Topic outline
Exercise I Listening to children and youth: Analysis of children’s interests, questions, and problems
Description of the content and form of the exercise:
This exercise is performed in two steps. It departs from three observations of children exploring different subject matters. The observations are descriptively presented as a “raw-material”, and the first step consists in collectively performing analysis of what it is that the children explore. The second step concerns discussing and comparing literary accounts of different ways of interpreting, analysing and supporting children's interests, questions and problems.
STEP I : Study the three observations of children accessible below. Discuss these departing from the following discussion-points:
- What are the children interested in and what specific questions and problems (existential, physical, philosophical, social, psychological, biological, corporal, geological, geographical, linguistical, mathematical, technical, temporal, spatial, aesthetical, ethical, political…) are they exploring here?
- How could you “respond” to these children through arranging a new situation and activity that supports their interests, questions, and problems?
- Do you have examples of children/youth’s explorations in your own local context, and how would you “respond” to these?
STEP II: Study chapter 3 and chapter 6 in Olsson (2009) as well as the article by Lenz Taguchi (2006) (article available below) and compare with your own analysis. Discuss the following question:
- How do different interpretations of children and youth’s explorations lead to different suggestions of new situations that support children’s interests?
Purpose:
The purpose of this exercise is to “sharpen the adult eye and ear” to be able to really listen to children/youth in analysis of their interests and to suggest new situations that will support these. The purpose is also to make visible the multitude of possible interpretations and perspectives that may be used when analysing children/youth’s interests.
Learning outcomes:
After performing this exercise participants can:
o listen to children/youth through observing and analysing their interests,
o distinguish specific questions and problems that children/youth are interested in,
o suggest coherent new situations that corresponds to and supports children/youth’s explorations of different subject matters and more precisely their posing of questions and problems concerning these subject matters,
o distinguish different possible perspectives and interpretations of children/youth’s explorations and how these have consequences for suggestions of new situations.
Reference-literature:
Lenz Taguchi, H. (2006) Reconceptualizing early childhood education – Challenging taken-for-granted ideas, Nordic Childhoods and Early Education, pp. 257-287, available below.
Olsson, L.M. (2009) Movement and experimentation in young children's learning - Deleuze and Guattari in Early Childhood Education. London: Routledge.
Exercise II Using pedagogical documentation together with children and youth: Revisiting lived and documented events
Description of the content and form of the exercise:
This exercise departs from accounts of children re-visiting pedagogical documentations of events they previously have participated in. The accounts are displayed in chapter 4 in Lenz Taguchi, H. (2010) Going beyond the theory/practice divide in early childhood education – Introducing an intra-active pedagogy. The proposed exercise consists in collectively performing analysis of these re-visits of pedagogical documentation of lived events. Study the accounts and discuss these departing from the following discussion-points:
- How do the children react when revisiting the pedagogical documentation of an earlier event (with their bodies, words, other expressions)?
- What seems to be significant to the children?
- How do the teachers “respond” to children’s reactions to the pedagogical documentations of earlier events through arranging a new situation and activity that relate to their reactions and at the same time move the process further?
Purpose:
The purpose of this exercise is to offer participants tools for using pedagogical documentation together with children and youth. The purpose is also to show how revisiting pedagogical documentation can move a process further based on children and youth’s reactions, interests, and ideas.
Learning goals:
After performing this exercise participants can:
o use pedagogical documentation together with children and youth through revisiting earlier and documented events,
o listen to children and youth’s reactions and suggestions when revisiting earlier and documented events,
o suggest coherent new situations that relates to children and youth’s reactions when revisiting earlier and documented events and that pushes the process further.
Reference-literature:
Lenz Taguchi, H. (2010) Going beyond the theory/practice divide in early childhood education – Introducing an intra-active pedagogy, London: Routledge.Exercise III Performing pedagogical documentation together with children and youth
Description of the content and form of the exercise:
This exercise consists in participants in their own context performing 2-3 observations and analysis of children/youth exploring a topic of their choice according to this procedure:
1) Make observations in any formal or non-formal educational setting of how children/youth approach the topic: What do they seem most interested in? What questions do they ask? What kind of problems (existential, physical, philosophical, social, psychological, biological, corporal, geological, geographical, linguistical, mathematical, technical, temporal, spatial, aesthetical, ethical, political…) do they seem to be constructing? Perform the observations according to one or several of the following techniques: written notes, video and/or audio recordings, photographs, collecting children/youth’s artefacts.
2) Perform analysis during the observations according to the above questions but also afterwards together with your colleagues. Make a choice of what in your analysis you want to bring back to the children/youth.
3) Invite the children/youth to an assembly where you discuss what you have seen. Ask the children/youth what they think about this and how they would like to go on exploring the topic.
4) Discuss with colleagues how the children/youth responded to your presentation of analysis and eventual differences between your analysis and what children/youth expressed and thought in the assembly. Discuss children/youth’s suggestions of continued explorations and how you could arrange for that.
Purpose:
The purpose of this exercise is to “sharpen the adult eye and ear” to be able to really listen to children and youth through letting participants try out some of the techniques of pedagogical documentation.
Learning outcomes:
After performing this exercise participants can:
o plan, prepare and conduct observations of children/youth’s interests,
o distinguish and identify specific questions and problems that children/youth pose and are interested in,
o select content in analysis of children/youth’s interests and prepare, perform and evaluate an assembly with children/youth on this content,
plan, prepare, conduct and evaluate pedagogical documentation through observation and analysis.
Reference-literature:
Olsson, L.M. (2009) Movement and experimentation in young children’s learning – Delueze and Guattari in early childhood education, London: Routledge.Exercise IV: Planning a project-work
Description of the content and form of the exercise:
This exercise concerns the planning of a project work together with children/youth. In the book Making learning visible – Children as individual and group learners (Giudici, Rinaldi &Krechevsky 2001) there is a model for how this could be done. Read page 188 – 210 available in a PDF format available below. Study the model and the project and try to adapt it for a project that you would like to perform with children/youth through following these steps:
1) Depart from already performed observations of children/youth’s interest in exercise II and choose a topic to investigate together with children/youth.
2) Make an inventory of the topic from multiple perspectives; how may this content be considered from different perspectives (existential, physical, philosophical, social, psychological, biological, corporal, geological, geographical, linguistical, mathematical, temporal, spatial, aesthetical, ethical, political…)?
3) Identify a purpose with the project.
4) Formulate observational questions and hypotheses that you are curious about: how do you think the children/youth will approach the topic?
5) Design a meaningful context for children/youth where they may continue their investigations of the topic.
6) Design a first verbal or extra-verbal (for instance through arranging an environment and/or a material) invitation to the children/youth.
7) Contact colleagues in the SMOOTH project on the Social Networking Site and compare your designs of projects.
Purpose:
The purpose of this activity is to give participants support in planning a project-work together with children and youth through using a model and a process for initiating a project.
Learning outcomes:
After performing this exercise participants can:
o prepare and plan a project-work with children/youth in a systematic way,
o evaluate and discuss different project-designs.
Reference-literature:
Giudici, C., Rinaldi, C. &Krechevsky, M. (2001) Making learning visible – Children as individual and group learners, Harvard Project Zero & Reggio Children: Reggio Emilia.