Makaton, First Aid, Language & Communication and More

28th July 2015

This September, the Ricoh Arena in Coventry will once again be fizzing with ideas as early years professionals join together for two days to find out the latest innovations in the sector, network with like-minded people and refresh their imaginations for the coming months ahead.

Childcare Expo Interactive WorkshopsRegistration for the event is open for visitors to book their free tickets to the exhibition and start planning sessions they would like to attend from educational seminars and interactive workshops that will be running throughout the show.

In March this year, the Government announced that new nursery and pre-school staff will be required to undertake paediatric first aid training for the first time. This proposal is expected to come into effect by September 2016; so many settings will be looking to start preparing themselves and their staff this year. On the Saturday at Childcare Expo, British Red Cross will be running a free hands-on workshop, where trainer Anna Bishop will demonstrate a basic overview of some vital techniques for both babies and children that childcare settings may face to help introduce first aid training.

For visitors looking to channel their inner Mr Tumble, on the Friday morning The Makaton Charity will be giving attendees the chance to take part in a Makaton Taster Session to gain a general introduction to this communication tool, which is fast becoming commonplace in pre-school and early years settings. This session will be followed by a practical workshop from Anna Daly and Anne O’Connor from Primed for Life where they will show how dance and movement play supports children’s communication and expression in both language and literacy.

Over the two days there will also be a Magical Mark Making workshop from Jo Baranek and Fiona Bland from the NDNA where practitioners can pick up some imaginative mark making ideas for both indoors and outdoors. Sue Heron from Tatty Bumpkin will be leading a workshop packed full of ideas in her session ‘Give your nursery a movement makeover’ and Louisa Reeves from I CAN will be exploring language and communication in the early years and giving some tips on how to identify children who are behind with these skills and ideas how to help support them.