Don't you know...They're talkin' bout a revolution!

There may be some of you, of a certain age who may recall the lyric in the title of this blog. It was from a Tracey Chapman song, an album of my youth.  An album I'd lay on my bed and listen to on my Sony Walkman as a teenager dreaming of how I would change the world.  

Well many years later and approaching a certain special birthday...and no it's not 21 or 30, and this song is buzzing around in my head on an almost daily basis, although my walkman is long gone, and I can't find the cassette!

There is a revolution coming, I can feel it and I am proud to be a part of it.  It seems that almost daily there are educational stories in the news.  The teaching crisis, the assessment fiasco, the mental health issues our children are facing...and perhaps most excitingly of all, the fact that practitioners, parents, grandparents, unions, researchers, household names and anyone who cares about children, are ALL standing together to tell Mr Cameron, Ms Morgan et al that ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! We are sick and tired of our precious children, our future being used as guinea pigs for whatever unfounded ideas pops into the heads of those who believe they have the power to do as they please.   

This week will see thousands of parents taking their children out of school in protest at the governments attack on childhood and education, but in full support of teachers and schools. This is unprecedented, and Ms Morgans claim that this 1 day out is damaging is laughable when the ridiculous testing regime and narrow curriculum children face is causing more mental health issues than ever for many children. These children are feeling the pressure many of us may have only felt at secondary or FE level.

I continue to fight passionately for the right of each and every child to the very best education which recognises and celebrates their individual development and the power of play!  My Facebook group Keeping Early Years Unique goes from strength to strength with over 11k members not focusing on discussing activity ideas, but the fundamentals of early years education, the pedagogy, principles and beliefs that provide every child with an education that respects, inspires, nurtures and challenges them.

My campaign to extend Early Years to age 7 is also gaining momentum.  I am proposing the extension of those fundamental prime areas,  the importance of embedded, meaningful literacy and maths, and taking those all important statutory  Characteristics  of Effective Learning beyond the reception classroom door and into KS1 and beyond.  The powerful EYFS curriculum must not end for children when we tearfully wave them goodbye in July.  Our curriculum works! In many schools during OFSTED it is the EYFS is a strength...it's where the magic happens, where learners thrive and brains grow. So why end it when children are 5...some are still 4! It works.  It's based in research, the very best pedagogy, the legacies of our founding EYs mothers and fathers: Froebel, Montessori, the McMillan's, Isaacs, Steiner, Vygotsky, Piaget, Reggio Emilia, Bruce et al. Ms Morgans world leading curriculum isn't! There's no research to support her beloved curriculum..so its time for it to go to Time Out...permanently!  Look around the world Ms Morgan. Look at the countries whose children you say leave ours behind! They start formal schooling at 7, they play, their teachers are respected and have high levels of well being..they leave us behind.Until we reform our system our children will always be like the hare in Aesop's fable, rushing quicker and earlier but left behind by a tortoise whose journey is slower and more carefully planned.

Today my meme to spread word of #ExtendEYFSto7 was shared....over 400 likes and 200 shares later word is spreading. My maths meme about the power of play has received 7000 likes and 1 million+ views around the world.  I am not alone here.....Our children deserve the best, so join the revolution! Stand with me, wherever you are to send a message loud and clear. Our children matter! Their mental health matters! Their education matters!

"I'm signing this petition because I believe children are put under too much pressure far too early in their lives. Childhood should be for playing, enjoying, exploring, investigating, developing socially and emotionally. It should not be about learning how to pass tests or about failure." Supporter comment


Sign, share and tell the world about this battle! Together we are stronger.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/121681
https://www.change.org/p/sam-gyimah-mp-extend-the-early-years-foundation-stage-from-birth-to-5-to-birth-to-7