Creating Invitations for Learning - ChildCareExchange.com

1 By Deb CurtisThe birds living in a tree just outside the window of ourschool generated quite a stir among the three- and five-year-old children in the program where I am a child care was much excitement and delight as the childrenobserved the birds build a nest and care for their new take advantage and extend on this wonder-filled event, Idecided to gather some props and materials for our indoorenvironment and invite the children to more personallyexplore and represent what they were seeing through thewindow.

2 At the local craft store I found some beautiful bird familiesmade from feathers, a set of tiny plastic eggs, and a few birdnests commercially made from twigs and feathers. I alsocollected feathers, dried leaves, grass, and moss and a varietyof small, flat baskets. I carefully arranged these items on thetop of a low shelf in the classroom and displayed booksabout birds and nests nearby. The children eagerly acceptedthis invitation, imitating the drama they had been observingout the window. They were especially drawn to acting outhow the bird parents cared for their babies.

3 The children alsodesigned elaborate nests with the natural materials, sharingtheir theories about what kinds of nests the birds would the next month the children continued to play with thebirds and nests, poured over the books about them, and par-ticipated in many other activities and conversations sparkedby this enchanting event in nature and the opportunity topursue it in active, meaningful my work as a preschool teacher I have found that offeringinformation about things that children have limited experi-ences with, or posing a series of questions to try to encouragetheir thinking doesn t seem to get much of a lively or sus-tained response.

4 But when I carefully arrange props and rep-resentational materials in the environment with a particularfocus in mind, the children are delighted to discover andplay with them, eagerly share their ideas and theories, andseek more information. Because of this I have been steadilycollecting, organizing, arranging, and offering props andrepresentational materials that captivate children s InvitationsI call collections of interesting and carefully combinedmaterials Invitations and I use them in a number of ways.

5 Invitations to respond to and enhance an emerginginterest, as with the Bird Invitation described I observe an interest among the group I intentionallyorganize props and materials for children to revisit andrepresent their ideas. As I observe their conversations andactivities, I get new information for what else to offer toextend the activities and Learning possibilities. Invitations to help children learn new skills and multipleuses for tools and materials that are a part of the arrange materials and make displays throughout theregular areas of the room, often including documentationwith diagrams, instructions, or photos of children sprevious work in this area.

6 For example, I arrange blocksand other block props in specific ways that suggest newpossibilities for building and design and include photos ofchildren s previous block constructions. The children usethese Invitations as launching points for revisiting theirwork, adding complex ideas, and trying new Curtis has been a preschool and childcare teacher at the Burlington Little Schoolin Burlington, Washington for the past seven years. She is also co-author of severalbooks with Margie Carter. This article was extracted from their latest book Designs forLiving and Learning , Transforming Early Childhood Environments, published by Redleaf Care Information ExchangeMay/June 2004 Creating Invitations for LearningSingle copy reprint permission from Child Care Information ExchangePO Box 3249, Redmond, WA 98073 (800)221-2864 use copy agreement available for educators by request.

7 Invitations to offer activities and experiences withparticular content knowledge. Designing Invitations related to math, science, socialstudies, literacy, and other content areas of early childhoodeducation gives children experiences in wonderful waysthat are engaging and natural for their active learningstyles. When Creating these Invitations I try to highlight aparticular skill, concept, or information, and offer anengaging way to explore or practice the concepts. Forexample, I created a small sensory tub filled with lavenderscented rice and included an array of hollow, plastic, threedimensional geometric shapes for children to fill with therice.

8 As the children work, they are exploring the physicalknowledge related to geometric forms and spatial relation-ships. We name the words for the shapes as they are fillingthem cube, cone, etc. Invitations to introduce children to new concepts or I want to plan for a particular topic or concept, Iarrange a collection of materials and props in an accessibleplace in the room for the children to visit and use through-out the day. I observe their actions and record their conver-sations so I can uncover their ideas and understandings forfurther planning.

9 For example, I assembled a display ofdolls with different skin colors, photos, and books aboutthe Civil Rights Movement and differences among people. Ileft them out a few weeks before the celebration of Luther King s birthday. As the children interactedwith the materials, I took note of what they seemed toknow and understand about the life of Dr. King. I was sur-prised to discover how little the children knew about thisgreat man, but also heartened to see their intense interest inhis life and work around issues of fairness.

10 The informa-tion and interactions spurred by this simple Invitationhelped me design more meaningful activities around theholiday celebrations, based on the children s ideas for Designing InvitationsAs I have been studying how to collect and create Invitations ,I have drawn inspiration from many sources. Maria Montes-sori and her well-known materials and methods, includingPractical Life activities has made such an important contribu-tion to my practice. Fredrick Froebel, known as the father ofkindergarten and the inventor of blocks, described hisapproach to organizing and offering materials as Gifts forlearning.