We were lucky enough to be given some black sand, we poured the black sand into the lid of the water trough and added a variety of implements for the children to explore the sand, such as trucks, cars, rakes, spoons and Magnetic rods. Because the black sand is iron sand the children were fascinated how the sand clung to the rods and how it looked like a spiky hedgehog and how it dident drop off, even when you held it upside down. This reflects children gaining physical knowledge which is described by Gonzalez-Mena (2008) "Physical knowledge involves an understanding in concrete rather than abstract terms of how objects and materials behave in the physical world" (p.398).
B,P, W and T using the implements in their own individual way as they explore the sand.
The children also noticed the shadowing from their bodies as I showed them the shadow of my hand across the sand. as the sun shone behind us. S experimented with the magnetic rods using the sandpit sand and realised that this sand did not do the same thing as the black iron sand.
S, D, P, B, K, and J enjoy each other’s company making black sand pictures experimenting with the way they pour the sand onto their glued paper and realising the sand won’t stick without the glue. This is representative of a constructivist view of children’s learning that Gonzalez-Mena points out that with the help of adults children are able “to interact with the world the things and the people in it” As well as being “capable of attracting others to interact with them, they have the built in motivation to reach out and grasp, to poke and prod, to shake and bang, to pull things apart and discover how they work” (p.400).
The children also noticed the shadowing from their bodies as I showed them the shadow of my hand across the sand. as the sun shone behind us. S experimented with the magnetic rods using the sandpit sand and realised that this sand did not do the same thing as the black iron sand.
S, D, P, B, K, and J enjoy each other’s company making black sand pictures experimenting with the way they pour the sand onto their glued paper and realising the sand won’t stick without the glue. This is representative of a constructivist view of children’s learning that Gonzalez-Mena points out that with the help of adults children are able “to interact with the world the things and the people in it” As well as being “capable of attracting others to interact with them, they have the built in motivation to reach out and grasp, to poke and prod, to shake and bang, to pull things apart and discover how they work” (p.400).
This learning experience reflects divergent interests such as how some of the children would rather experiment with sand at the trough while others were more interested in the creative aspect or nature of meduim. Helm and Katz (2001), suggest that "Even though children may not contribute to the investigations , they are often interested in reports of the work others are doing and may learn much about the topic by observing"... (p.17).
I found the quotes,ovided in this refelction, really interesting. You whole discussion showed how children learn from each other, the principle of "Ako" - the co-construction of knowledge.
ReplyDeleteHi Judy
ReplyDeleteGreat learning experience for the children. I really liked the way you were helping and guiding them through their exploration and discovery.
What a great learning experience for the children. Well done Judy. Perhaps you could also 'google' with children about 'black sand' :)
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