Expectations of P4C skills in the Foundation stage

Here are some of the things you can expect from children in the Foundations Stage after you have started philosophising with them. These items may give you some ideas for planning.

1. To give an answer to a choice from the question board, progressing to giving a reason why they have made a choice.
2. To build up and sustain listening skills in a circle for between 30 mins (nursery) and an hour (reception or nursery in their 3rd or 5th term)
3. To be familiar with the basic building blocks such as 'follow the listening rules and understand what they mean'.
4. To use voting cards to indicate agreement and disagreement with a statement. To understand which colour means yes/no.
5. To be able to understand that their answer is consistent with the colour card they have displayed (check thinking).
6. To share reasons for choices without reminders from adult, eg to use 'because' as a natural extension of their answer.
7. To be able to see whether the answers of their peers are consistent with voting cards displayed.
8. To equate yes with 'agree' and no with 'disagree'.
9. To use terms: 'I agree with...' 'I disagree with...'
10. To make a statement about a picture book stimulus.
11. To turn a statement into a question using the word 'why?'.
12. To ask a question based on a picture book stimulus.
13. To be familiar with at least 10 concept cards (like the 'theme cards' described HERE by the end of Nursery and twenty by the end of Reception.
14. Match relevant concept cards to a statement or question raised. Understand and explain why that concept is relevant.
15. To be able to make connections between concepts covered in previous sessions.
16. To offer an alternative view point. 'but what if……?'
17. To ask others what they think.
18. To give simple evaluation of the session using building blocks (cards with a different criteria for a 'good' discussion written on each one. They will be criteria you have negotiated with the children).