Trisha Maynard - Böcker

Outdoor play is a significant and essential aspect of a young child's development and enjoys a renewed emphasis in early years practice, in keeping with the core principles embedded within the early years tradition. However, this emphasis may sit uneasily alongside a requirement to focus on the development of literacy and numeracy skills and supporting outdoor play can raise a number of thorny issues such as freedom, safety and risk.

This book challenges the reader to consider:

Why outdoor play is seen to be of significance within early childhood Whether this view is justified (what are the benefits of outdoor play?) The implications for practitioners who may be facing conflicting pressures in their work with young childrenIn particular, the writers skilfully blend theory, research and practical guidance to address three important issues:What constitutes 'good' outdoor provision for young children and babies?How do we respect and respond to the young child in outdoor provision?How do we support risky play within the bounds of a statutory curriculum or regulatory regime? Incorporating chapters from internationally renowned authors working in this field, this book is recommended both for practitioners involved in early years education and care and for students at foundation, degree and post-graduate levels.

"This is a thought provoking book that draws on research to encourage the reader to reflect on the essence of outdoor play in early childhood. Recognising that within our society assumptions are made about outdoors and about childhood, this book challenges the reader to reflect on outdoor provision from a number of perspectives. The outdoor environment matters to young children. This book not only makes the case for outdoor play, it considers what that actually looks like in the UK and internationally, and asks us to reflect on the implications for our own working practices. Maynard and Waters set out to provoke critical reflection and inspire practitioners; they have certainly achieved their aim and this book is a welcome addition to the debate about outdoors in the early years."Gail Ryder Richardson, Early Years Consultant and Trainer, Outdoor Matters!

Contributors: Valerie Huggins, Sara Knight, Helen Little, Trisha Maynard, Ellen Beate Hansen Sandseter, Alison Stephenson, Helen Tovey, Sue Waite, Jane Waters, Jan White, Karen Wickett, Helen Woolley and Shirley Wyver.

In the UK and elsewhere, the training of teachers is increasingly seen as a matter of partnership between schools and institutions of higher education. There is thus an urgent need within the profession to define more carefully what the role of teachers acting as mentors should be. Clearly some aspects of professional knowledge can only be acquired from practical experience in school, and this book draws on extensive research on students' school-based learning to isolate and analyse those aspects. Like any form of teaching, mentoring, the authors suggest, must be built on a clear understanding of the learning processes it is intended to support. In this book, they report on their research into the nature of students' school-based learning and what this means for the role of the mentoring.

In the UK and elsewhere, the training of teachers is increasingly seen as a matter of partnership between schools and institutions of higher education. There is thus an urgent need within the profession to define more carefully what the role of teachers acting as mentors should be. Clearly some aspects of professional knowledge can only be acquired from practical experience in school, and this book draws on extensive research on students' school-based learning to isolate and analyse those aspects. Like any form of teaching, mentoring, the authors suggest, must be built on a clear understanding of the learning processes it is intended to support. In this book, they report on their research into the nature of students' school-based learning and what this means for the role of the mentoring.

In recent years the issue of boys and literacy, namely that they are worse at it compared to girls, has become a key area of interest to all those concerned with the education of our children. This book highlights the key factors causing this divide and discusses the implementation of new strategies to overcome it, which have been the result of extensive qualitative research made by the author. Trisha Maynard reports case study findings of a primary school whose staff wanted to explore and improve boys' attitudes towards and attainment in literacy, and in particular their difficulties with writing.The book highlights issues concerning the reading and writing of stories, what teachers understand by 'good story writing' and the importance of teachers exploring boys' and girls' difficulties with literacy by themselves. It provides significant insight into boys' difficulties with writing as well as informing teachers how to find out about children's attainment.