Help! Is EYFS free flow play supposed to mean not assisting children at all?

[BringBackPacers22]

I apologise in advance, but I'm going to have a little rant.

DD1 is finishing pre-school this term, but throughout her time there I have been struck by the leaders apparent lack of assistance towards my child. They all seem a bit stand-offish. DD seems to enjoy preschool and my sister (a mother and teacher) says this is all part of free flow play, which I'm happy with, but when does choosing what activity you are doing and trying to do it by yourself actually cease to be benifical. For example I would expect a child of her age to be able to get her own apron (maybe with some prompting a the start of an activity), but that the leader should be happy to tie it for her, ( It was commented on that she should be getting her own apron on when I helped her this week.) At the start of the year, I was okay with them asking her to wipe her own mouth, but to send her home with bright orange snack dust all round her mouth, because she hadn't managed to wipe it properly herself seems rather negligent to me. Obviously I'm only observing for very short periods of the day, but it does strike me that if a child is left standing around for too long because she hasn't yet got the ability or confidence to do something by herself, it is actually restricting her options rather than increasing them and how is a child expected to learn if they aren't shown what to do/ assisted until they pick it up? Especially at the start of the day when you want them to engage in something immediately so they won't be looking 'lost' when you leave them. Only her allocated leader seems to show any signs of encouraging her to leave my side and partake in an activity and she's not in every day that DD goes. So is this normal and should I expect DD2 to go through this all too, or have I just picked a poor pre-school?

"bright orange snack dust" !??

I was trying not to advertise....W***s (cheesy curls!)

Your kid gets Wotsits at pre-school!!!! .
Mine gets a carrot or an apple.
She would be soooo envious.

They should have child led play, but they should also be extending her play (our pre school has fruit snacks).

My DS's pre school had also interpreted child led play a bit like that -and I don't think its great -and again only one person really got the balance right - still he enjoyed it well enough - he only had fruit as well!! - although sometimes biscuits!
although a 4 year old in my view should be told to wipe their mouth not have it done to them -
I would look at other pre-schools for your DD2 maybe

Thanks for all your responses:- the wotsits (about half a bag,) were provided by myself as part of her lunch, the pre-school supplied snacks are fruit and veg based. DD1 can wipe her own mouth now, she is not 4 'til August, but when she started at 3 years and a few months she was still struggling to get her mouth fully clean without assistance, especially if only a baby wipe was provided, even as an adult if we miss a bit I would expect someone to say , 'you've got a bit of something on your chin,' and point out where if required. Never mind!
I think I will do a bit more research for DD2( I've got a while yet for her), shame as it is really close to where I live and kind of a feeder for the school they will be going to, having said that DD1 seems to have managed to befriend only the few kids going to other schools or ones in the year below her, still hopefully there will be a few familiar faces for her when she does start school. I think I will also do a bit more research re the EYFS, as something in it must be prompting the leaders to think this is the right way to do things and their Ofstead report was reasonable.

The EYFS is changing soon and there will be more of a focus on getting children ready for school and being independant i know this is not going to help you now but the EYFS is soon going to be set up differently

Funny term to use "free low" ime means, children having freedom to move between indoor play and out door play. It doesn't relate to independence in skills as such.

Strange but maybe I misunderstood..

Hi There
I am an EYFS consultant and I understand your concerns. It sounds to me that there is some neglect going on here. Freeflow has absolutely nothing to do with the care and independence all good nurseries and schools give to the children that attend. Freeflow (personally I don't like the term) is what is used to describe periods of the day when some children are 1:1, others are in small groups with a practitioner and the rest are moving between outdoor and indoor play-based activities which are largely self chosen. During these times there should be adults targeting and managing learning opportunities as they see fit. Sometimes individuals are targeted in the planning phase and other times skilled practitioners should identify ideal opportunities to help children, give them pointers, support them with their relationships and skills - also to encourage independence. Tying an apron for example should be encouraged, talked through, supported and if necessary when the child is struggling, directly helped to do so by the adult but at each stage/time the child should be encouraged to go that little bit further on their own. The EYFS review will not fundamentally change practice - instead it aims to clarify issues just like the one you have raised and aims to make it clearer to practitioners what purposeful, playful learning (both independent and supported should look like) and also how best to provide for this. There will always be different levels of expertise in our EYFS settings but I always encourage parents and carers to speak directly about their concerns. In a busy setting sometimes things do go un-noticed and parents who speak up are usually listened to and it goes toward improving practice.
OFSTED do not always get it right unfortunately because they make judgements about what they see ON THE DAY. This is another reason why parents should be informed better about how they can inform Ofsted about any concerns.
I have spent years and years training staff in schools, childrens centres and nurseries about how to implement the EYFS effectively. Thanks for sharing this as it helps me get a very important parent perspective and motivates me to carry on trying to get the messages across. Of course, I have been made redundant through government cut backs which begs the question who will be there to support and keep an eye on the EYFS/deliver training etc the rest of the time when Ofsted are not around !
I am sure DD will make lots of new friends - it will be very exciting and sometimes that fresh start is just what they need to develop further. I hope this has helped a little bit but more of your own research is a great idea - the more informed parents are the more likely they will be able to question and challenge practice at any key stage. Kind regards, Liz

Thanks EYFSconsultant this is exactly what I needed to know. I'm sure DD will do fine at school, but now I know what to expect next time round! I hope you get another job soon, you sound exactly the sort of trainer the staff need. Maybe you could nudge your way into politics and sort it out from that angle instead!