Best Selling Books by Sally Featherstone

Practitioners are still uncertain of exactly how to manage assessment. This book takes them through the process step by step. It explains the terminology, shows them how to turn observation into assessment and in the final chapter sets out how to manage and interpret all the information they have gathered.

This practical book offers a scientific framework for the early years that is divided into four key areas: biological science, physical science, earth science and environmental science. Topics covered include life, nature, environmental care, sustainability, and biodiversity - with links throughout to the EYFS. A Sense of Wonder is an easy-to-read guide for educators looking to implement play-based science learning and inspire children of all ages in the Early Years Foundation Stage.

This book explores the importance of the environment in the Early Years and its effect on learning and emotional development. It provides examples of excellent settings for learning as well as lots of ideas for organisation, planning, displays and making changes. It will inspire practitioners with its full colour photos and practical, easy to follow activities!

Learning to learn - what works and what doesn''t for children under seven

Translating research about child neuroscience into practice in education is a daunting prospect for most practitioners. In fact, many see it as fraught with difficulties and risky. However, the importance of this research has never been more important. The context of the early years in the UK, has seen considerable changes within recent years, with a raft of government regulation and guidance, and a national move to free childcare entitlement at increasingly earlier ages. Combined with a mounting pressure for accountability in ''Closing the Gap'' between disadvantaged children and those more fortunate, these pressures make it fundamental that those working with young children understand what neuroscience is telling us, and more important, what it is not. Practitioners, teachers managers, and governors in settings and schools will not only be called to account for the attainment of their children, as measured in tests, but in the way children are prepared for lifelong earning, which will support them for the rest of their school lives and beyond. This book is a comprehensive position statement for practitioners that highlights: where we are now; what we know; what we don''t know; what research developments mean for practitioners and setting, and how this fits in with the government expectations within the EYFS framework. Sally Featherstone covers the current thinking in educational research and neuroscience, how some of this has been misinterpreted by ''early adopters'' or ''over-enthusiastic promoters'', and how new information can help practitioners to be more effective in their work with young children.

The Dealing With Feelings stories explore very simple, familiar childhood experiences. They help children to process and understand a variety of emotions, while helpful tips at the back suggest ways for parents and practitioners to build on this understanding with practical activities and ideas to discuss

What are schemas and why do they matter? Again! Again! provides an introduction to understanding and supporting schemas and schema play in young children. Practitioners will find an overview of schemas with guidance on where they fit within the EYFS. There are examples of schemas, with illustrations and descriptions of common behaviour patterns, and these are set within the general context of child development. The intention is to help early years practitioners identify schemas and to understand both how important they are and the vital role they play in the growing child''s learning. The aim is to help the reader understand how they can develop, plan and resource activities which support children''s learning through experiment and play.

Why is it that, when children play, some behave like butterflies, flitting around among the flowers of the activities on offer, landing for a moment before moving on to the next attractive flower (activity) while others behave with the single minded concentration of bees? As children grow and learn, they acquire skills through play and practical activities. This recently acquired learning is tenuous and is secured through practice, repeating the skills in different contexts, with different people. Only then will learning be ''hard wired'' for life. It is now evident that where children are able to select resources, play companions and activities for themselves, they can practise emerging skills and concepts by selecting the resources they need and using them in ways which are unique to them. This book, written by a group of experts in early years practice, explores the place and purpose of child-intitiated learning in high quality early years practice. Child-initiated learning is a key feature of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

An Anthology of Educational Thinkers provides an excellent introduction to the major groups of educational thinkers. Each thinker''s views and theories are explained in detail in a format that is accessible to those currently practising and those who are still in training. However, this book goes beyond just explaining the theory, it shows practitioners how to put these theories into practice! It is filled with explanations of how theories are linked to the EYFS, examples of how these figures worked and, most importantly, demonstrates the way they influenced how most early years practitioners work today.

Offers practical advice to parents and carers wanting to guide and support young children who are troubled or distressed.

Help early learners develop their writing skills through these fun and stimulating activites. Remember writing is not just for indoors - expand your writing environment both inside and out! These activites are easy to source and cost-effective for every Early Years setting.

Yuka and Max like different things. Yuka likes riding her bike fast, but Max likes riding slowly. Max likes loud music, but Yuka likes quiet. Yuka likes the pet fish, but Max prefers the guinea pig. Despite their differences Max and Yuka find lots of ways to play together and be friends! Each of the simple stories in the Dealing with Feelings series, beautifully illustrated by Melissa Four, explores a familiar childhood experience. These stories help children to process and understand a variety of emotions, while helpful tips at the back of the book suggest ways for parents and practitioners to build on the understanding in many creative and fun ways.

Heuristic Play is a tightly described, but freely accessed activity, using a specific range of ''found'' or everyday objects, and, in its pure sense, is only really applicable to a specific age range (from 12 months to about two and a half). However, there is now plenty of evidence that heuristic play has continuing value for children throughout the Foundation Stage and well into the primary years. Collections of objects, carefully selected and offered in both adult-led and child-initiated sessions, indoors and outside, can build on the experience of treasure baskets In this informative and helpful book you will find further information on the process of using both treasure baskets and heuristic play with babies and young children. You will also find chapters which explore the benefits of heuristic play with objects for children throughout the early years from six months to seven years. Of course, the materials, the provision and the adult role will develop and change as children mature, so this book also gives guidance on how heuristic play itself should change to meet the needs of children at different stages of development.

This book starts you off on the serious job of investigating materials, processes, objects and events. Investigation is a key scientific skill and this book enables you to support young investigators.

A wealth of great ideas for parents or carers of toddlers.

A wealth of great ideas for parents or carers of young babies.

A wealth of great ideas for parents or carers of pre-schoolers.

Linking scientific exploration and creativity, this book offers you ideas for simple activities and links them to the concepts and goals for the Foundation Stage.

Following the success of the Little Book of Investigations, this book goes one step further in size, scale and scope. It covers explorations indoors, outside and in the local community, from the water in the tap, the dust on the floor, the mud in the garden, to exploring connections, constructions and other early technological experiments. The natural world, minibeasts, weather, growth, change over time and making changes to materials and the environment are included in this easy to use book. The inventive activities will all also provide opportunities for children to sustain their thinking with other children and adults while using the skills of observation and experiment.

The control of large and fine muscles and the ability to feel, copy and continue a steady beat are all essential for learning, and particularly for learning to read. Baby and Beyond Movement and Beat gives practitioners ideas for supporting the progression of these vital skills at all ages of development in the EYFS.Each page has a series of ''activity boxes'' that are labelled for each age group showing how each area can be approached by children at different stages of development. The format makes it easy to select the level of activity appropriate for each child making these books ideal for groups of mixed ages. When returning to the same areas later the practitioner can choose another activity to support progression and extend learning.

Gregory is having a bad day. It''s raining and he can''t go outside to play. He falls and hurts his knee, Marta breaks his pterodactyl, and there''s no red apple left for his snack. Nothing is going right... until the sun comes out. Maybe Gregory will have some fun today, after all! Each of the simple stories in the Dealing with Feelings series, beautifully illustrated by Melissa Four, explores a familiar childhood experience. These stories help children to process and understand a variety of emotions, while helpful tips at the back of the book suggest ways for parents and practitioners to build on the understanding in many creative and fun ways.

Hundreds of ideas for role play, grouped so you and the children can incorporate linked themes into your setting and develop role play in more than one place. Resources, vocabulary lists, literacy and numeracy links are provided for each situation.

Developing fine motor skills is a key feature in learning to read and write. Many children need additional help to develop these skills in the Early Years Foundation Stage, and The Little Book of Fine Motor Skills gives you lots of ideas for interesting activities focused on hand/eye coordination and refining the movements of arms and hands. Like all the other books in the Little Book series, this book presents appropriate and enjoyable activities in a simple format, which would enable the most inexperienced practitioners to plan and deliver the curriculum against clear objectives.

The Dealing With Feelings stories explore very simple, familiar childhood experiences. They help children to process and understand a variety of emotions, while helpful tips at the back suggest ways for parents and practitioners to build on this understanding with practical activities and ideas to discuss.

Give your sand and water sessions a new lease of life with this fully updated Little Book. Split into two sections, it offers a range of activities for sand and water play that link to the early learning goals and which are accompanied by a list of suggested resources, useful vocabulary and related songs and stories to take the theme further.

The differences between boys and girls, in development and attitude to learning are well documented, and a formalised early curriculum emphasises these differences. The abilities of most girls to meet goals for learning at an earlier age may result in a tendency to focus on trying to teach boys to learn like girls, instead of recognising their unique gifts and abilities. If we are to help boys to become strong, competent learners from an early age, we must resist the temptation to feel sorry for them. We must dispel the myths about ''under-achievement'', challenge stereotypical views of gender, and recognise the unique strengths and abilities of young boys.

Making dens and shelters is a favourite childhood activity and has always been so. Dens and shelters provides a wealth of den making ideas which involve children in active learning and creative thinking. Each activity gives suggestions on how the activity can be set up to suit the different development stages of the children in your care.Dens give children the space and time to explore their creativity - a magical place for children to role play and let their imaginations run wild. Dens and shelters also provide a child with a place to rest and reflect when the noise and activity of a busy setting gets too much.The Baby&Beyond series takes simple activities or resources and shows how they can be used with children at each of the EYFS development stages, from birth to 60+ months. Each activity is laid out so that you can see progression at a glance.

Children learn best by doing, making, singing and exploring. This Little Book is jam packed with activites of all kinds for exploring phonics, with a seperate collection for each letter of the alphabet.

A huge range of ideas for outdoor games and activities.

Role Play is an important part of every child''s entitlement. This book guides you in planning, stimulating and organising role play inside and out. It discusses why role play is important. It presents activities suitable for a range of role play situations. It includes ideas for materials, equipment and locations.

Another book in this popular Baby and Beyond series, showing progression in familiar activities. Going Out takes sixteen ideas for simple excursions , matched to stages of children''s development. The activities described in this book are all appropriate to children from birth to five (and beyond) and we have linked them to the developmentalstages of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

This book gives ideas for introducing and extending experiences of sound and music for babies and young children. Each page spread contains a range of experiences and a selection of ideas ffor each of the six stages in Development Matters (Revised EYFS 2012).The Baby&Beyond series takes simple activities or resources and shows how they can be used with children at each of the EYFS development stages, from birth to 60+ months. Each activity is laid out so that you can see progression at a glance.

Developing children as independent learners starts in the early years. Scientific evidence as well as the experience of experts confirms that children between three and six learn most effectively by doing. This work looks at the theory of independent learning and describes how practitioners can plan and resource the early years.

A wealth of great ideas for parents or carers of four and five year olds.

Tell Me a Story helps practitioners to build progression into a favourite part of the day for all children. Matched to the development stages of the EYFS. Each page features ''activity boxes'' labelled for each age group showing how each area can be approached by children at different stages of development. The format makes it easy to select the level of activity appropriate for each child making these books ideal for groups of mixed ages. When returning to the same areas later the user can choose another activity to support progression and extend learning.

Mark Making: Progression in Play for Babies and Children gives ideas for introducing and extending mark making activities and experiences for babies and young children. Each page contains a range of experiences and a selection of ideas for each of the six stages in Development Matters (Revised EYFS 2012). The experiences with mark making materials described in this book encourages development and learning through active play using all the senses. Enhancing experiences of mark making from babyhood will encourage children''s independence and involvement in communication through meaningful marks.