Little Blackberry Patch Learning

SCHEMAS. In early years play, educators aren’t just idly watching the children. In fact, we are actively in engaged and are looking for something called “schemas” within the play. A schema is best described as a repeated pattern that occurs in open ended children’s play. These thrift store beauties will be absolutely perfect for when an ever popular one eventually pops up.... the Enclosure Schema! Chances are that you have observed it many times without knowing, as most children readily engage in it. “Putting one object into another” is the essence of enclosure. Think about all of the times you’ve observed a child stuff their pockets with pebbles, or gather small toys to fill a purse from the dress up area. On a larger scale, it may be a child building a fort to crawl into with friends. Once teachers observe a repeated pattern like this, we offer materials that could help fulfill and satisfy the students in this schema of play. I cannot wait to see more of the little treasures that will be tucked into these by little hands!!

BAKING. See this happy little face? This is the girl who would not even touch banana bread until today. Not even Grandma’s famous banana bread. (Shhhh, don’t tell her! 😬). Little does this sweet girl know, but she learned more than just how to make bread. She learned math (measuring, number recognition), science(baking soda makes it rise), pre-literacy (recognizing that letters/words can give us direction), and pro social skills(waiting for your turn to add or stir). She was just thrilled that she was a part of the process, and what she doesn’t know won’t hurt her. 😉

LOOSE PARTS PLAY. Why loose part and what are they? In the Reggio approach to children’s learning, loose parts are an integral part of the classroom. You will find baskets, drawers, and trays with varieties of natural and man made materials for children to manipulate with no adult direction as to how they “must” be used. Children’s imaginations are given space to blossom with few boundaries, which promotes the development of hand eye coordination, foresight, patience, problem solving, and collaboration. When children enter this world of “what if?” the possibilities are endless!

INVITATION TO CREATE. We all know that when children play with play dough they benefit from building fine motor skills, hand eye coordination, and creativity. However, when you introduce new, and unexpected materials, smells, and textures you invite children to start thinking outside of the box. An opportunity is now created for even more creative thinking, problem solving, and cognitive flexibility. Don’t forget that children’s creations don’t need to be representational or “look like” something. The learning is in the process!