Prof. Loizos Symeou, European University Cyprus
“A framework of practice on cultural workshops for children at early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings”
This paper presents a suggested framework on how educational cultural workshops could be organized and implemented for children aged 3-5 from diverse cultural backgrounds in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) settings. The framework has been developed for the purposes of the Erasmus+ funded project EDUCLAB (Education and Digital Cultural Laboratory), based on an in-depth analysis of data collected during focus group interviews conducted in all five partner countries (Cyprus, Italy, Portugal, Romania, and Turkey) (i.e. discussions with 50 educators at a European level). The analysis of the data gathered from the focus group interviews allowed for the identification of skill gaps and pedagogical approaches, as well as of other emerging themes, including the importance of school-family relations, uses of technology, the characteristics of good practices relating to cultural workshops in ECEC, as well as challenges faced by educators across Europe in organizing and implementing cultural workshops. A meta-analysis of the emerging themes, supported by contemporary literature, shed further light as of how such cultural workshops may be developed, organised and implemented by ECEC educators. The framework proposed provides practical and useful indications and training material for ECEC educators on how to organize workshops for their students, that also involve visits to cultural institutions such as museums, libraries, archaeological sites, theatres and/or musical institutions. The aim is for young children to be able to appreciate, interpret and engage with artefacts, art and cultural sites. Through these cultural workshops educators are expected to be able to promote awareness on cultural diversity in the classroom and support children in developing interdisciplinary and intercultural skills.
Prof. Matteo Corbucci, President OMEP Italy, Sapienza University of Rome
“The right to free participation of children in cultural and artistic life: intergenerational approaches in the realization of playful and recreational activities”
Purpose: The right of children to participate freely in cultural and artistic life is associated with their right to rest and leisure. For this reason, it is important to create concrete possibilities for this right to be respected in all its dimensions. This also means finding ways of expression and participation that are truly inclusive and enhancing an intergenerational perspective of play and educational animation. This presentation aims to underline the importance of promoting the participation of children and encouraging the expression of their voice and proposing operational tools to allow the meeting between children and adult, in a meaningful relationship and during interesting and engaging activities. It intends to reaffirm the value of quality pre-school education through the contribution that art and culture make to it: therefore, we will talk about synergies between Third Sector and National institutions for the enhancement of the culture of childhood through the use of of artistic tools and languages and through cultural proposals.
Material & Methods: The presentation will concern the network work that OMEP Italia has conducted together with other national organizations on the theme of educating communities and which also consisted in a collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Culture for the purpose of promoting a culture of childhood and the promotion of cultural heritage. This exchange has produced a guideline document that will be presented in its essential points. Reference will then be made to an instrument, the puppet theater, the use of which is particularly effective in making this proposal concrete. The presentation will exemplify the work that has been carried out in recent years and that is still being carried out for the use of this tool in the 0-6 services of the Municipality of Rome. Starting from a pedagogical reflection on the value of storytelling and animation, concrete examples will be given to support educational activities in these services.
Results: The Roman experience, conducted so far, suggests how a perspective that holds together education, art and culture is capable of building not only a community of learning, but also a community of life: where the critical and reflective transmission of cultural heritage becomes a intergenerational glue and reason for enriching the educational proposal. Starting from the early years, it is possible by using artistic languages to enhance the effectiveness of the educational intervention in the construction of a non-static identity; it is also possible to provide children, early on, with tools of relationship and expression that they can always use individually or collectively.
Conclusion: Reflecting on the spaces for participation actually guaranteed to children from early childhood in the artistic and cultural world, allows us to evaluate the concrete inclusion of the little ones in leisure and recreational activities and their possibility of freely contributing to the progress of their community. It is important to provide educational paths that, in pursuing the goal of humanizing, collect the contributions of typical human expressions: that is, those coming from art and culture, not only in view of future formal and disciplinary learning, but, first of all, for the integral development of the person. The enhancement of the use of simple but effective tools, such as puppets, not only equips educators with additional and significant „allies” for their intervention, but also allows them to convey contents that link educational practice to the knowledge and practices of community understood in its various dimensions: local, national and global.
Keywords: early childhood education and care, intergenerational perspective, participation, art, culture, puppets
Prof. Maria Vassiliadou, Frederick University, President of OMEP Cyprus Maria
“Promoting Children’s Rights through Artistic Creation”
In this presentation we are going to discuss the importance of art in children’s everyday life, especially the use of artistic creation as a mean to promote and disseminate Children’s Rights. The “pandemic era” entailed at the same time as the World OMEP Artistic Project “Colour your Rights” which aimed to let children show us how they feel, understand and express their feelings about their Rights through art. Meanwhile it was going to be the vehicle which would let the children learn about their Rights. The results from all countries illustrated very strongly that children can express their opinion and their feelings on their Rights and, beyond this, showed us what is really important for them. By showing a sample of children’s art works, we are going to discuss, on one hand the significance of the results and on the other the benefits of the application of artistic activities in and out of the school environment. Furthermore, we will debate on children’s opinion on play and leisure time through their art works.
Finally, we are going to analyse different approaches of engaging children’s creativity without applying a critical point of view on the process because only when they feel free they are going to express themself deeply and truly, showing us the way to understand them.
As Grigg Colin says: “Art is fundamentally a complex form of visual language that is socially constructed and historically specific, be it a child’s drawing or the work of a professional artist. Children, in order to understand and participate in our increasingly visual culture, need to engage directly with significant works of art as well as acquire technical skills.”
Prof. Serap Erdoğan, Anadolu University, Turkey
“Play with mathematics learning in the early years: An example of children’s math canter”
Mathematics Workshop for Children was opened in Eskisehir on December 20, 2017 and continues to work actively. It carries out studies in two different areas: Early childhood education Primary Education (Grades 1, 2, 3, and 4). What does the Mathematics Workshop for Children aim for? Helping children love mathematics, Identifying and developing children’s mathematical knowledge and skills, presenting mathematics in a fun way and in a safe environment, integrating mathematics with science, technology and engineering, incorporating mathematics into life, raising mathematically literate individuals, Making mathematics available to all children.
Providing families, teachers, pre-service teachers and children with opportunities to learn mathematics. Thanks to the observation mirror in the workshop, teachers and families have the opportunity to easily observe the children during the activities. At the same time, Anadolu University pre-service teachers find the opportunity to combine theory and practice by making their observations easily.
Ingrid Bogren, Magdalena Tomczak-Stenstrom, Department of Preschool Education Malmö Stad, Sweden
“The children’s rights to rest and leisure time in the outdoors: learning, developing and challenging. An educational stance to promote children’s development, health, well-being and human stance for a sustainable world”
Something that is needed to all people, both young and old, is the need rest and the opportunity to let the brain rest from all the impressions that wash over us from different directions. In our modern society, activity and movement are of high value and the art of being at rest is often seen as less important. We also see that people in general are having less and less contact with nature as a place of rest and recovery, young people in particular. Which can be seen as a threat to the well-being of children and young people. The researchers Sara Brogaard and Torsten Krause (LUCSUS) have conducted a study in which they see that children’s relationship with nature is not only important for their well-being, but it is also important for creating a more sustainable society and environment. They came to the conclusion that children see far more value in the forest than just the material value, the forest stands for a deeper and more special value for the children. Providing values such as freedom, comfort, discovery, well-being and rest. The preschool’s curriculum contains both the task of caring for the children but also educating them, where both tasks include resting and learning. Since security and trust are important prerequisites for being able to rest, the preschool has a great responsibility to give children the opportunity to experience rest and, in the long run, understand the balance between physical activity and rest. Outdoor pedagogy is a really great way to inspire and promote having a sustainable,healthy and well-being life. From a learning perspective, research shows that by resting you learn to act in a health-promoting way and the ability to solve problems actually increases. The link between rest and learning can be both learning by resting and learning in the moment of rest. Eisen and Silverman (1993) wrote that learning while resting means that the person resting increases their awareness of themselves and the world around them, but one can also learn while resting through experiences, which are moments where the whole person is included and can be associated with wonder and reverence, an integration where body and soul form a unity.
Prof. Kristin Dyrfjord University of Akureyri Iceland
“Children’s right to imaginative play in Icelandic preschools in relation to digital playthings”
This paper aims to explore how makerspace in early childhood settings can be used to help children develop play and creativity using coding devices. Special attention is given to how children makes their characters and create a play space drawing on their social and cultural background. Key analytical concepts include; creativity, play, design and imagination.
The paper draws on theories of play and creativity as well as children’s right to play based on their own premises. Play is an act where it is possible to observe creativity as it occurs. One element supporting creativity in preschool environments is making micro- or small worlds. Researchers have pointed out the significance of microworlds that may support the development of narratives that can promote divergent thinking, considered an important factor in creativity.
The data gathering followed the guidelines from the Makey project, using video cameras, Go-pro cameras, Ipads, photographs, field notes and research diaries. Nine five-year-old children in a small-town preschool took part in six makerspace workshops. They learned the basics of programming through work with robots, where creative materials and play were key concepts. The children followed a curriculum plan proposed by the researchers. The plan suggested that the children begin the workshop by storytelling, drawing and making their characters. Then the teacher introduced the children to coding and encouraged them to make stories involving both the characters and the robots.
Informed consent was gathered from all concerned authorities, teachers, parents and children, and the research followed relevant ethical procedures. During each workshop, informed consent was discussed with children, and they were given the opportunity to opt-out.
Findings indicate that children used the materials creatively, made stories connected to their neighbourhood, and made play stages for the coded devices that were strongly place-based. The same is true for their characters, they were based on children’s culture. The children used Lego bricks to build a 3D environment on top of the 2D play stages that they created to build obstacles for the robots to pass by gates to pass through or structures as destinations. They made their own stories and played them out using the robots, which they often personified; the Ipad and GoPro were also added freely to the play. They, indeed, made the play their own.
MFA President: Deborah Kayton Michals, Learn With Action LLC, USA
„The Joy of Movement-Related Play Structure related to Specific Learning in Literacy and Math: a way to make children’s time fun as they learn and to involve their creativity through movement and drama”
Title: „The Joy of Movement-Related Play Structure related to Specific Learning in Literacy and Math to make children’s time fun as they learn and to involve their creativity through movement and drama” Purpose: aligning play and learning with children’s natural ability, inclination and need to move, for use in any language and in multiple situations Methods: specific active learning methods involving movement that teach literacy and math and can be used in the classroom as well as for family engagement and learning at home; specific modules linked to essential elements of literacy and math, for use indoors or outdoors, in a small or large space, with a group or with an individual child Results: 10 years of feedback internationally showing the validity of method via live teachers and the book series (Gryphon House, Kaplan Early Learning) „Active Learning for Preschoolers in Literacy and Math” Conclusion: active learning involving movement is an effective tool for preschool learning in literacy and math.