to find it interfering and even slightly sinister that my childminder wants to communicate with the school?

[parakeet]

She's given me a (sealed) envelope, asking me to give it to my child's teacher. It has a note (to me) on the back saying she'd like to know about their lesson plans.

I asked my childminder what it was all about and she said Ofsted had told her to do it, so she can coordinate educational activities with the school. My (five-year-old) child is normally only with my childminder for two hours a day, two days a week (apart from school holidays). So I'm not really expecting my childminder to do anything educational with her, just pick her up after school, give her tea and let her wind down after school.

Maybe I'm being paranoid, but I don't see the need for other professionals to be bypassing me to communicate about my child. She doesn't have any SN. The teacher gives parents weekly sheets giving info about what they're doing that week and I offered to give a copy to the childminder each week, but no, she wants the teacher's lesson plans. I have a feeling the teacher won't particularly want to do this either, or is this standard?

yes just another mad idea that ofsted have about sharing information with the schools so that the childminder can plan better what to do with your child. Crazy I know but not sinister. Poor childminder is only trying to keep to the ofsted regulations. Another reason I stopped childminding.

Ive never heard of this before! Open the letter. Sounds very random to me

So, what qualifications do Ofsted require nowadays for childminding?
Serious question.

"But clam, aren't you supposed to liaise with other professionals in contact with the children you teach? I guess you don't view childminders as childcare professionals."

See my previous post.

I liaise with "other professionals" all the time, qualified teachers, INCOs, Educational Psychologists, DESC, CAMHS, Social Services.... none of them has ever asked me for my lesson plans.

Clam childminders don't need your lesson plans either seriously.

Seriously as a teacher there is no way I'd hand them over either.Also the first person I'd be having any indepth conversations with re a child's progress would be it's mother(or father).If they requested (highly unlikely)me to give targets to their childminder then I would.

I wouldn't. I'd give the targets to the parents, and they could pass them on if they wanted to.

You're quite right.Many childminders mind several children(maybe in the same class) and I think requesting/giving info/targets is treading on dodgy ground.

Also as a parent I'd go bonkers if my childminder was having conversations re my children and their progress that I wasn't privy to.

But I just don't see the need anyway. Why does a childminder need to see weekly plans (even if we accept that actual lesson plans are over the top) and "next steps" for learning/targets? If it's as simple as whoever said further back of matching an art & craft activity to something going on in school such as bugs, then what's wrong with a quick overview? How much depth is needed, fgs?
Not to mention the fact that with different children from different classes they're all going to be doing different things anyway.

Also it does say in the framework that "The EYFS profile must be completed by the provider where the child spends the majority of it's time between 8am and 6 pm" ie school.It's thus the school's responsibility to request info if they want it not the other way round.Yes we have to liase and have activities available that cover the EYFS areas but the profile is the responsibility of school.

In working with the school I'd request my name was on the newsletter list,be available at pick up times,give a brief introduction,send in "I can do" slips if I noticed something really good that might be of use to the teacher for their profile.I'd check this was ok with mum first.

But no-one would do that MilaMae. I have written signed permission from my parents for me to talk to thier teachers or other childcare providers, in what way are the parents 'not privy to' the information we are sharing? I pass on any information the teacher has shared.

It's all very well saying the teacher should be talking to the parents but it's not the parents picking the kids up from school. I am. It's me who's there and sees the teacher every day and I cannot see what your problem is with that teacher saying to me, 'Child B liked the dinosaurs we played with today'. What could I do with this information that would be anything other than beneficial for the child?

At our school they do masses of different things,they don't have 1 topic that covers anything.A teacher's lesson plans would be completely useless.It would be impossible to find out what maths/phonics/literacy/science group they were in,what every weeks target was for every subject area,how little Johny did and what would be useful to do next. Also many class teachers like to keep group lists private.

sorry cross posted again.

Tecahers are sending out 30 kids,at our school just making sure they're all collected by the right person is a job in itself,they just don't have indepth conversations about what every child did at school that day.If parents want progress reprts they have 2X school reports and parents meetings.Teachers highlight any concerns in between.

I just think you may be over estimating how much information childminders want to share. No childminder I know would be asking for lesson plans or even the next steps.

In reality this is what information we really share.;
I write a letter to the school when I start picking up from new school, introducing myself and asking if the school agree to work in partnership with me. I get them to sign it and they keep a copy too.

Then in the past YEAR I have needed to speak to a teacher on probably 3 different occassions. 3. Thats it. One time was about a challenging behiavour issue. One was a child who is painfully shy and wouldn't talk in front of adults. The other time the teacher came to me and said could I please remind mum to provide appropriate foot wear for her child.

It is basic communication, that is needed to ensure the children's needs are being met.

So glad my kids don't go to a cm
They go to afterschool club where they ride bikes, play on the wii, watch tv or play with Lego
I do reading and homework at home
That is not a cm or any child care providers responsibility, it's the parents

Littlepurple nobody is arguing with that

Your kids could that as well at a childminders cjbartlett, no one has said they can't.

What about this situation?

I childmind a reception age child after school 4 days a week. That child is not picked up until 6pm. The parent then has to get a bus home, get the kids ready for bed and then in bed by 7pm. What time does she get to read with them?

She doesn't on those days. The school only have the staff to listen to each child read one to one, once a week.

So I offer to read with the child on nights that I care for her, if the child wants to. The parent is happy with this because the child is getting 3 extra one-to-one reading sessions a week.

The information I would need is what level reading is she at? This info could come from the teacher or the parent.

It's lovely if you have the time to read with your children but not everyone has that time everyday.

Well what are you arguing with then because that's all the information that childminders need?

Regarding how much info childminders want to share: we're going on what the OP said her childminder was asking for in a sealed request to the class teacher. She specified that the CM wanted more than a brief weekly overview and wanted lesson plans, areas for development and next steps for learning.

I know that my CM got marked down by Ofsted because she didn't know what DD's 'next steps' were at pre-school . . .

I thought we were discussing the requests of "lesson plans" by the childminder in the op.Also you mentioned requesting"next steps" and working towards goals like fine motor skills after discussions with the teacher.

As a parent I'd want any fine motor skills discussions to be between myself and the teacher and I'd want to be doing it with them as it would be my responsibility and his teacher's (the keeper of his EYFS profile) to help him with it.

I'd expect my child's teacher to say to the cm that she wanted a word if she had concerns. Then I'd ring in school hours or give her permission to ring me after school if I was unable to pick up.

Yes basic communication is what we all strive for but it's not what we were discussing.

Why would it be sinister?

Noone's answered my question as to what qualifications are required for childminding.

I think it depends on your local area but where I am you need a

NVQ level 3 or equivilent (or working towards it)
Unit one of the Dimploma in Home-based childcare
paediactric first aid
Advanced child protection
Food hygiene

So about the same as a nursery nurse

However you want to to be able to claim the 15 hours free entitlement you need to become accredited.

The problem is not all Ofsted inspectors are the same. My (extremely strict) inspector marked me down for not having any children that attended other settings for me to liase with even though I have a Working in Partnership with Other Settings policy and gave plenty of information in my SEF.

Now - when I have children attending other setting I too will send a letter to introduce myself and perhaps pave the way to striking up a rapor with regards to the mindees learning and development. MILA - just because your inspector didn't think it was necessary, does not mean that other inspectors feel the same way. They blow hot and cold and always have their 'thing of the month' to get tough with.

The child minder was covering all areas of Working in Partnership.