Curriculum, pedagogy, and practice

* Cambridgeshire Essentials

Audience

All practitioners working with children aged birth to five.

Aims

To support practitioners in understanding what typical child development looks like across different ages and stages, enabling them to recognise expected variation within this.

To build practitioners’ confidence in identifying emerging needs by distinguishing these from typical developmental differences, and understanding when additional observation, adaptation or support may be beneficial.

To deepen practitioners’ understanding of early brain development and how it influences children’s development and behaviours, using this information to promote inclusion, emotional wellbeing, and positive learning outcomes for all children.

Additional information

Their setting procedure for identifying emerging needs.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

All early years professionals working in early years provision, for example, childminders, teaching assistants, early years educators, and early years teachers.

Aims

Develop a strong understanding of the developmental journey that underpins early writing in EYFS, including the interconnected roles of phonological awareness, oracy, gross and fine motor development, and mark‑making.

Session 1: Strengthen practice in phonological awareness.

• Explore the developmental stages of phonological awareness and why they are essential precursors to early phonics and writing.
• Gain practical strategies, routines, and playful experiences that build children's sound discrimination, rhythm and rhyme, oral blending, segmentation, and syllable awareness.

Session 2: Promote purposeful oracy to support early writing.

• Understand the role of talk in shaping children’s ideas, narrative skills, vocabulary, and sentence structure.
• Learn how to plan and model rich language experiences that support children’s thinking, storytelling, and confidence-building, the oral foundations for writing.

Session 3: Enhance provision for physical development and mark-making.

• Understand the links between gross motor development, fine motor control, and handwriting readiness.
• Identify and design purposeful opportunities for mark-making both indoors and outdoors that encourage exploration, creativity, and progression towards intentional writing.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

Any practitioners interested in celebrating STEM and embedding this into their practice.

Aims

This session aims to support practitioners to gain an understanding of where STEM fits into the EYFS and how to embrace it within the curriculum. The session aims to provide practitioners with practical ideas to support STEM in practice and a broad understanding of the importance of supporting STEM in the early years.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

Qualified and unqualified practitioners with a good understanding of child development who are keen to expand their practice in supporting children's mathematical development.

Aims

This session aims to:

• Broaden practitioners' understanding of the importance of mathematical play.
• Support practitioners to gain knowledge and ideas on how to build on children's early maths concepts.
• Build practitioner confidence in celebrating maths within the everyday environment, indoors and outdoors.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

All practitioners – those new to early years or those looking to refresh their knowledge.

Aims

Understand what schemas are. Develop knowledge about the importance of schema. To learn about different types of schema that fascinate children. How to support these, and ideas for practice.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

* Cambridgeshire Essentials

Audience

All practitioners working with and supporting early years children.

Aims

The course aims to build on current knowledge and understanding of the importance of self-regulation and executive function as underpinning skills for future learning and development.

During the course, participants will explore the importance of strong relationships and co-regulation as a pathway to self-regulation. The wider context of the domains of self-regulation and the impact of brain development will also be considered, and how these influence children's behavioural responses.

The course will look at the significant role of children's executive function skills in supporting regulation. Participants will also consider the link between the characteristics of effective teaching and learning and children's executive function skills.

To support the development of the provision, participants will consider how their own curriculum, planning and assessment process is supporting the ongoing development of children's self-regulation and executive function skills.

The course will also reflect on the importance of working with parents to consistently and effectively strengthen children's skills with self-regulation and executive functioning, including sharing key messages about the home learning environment.

Additional information

Pre-session case study.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

* Cambridgeshire Essentials

Audience

Early years practitioners in PVI and school settings.

Aims

• Learn what physical development looks like for children aged five and under.
• Explore how to promote physical development within setting.
• Make connections between physical development, physical movement and later academic skills, including fine motor and writing.
• Promoting physical movement for health and wellbeing.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

All early years practitioners, new to practice and/or experienced, who have an interest in children's health and wish to gain knowledge and understanding of young children's oral health needs.

Aims

• Gain practice ideas for meeting the statutory framework.
• Understand the needs of children through local and national data.
• Develop tooth-friendly food and drink ideas for the setting.
• Learn skills and knowledge to support parents with children's dental health.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

Early years practitioners, leaders, managers, teachers, and childminders. 

Aims

This 90‑minute training session explores the importance of caring and respecting the natural world, which lies at the heart of understanding the world in the EYFS. Using current national guidance and child development research, the session focuses on making biodiversity meaningful, relevant and non‑frightening for young children. Practitioners will gain practical ideas for embedding care and respect for the natural world through everyday routines, outdoor learning, play and sensory experiences, while reflecting on how small changes in practice can have a lasting impact for children, families and communities.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

All practitioners working in settings where children bring in their own food, such as snacks and packed lunches. 

Aims

• Develop an understanding of the importance of good nutrition. 
• Build a resource of suitable snack and lunch ideas.
• ​Consider your setting policy about food and drinks.
• Gain an understanding of how to support parents to follow your food and drink policy.​

Additional information

Some basic knowledge of the EYFS nutrition guidance may be helpful.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

All early years practitioners.

Aims

Throughout the course, participants will consider the essential role of partnership working to support children to thrive.

The course will reflect on the essential role positive relationships with parents, other professionals and early years settings play in helping to provide emotionally secure environments for children, helping them to trust, explore and develop.

Participants will recognise the importance of collaborative working to achieve the best outcomes for all children, and in giving them the best opportunities reflective of their unique needs, both now and in the future.

Additional information

Some basic knowledge of the EYFS nutrition guidance may be helpful.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details

Audience

All early years practitioners with an interest in understanding the new EYFS nutrition guidance, applicable from September 2025, and how to apply the guidance in practice.

Aims

Participants will:

• Gain an understanding of the EYFS nutrition guidance.
• Consider current and relevant safeguarding and health messages linked to EYFS nutrition guidance.
• Develop good practice principles related to and in response to the guidance.

Additional information

It is useful for practitioners to have read the EYFS nutrition guidance, updated May 2025, before attending the training.

Booking and reservations for Early Years Workforce Development.

Cost details