Hello all, Sorry I haven't been in touch for so long. It has been an incredibly busy start to the school year. I am now teaching in Year One. My team and I are striving to give the children in our care an education that respects, nurtures, inspires and motivates them. Our children are happy and settled. They are thriving. They are learning through playful experiences inside and out supported by adults who understand and respect their development. They are taught phonics and maths each day for short periods of time...and they are then using what they have learned in their play... writing stories, measuring, solving problems and so on. It's a powerful, exciting journey and our families are behind us, regularly commenting on how much their children love school and how they can't believe how much they are learning and talking about their learning at home. At my school, we have been courageous, tried something new, the very thing this petition is all about...taking the principles of what works in Early Years into Year One. Many other schools are trying to do the same thing. To be honest, its a challenge as my team and I are trying to do something which is in opposition to the political agenda for education. We have a curriculum which is based on filling empty pails..whilst we want to ignite fires... but we are getting there. We are reflecting and developing. So that's the scene so far and then....BANG! You read a report written by a group of whom NONE ARE EARLY YEARS EXPERTS!! This report is being presented to Government. And what does this report say? Well in a nutshell it says because of the difference between the Early Years and Yr1 expectations (these are the expectations of a new, fiercely criticised, attacked, ideoglogical curriculum)...reception classes need to be more like Year One. The exact thing we are standing against. Instead of pushing down into Early Years, we need to be building up from it as they do around the world. Do I need to say FINLAND again?? Already there has been a backlash against this report. With many Early Years experts as well as many of those experts who are based in practice (ie practitioners) taking to social media to point out just how flawed this report is, which has made its illinformed, reckless, dangerous assumptions based on research from 20 schools! So in short, I am asking you to stand with me and share our petition again. We need to keep fighting, because just a we see a light, just as we take steps towards progress, a report written by people who know nothing about Early Years could be setting back what happens for our youngest children by years. Thank you as ever for your support!