Work Matters: Leadership - Part of the community

I have been doing a lot of reading recently about different curriculum models around the world, and their similarities to and influence on the Early Years Foundation Stage.

The one that has really struck a chord with me is the Te Whariki curriculum of New Zealand. Like the EYFS, it is a government framework and very much takes the lead from the individual child. Its true strength, however, comes from the importance it puts on the learning partnership between teachers, parents and families.

What impresses me about the Te Whariki model is how much it embraces the cultural heritage of each individual child. In order to embrace this at my setting I organised a Parents Group that encouraged the participation of families in the goings-on within the nursery. Through this I have been able to gauge their opinions and have enjoyed the richness of ideas the parents and families have brought to me.

I then organised Fathers Play Days that have seen a very different approach to well-loved activities. I have encouraged grandparents to come into the nursery to share their skills - grandfathers helping the children to plant vegetable patches and tend the garden; grandmothers sharing baking, knitting and storytelling.

We have taken every opportunity to be a part of our local community, and are regularly seen walking en masse down the high street, visiting nursing homes in our Easter Bonnets or taking our tins to church at Harvest Festival. We have become involved with the local church, library and community centres and have invited local builders, dentists, storytellers, even restaurant owners, to visit us.

There is an old African proverb, 'It takes a village to raise a child'. In a time when children are often raised without the benefits of the extended family, where village life is all but a thing of the past, this is something we often lose sight of, but have the golden opportunity to bring to each of the children in our care.

By meeting people of all ages, backgrounds and points of view, the children are able to form different kinds of relationships, make essential connections and enrich their experiences.