Let’s Talk…Exploration
Have you ever had a child start in your program and appear to have no experience with art materials? It seems the first thing they do is squeeze the glue bottle until the page is nearly filled with glue and the bottle is near empty. Give thought to WHY the child did this. If we have never experienced a material, we likely don’t understand its use and purpose – even something as common to us as adults as glue.
So, is the next step to deny future opportunities with glue so that no more is wasted? No teacher (particularly one on a tight budget!) likes to see “wasted” glue, but we have to see this as a teaching opportunity with something like, “Glue can help us attach one thing to another. It works best when we squeeze gently and use small dots like this.” A visual cue card might also be needed as a reminder.
I am always surprised to hear early childhood staff share with me things like, “I could never have a garden. My children would just destroy it” or even “I can’t keep my books out because children will rip the pages.” While I understand the feeling, we must challenge ourselves to see the initial experience as exploration (so not a time to scold a child) and then support the child in learning more appropriate use of materials.
Malisa
P.S. To respond with your thoughts, visit http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/exploration/
Malisa,
I agree that young children’s learning about intended uses for materials can be supported through our demonstration and discussion with children. On the other hand, my experience has been that given the opportunity for children to explore some of these materials on their own without constant adult reminders about “wasting” provides some additional benefits. Squeezing glue bottles, ripping masking tape, turning pages of books, all provide great opportunities for fine motor development. As I watch my 9-month-old grandson look at books (with paper pages), I see his developing use of a pincer grasp as he turns the pages. I think about the preschool children I have watched use “too much” tape to wrap a prized package for a friend or parent and how they went from pulling off long strings of tape to refining those fine motor skills and ripping off small pieces. Additionally, the glue can become the art material with the addition of food color or glitter for those who needed time to explore it for the sake of exploration. It is good muscle development for those children who may not be interested in other fine motor activities. When the time comes to connect paper items using glue, then the problem solving process begins. With questions such as, “What happens when we try to glue this to the paper when we have too much glue? To Little glue?” In these cases, the books, tape, glue, all become the learning and development of skill.
Beautifully said!! Thanks Natalie!