The ILD system allows you to conduct next steps without the requirement for an actual observation being recorded and logged in the system. There is no requirement to complete an antiquated tick box exercise based on a framework or curriculum related observation and assessment. It provides the versatility for you to use your own professional judgement on how you wish to monitor and track a child’s development.
While observing the children at play, you may instantly identify a “next step” for the child to extend their own personal learning or development. This can be virtually anything in their new learning experience from taking those important first steps in learning to walk to holding a crayon or pencil for the first time to begin drawing pictures. That ‘next step’ could also be an idea to improve an indoor or outdoor area or plan an activity which focuses on the child’s personal interests.
Children learn and develop quickly and to accurately observe and monitor their interests, you may have to consider if a response to something which you have just observed has to happen in the moment. Experienced early years practitioners do this regularly every day and carry out moment by moment, next steps and planning.
The Next Steps function allows you to instantly add, update and remove Next Steps in learning, ensuring that children make significant progress in their development by identifying and planning their Next Steps. You can filter Next Steps for each child by using the date range or search function. Or view them alongside the child’s observations, focus flags, reflections and checkpoints in the Pupil Timeline function including evidence of your own involvement in the child’s development.