5 Best Early Years CPD Books of 2024

The Inclusive Early Years Educator

Authors: Anne Lowe and Stephen Kilgour

This toolkit aims to ensure all children have the best possible chance of making progress by supporting practitioners to identify all children’s strengths and to celebrate all aspects of individual children’s learning. The book:

• Provides a holistic picture of a child’s learning, considering an array of reflective opportunities, while always keeping the child at the centre of our thoughts
• Includes a wealth of real-life case studies and worked examples
• Features a diverse range of contributions from early years professionals as well as the voices of parents
• Contains printable forms to encourage and consolidate reflections throughout the book
• Is full of signposting and links to further resources and reading, making it an essential guide for the early years (from publisher)

Let’s Talk About Race in the Early Years

Authors: Stella Louis, Hannah Betteridge

This groundbreaking book is a must-read for all early years professionals working with babies, toddlers, young children, and their families. Its practical and accessible guidance provides the tools and techniques you need to identify and confront discriminatory practices, with strategies to break down barriers and tackle these complicated issues sensitively and constructively. Reflective questions facilitate active engagement with a wealth of case studies and encourage you to evaluate your own practice. Each chapter builds your confidence and ability to create dynamic and anti-racist learning environments that embrace and celebrate difference and will ensure your setting fosters a positive sense of identity and belonging. (From publisher)

50 Fantastic Ideas for Co-Regulation

Author: Kerry Murphy

Children need to understand their own feelings and those of others, and learn to regulate their behaviour accordingly. One of the key ways children learn to self-regulate is through co-regulation. With modelling, support and nurture, practitioners can learn to co-regulate alongside the children so that they can develop those important skills.

This dip-in-and-out guide will help practitioners provide the strongest foundations for children and to give them the best emotional start in life. It provides meaningful and inclusive ideas for co-regulation that can be embedded into everyday practice, and be used for a broad range of emotional needs, without being tokenistic. (From publisher)

From Birth to Three: An Early Years Educator’s Handbook

Author: Julia Manning-Morton

This accessible handbook offers an in-depth exploration of the distinctive features of the play, development and learning of children from birth to three years old. Key theoretical ideas relating to social, emotional, cognitive and physical development are discussed in relation to everyday practice, offering a wealth of information and guidance on working with this unique age group.

The book emphasises the connections between all aspects of a child’s experience and development; addressing key questions of what babies and young children need, enjoy and have a right to experience. It demonstrates how early years educators can develop their practice and organise their provision in a way that is positive for babies and young children and their families. (From publisher)

Playwork in Practice

Authors: Ali Wood, Julia Sexton, Jacky Kilvington

Playwork in Practice introduces the ways that playwork can be used across the children’s workforce, including carers, qualified teachers, parents and other adults. You will learn the theoretical and practical aspects of the playwork approach supported by a wealth of research-evidence, this book is for anyone studying playwork or looking to use it in their own practice.

The chapters focus on the following areas where the playwork approach can be applied: behaviour, adult expectations, relationships and inclusion, space, environment and outdoors, age, risk, and resilience, emotions and resilience, health, well-being and gender. Using a reflexive reflective approach, the book offers vivid descriptions of interactions between children and adults in a range of different circumstances and analyses these interactions critically. Each chapter includes a real-life story with analysis based on the author’s conversations with carers, playworkers, parents and other adults. The chapters also include reflective questions. (From publisher)

Did you know that Tapestry has its own CPD catalogue, where Tapestry users can complete a variety of courses and modules. Are you a setting or school?  Try Tapestry for free today.

Access our CPD collection.