专家引领 · 共促成长｜三位早教领域权威学者到访杭州惠立幼儿园

我们非常荣幸地在幼儿园迎来三位卓越的早期教育专家：Aaron Bradbury博士、Philippa Thompson和Matthew Northall，开展为期两天的深度访问。期间，他们带来了启发性的工作坊、家长分享会与战略规划指导，为我们的教师团队、家庭及整体课程提供留下了深远的影响。

Aaron Bradbury博士是诺丁汉特伦特大学早期教育研究的首席讲师，也是“游戏”“包容性教育”和“教师专业发展”领域的领军人物。他为教师带来了一场极具活力的培训，重点分享了在早期教育中如何通过适度“支持与挑战”促进儿童学习。

在其丰富的研究与政策实践（包括共同撰写《从出生到五岁：教育与发展指南》指导文件）基础上，他详细探讨了如何帮助儿童搭建学习脚手架，同时保护他们的好奇心与主动探索。

Philippa Thompson是诺丁汉特伦特大学社会科学学院的资深讲师，拥有近20年的早期教育、政策与科研经验。作为一名资深的早期教育教师，她的职业生涯丰富多元：

Matthew Northall是一名早期教育专家、研究者与讲师联络负责人。他在获得早期教育学学位及教师资格后，先后从事继续教育与高等教育教学。目前，他担任诺丁汉特伦特大学儿童与教育研究荣誉学士的课程负责人，并教授多个早期教育与儿童研究课程，同时指导学生的研究论文。他还担任大学与中国上海合作院校之间的讲师联络人，促进国际合作。

这次访问让我们收获了大量新理念与能量——从Aaron博士对游戏和儿童声音的倡导，到Philippa对鲁汶量表与户外学习的深度培训，再到Matthew对教育科技与男性从业者在早教领域角色的愿景，他们的专业洞见将持续影响我们未来的教学实践。

家长工作坊：Aaron博士为家长带来了精彩的主题分享，强调游戏在幼儿发展中的关键价值，打破“只是玩耍”的误解，展示游戏如何培养孩子的韧性、创造力与思维能力。家长们带着丰富的家庭延伸玩法点子满载而归。

“小小Welly俱乐部”咨询：他针对我们 2 岁以下托育环境提供专业建议，从活动室布局、材料选择到感官体验设计，为支持低龄儿童发展提出了精准指导。

户外区域评估：Philippa与学校领导合作，审视并完善户外学习空间的战略规划，帮助我们识别关键改进方向，以更好地促进冒险精神、社交互动与自然探索。

鲁汶量的深度培训：教师团队接受了关于使用鲁汶量表监测儿童幸福感与参与度的高级培训，并进行了跨团队教研校准。来自天津惠灵顿的同事加入培训，使讨论更具国际视野。

“爸爸联盟”小组交流：Matthew与由教师Kofi Ansah与Gregory Pauline创立的“爸爸联盟”爸爸志愿者小组开展深度讨论，回顾该项目的影响并规划未来发展。他关于男性在早期教育中的研究为有关代表性与社区参与的讨论注入了新视角。

教育科技愿景规划：他与我校教育科技主管合作，审阅专门的教育科技空间规划，探讨如何在数字工具与基于游戏的动手学习之间取得平衡。

我们衷心感谢Aaron博士、Philippa和Matthew的慷慨分享、专业智慧与对高质量早期教育的坚定承诺。本次访问不仅内容丰富，更是一次庆祝早期教育价值的专业盛会。教师们纷纷表示，能够向如此备受尊敬的专家学习，并与早教同行交流观点、分享实践，是一次无比宝贵的机会。大家都满怀灵感与动力，希望将这些新理念应用于日常教学。

感谢你们为杭州惠立幼儿园带来的无限的启发！

We were thrilled to welcome three outstanding early years professionals—Dr Aaron Bradbury, Philippa Thompson and Matthew Northall—to our nursery for a transformative two-day visit. Their time with us was packed with insightful workshops, parent engagement and strategic planning, leaving a lasting impact on our staff, families and provision.

Dr Aaron Bradbury, Principal Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies at Nottingham Trent University and a leading voice in play, inclusion and workforce development, led a dynamic session on stretch and challenge in the early years.

Drawing from his research and policy work (including co-authoring the Birth to Five Matters guidance), he explored how to scaffold children's learning without limiting their curiosity.

Philippa Thompson is a Senior Lecturer at Nottingham Trent University's School of Social Sciences, bringing nearly 20 years of expertise in early childhood education, policy and research. A qualified early years teacher, her career spans International Teaching: 

Matthew Northall is Lecturer & Lecturer Liaison | Early Childhood Specialist | Researcher Hands-on Practice.  Academic Leadership: After earning a degree in Early Childhood Studies and a teaching qualification, he taught in Further Education before advancing to Higher Education. He is currently the Course Lead for the BA (Hons) Childhood and Education Studies (Online) at Nottingham Trent University (NTU). He teaches across Early Childhood Studies and Childhood Studies programmes and supports research dissertations. He is also a Lecturer Liaison with a partner institution in Shanghai, China, fostering international collaboration.

The visit left us brimming with ideas and energy. From Dr Aaron's advocacy for play and child voice to Philippa's training in the Leuven Scales and Outdoor Learning, and Matthew's vision for technology and men in early years, their expertise will shape our practice for years to come.

Parent Workshop: Dr Aaron delivered a captivating talk to families on the vital role of play in early childhood, debunking myths about 'just playing' and showcasing how play builds resilience, creativity and cognitive skills. Parents were left with practical ideas to support play at home.

Little Welly Club Consultation: He spent time advising staff on our under-twos provision, offering expert recommendations on room layout, resource selection and sensory experiences to support our youngest learners better.

Outdoor Area Review: Philippa worked with leaders to develop our strategic plans for the outdoor space, assessing how to optimise areas for different types of learning. Her expertise helped us prioritise changes to promote risk-taking, social interaction and nature connection.

Leuven Scales Deep Dive: Staff participated in advanced training on using the Leuven Scales to track wellbeing and involvement, with cross-team moderation to ensure consistency. The inclusion of our colleague from Wellington College Tianjin enriched the global perspective.

Dad's Army Session: Matthew met with our Dad's Army group—founded by staff members Kofi Ansah and Greg Pauline—to reflect on the initiative's impact and plan its future growth. His research on men in early childhood education fuelled discussions about representation and community engagement.

Ed Tech Vision: He collaborated with our Director of Educational Technology to review plans for a dedicated Ed Tech space, balancing digital tools with hands-on, play-based learning principles.

We are deeply grateful to Dr Aaron, Philippa and Matthew for their generosity, wisdom and unwavering commitment to excellence in Early Years. Their visit was not just informative—it was a celebration of the importance of early education. The team welcomed the opportunity to learn from such well-respected experts and, as always, to engage with other Early Years colleagues in professional discussions and the sharing of ideas. Many commented on coming away with many fresh ideas and energy to put into practice.

Thank you for inspiring us all!