The importance of getting the length of activities right
When deciding on activities to complete with the children, there are often many things to take into consideration such as the child’s age, stage, abilities, next steps, interests and the topic or theme; it could also be suggested that at the top of the list should also be the length of the activity.
Getting the length of the activity right is crucial, too long and the children become irritated and bored or if it’s too short there is a risk of disturbing the children in the middle of their learning. It can often be most difficult to manage the length of an activity when trying to complete large group activities as these tend to take a longer amount of time to ensure all children have had a turn. Children have short attention spans and are not able to sit for long periods of time and learn from long activities; it is, for this reason, many are suggesting that short, to the point activities, are the most effective.
What needs to consider when thinking about activity length?
Some of the things which should be taken into considerations are:
·How old are the children – do they have the ability to concentrate for a long enough period?
·The engagement – What engagement are you expecting? Do the children need to sit still and listen or can they move around, touch things, explore, and actively learn?
·The purpose – What is the purpose of the activity? Is there a set learning outcome or do you want the children to freely investigate, play and learn?
·Time limit – Is there a strict time limit or can they children engage with the activity for as long as they are interested?
·How many children – Is it a large group activity, small group, individual, do all children need to participate?
·Sharing – Is this a limited resource which needs to be shared such as an activity on the computer that may need to have time restrictions so all children can access the resource
Top tips for planning the most effective activity length
·Follow the children’s lead – If they are becoming bored, poorly behaved, agitated then end the activity and try to complete it at a different time or with a smaller amount of children
·Take a flexible approach – It’s okay to amend planning sheets if the children are enjoying having the dinosaurs in the sand tray. Continue this for as long as the children are interested and learning.
·Set realistic expectations – In reality, young children are not able to sit for long periods of time and listen to several stories, write or complete simple maths problems in large groups. Keep these sorts of activities short, sharp and to the point.
·Make all activities as engaging as possible – Make sure children can move around, actively learn, explore, creatively and critically think and importantly play
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