Following child’s interests – schema

Two year old spends time in the nursery garden exploring and playing. See how his development is supported the practitioners who tune in to his interests.

Good for looking at

• Learning outdoors
• Schemas - trajectory
• Effective adult support
• Outdoor learning environment
• Cognitive development

This two year old has been observed to have a trajectory schema. This is an interest in how things (objects) or themselves (their bodies) move through space.

Notice

• How the practitioner and environment and materials supports the child’s current interest
• What cues can you see that show what the child is interested in? (Look out for non-verbal and body language as well as spoken language)
• How is the child learning?
• Which areas of development, engagement and characteristics of learning can you observe?