ABSTRACT
Young children and their learning are at the heart of early years education. Understanding the child in terms of how they learn and their abilities is key to providing challenging opportunities for all. By their very nature early years settings are places where young children are encouraged to explore and grow in their understanding of the world around them. The child-centred, play-based approach to learning and teaching allows children to explore and develop ways of learning. Katz (1992) suggests that we need to develop ‘learning dispositions’ in all young children. These, she argues, are what should be uppermost in the early years educator’s mind when planning learning opportunities. It is the development of these dispositions that will support learners as they engage with school-based activities in later life. Carr (2001) identified five learning dispositions for development with young children.
