Communication & Language in EYFS
The EYFS framework states: 'The development of children's spoken langauge underpins all seven areas of learning and development. '
Children's back-and-forth interactions from an early age form the foundations for language and cognitive development. The number and quality of conversations they have with adults and peers in a language-rich environment is crucial.
At St. Mary's, in every class through school, we provide speaking and listening opportunities for our children throughout the curriculum as a matter of priority. In life, we use speaking and listening even more than reading and writing, so we believe this should have a firm emphasis in school. It is also the essential foundation for children to become successful in reading and writing. We use Lancashire's 'Key Learning Indicators for Progression in Spoken Language' to assess our children in every class - here is the Reception 'KLIP' for Spoken Language:
Key Reasons Why Spoken Language Is So Important in EYFS
- It Builds the Foundation for All Other Learning - Strong spoken language skills enable children to access the rest of the curriculum. Without a solid grasp of listening, understanding and speaking, it becomes much harder for children to engage with literacy, mathematics, understanding of the world or expressive arts. Communication and langauge is described as a 'prime area' precisely because gaps here are difficult to close later - early development creates building blocks for everything else.
- It Supports Cognitive Development - Through talking, children learn to organise their thoughts, solve problems, make sense of the world and develop reasoning skills. Back-and-forth conversations (often called 'my turn, your turn') help wire the brain during a period of high neural plasticity in the early years. Language helps children label objects, describe experiences and think abstractly.
- It is Essential for Literacy (Reading and Writing) - Spoken language comes before reading and writing. A rich vocabularly and good listening/understanding skills provide the foundation for phonological awareness, comprehension and eventually decoding text. Children with stronger early oral language tend to achieve better in reading and writing later on.
- It Promotes Social and Emotional Development - Being able to express needs, feelings and ideas helps children to form relationshiops, resolve conflicts and develop self-confidence. It also supports emotional regulation: children who can articulate how they feel are better able to manage emotions and build secure attachments with adults and peers.
- It is a Strong Predictor of Long Term Success - Early language skills are one of the best indicators of later educational outcomes, including success at school and beyond. Research shows that vocabulary size and communication abilities in the early years correlate with academic achievement, social competence and even wellbeing in later childhood and adolesence. Children from language-rich environments tend to do better overall.
- It Helps Close the Word Gap and Reduce Inequalities - There is often a significant gap in language exposure between children from different backgrounds. High-quality spoken interactions in EYFS settings help mitigate this, giving all children - especially those who may have fewer opportunities at home - a better start.
The ShREC approach
The ShREC approach is a simple, memorable framework developed by the Education Endowment Foundation to help early years practicioners develop high quality interactions that support children's communication and language development. High quality back-and-forth conversations help build children's vocabulary, thinking skills, emotional wellbeing and ability to form relationships.
What does ShREC Stand For?
Sh = Share Attention - Tune in to what the child is focussed on. Get down to their level, show genuine interest, and sensitively join in with their activity or play.
R = Respond - Acknowledge and respond sensitively to the child's verbal and non-verbal cues (eg. eye contact, gestures, sounds or words). Comment on what they are doing, seeing and hearing. Responses should be attuned to the individual child.
E = Expand - Build on what the child says by repeating their words and adding a little more (modelling slightly more advanced language).
C = Conversation - Sustain back-and-forth exchanges with multiple turns. Comment more than you question, give children plenty of processing time and follow their lead.
The goal is rich meaningful dialogue rather than one-sided questioning.
