It’s a phrase we hear so often. It comes from an African proverb, conveying the message that it takes a great many people to provide a safe, nurturing and loving environment to raise a child. The harsh reality of the Coronavirus pandemic is that so many families have not had that village to lean on.
As Senior Deputy Head (Early Education), I am aware of the impact across all year groups on our children and families, and as a result we are enhancing the way we work to account for the challenges this 'Covid generation' face. Child development is complicated and there is strong evidence that within this ‘Covid generation' there is an increase in developmental gaps and distressed behaviour. We know that eighty-five per cent of a child’s brain development occurs by the age of five, and those first five years have, for many families, looked very different to “the previous norm”.
First and foremost, if children are not quite where we would have expected them to be, we say to our parents; do not worry! Working closely with parents, our team here are skilled in many of the areas we need to work on. We pride ourselves on looking after the development of each child, addressing their needs, and understanding them all on an individual level.
One key area in which we are seeing an impact is speech and language development. It’s no surprise that after years of social bubbles and masks, speech and language interventions have increased from ten to thirty per cent. Our children haven’t been exposed to as many or as wide a variety of social experiences. Many didn’t have so many opportunities to see extended family such as grandparents, aunties, or uncles, or spend time babbling, talking and playing. The impact of face masks has meant that people’s mouths have been hidden and seeing how lips and tongues move when we speak is key to children’s speech and language development. Modelling good speech and language in Nursery and School and taking extra time to help those who need it with good pronunciation is just part of the solution. If there is concern our Early Years Practitioners and Teachers link families with third-party experts who can guide parents on the next steps.
The pandemic has also changed how some children have learnt to play, something which is so crucial for a child’s development. Play improves the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children. Through play, children learn about the world, themselves and try things out. They also learn skills they need for study, work and relationships, such as resilience, confidence, concentration and negotiation, whilst developing their ability to convey their thoughts and emotions. So, if things feel a little tricky or the world feels a little tough, we can find a way through, especially if we help each other.
Many of our Nursery and Primary children were either born during or just before the pandemic, meaning they haven’t had as much access to a variety of different types of early play, so as staff we are spending more time with children scaffolding play and providing a wide range of rich experiences and opportunities in our Nursery and classrooms. We work closely with each individual child and encourage them to join with others who might model different methods of play and having fun, whether that’s building blocks, junk modelling or creating giant sandcastles with friends.
Some children can also find it difficult to sit on the floor and focus during lessons and this can be related to the lack of outdoor play opportunities that some children have experienced. The difference in core strength is noticeable in some children, as children have perhaps not spent as much time climbing, jumping or exploring. These are all things we can nurture and grow together and our Forest Kindergarten sessions, playgrounds, large outside spaces and gross motor groups can aid this development brilliantly.
Everyone has done their best to cope but we are aware that the lack of that ‘village’ in those early years can also be seen in our parents and carers. Some families have shared how alone and isolated they felt during this time and much of parenting is about watching, sharing and learning through experience. Without being freely out and about with their children, parents haven’t always had the opportunity to share and learn from others.
With this in mind, we work closely with parents offering them a range of workshops in conjunction with specialists. Amongst others, Dr Suzanne Zeedyk, a child development specialist, will be joining us in School again soon, supporting children and parents with forthcoming transitions. Karen Beveridge, a Neuro-Developmental and Sound Therapist, will continue to run sessions for parents covering a wide range of topics including emotional regulation and how to communicate effectively with their child, meanwhile Áine Murphy, psychologist, continues to work closely with our staff and children developing mindfulness and emotional regulation techniques.
When everything feels a little too much as the children adapt to being back in school, our children can visit one of our Nurture Rooms. As a result of increased demand, we have opened another two at Ravelston and a snug at Queensferry Road. These are calm, serene spaces with lots of soft furnishings, sensory resources and soft lighting, which offer quiet spaces, away from the hustle and bustle of the school day, where our children can relax when they are overwhelmed and need help with emotional regulation.
Central to everything is ensuring the happiness and wellbeing of our children. Introducing the children to emotional literacy is something that starts with our youngest children. By learning emotional vocabulary even our youngest children can begin to talk about how they feel which builds coping strategies and resilience. Building on this across the year groups, we speak to each and every child to assess and plot how they feel, making sure our teachers know their exact needs and how they are developing.
Of course, there is no denying that lockdown offered some unexpected benefits for many, such as the ability to spend much more time as a smaller family unit. In many cases, the children have thrived as families shut the door and enjoyed precious moments together. Yet, after being able to spend so much time bonding and feeling close to their parents, taking those next steps can sometimes be tricky and some children need a little help with routines, friendships or specific aspects of development.
But at the end of the day, it all comes down to the individual child and their family. We are passionate about understanding each and every one of our children and by coming together and working closely with our families, we can rebuild the village to help the children adapt, develop and grow.
By Alison Lydon, Senior Deputy Head (Early Education)
ESMS Nursery & Junior School