1. Do you remember the day I made a bridge in the garden?
Teamwork, accuracy and quality in Early Years assessment
Dr Julian Grenier and Lydia Cuddy-Gibbs

2. What do we mean by assessment?
Part 1: Opening discussion
What do we mean by assessment?
Summative – two statutory points
Formative – responsive teaching
Assessment v. Curriculum

3. Sustained Shared Thinking
Part 2: Responsive Teaching
Sustained Shared Thinking

4. Tuning in: listening carefully to what is being said, observing body language and what the child is doing.
Showing genuine interest: giving their whole attention to the child, maintaining eye contact, affirming, smiling, nodding.
Respecting children’s own decisions and choices by inviting children to elaborate: saying things like ‘I really want to know more about this’ and listening and engaging in the response.
Re-capping: ‘So you think that … ’
Offering the adult’s own experience: ‘I like to listen to music when I cook at home.’
Clarifying ideas: ‘Right Darren, so you think that this stone will melt if I boil it in water?’
Suggesting: ‘You might like to try doing it this way.’
Reminding: ‘Don’t forget that you said that this stone will melt if I boil it.’
Using encouragement to further thinking: ‘You have really thought hard about where to put this door in the palace – where will you put the windows?’
Offering an alternative viewpoint: ‘Maybe Goldilocks wasn’t naughty when she ate the porridge?’
Speculating: ‘Do you think the three bears would have liked Goldilocks to come to live with them as their friend?’
Reciprocating: ‘Thank goodness that you were wearing wellington boots when you jumped in those puddles George. Look at my feet, they are soaking wet!’
Asking open questions: ‘How did you … ?’ ‘Why does this ... ?’ ‘What happens next?’ ‘What do you think?’ ‘I wonder what would happen if … ?’
Modelling thinking: ‘I have to think hard about what I do this evening. I need take my library books back to the library and stop off at the supermarket to get some food for tomorrow, but I just won’t have time to do all of these things.’

5. The think piece and the antidote!
Part 3: Challenges
The think piece and the antidote!
Potential Barriers
Bureaucratic requirements – ‘Compliance anxiety’
Being able to be ‘in the moment’ while also able to capture the learning
Children learn to ‘perform’ for the camera, the issue of consent
Data in context
Moderation
A Solution: Celebrating Children’s Learning

8. Part 4: Teamwork, Accuracy, Quality
Who is in your assessment team?
- This will grow and vary – think how many children get to know a child over the course of EY
- The importance of parent/carer voice (the home)
The importance of discussion
Time
Provision and curriculum
Can you make links across schools and settings for moderation
Develop knowledge
Challenge conceptions and definitions
Develop shared language and understanding
Involve KS1 and SLT
Work cross year groups

9. Part 5: Conclusions, reflections, questions