paper and cut out. Blow up a balloon and rub vigorously on your hair to generate static electricity. Hold above your angel and watch it fly up to the balloon.

Formative Assessment/Assessment for Learning 1. At the start of a new topic, get your pupils to stick this in on the first page. 2. Ask them to write everything that they already know about the topic in the centre square. 3. Then either mid way through the lesson, or mid way through the topic, turn back to this first page and ask the pupils to write everything that they know in the middle rectangle - using a different colour ink really highlights their new learning. Also at this point they can work as a 'talking pair' and expand on this. 4. At the end of the topic, return to this first page and complete the final rectangle, again using a different colour is a good idea, as is incorporating 'talking pair' information. A simple way to let both you and your students know what progress they have made.

Help develop understanding of size and amount by using these proportionally sized ladybirds. The more spots (1-10) they have, the bigger they are. Idea: Hide around the room to be discovered. Once found, the children can be encourage to line them up in size order and/or using the number of spots. Print our a couple of sets and have a race, who can organise them the quickest. Is it quicker to do it by size or by counting the spots?

Explore numbers, developing an understanding that they represent quantities and use them to count, create sequences and describe order. Skill development supported by this resource include: Match numeral and quantity. Recognition of numerals 1-5. Make comparisons between quantities. Use some language of quantities, such as ‘more’ and ‘a lot’. Develop subitising skills. Number order. Use some number names accurately in play.

Repair broken hearts by matching the number on each half. Written in two different fonts, it helps children to recognise and read numbers when written in different ways. Can be printed on a different colour for each page for differentiation, print on the same colour paper for greater challenge. This resource is linked to https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/subitising-valentine-s-style-12251562

An easy resource to learn and play with to develop early numeracy skills. Numbers whose height is proportional to their value. For example, two ‘fives’ are the height of one ‘ten’. Can be used to develop understanding of size and amount as well as being a tool to develop understanding of number bonds. The figures also have dots on which are equivalent to their value, so support development of understanding of value and amount. Also helps to develop the skill of subitising. How to use: Print out (on plain or coloured paper/card) Cut around the rectangular shape Use like this - Can be used to create matching patterns, can be coloured in or drawn on. Alternatively laminate for longevity. When laminated can also be used as a wipe clean writing tool. Create challenges eg Can you choose numbers which when added together are the same height as the number 10?

We share this on our sharepoint so that all members of the staff team can collaborate and contribute to planning.

This year we are unable to make the traditional take home, end of year gifts to share with families, as the majority of my nursery class is at home. I still wanted them to have something special to celebrate the end of the academic year. So, I have created a template for an activity for them to do at home with support from parents/guardians. We have heard so much about curves during the ongoing pandemic that I thought it would be nice to take control of one for ourselves! There are two versions, one is to be completed using a pencil and ruler, and there is a second version which is to be completed using a needle and thread. We sent this version home to all of the children with a plastic needle and thread. Linked to the EYFS it is also a learning activity, helping to develop those all important numeracy skills and fine motor skills.

This inset day challenge was designed as a first step towards creating a directory of support for stakeholders within our school community. It aims to support staff, parents, children and those with SEND. Works best if you set time limits for each part of the challenge and give someone responsibility as timekeeper and someone to be note keeper. We did this by putting hula hoops on the floor and putting the post it notes from the first part of the challenge within them - One hoop for each group of stakeholders.