This may seem like a daunting title, but in reality, it is based on children thinking about their everyday experiences. It is within this curriculum area that 'sense of time' nestles.
What will your child be learning about?
The Foundation Stage is based upon starting with the child. The curriculum area 'A sense of time' takes the child and their experience as a focus.
Children are encouraged to talk about events that have some meaning for them - the idea is that children need to understand their own personal history and that of those around them. In the longer term, this curriculum area will help them prepare for more formal work about history, once they are following the National Curriculum.
What will my child be doing?
Pre-schools, nurseries and childminders will encourage your child to remember and talk about things that are important to them. You can help them do this by, for example, allowing your child to take in photographs or objects that they have shown an interest in. This makes it easier for your child to remember what they have been doing at home. Quite often, children separate out their different worlds. This is why many children find it hard to talk about what they have been doing when they have been away from you.
You may also find that your child will be encouraged to look at old and new things such as toys and books. This helps children to get their first sense of 'past'.
Why can't my child be taught about history now?
Time is a difficult concept for a young child. Waiting a day can seem an eternity when you are three years old. Learning about historical events, which children themselves cannot remember and put in context, is meaningless and therefore not very helpful.
Will my child be taught how to tell the time?
Before children can tell the time, a lot of other skills need to be in place. First of all, they need to understand about numbers, and then they need to be able to get a feeling of what is a minute or an hour. In addition, to read a clock face, children also need to know their five times tables and be able to subtract! This is why most children cannot tell the time accurately and meaningfully until they are around seven years old.
However, your child will be learning some of the earlier skills such as understanding what time is about.
How can I help my child at home?
You can help in many ways. Show your child pictures of you when you were little or toys that you played with. Children find it hard to believe that we adults were once children too!
Children also liked to be reminded of what they were like as babies and toddlers. They enjoy feeling that they are now grown up. It is also a good idea to encourage your child to talk about everyday things that you have done together. This might mean talking about when you go to the park or what you do when you go to the supermarket. In this way, your child learns to use language to remember. This is a vital step in developing the concept of past.
