Lillian de Lissa Nursery School has been open for 50 years now and we have been reflecting on some of the amazing things that have happened in this time. 

Lillian Daphne de Lissa (1885–1967) was an early childhood educator and educational theorist in Australia and the U.K in the twentieth century. She instigated a child centred programme of teaching and learning which included learning in the outside environment as much as possible.

Creative Childhoods  - Working together to make learning visible

In 2011 were asked to take part in a project run by St Thomas Children's Centre, looking at how reflective practice has played a significant part in the development of our creative ethos. Every staff member was given a chance to talk about how this school has evolved and how creativity has become an essential part of everyday school life.

We asked parent governor and writer Sarah Plant, to research and write about the way Lillian de Lissa Nursery School has developed from the very beginning up to today.

"For at least ten years Birmingham early years educators, artists and parents have been exploring and researching the magic of children's creativity and thinking."
- Cynthia Knight - director of St Thomas Children's Centre

Birmingham Nursery History

This document shows how the nursery schools in Birmingham have been running from 1900-2010.

We feel it is an important record of how Birmingham City Council has always seen nursery schools and high quality educational provision as vitally important to the development of families and children .

We worked with Professor Pat Thomson who is the director of the Centre for Research in Schools and Communities at the University of Nottingham.

As part of the School of Creativity programme she has made us think and discuss in great depth why we feel it is important to respect children and give them a lead in their own learning. At times this has been challenging and has led to many hours of discussion within the staff team, but has gone on to reinforce our school ethos and the issues we feel are essential in the development of very young children.

One of these issues is having a creative ethos and curriculum, which is flexible enough in providing appropriate learning opportunities for each of our children.

This work has led us towards being included in several publications in 2010 and 2011: some we have written, other we have been studied by the researchers working on the piece.

The Routledge International Handbook of Creative Learning
Julian Sefton-Green, Pat Thomson, Ken Jones, Liora Bresler May 2011

EYE – Early Years Education, Creative Provision For E.A.L Children
Lorna Rose 2010

Researching Creative Learning: Methods and Issues
Pat Thomson & Julian Sefton Green(editors) 2010

Nursery Education Plus – A Creative Approach to teaching and learning
Julie Smart  Scholastic  Jan  2011

Turning Pupils Onto Learning: Creative Classrooms in Action (Creative Teaching/Creative Schools)
Lorna Rose & Angela Carlin,  Rob Elkington (Editor) August 2011