Since it has been
nice weather outside the sand pit is where most of the children have been
spending their time. This is partly
because it is sheltered and also because it is close to the hose. One of our newest
additions to the sandpit is the digger and this has been especially popular getting
all of the attention due to the road works and house construction going on around the centre.
Today I spend some
time in the sand pit observing the children and what they were doing. I noticed that they each took turns on
the digger learning from each other the skills that are required to operate it.
Through this the children are gaining an understanding of how and why this
works (Ministry of Education, 2007)If
they were not on the digger the rest of the children would be around helping
the digger dig with spades making tunnels for the pipes to fit into so that the
water could flow through. I noticed that the children all took turns really well with using the digger which i did not expect i expected to have fights over it. I think this is because they were all so engaged in working together so that they could get the hose turned on to see if what they had created was sucessful.
Smorti (1999),
said that the definition of technology is “helping people and solving problems”
(p.1) This digger is technology because it was built to replicate a real digger
and to teach the children that through different movements you can move the
digger in different ways. For example if you move one handle it moves up and
another handle it moves in and out which can help you scoop, pick up and drop
sand to the desired location. This helps with the children’s gross motor skills
and hand eye coordination because you need to be able to use both of these to
help move the digger. This can be a sensory expierence for the children and it
also helps them engage in experimenting (Greenfield,
2011). When a child has mastered how to use
the digger they are able to move at a quick pace and use problem solving and
thinking skills about where to dig and put the sand next te whāriki (1996) states that” growing experiences in solving problems
together develops children’s understanding of their roles, rights, and
responsibilities” (p.96). I think this toy digger is a great piece of
technology because it enables the children to copy and put their knowledge into
practice using the digger like the real ones that they keep seeing around the
centre, which is an ongoing interest. I would really like to observe the
children more with using this digger and to see what other skills that they may
acquire through this piece of technology. I am looking forward to seing if their interest change with this digger and if it is the same group of children interested in this or it changes.
Reference
list
Greenfield, C. (2011). Outside is where we need to be: A guide to
providing optimal outdoor environments in early childhood settings (2nd ed.). Manukau, New
Zealand: Manuaku Institute of Tachnology.
Ministry of Education. (207). The New Zealand Cirricilum. Wellington,
New Zealand: Learning Media.
Ministry of Education.
(1996). Te Whāriki: He whāriki
mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington,
New Zealand: Learning Media
Smorti, S. (1999).
Technology in early childhood. Early
education, 58 (1), 1-9.
I have enjoyed reading your blog and how the interest of construction has captured the children's learning. We have a digger at my preschool and it is popular with all the children too. I also liked how the other children used spades to help the digger and how they all worked together. Taking turns with the digger builds responsive and reciprocal skills and the children seemed to do this well(Ministry of Education, 1996).Technology can also be looked at as a purposeful activity such as using the digger to dig a hole (Smorti, 1999).Where children of all ages using the digger or was it just the older ones? What can you do to extend this learning experience for the children that carry on their interest with the diggers?
ReplyDeleteWhat struck me the most about this blog was the fact that the activity around the digger came from a fascination with the real machinery around the centre. This is awesome because it shows how you are making links to the community around the children and to real-life experiences. As part of early childhood education it is our responsibility to ensure that children are within an environment that makes those links to the wider world and their community in order for the children and their families to achieve a sense of belonging (Ministry of Education, 1996). As you mentioned in your blog, having a digger in a sandpit is a really good way to encourage problem-solving between the children depending on their activity. Smorti (1999) defines technology as “helping people and solving problems” (p. 1). I also believe that this is exactly what a digger does. What other ways could you encourage and enhance the problem-solving skills within your centre?
ReplyDeleteI also had the same thinking as Emily, it was cool to see the children making connections to the community outside the centre. It shows in your blog entry that the digger is a common interest in your centre. I enjoyed reading about how the children were working together to create what they wanted to and how they were learning from each other. The children were engaged which showed that it was a good learning experience for them. I was curious if any girls were involved, or was it just a group of boys? I agree with you that by using the digger children were developing plenty of physical skills. “throughout the early childhood years a great deal is happening for children as their physical and motor skills become more refined and used in different ways” (Arthur, Beecher, Death, Dockett & Farmer, 2007, p. 81). How are you going to develop this interest further? Maybe you could go on an excursion to watch the diggers and other machinery.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great story about the digger and I loved how the children were happy and excited about the activity they were involved in. It was awesome how they all took turns and shared the digger, building tunnels for the pipes. I think this experience linked to the exploration strand in Te Whariki stating that “ Children learn through play, by doing, asking questions and interacting with others, by setting up theories or ideas about how things work and trying them out” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 82). We have a digger at our centre and I see how the children love to play with it to, they dig big trenches and holes and then pile the sand up. I notice girls playing on the digger just as much as boys; do you find the same in your centre? If not, how do you think you could encourage girls to be part of this type of activity? I thought it was awesome how you could link the use of this digger to other things happening in and around your centre. Ministry of Education (1996) also agrees with this stating that children can develop an awareness of connections from what’s happening within and beyond the centre.
ReplyDelete