JAN HOMDEN

An early years teaching specialist and designer, Jan has been involved in a series of start-up and refurbishment projects to create facilities in which younger children can learn effectively together. After completing her training at Leicester University and then teaching in the UK, Jan has taught in leading international schools around the world. As an experienced Grade Leader, Jan believes that children learn best when asked to take responsibility for what they are learning. She places particular emphasis on the organisation of stimulating classroom and play areas that enable the right balance between whole class, group and individual activities. When the mix is right, children use their newly acquired skills and knowledge with increasing self-assurance. A trained interior designer, Jan has also worked with leading architectural practices in Istanbul and the UK and now collaborates with educational project teams to create outstanding indoor and outdoor spaces in which young children can learn naturally.

Recent work for Consilium Education includes design support work for new school projects in Uzbekistan, Japan, Russia and Latvia. Jan has also written an adapted version of the EYFS curriculum being taught at the DPS-STS school in Dhaka, Bangladesh, designed to help children make an effective start to the Cambridge International Primary programme.

Specialist advisory areas:

• Design and refurbishment of early years facilities
• Playground design
• Early Years curriculum design and support
• English Language acquisition in multi-lingual early years classrooms
• Graphic design