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Parents as Partners in Early Learning- BME parents
[ 22 May 2008]
" Family Treasures" at Foleshill and Hillfields Children Centre
Aim:- To develop, implement and evaluate a family learning approach that helps parents explore various ways of interacting with their children using treasure baskets and heuristic play.
Background
Working with BME/EAL families who fall within Coventry's identified ethnic minority in the areas of Foleshill and Hillfields - Both area have a high population of
- - Multi-cultural families
- - High unemployment
- - Inner city deprivation
Context
- - Treasure Baskets/ heuristic play
- - Encouraging parents/practitioners to work as partners.
- - Develop parents awareness of their children's development
- - Schemas/Baby Brain Development.
Anticipated outcomes
- - Parents were involved in the design, delivery, monitoring and evaluation of the project.
- - We hope that we have improved children's communication and engaged parents in activities with their children.
- - Parents/ carers will have an increased understanding of their child's communication, language, literacy and physical, social, and emotional development through object centred play, observations, and their role in supporting development.
Working in Partnership
The Team - Foleshill and Hillfields were involved in 5 training sessions prior to the project starting. The training sessions highlighted that practitioners, needed support in delivering treasure baskets sessions and review knowledge of Schemas. The training sessions included parents who were involved in the planning of the project. The parents helped us in recognising how the project would be seen from a "Parents Prospective." Each centre had their own ideas of how the PPEL would be delivered.
Hillfields delivered a training session and provided a separate crèche.
Foleshill delivered the session as a stay and play, parents and children engaging together with Treasure Baskets and Heuristic objects.
Impact
Confidence in Parents - parents felt comfortable to explain to partners, other parents, friends and family what is a treasure basket/ Heuristic play objects the benefits and the value on children's play.
Protective of Treasure baskets - making the treasure basket their own and putting objects into the baskets that mean something to them and their child,
Protective of Learning Journals - parents have spent time building their Learning Journals with photographs and comment, they did not want the children to contribute, touch or handle the journals.
Parent's impact - realisation of problem solving through play and the impact of how and what their child play with will support their development.
Successes
Our team successes were that we were able to work collaboratively between both centre, sharing ideas, experiences etc. and the barrier was that we felt we did not have enough time to plan, set up, do documentation for the course (on top of running the actual sessions, their was a lot documentation required). However when we run it again we will incorporate an estimated documentation.
Our session successes were that some parents seem to have taken the information provided on board. You can see them applying it in their play with their children; they seem too much more in tune with their children's needs. They have also gained a more in depth knowledge of play pattern; schemas and advantages of heuristic play through attending the sessions.
Parents Quotes:
Samira (HCC) " I feel I have really learn how to play with my daughters. I really enjoy coming to group and have a nice memory, I like to have book to see with photo's"
Shanaz ( FCC) " I like to watch Asia playing as before you did not make much time and did not realise what she was doing and learning"
How do I find out more?
Please contact Miriam Khalifa at Hillfields Children Centre on 024 7622 8174 or Ally Wallis at Foleshill Children Centre on 024 7678 5575.
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