OUTDOOR LIFE, STORYTELLING, EDUCATION, COMMUNITY
REGION: Hovedstaden
MUNICIPALITY: Copenhagen
PROCEDURE: 2021
DAILY OFFER: North Star
Short story: The North Star (2021)
What wondering did you formulate in your SNIP?
How can we in Nordstjernen/udflytteren use nature more? Integrate it more into our activities?
How has the process gone in relation to your wondering?
How have you approached the process?
First course: In the relocator:
- Sensory bags - sensory exercises - touching stones: soft, rough, round, angular, etc.
- Finding stones: shovels/buckets - stones for different purposes: rolling, stacking, drawing with
- Know the difference between three types of stone: flint, chalk, granite
- What can stones be used for?
Second course: In the relocator:
- Activities from the Nature Center are repeated:
- Sensory bags
- Finding stones in the playground and courtyard
Activities in between:
- Stones in the workshop
- Trip to the fjord
- Geological Museum - rock collection
- Children's meeting: What should we do with the stones? What can they be used for?
Fourth - sixth course:
In the next courses, they would like to pursue the method of giving an impulse and then see what happens. Next time it will be about Birds.
At the Nature Center: Find clues - feathers, shells, etc.
When moving out: Finding clues - feathers, shells, etc.
When moving out: Make impressions of tracks in plaster, possibly outside
In between meetings:
- Bird boxes
- Birdwatching binoculars
- Collect tracks
- Hear bird calls - record sounds
- Trip to the beach - mussels
- Walk: What are we going to find?
- We need to observe what the children want to do?
Reflection on the work of our wonder:
We are surprised that the children could just go to Stengården and spend a lot of time there.
The workshop process: the children did a lot of the same things, there were not so many different approaches to creating something. The different environments (beach, stone yard, workshop) provide different processes with the children. Dan (educator) and Laura (educator) experienced that the children's creativity was greatest on the beach.
How have children's perspectives been expressed and included?
Both during and between the courses with the Nature Center, it is a working method at Nordstjernen that the children are involved in talking about what is going to happen and how we can continue working with, for example, the stones we have found? And we observe what the children want to do.
What changes have you experienced and recorded in your snap stories?
The educators have experienced that the children's relationships across the rooms have been strengthened. They are helpful and create together.
When children and teachers are in a new place, teachers experience greater immersion and creativity, possibly because there are no distractions and/or routines to follow.
It has been exciting to set experiments free and not give the children the answer but investigate together. In these situations, it has been an advantage to have everything ready. But at the same time, the children have to help, help themselves and wait their turn.
Aska (the nature educator) has discovered that more immersion is possible, which is why you could easily do theme weeks with kindergartens. She has new communication methods such as storytelling that need to be practiced. The courage to play - to have the courage to play with the children - has been opened up. Work has been done to capture the children's curiosity and follow it. Easier to take detours.
Do the children play different games and with different people than they usually do?
It is very much in the free space with the children that the children bring something with them. Parents say that the children talk about rocks and birds. The children go back to their everyday scenarios after the PlayArt activity. An idea to stay together so they can play freely with the same group. Perhaps you can tie it together with stories, such as how the bird king got his name. Perhaps fantasy games could be created based on this. You could create costumes to support the play.
How do pedagogical staff act differently than they did before PlayArt?
- Set experiments more free and explore with children
- Uses simpler spaces as a means of immersion (not too many tools)
- Trying to break out of everyday routines to make room for immersion
How has your collaboration been?
It has been inspiring to work with such authentic educators, where things can be difficult and not succeed. Great energy for the children.
We have complemented each other well.
How will you use the lessons learned in your future work?
We would like more immersion, where we only deal with one topic that is "close" to/always available. E.g. rocks, water etc.
