Links to web resources

Basic Skills Agency
www.niace.org.uk
The Early Years and Primary Resources Catalogue June 2007 is full of resources for practitioners in early years settings to help involve parents/carers in their children’s learning. It includes free resources on the following topics:

Language and Play
Talk and Listen Together pack
Fun with outdoors; role play; games; stories; signs; stories; and rhymes
Talk to me!

The British Association for Early Childhood
www.early-education.org.uk/
This is a leading organisation for early years practitioners and parents and has free leaflets on such topics as ‘Making their Mark – Children’s early Writing’ and ‘Toddlers and Very Early Learning’.

Bookstart
www.bookstart.co.uk/
This is a nationally based organisation that works through locally based organisations to give a free pack of books to babies and includes guidance notes for parents. The 0-2 pack includes two books; a rhyme placement mat; a Surestart leaflet; a booklist; and an invite to join your local library. Most are given by Health Visitors at the eight-month health check.

There are separate packs for 12-24 month olds (Bookstart +) and 3-4 year olds (Bookstart treasure chest) that include crayons and notepad. Booktouch is a resource for visually impaired children.

Literacy Trust
www.literacytrust.org.uk
‘Talk to Your Baby’
These are resource sheets of quick tips to encourage practitioners and parents to help children develop good talking and listening skills. They are available in 13 languages. Examples include: ‘Sharing songs’, ‘Dummies and Talking’ and ‘Playing with your Baby’.

Including Men
www.includingmen.com/
(Fathers Plus resources)
Fathers Plus resources is a range of booklets, posters and leaflets detailing the importance of a father’s role in the life of his children. For example, ‘A Question of Balance: Including Fathers in Services’ (£9.95); ‘Dads Matter’ booklet (99p each for up to 19, 79p each for 20 – 100); ‘My Dad Matters’ (five A5 colour posters for £14.95); and ‘Dads and Breastfeeding’ booklet (99p each for up to 20).

BBC
www.bbc.co.uk/parenting/
This website has many tips on how a parent/carer can help a baby learn, including ‘Listening and talking to your baby’ and information on child development stages. The ‘play and do’ storybook section enables young children to interact online and complete a simple story about, for example, ‘A day with teddy’. Other interactive stories and rhymes are available on the CBeebies link. There is also a star chart to encourage good behaviour that can be printed.

Campaign for Learning
www.campaign-for-learning.org.uk/cfl/index.asp
The relevant links here are to the Family Learning website, particularly Family Learning Weekend. There are many downloadable intergenerational resources and activities, such as work with dads; model making through junk; outdoor activities; music; and Skills for Life (literacy, language and numeracy) ideas. There is also a useful downloadable funding directory available.

Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF)
www.dcsf.gov.uk
‘Baby Power’ – www.readon.org.uk
‘Baby Power’ is about how to give babies real learning power – a practical guide for parents, relatives and carers (£4.99). Order by ringing 0870 155 7222

Family Learning Programmes
These Learning and Skills Council (LSC) funded programmes are specifically designed to enable adults and children to learn together; or to enable parents to better understand how to support their children’s learning.

Family Literacy, Language and Numeracy programmes (FLLN)
http://skillsforfamilies.excellencegateway.org.uk/
These programmes aim to help parents improve their own skills in order to better equip them to help their children. The programmes tend to focus on families in which children are not achieving as much as they could do. Programmes are delivered in the following formats:

Tasters (2-4 hours): ‘Play and Language’ - which stresses the importance of play, and ‘Literacy and Numeracy workshops’ - for parents with children of 3+.
Introductory programmes (9-13 hours including an assessment of the parent’s skills)
‘Play and language’, Skills for Families Springboard
Short programmes (30-49 hours) - which enable parents to gain qualifications
Early Start – Baby Talk 0-1 year; Small Talk 1-2 years; Talk Together 2-3 years; Playing with Language 3-5 years.
Intensive programmes (72-96 hours) - which will give parents an opportunity to take a national test in literacy or numeracy.

Read on Write Away (ROWA)
www.rowa.org.uk/
These are resources developed in Derbyshire and include CD ROMs of ‘Making Story Sacks’ (£50) and ‘From Day 1’ – a resource on how to communicate with your baby (£22.50).

ICAN
www.ican.org.uk/
An organisation that promotes the importance of communication in babies and young children’s lives; ICAN gives tips and advice on how to develop positive communication. Examples of resources are ‘Chatter Matters’ a DVD illustrating key points in daily communication with examples of parents and their children – one copy is available at no charge; and ‘Learning to Talk - Talking to Learn’ - a DVD (one free copy for families or £3.00 for practitioners).

Learning Through Landscapes
www.ltl.org.uk/
An organisation that promotes the importance of the development of outdoor space through growing and exploring potential, and how out door play is important in children’s lives. Early years resources include ‘Creating a Space to Grow’ a book that is an in depth guide to developing the outdoor environment (£16) and ‘Out Doors for Every One’ a book that illustrates the benefits of out doors activities (£16).