An influential panel of experts set up to advise on government policy for the under-5s is demanding radical changes to literacy targets for preschool children, which they describe as “overly ambitious for most children”. Members of the Early Education Advisory Group are urging Beverley Hughes, the Children’s Minister, to water down the new curriculum by dropping targets that would require four and five-year-olds to write simple sentences and use punctuation.

A leaked copy of a document drawn up by the group and seen by The Times, states: “We are particularly anxious that some children, especially those most disadvantaged, may be confused and demotivated by the introduction of these subjects too early.” The curriculum, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage framework (EYFS), becomes law in the autumn and will affect all nurseries and child-care settings in England, including childminders. It sets 69 “early learning goals” for five-year-olds. These include the requirement that children should “use their phonic knowledge to write simple regular words and make phonetically plausible attempts at more complex words” and “write their own names and other things such as labels and captions, and begin to form simple sentences, sometimes using punctuation”.

Members of the advisory group, who include Kathy Sylva, of the University of Oxford, Bernadette Duffy, head of the Thomas Coram Children’s Centre, and Dame Gillian Pugh, of the Institute of Education, say in the document that these goals were “purely aspirational for most children”.

“Many reception teachers are demoralised in their lack of success in getting children to attain these and they are aware that this situation helps to develop a culture of deficiency for young children - identifying what they can’t do,” they say.

The group urges ministers to drop the two literacy goals and to consider extending the EYFS until the end of Year 1 of primary school to delay the start of formal primary education until the age of 6 or 7.

A separate letter to Ms Hughes from the British Association of Early Childhood, signed by three other members of the advisory committee, has also urged a reduction in literacy goals. The framework has faced opposition from some childhood experts, led by a campaign group called Open Eye, set up to oppose it. The critics argue that it relies too heavily on formal learning and not enough on play.

Last night, a government spokeswoman insisted that the goals were “aspirations”, not targets. However, she added: “We have always said that we will keep the early learning goals under review, but it would not be right to lower our aspirations for children.”

The document emerged yesterday as the Commons Select Committee for Children, Schools and Families took evidence on the framework.

Sue Palmer, an independent literacy specialist and author of Toxic Childhood, said she was concerned about the “schoolification” of the early years curriculum. As long as the flawed literacy goals remained statutory, nursery teachers and childminders would focus on them at the expense of more important aspects of children’s development at this age, such as oral and social skills, she said.

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