James McTaggart – författare

Being able to read and write with ease does not just open up imagination and learning, it also helps us to thrive and cope in a world increasingly based on complex information from coding to utility bills. Everyone wants children to make the best start with literacy, but despite the existence of evidence-based programmes of instruction, some do not respond as hoped at first, or show a fade in learning in later school years. This book is about why that happens, and what we can do about it.Drawing on research and the wide expertise of its authors, it sets out how lifelong literacy is based on crucial aspects of early child development and how these can be assessed and improved in classrooms. The book focuses on five core emerging literacy skills that underpin successful learning for children: concepts of print; phonological awareness; oral language; working memory and executive function; and pencil control. Chapters:Guide the reader on how to build the foundations of lifelong literacy, as well as easy-to-do, unintrusive means to assess the different strengths and gaps that learners have.Explore how teaching and learning can be adjusted so that all can learn and make progress.Contain inexpensive and playful, but effective and practical, ways to develop the skills in an ordinary classroom or home.Are accompanied by a downloadable practical toolkit of resources to use with children.Educators who use this book and reflect on and adapt its ideas, will be more confident in what they are doing, with an enriched understanding of why it fits the children they are educating. It will be crucial reading for early years educators, primary classroom practitioners, educational psychologists, and speech and language therapists.

Being able to read and write with ease does not just open up imagination and learning, it also helps us to thrive and cope in a world increasingly based on complex information from coding to utility bills. Everyone wants children to make the best start with literacy, but despite the existence of evidence-based programmes of instruction, some do not respond as hoped at first, or show a fade in learning in later school years. This book is about why that happens, and what we can do about it.Drawing on research and the wide expertise of its authors, it sets out how lifelong literacy is based on crucial aspects of early child development and how these can be assessed and improved in classrooms. The book focuses on five core emerging literacy skills that underpin successful learning for children: concepts of print; phonological awareness; oral language; working memory and executive function; and pencil control. Chapters:Guide the reader on how to build the foundations of lifelong literacy, as well as easy-to-do, unintrusive means to assess the different strengths and gaps that learners have.Explore how teaching and learning can be adjusted so that all can learn and make progress.Contain inexpensive and playful, but effective and practical, ways to develop the skills in an ordinary classroom or home.Are accompanied by a downloadable practical toolkit of resources to use with children.Educators who use this book and reflect on and adapt its ideas, will be more confident in what they are doing, with an enriched understanding of why it fits the children they are educating. It will be crucial reading for early years educators, primary classroom practitioners, educational psychologists, and speech and language therapists.

Many young children arrive in our settings carrying past trauma. And all children will face challenges in their future lives. Trauma-informed practice helps us support them all by offering safe and responsive relationships and environments.This book provides a clear, research-based framework for understanding what trauma feels like, how it affects behaviour and learning, and what this looks like in daily practice. It shows how early years educators can support recovery and resilience through everyday care, co-regulation, and practical strategies, and how joyful settings can be created even in the face of stressful or systemic challenges. With chapters on staff wellbeing and secondary trauma, this is a hopeful, hands-on guide.Trauma-informed practice is not an extra – it’s high-quality early education adapted for everyone in the setting. This book shows how to do it well, for every child and adult. It is essential reading for all current and future early years educators, and those who train and support them.