PLAY, EDUCATION, AESTHETIC PROCESSES, CO-CREATION, COMMUNITIES, STORIES
REGION: North
MUNICIPALITY: Thisted
PROCEDURE: 2022
DAILY OFFER: Dr. Louise's Kindergarten
Snippet: Dr. Louise's Kindergarten (2022)
Research questions
What does it mean for play when we connect it with art? We will be curious to see if art can contribute new aspects of play and new aspects of the children and ourselves. We will experience challenges in putting ourselves into play, but it will be interesting to see where it takes us in the process with the children.
How have you experienced the co-creation between artist/cultural educator/cultural school teacher, educators and children and possibly researcher?
It has been easy to be in the process with the artist and there has been a high degree of co-creation. The process was carried out at a calm pace and in a good atmosphere.
It's been easy to go to the artist and the kids are so happy with him.
The staff articulate that it has made sense that it has been going on for a longer period of time.
Artist experiences the same. "Yes, it's good - and it has been good that there has been a break (vacation)." He feels that some of the children have moved on and that they can be present in a different way.
How have children's perspectives been expressed/included?
The children have been able to participate on their own terms - from each individual's current standpoint.
The children could invent their own games.
Educator: "It has been good that the children have been able to walk to and from.
The children are generally very persistent in the project and can stay longer than the adults expected."
Do the children play different games and with different people than they usually do?
The kids have enjoyed stomping on sea buckthorn, drawing with grease paint that had been left out, etc.
Some of the children have overstepped their boundaries - for example, getting their fingers dirty.
The educators experience that the children continue to play with what happens/is in the project.
The children are playing with several different kids now and they have spotted some other children.
The educators became curious about the children's communities and found that the children could be very connected in play, even if it didn't always look that way.
How do pedagogical staff act differently than they did before PlayArt?
The educators have been given a wide range of new activities and games. Educator; "It's good to see that you can do some fun crazy things. That it doesn't have to be so correct."
One day, an educator had brought out a lot of things for a creative process, which she didn't usually do. She articulates that the staff have different roles and that she had not previously been an initiator. "But I enjoyed it a lot. It gave a good calm atmosphere."
In the nursery, the teachers approach the outdoor learning environments differently than before. "There are some other things we tackle in the playground. Now we look at what we have here and now that can be put to use."
There was a dialog about how in LegeKunst the process is the focal point, but that the product has been allowed to take up a little space and create its own "life"
Educator; ".... you know it, but it's good to be shaken up a bit that there doesn't always have to be a product."
During the project, there was time for the educators to observe the children's play and development. In particular, an episode with a group of children who were suddenly able to immerse themselves in a creative play together in the forest made an impression on the educators.
Educator: "Think about how much you walk around without experiencing these things, they probably happen elsewhere too. Your awareness is heightened in this project. It is rewarding and an eye-opener - how little it takes, as long as you are involved and present."
What has it been like to work with action learning?
It's been good to have ongoing reflection and to be able to try different things.
There are many things in the project including the fire, canvas, charcoal and various other things. The children experimented with many things and many senses were involved.
To the artist/cultural educator/cultural school teacher, if present: What have you gained from participating in LegeKunst?
Artist: "Even if you are well prepared, you have to have the courage to hold back a little before you intervene. You have to let the image stand until you can see it. I have to remind myself of that."
The artist articulates that it takes a certain investment, a surplus of professionalism and reflection to allow play to take place in this spirit, where you let go of control and move into experimentation.
What are educators still/now curious about?
It has been an eye-opener how little it takes and the peace and contemplation it gives to act as we have done in LegeKunst.
The educators will continue to work with what nature can do and how many materials you actually have in nature to make something with.
The educators will continue to work with the children being able to go to and from and explore the activities.
Educator: "The project has made me happy. It has been a primitive process, but to think that in 2023 you can create peace and contemplation with so little - that makes me happy."
The educational leader has been preoccupied with presence: "... there are so many things about that word, both for children, artists and staff. To dare to be in it - to surrender. This is where it arises."
How will you use art, culture and aesthetic processes in the future?
Educators generally want to be more creative. "It can be about creating creative things, plays, stories, etc. It develops the children to experiment, it gives them so much and it develops their imagination.
Artist: "It might be important to think of some concrete strategies for how it will live on. Be careful not to turn it into an insurmountable project, or you could end up holding yourself back. Then it sometimes ends up in the basement in a box".
Pedagogical leader: "Yes, it should be engaging and informal - you need to keep it at a level without a lot of objectives about getting somewhere."
