WHO NEEDS THE MORTAR BOARDS?
In July we had 23 children leaving Buddies Nursery to begin school inSeptember. Most of the children had been with us since they were babies,so the families and staff had become very close. We asked the parentstheir views on how we should celebrate and say goodbye.
Parents were adamant that they did not want a graduation and theycertainly did not want a prom. One parent even commented that if we hadhad a prom, she would have not allowed her child to attend.
Between us we decided to have a sports day and picnic, aimed at familiesgetting together and having fun. Luckily the rain stayed away and we hadthe most wonderful, happy, family day.
We also learned that parents want their children to be children, havefun, be active and not grow up too soon. We said a happy goodbye andgood luck to the children and their families with a day to remember.
Marian Thomas, teacher, Buddies Childcare Centre, County Durham
Our star letter wins 30 worth of books
SOCKET COVERS ARE DANGEROUS
The subject of the safety of electrical socket covers is still an issuewhich is widely discussed. Ofsted has stuck to its revised policy of 'Weneither recommend nor criticise the use of socket covers by childcareproviders, only that the environment in which they provide childcare issafe and meets legal requirements.'
However, not everyone involved in childcare is aware of the issue, andthere are continued reports of local authorities exerting pressure onpractitioners to use these dangerous devices.
It may be time for a further article in your magazine. One of the pointswhich should be emphasised is that not only are socket coversunnecessary and they increase risks, but that they can permanentlydamage sockets, leading to a failure of the built-in safety mechanismand the possibility of earthing failure, overheating and fire.
Another point is to assist carers in understanding how they can developa policy of ensuring that the electrical installation is truly safe,concentrating on the areas that actually make a contribution.
We have tried to find out how the use of socket covers in the UK becamepervasive, but have found no suggestion that their use was based onadvice from anyone who actually understood the issue. It just seems tohave happened because companies started selling them and created theunfounded myth that children could poke fingers and objects into socketholes.
The position of lobby group Fatally Flawed emphatically remains thatsocket covers should not be inserted into sockets - they aredangerous!
David Peacock, co-founder, Fatally Flawed, www.fatallyflawed.org.uk
SOCIABLE BEHAVIOUR BECOMES ROUTINE
We are a small, well established childcare provider with consistentlygood Ofsted gradings. We were, however, surprised to be told by aninspector in June that our setting is too rigid with regard to routinewhen it comes to snacks and mealtimes.
Staff were asked at snack time why the children didn't have 'freeaccess' to a 'snack bar'. We explained that what works for us is havinga practitioner sit at each table with the children to talk about thefruit and vegetables (bringing in all aspects of the EYFS) before it iscut up and shared around. The inspector was fine with this.
However, my next issue relates very closely to this. The inspection daywas very hot and sticky and due to the weather, some children didn'twant to eat anything at lunchtime.
In today's culture of obesity and busy family snacking, we feel it isimportant to make mealtimes a social occasion together and we encourageour children to sit down together at a table to eat. But during ourfeedback, the inspector informed me that there was a child who obviouslydid not want her food, and she felt that the child's individual needswere not being met. In short, we were placing too much emphasis upon theroutines!
Like many people, I have been a 'victim' in a restaurant where youngchildren have been running around, causing havoc and disturbing others.It is not the children's fault - they are only doing what they have beenallowed to do. This stems from not having sat together to eat or havingthe social interaction that I have described above.
I will gladly stick to a routine if it supports our children in becomingsociable people who can participate in a social occasion.
Judith Baxter, nursery manager, St Mary's Nursery, Hexham,Northumberland
Send your letters to ... The Editor, Nursery World, 174 HammersmithRoad, London W6 7JP, letter.nw@haymarket.com, 020 8267 8401.
