Zip zip hooray! Helping children develop independence in dressing

All of us in early years know how long it takes to help children develop their independence in dressing and undressing. I vividly remember a colleague jokingly chanting ‘there isn’t time’ as she put coats on the children, zipped them up and bundled them outdoors. It was an operation that was remarkable for its speed, but sub-optimal for the children’s learning.

Skills in independence take time to learn. We need to be patient and encouraging throughout. It’s an area of early years practice where ‘scaffolding’ is especially effective: helping children enough to avoid frustration, whilst encouraging them to do what they can independently. You can find out more about scaffolding in our Guide to High-quality Interactions on our Early Years Hub.

Developing children's dexterity is important and these skills support their learning across the early years curriculum. Children need well-developed hand-eye co-ordination to slot in and pull up a zip! That co-ordination will also help them in their play, drawing and mark-making.

That’s why I particularly enjoy this short video showing how Gem, a childminder, helps her children get ready for Forest School.

As you watch the video, look out for the following three practices:

1. The use of reminders and verbal cues. Reminders are a powerful way to scaffold children’s learning. We can usefully give children a little prompt without taking over and making them dependent on our help.
2. Reflecting. Gem reflects on what she sees the child do, ‘wiggle wiggle wiggle’, encouraging them to keep their arm moving through the sleeve. She then prompts the child to reflect: ‘how are you going to put your arm in?’ Throughout she is helpful, but not over-helpful, so the child can gain a sense of satisfaction.
3. Explaining and offering physical help. Gem explains what the child needs to do, ‘put your hand in there’. Then she physically helps the child by pulling back their sleeve so their hand pops out. Without her gentle and sensitive physical help, the child might not have been able to pull their sleeve on.

The videos on the evidence store show everyday practice in a range of settings, to promote discussion and reflection.

Could you try out these three practices next time you’re helping a child to put their coat on?

Did you notice any additional opportunities to help the children become more independent in preparing for Forest School?

Maybe you could share the video as part of a professional discussion, or a staff training session focused on children’s physical development.

• Visit the Physical Development theme in the Early Years Evidence Store to see more clips of the different approaches in action.
• Check out our downloadable poster, which summarises research evidence about Physical Development.
• Read our guide to Effective Professional Development in the Early Years