Old MacDonald’s Farm Came to Coastal Kids
A Reflection from a Social Science Perspective
The Visit from old MacDonald’s farm was not a planned visit by our room the “snapper room”, it was planned through the “sea horse room”, but we were lucky enough to be invited to include our children in the event. It could be said that it was a just by chance or spontaneous event. We had talked to the children about the upcoming event the day before it happened and sang old MacDonald’s farm song at mat-time. The day had arrived and we gathered the children around explaining what was going to happen and how we needed to walk sensibly out to the car park where old MacDonald’s mobile farm had parked the truck. The children were quite excited although I am sure they did not know quite what to expect. There were seventeen children in the group with four teachers, even this very small excursion out into the centre car park proved to be a slight challenge, as once out the gate the toddlers were keen to run in all directions, there was an urgent regrouping of the children. Once at the truck there was a ramp for people to climb aboard the truck, some of the children were as keen as mustered about it while others were quite apprehensive and needed a little bit of coxing about the whole idea. I was really pleased that I decided to stay for event as I was able to be fully informed about some of the childrens special interests in the visit and their interest in the animals Helm and Katz (2001) suggest having other adults on hand to help "carry additional cameras, camcorders, tape recorders to use for documenting the site visit experience" (p.35).
A Reflection from a Social Science Perspective
The Visit from old MacDonald’s farm was not a planned visit by our room the “snapper room”, it was planned through the “sea horse room”, but we were lucky enough to be invited to include our children in the event. It could be said that it was a just by chance or spontaneous event. We had talked to the children about the upcoming event the day before it happened and sang old MacDonald’s farm song at mat-time. The day had arrived and we gathered the children around explaining what was going to happen and how we needed to walk sensibly out to the car park where old MacDonald’s mobile farm had parked the truck. The children were quite excited although I am sure they did not know quite what to expect. There were seventeen children in the group with four teachers, even this very small excursion out into the centre car park proved to be a slight challenge, as once out the gate the toddlers were keen to run in all directions, there was an urgent regrouping of the children. Once at the truck there was a ramp for people to climb aboard the truck, some of the children were as keen as mustered about it while others were quite apprehensive and needed a little bit of coxing about the whole idea. I was really pleased that I decided to stay for event as I was able to be fully informed about some of the childrens special interests in the visit and their interest in the animals Helm and Katz (2001) suggest having other adults on hand to help "carry additional cameras, camcorders, tape recorders to use for documenting the site visit experience" (p.35).
What really stood out for me was the reaction of some of the children, and the spontaneity of their individual reactions. One child that is usually very quiet and never shows much excitement about anything, totally uncharacteristically patted, feed and hugged the animals and shrieked with excitement, this was something I would have never anticipated. I have written some learning stories for some of the portfolios and parents have also been surprised by their children’s reactions. Although the toddlers were so excited, they displayed excellent social skills once inside the truck, considering it was in a fairly confined spaced.
There were two of the children from our group that were keen to ride on the little Shetland pony, one of course being the quiet and reserved child I have previously have spoke about who definitely came out of his shell in the presents of the farm animals. As Scholl, (2005), suggests “Nothing sparks children’s desire to learn more than investigating things that they already know and care about” (pg 1). I asked his mother whether he had been around farm animals before and she said no, they just had a little schnauzer dog at home, so I am presuming this child has a natural born disposition toward a love for animals. Mum replied to my comments by suggesting she hopes maybe then he will become a veterinarian, and I enthusiastically agreed. This reflective entry reflects how spontaneous and unplanned events can impact on children lives and children can be introduced to many different aspects to their life. It shows how children’s natural dispositions and interest can be realised and the opportunity for these interests to be built on can be recognised. Te Whāriki (1996) Exploration strand suggests that children develop “a relationship with the natural environment and knowledge of their own place in the environment” (p.90).
The visit from the farm must be a new and exciting experience for the kids. Most kids like animals that is why the quiet and reserved child responded in excitement. We can extend children's learning of farm animals after the visit by providing children with farm animal puppets. They can use the puppets for pretend play and animals talk. Since the children had such meaningful experiences of farm animals, they must have great potential for pretend play. With time and teacher support, they can explore their own creativity. When children play and replay familiar events, they understand them better. Also when taking part in pretend play together, they learn to engage others in their fantasies. To arrange a visit to the Blueberry Country in Waikato where children can pick blueberries in the farm would be valuable experience for them too.
ReplyDeleteA good reflection on social studies. It really related to the community around the children. I am sure that children enjoyed interacting with the animals. Well done.
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