There are three important phases to planning for teaching and learning:

• Long-term planning
• Medium-term planning
• Short term planning

• being healthy;
• staying safe;
• enjoying and achieving;
• making a positive contribution;
• economic well-being.

These are expanded and detailed for children from birth to five years old through the four Themes of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS):

• A Unique Child
• Positive Relationships
• Enabling Environments
• Learning and Development

Long-term planning is concerned with identifying the areas of learning to be covered within the setting, always with both the five outcomes and the four themes in mind. Section 2 of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage details the education programme and early learning goalsunder six areas.  Problem solving, Reasoning and Numeracy is the title of the section most concerned with mathematical development.  Within that section, there are 3 aspects of Learning and Development:

• Numbers as Labels for Counting
• Calculating
• Shape, Space and Measures

The twelve Early learning goals give details of what children should know by the end of the EYFS. Long-term planning must consider what the setting aims to contribute towards a child’s development of these skills. Appendix 2 of the Practice Guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage details the Areas of Learning and Development by age.  Identifying a series of topics or themes for a year or longer and some relevant additions to the framework offered by Practice Guidance could easily form the long-term planning for the setting. Long-term planning is, of necessity, general.  It usually takes place on an annual basis, often before the beginning of the school year.  At that stage, the practitioners may barely know the children they will be working with.  It cannot, therefore, reflect the needs of any individual. Since experience will help the practitioners to identify what is likely to be needed, planning should not be a solitary activity (see Collaborative Practices and Philosophy of Teaching).  The sum of the parts will always be greater than the whole. In addition, reflective practitioners will strive to improve their practice through Continued Professional Development, keeping abreast of current research and by sharing good practice with colleagues.

Medium-term planning begins to add detail to the long-term planning.  It often focuses on one topic or theme at a time.  Even if the needs of any particular child are known to the practitioner, those needs will change and develop during the course of the topic.  Medium-term planning therefore needs to identify the concepts, skills and attitudes needed to support the children to reach the intended learning outcomes (see Scaffolding and Fading).  In addition, practitioners need to think carefully about how they will make the links between areas of learning explicit until the children are able to develop links for themselves.  Although learning outcomes are identified, it is better if specific activities are not allocated at this stage.  A pool of potential activities will allow the educator the flexibility to meet the changing needs of both individuals and groups of children.

It is at the short term planning stage that specific activities should be identified and prepared.  The starting points for each activity should include the learning outcomes and the needs of the children.  However, some flexibility must be built in so that we do not impose a ceiling on the learning (see Great Expectations!).  The Primary Framework for literacy and numeracy offers an overview of Planning Principles. There is an overview for each of the six areas of learning and early reading.  The Problem solving, reasoning and numeracy section offers planning advice by Stand, Aspect and Overview of learning.  Most of the Overviews of learning are early leaning goals.  Beginning with a mathematics objective, possible contexts, examples of adult-led activities, opportunities for children to explore and apply and assessment opportunities are detailed in addition to specific guidance on the adult role.  Detailed planning will include which of the many organisational strategies will be used and identify the focus of each practitioner.  Thought should also be given to the actual words and actions used to motivate, encourage and extend the children’s thinking (see Do-Talk-Record). Some practitioners plan on a map of the location to ensure that there are several opportunities for purposeful play, both adult or child initiated and adult supported .  Others plan under the headings of the Early Learning Goals.  See Curricular Continuity and Progression for another example.  Time to observe and listen must also be built in, as must time for innovation.  Encouraging children to follow their interests may well lead the class or group into unexpected territory.  The practitioner will need to judge which avenues to follow immediately, which to save for next week’s planning and which to discard (see Learning Trajectory).

Research Sources

Probes & Prompts

Taking Action