Templates or not ??

In this day and age childcare has evolved quite a bit. Some things for the better - something's  I am not so sure of.
We went through a stage of eliminating all the risk and while I can see some people are slowly changing to incorporate this educators are still held back by scheme and centre policies.

Another thing in recent times and I myself have copped flack for this is the use of templates or black line masters as some of you might know them. Some schemes and childcare centres frown upon these tools  and exclude the use of them. well like I have said before and will say again, it's all about balance.
Do I think that children should only be taught from templates? NO!
Do I think educators/children should use and have access to templates? YES
WHY?? Here is my answer.

Free play and design art is a wonderful experience, allowing children to discover and create through exploring different materials is definitely a wonderful process but I believe it is also our job as educators to teach, to show by example how to create and do something specific and I believe this process is also IMPORTANT. - after all we don't give someone a car license without training and teaching them, or the materials to build a house and say have a go build me a house.

Everything we do in life requires training and a certain amount of structure- templates fall into that category. They are a teaching tool, an example for children to learn from and develop skills which they will be able to take and adapt from one project to another. Through the use of templates and structured activities children can develop specific skills and learn that sometimes product is just as important as process. Skills like colouring inside the lines, writing letters and words are all developed with the help of templates or BLM. I know there are many who might disagree but we are building little people who need to learn balance. By promoting the use of these templates, I also don't think we should take away choice or individuality. I do think it is sad when you see a class room full of the same project that all looks exactly the same. I think when it comes to specific project work where a set of instructions or a process is followed I think choice and personalities should still shine through. Example making a Mother's day photo frame, children can choose decorating items, colours etc. everyone is still making a photo frame but the look can still be as individual as they are.

More specific still take our art pack 4 flowers - this pack contains - flower pieces - buttons - vine templates. The basis of the pack is to count to 4, make a sheet with 4 flowers on it. Now where the children put their flowers - is their choice - how they build their flowers, draw, stick on, multilevel flowers, big or small flowers - their choice - the colours they choose - their choice and while each child will make a sheet with 4 flowers using a template, creativity and individuality is still supported while learning and following instruction and creating something specific is still being achieved.

Even after doing this you might find children like extending this themselves with free collage, by making and drawing lots of collage flowers - which they may even count or ask you too.

Each time we develop a pack we take into consideration all these things.
We look at what learning is occurring or what learning we would like to be achieved.
-How can we do that while supporting choice creativity and a child's individuality.
- How can we help cement this learning through different types of visual, kinaesthetic, audio etc
-How can we make this easy for the educator/parent so they have time to converse and support children's learning instead of looking for materials or trying to cut everything out.

Myself as an adult use templates everyday, I love colouring, designing and I LOVE creating but without the knowledge and experience I have gained throughout my everyday life, I would not be able to do what I do today. Instructions, specific process, products all form a part of every persons life, so why exclude this from the next generations early years learning preparation?

Craft Kits – 5 Reasons to Choose a Pre-Made Craft Project

Craft kits are a fantastic way to get creative with your children. No matter how little time you may have, a pre-prepared art kit is ideal, as you know that everything you need is included and ready to go. Full instructions are provided for your kids to follow, so you don’t need to be a great artist yourself – just get involved! Craft kits can be very economical too, as you don’t have to buy large quantities of each material and there is no waste. Why not set aside a day a week to complete an art project with your child? The Smarty Arty’s monthly art pack delivery gives you 4 new art packs home delivered each month, exploring various themes and often tying in with upcoming celebrations like Easter or Australia Day.

1. Age specific projects to stimulate creativity

Grow your child’s creative streak with a craft activity appropriate to their age. Craft packs from the Smarty Arty art store are suited to children from 18 months of age, with different kits available to suit to each age group. Art sets are designed to target specific skills and learning outcomes, so choosing a compatible kit and completing the project is easy.

2. Craft packs make learning interesting

Your little one doesn’t need to know that they are learning while having fun with a craft kit. Art and craft assists children’s learning retention. Through art, kids not only see and hear sounds, numbers and words, but they connect with concepts through a hands-on approach to learning.

3. Art projects help to develop cognitive skills

Art participation and education supplies your child with cognitive skills, that is, learning skills that are vital to success in your child’s schooling and life in general. Focussing on a task, not being distracted and multi-tasking are very important learning outcomes that can be learned through partaking in craft projects. Art and craft provides the perfect fun and relaxed environment in which to practise cognitive skills, in turn heightening their development.

4. Fine motor skills increase through art material manipulation

The actions of threading beads, cutting paper or pinching and rolling play dough assist with the development of fine motor skills. Without effective fine motor abilities, key proficiencies such as handwriting cannot be attained. From an early age, Smarty Arty’s craft packs will hone your child’s fine motor skills and you will see a marked improvement in your child’s ability to do more things for themselves. This is why regular craft involvement is so important for young children.

5. Pre-made craft kits save time and money

Craft packs contain everything you need to complete a set art project with your child. This means that you don’t need to spend time researching an age-appropriate activity. You don’t need to search for the art supplies online (usually having to buy a lot more than you actually need!). You don’t even need to prepare the materials. You can launch straight into an art project whenever the mood strikes. And you’re never left with unnecessary materials that you have no use for at the end!

Creativity for Kids - Ways to Grow Your Child’s Creative Streak

Heightened creative intelligence leads to increased resourcefulness, or the ability to meet challenges in a variety of ways. As children develop imagination, they learn to believe in their own instincts and unique talents and they will grow a confident approach toward problem solving. In nurturing creativity for kids, you need to let go a little and leave artistic and inventive decisions up to your child. You can, however, stimulate imagination by asking provocative questions concerning the why’s, how’s, and what’s of objects and situations. It is vital that you be available to offer reassurance when artistic projects don't go to plan and praise your child for trying as well as finishing the task.

Instructional projects to stimulate creativity for kids

Sometimes, real instruction is needed. Your child needs to know how to use the art materials you have supplied – your demonstration and suggestions will assist greatly in your child’s first efforts at drawing and painting, and your supervision is unquestionably necessary in using many of these materials.

Encourage exploration to grow your child’s creative streak

Motivate your child with comments such as “How interesting; you created a secret passage-way with the blocks.” or “The way you mixed different greens for leaves makes your tree look very real.” Stimulate inventive, autonomous thinking by posing questions. With creative projects, avoid giving your child specific instructions. For instance, when making a sun catcher say, “I wonder what material the sunlight would shine through the best. What do you think?” Give merit to your child’s different ideas and opinions. Encourage creative thought by using phrases like “Well, that is definitely one way of looking at it,” or “What a GREAT idea, I’ve never thought of that before!”

Resist perfectionism in creativity for kids

You may be able to do the job faster and better, but this is all about your child learning to do things for themselves and exploring their own creativity. Resist taking over your child’s project and, likewise, do not add ‘finishing touches’ to make it perfect. The creative process is far more important than the final result. With practice, creations will improve and we need to respect the learning that occurs while an activity is taking place. A wonderful way to show respect for your child’s creative effort, thus encouraging further creativity, is to exhibit your child’s stories or artwork on refrigerators and the walls of your home. Kids also love to see their handiwork on display at their parents’ workplaces.

Explore art supplies online to suit every age group

Art stores are so much fun to explore. You may be surprised at the quantity of art materials that even a baby can manipulate and delight in (with adult supervision, of course!). Under the age of one, a child will take great enjoyment in scribbling on a large piece of butcher’s paper with a junior crayon. Your child can quickly move on to coloured pencils and chalk, and, by age two, water-based felt-tip pens. Around the age of two, your child will have the skills to start painting. Make sure you protect clothing with an art smock and the area where your child is painting with newspaper to avoid a big mess. Finger paints and paint pads are great as a starting point, moving on to easel painting with chubby paint brushes and paints as they get older. Also around the age of two and as your child’s sense of touch develops, you will find that your child loves to pummel, roll, and squash play dough. Start with hands only, and move on to using tools to manipulate the dough as your child develops great fine motor skills. Whilst it is very difficult at times to take a step back and let your child do something on their own, creativity for kids is encouraged greatly in doing just this. Smarty Arty has all of the art and craft supplies you will need to get back to basics. Go on an adventure of wild imagination with your child to stimulate that creative streak and have a wonderful time in the process.

Food, Food Glorious Food..........or maybe not the case when it comes to kids and their lunches.

There has been talk in the media lately on the quality of school and childcare lunch boxes, and what the parents think about them....

I sit on both sides of the fence. I can see the benefit of having a healthy lunch, I really don't think any parent would argue with that, but I also know how hard it is to always pack ALL Healthy, and I am not afraid to say that I don't think there is anything wrong with a muesli bar with a squiggle of chocolate on it, or a piece of homemade cake.

I as a parent DO get annoyed with my child coming home resighting comments that his kindy teacher has said, don't you listen because there is not allowed any chocolate at kindy. (we are not talking a chocolate bar, just a squiggle of chocolate). Use those ears on your head.

Mornings are busy, getting ready, breakfast, feeding our brood of animals and making lunch. I make master 4's kindy lunch, but the older two make their own, unless they are running late. And I can tell you that I can fill a lunch box with all healthy food in the beginning of the week, but towards the end, well it does come down to adding the odd meusli bar or 2.

Coming from a FDC background, I liked my daycare kiddies to eat healthy, and I would model this behaviour as I sat and ate lunch with them. I provided food, so having healthy food was easier when I had the time to prepare it all. The children and I would often use cooking as our learning experiences and I would use this to encourage children to try/taste new food, but even running a childcare, the children had balance.

 Food is an important part of our life and I think as both parents, teachers and educators alike we should also be careful on how we aproach the subject. We certainly don't need to be making our children feel guilty over eating a muesli bar or a homemade cake.

Everything comes down to balance, as long as children have a balance of good, mostly healthy and  a small amount a biscuits, or cake or other. And again balance on their activity level, eg, include some form of active play during their day. Then I think there is nothing wrong with children having their cake too.

I also beleive it is a parents responsibility to decide what their children should eat and again for them to alter the balance of their food if they think their children need to have a more healthy life style. This certainly starts at home, and most educators would know you can educate the children all you like but the parents are responsible for buying and preparing the food, if they choose junk, then the children have little choice in the matter. I also think in cases like these it makes very little difference to a child's overall health when educator/teacher focus and make a child eat only healthy food when at home, their is no healthy food in sight. In cases like this, putting so much emphasis on healthy eating and such a negative impact on unhealthy eating can also cause disturbing self image and self esteem problems, and can also lead to eating disorders as well.

My approach is enjoy food, all food. Eat the colours of the rainbow, and a little rainbow cake ever now and again. As a family we all like to try new food, and all my children enjoy the experience of cooking. To end on a lighter note, I thought I would share our new favourite salad.

Mango and Pommigratite Salad.  Recipe is an original from my husband, Kim.

 

Ingredients

1 mango diced

Half of a pomegranate seeds tapped, rind disguarded.

Half a lettuce, sliced cucumber, thinkly slices carrot.

Add together and mix throughly.

Dressing

1  tablespoon of balsamic vinegar

 3 teaspoons of honey,

1 teaspoon of olive oil

mix together and drissle over.

(we also love elderberry dressing on this salad, but this is only available online through http://www.ashboltfarm.com/ef_main.htm )