Evaluating Maths and Science Teaching: Child-Centred Approach and EYFS

This report presents an analysis of two observations: one focusing on mathematics teaching and the other on science teaching, both within an early childhood education context. The mathematics observation describes a role-play tea party, analyzing the child's understanding of volume and number concepts, and connecting it to theories of Piaget, Montessori, and Vygotsky, as well as the EYFS framework. The science observation details a sand and water play activity, exploring the child's questions about sinking and floating, linking it to Piaget's constructivist theory and Donaldson's theory of embedded learning, also referencing the EYFS framework. The analysis includes the roles of teachers, the materials used, and the child's active participation, highlighting the importance of play-based activities in fostering critical thinking and early learning. The report evaluates the theoretical descriptions and suggests innovative teaching methods to promote playful learning, incorporating modifications and extensions to enhance the learning experience. The report emphasizes the importance of child-centered approaches to encourage curiosity and understanding of the world around the child. The report also provides an analysis of how the observations relate to the EYFS framework and the National Curriculum, with a critical awareness of theory and practice.

Nishat Ahmad
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For one observation relating to the teaching of Mathematics and one observation relating to the
teaching of science; describe, analyse and evaluate the teaching and learning occurred.
The analysis must include connections to the EYFS or the National Curriculum and to relevant child-
centred of learning. The evaluation must show critical awareness of theory and practice.
Science and math observation
Introduction
Play-based activities are an important part of the curriculum as they help in developing
critical thinking skills in children. It has been mentioned in the national curriculum framework that
teachers should develop numeracy and scientific skills in children by adopting a child-centred
approach. A child-centred approach places the child at the centre of the learning process, where
they are the active participants. They provide children with the choices of the learning activities,
where a teacher is the facilitator of the learning. Play-based activities have long been considered as a
child-centred approach, as they permit academic development, keeping in mind their cognitive
development (Lerkkanen et al. 2016). Both science and mathematics learning has to be activity
based learning where all the instructions should be based on fun-filled activities and use of learning
aids like experiments , role plays and games. This paper will give an account and analysis of two
math and science-based observation supported by theories and evidence.
Math observation
Description
The child in this assignment is a 3-4 years old boy, who was a role-play of tea time with
friends. Child B is making a cup of tea with small playthings and is offering the same to his friends.
Child B had been using small cups, a saucepan, and spoons to make tea. He is using watercolor to
give it a brown colour. Child B is preparing to make more cups of tea to serve her teammates. Each
of the mates will then say aloud the cup number that he/she has got.
Materials required: Teapots, pretend pastries and small ceramic tea cups (numbered).
Role of the teachers: There was very less role of the teachers, as the child has not asked for any
assistance.

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Analysis of the observation
Implementation of play-based curriculum normally boons difficulties for the pre-service as
well as in-service educators provided the given climate of the didactic education and instructions. It
is evident from the observation that a child has knowledge about the volume and the number of
cups that would be required to make tea. Such activities are effective in developing fine motor skills,
encouraging creativity and developing fine motor skills. Jean Piaget’s theory of stages, informs us
that children grow through social, physical as well as logico-mathematical knowledge by playing with
manipulative materials like numbered tea sets. Sharing of cups equally for everyone are used to
develop early maths concept. While Piaget has emphasized on scientific learning (Halpenny and
Pettersen 2013). Maria Montessori has encouraged hands-on exploration. Montessori had always
favored a sensory-rich learning environment (O'Donnell 2014). He had found that tea parties can be
considered as appropriate educational situations (O'Donnell 2014). Just like Piaget, Montessori has
also emphasized on mathematical and spatial ideas to be discovered without the need for
explanation or the lecture from an adult. Maria Montessori is of the principle that encourages
children to learn about their world by exposing them to the real world. Vygotsky, on the other hand,
has used sociocultural theory to describe the utility of the role play. It can be stated that role play
naturally improves communication skills, observation, and investigation along with the growth of
construction skills. At the time of playing, children develop calculation, creative, and educational
skills. The cultural-historical theory of Vygotsky, can apply to role play. The significance of the
societal milieu in the role play is the idea of internalization and zone of proximal development (ZPD)
(Wass and Golding 2014). As per the concept of internalization, it occurs when the knowledge gets
transferred from the social level to a discrete plane from a status of knowing with assistance to a
state of gaining knowledge entirely on own (Nutbrown 2011). In a role-play, a child will show a
specific level of presentation while developing a structure entirely on own as opposed to a higher
level while building with a peer. Vygotsky’s theories are hypothesised as they are associated with
role play in the current research. According to these theories, children’s efforts are not assisted by
deliberate actions, but by the use of language, perspective-taking, critical thinking skills, and
problem-solving skills. Vygotsky’s theories of scaffolding and guided role-play have been illustrated
in the study, who has trained the adults for recognizing the degrees of complexity in a recipe making
or preparation of tea (Nordlof 2014). Thus all these theories can provide a rationale for selecting role
play as the ideal instructional design to teach mathematics.
Role-play often helps children to define the roles of the people in the community (Tovey 2014). Role-
play can provide children with the opportunity to manage problematic social interactions like
bullying, which might occur as they progress in life. According to the EYFS, a child should mostly be

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taught by games and plays and some of the important areas of learning that will be addressed are
language and communication, physical development, personal, social and emotional development,
mathematics, science and understanding the world. It has been stated in EYFS statutory framework,
that by the age of 2-4 , children can be taught about simple concepts like counting, understanding
and using the numbers, describing the shapes, spaces, and measurements (Department of Education
2017). Thus it can be said that enhancing the role play, teachers encourage the learners to use the
play centres more engagingly for a longer period. It has also been noticed that sharing teacups or
donuts made of play dough often tends to nurture team work between children so that they develop
social skills and an improved level of critical thinking, which is as per the EYFS outcomes, where it
has been stated that children tend to adapt and transfer of what they have learned from one
context to the other (Alfrey 2013).
Evaluation
Evaluating the above mentioned theoretical description, I believe, that I will be able to
employ innovative methods of teaching that will aim to promote learning, playfully. Playful learning
in children has been found to develop their emotions, creativity, and critical thinking skills. It has
been referred to as several psychologist regarding the adoption of activity base approach making the
maths learning interesting. Any activities related to mathematics should involve the use of concrete
materials, charts , models, puzzles , experiments and games Enhance nothing can be more suitable
to teach numeracy and calculation playfully. I can extend this learning experience by modifying an
indoor tea party to be an outdoor tea party, where these children can set up an outdoor kitchen.
Children will be asked to count the utensils, they are carrying outside, counting the same while
bringing them work. The student will have to keep a headcount for the preferred tea and copy by
writing it in a notebook. This is how it should increase her numeracy skills.
Science observation
Description
Sand and water act as a tremendous attraction for young children. These observations
consider a child, who is busy in sand play. The child is playing in the sandpit, got a hand full of sand
and put it back into the bucket and then added water to it. The child asks the question, why is the
sand not floating in water like the paper boats, where is the sand gone?” The child is trying to set up
an artificial beach in the water table. The educator then taught the child to drain the excess water
without disturbing the sand at the bottom. The child was delighted to see the wet sand again.

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Materials required: A tub filled with water, sands and a small shovel and a spade.
Role of the teachers: The teachers are assisting the children to accumulate the sands at one side to
form the artificial beach.
Children are active learners. It has been stated by the psychologist Jean Piaget that children normally
draw on direct physical as well as the social experiences along with the culturally transmitted
knowledge for constructing their own understanding of the world around them (Woonton 2016).
Children naturally prefer playing with the sands and the teachers and they can capitalize on the
natural affinity by bringing it into the curriculums. Sand play is an excellent medium for discovery
and exploration provides opportunities for introducing STEM education in the classroom. The water
table introduces children to early physical science concepts like flowing water and motion. These
types of activities help the children to make predictions about what kind of objects will sink in water
and of what items will float in water and why heavier things like sand are getting sediment at the
bottom. It also helps in the development of a higher level of thinking concepts such as volumes. For
example, when they fill up the pail with sand, it helps us to understand as of which pail has more
volume of sand and which of the pail has less volume. Sand and water play can be considered as a
child-centered approach, as it supports the development of a child by exploring and developing and
exploring the sensory centres of learning (Stewart 2017). Exploration of the water, sand and the
other sensory materials provides children with opportunities to practice measurements and the
concepts of mass and volumes.
Besides, sand play can be considered as open-ended. It is the child that regulates the way the sand
play will be done. This freedom got by them enables the child to develop their developmental
perception. As per the constructivist theory of Piaget, children always possess the inner drive to
develop an understanding of the surroundings as they discover the world and communicate with the
materials. The various concepts about how a world functions, are developed gradually and tend to
become complex gradually as a child enters an enriched learning environment. They exercise the
freedom to play. Piaget has believed that the mental processes that children are born with are
primitive and are formed of some basic patterns of actions known as the sensorimotor stages.
This activity involving sand and water can be analysed in the light of Donaldson’s theory that
depends on embedded and disembedded learning. The suggested ages and the various stages that
have been stated by Piaget had underestimated the abilities of the children. According to
Donaldson’s theory, thinking is embedded in a familiar concept that makes human sense and can be
easily understood by children who will be able to reason with the actions, whenever children are
asked to do something out of their limits of human sense that is sometimes unrealistic and
unfamiliar. Simplifying the concept, it can be said, that Donaldson, used to believe that in order to

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educate children properly, the practitioners should be able to decentre and should try to present
new things from the child (Stewart 2017). Hence, sand and a water play can be considered to comply
with the theories of Donaldson. According to the EYFS framework, preliminary science education can
act as the foundation for understanding the world. This can be simplified to the children by adopting
simple play activities. All children need to be taught about the basic aspect of knowledge, process,
methods and the uses of science. They should be encouraged to recognize the power of rational
explanation and generate a sense of excitement and curiosity about what is happening naturally
(Department of Education 2017).
Evaluation
Evaluating the theories, I believe, that being an early childhood educator, I should use
various means to motivate children to get attracted to learning. Various embedded learning
opportunities across various learning activities and objectives can be used in an inclusive classroom.
It is a method of addressing the child’s goals- a child centered practice. The process modifies,
expands or is integral to an activity or an event in a fruitful way. This can be related to the fact, that a
sand and water play has been purposefully designed by the teachers, to enable the students to gain
scientific and mathematical knowledge. Like some of the educationists, Susan Isaacs has utilized her
psychoanalytical knowledge for underpinning her knowledge and understanding of the role of play
in the development of a child. Children’s play has been expressed as a form of self-expression that
enables children to release fears. The play has always been a vehicle for the development as through
play, children find mental ease and work upon for the fulfillment of the wishes for integrating into a
living personality. According to this theorist, it is one of the valuable contributions of a nursery
environment is that it provided opportunities of play (Pratt and Pearson 2017). It assists children to
discover and benefit the world around them. It is actually playing that permits imaginative as well as
emotional development to coexist in a practical inquiry. They should be respected and should be
allowed free to develop and nourish.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be stated that role-play activity, if introduced in the learning process can
be more inventive and can become more excited about the world. Like this, we teachers can
confidently provide authentic and developmentally appropriate educational experiences, similarly,
science can also be taught by using play-based activities. I believe that a child centred approach
enables children to take learning in their own hand, as opposed being directed by the educator.
Children should take responsibilities from the very beginning that about what they would explore
and learn. Even much difficult scientific concepts can be made to understand by using appropriate

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methods of teaching or by using the proper play-based curriculum. My value of allowing the creative
juices of the children to flow will help me to develop a conducive classroom environment for
children. Being a teacher, I intend to adopt proper age-appropriate plays and extended learning time
for these children and will employ more innovative strategies regarding numeracy and science. In
future, I will make sure that I use a student centred child centred approach ensures that I would try
to explore several play based activities that can be displayed in the class. while addressing children
This will make a better teaching-learning experience for both the teacher and the students.
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