Kent: Okay. One more.
Child 1: Then my turn. Yep.
Child 1: Now my turn.
Child 1: Now it was my turn.
Kent: Hang on Ezra. Okay.
Kent: Thanks Daisy, that was really good.
Child 1: I want to do something. Wait, I'm going to put my legs in here.
Kent: Okay.
Kent: Ooh, was that good?
Child 1: Yeah.
Kent: You went into the bushes.
Child 2: I can do that trick.
Kent: Making yourself spring off there Ezra, wow!
Child 2: I can do that.
Kent: You can do that one too.
Kent: Do you want to have a turn after too?
Kent: No. No.
Child 1: Look, Ted!
Child 2: I can do that. Hey look.
Child 1: Again.
Kent: And can you do that standing up one that um Daisy did on it? Still practicing that one? I trying it but I can't.
Kent: Are you still practicing? Still giving it a go? Cool. Do you want, do you want Daisy to show you how she does it? Yeah but I think my leg's here but it's not working.
Kent: So sometimes it's really good if we can watch our friends do it, and then we can get them to help us to learn. Would you like to try?
Child 1: Yeah but I can do it with this?
Kent: Okay, and then maybe you can show Daisy something and Daisy can show you something?
Kirsty Liljegren: Hello, I'm Kirsty Liljegren. This encounter with two children on a rope swing in an outdoor environment could be perceived as a simple experience. We observe challenge and complexity. As we assess this play let's consider; what does it mean for a child to swing on a rope? How do the children respond differently to this challenge? What capabilities are we noticing and how might we see beyond the obvious? Does your assessment only focus on gross motor skills (vital as they are)? Can you dig deeper and analyze specific areas where learning is occurring? What else do you perceive to be part of this experience? This vignette opens with Daisy confidently organizing herself on the rope, coordinating her movements to pull the rope through and balance by clinging on with her hands and utilizing her core strength.
Kirsty Liljegren: Her demeanor is relaxed as she integrates her movements confidently and safely, demonstrating a sense of spatial awareness, using the tree as a springboard for spinning. Spinning is an essential movement for children to experience, to support the healthy development of their vestibular sense. This movement lays the foundation for children's sense of balance, eye control, attention, postural strength and so much more. A request from another child waiting on the log, "Now it's my turn", prompts Daisy to hand over the swing -
Kirsty Liljegren: - in that spirit of cooperation. Ezra confidently approaches the swing, her face beaming. She walks, purposefully communicating her intention and pre-planning how she'll maneuver herself. "I'm going to put my legs on here" . She swings and goes into the bushes. I'm curious if this was intentional or did her movement not quite go to plan? She persists, adjust her hands and body, and then manipulates the swing, this time with her legs swinging freely and next into the tree.
Kirsty Liljegren: Springing off intentionally, also showing her resourcefulness, using what is around her, the tree and space. We notice her looking back to the group for feedback and encouragement. As she swings away from the tree she again adjusts her body, specifically her knees, to increase the swings momentum. What we notice is her perception through movement. When invited by the teacher to expand her repertoire of skills by learning from Daisy, we see a strong sense of self confidently expressing her desire to learn in her time frame. As is described in the Victorian Early Learning and Development framework -
Kirsty Liljegren: - Children experience well-being as they develop a sense of achievement and as they learn to be flexible and adapt to new environments and events. Were you drawn to the child in the background? Swinging upside down, able to self assess the risk and capably coordinate her movements. In summary, we can assess many aspects of learning here, some unique to each child. When looking at the children's capabilities, we observed upper body strength and core strength, coordination, resourcefulness and executive functioning.
Kirsty Liljegren: That is, the mental processes that allow us to plan, focus attention, retain information, and juggle multiple tasks. Angela Hanscom, pediatric occupational therapist, shares in her book 'Balanced and Barefoot'; "the upper body muscles provide the foundation for refined movements of the fingers and hands". She says that for children to hold and write well with a pencil, they first need adequate strength and stability in the shoulders and arms. Of course, this is only one reason why upper body and core strength are so important.
Kirsty Liljegren: We must understand why specific experiences are developmentally important, be intentional in planning such experiences for children and have a sense of what we're looking for as children take part. Connecting this vignette with a definition of wellbeing in the Victorian Early Learning and Development Framework, we see evidence of good physical health, managing emotions, building resilience, being adaptable and confident, experiencing feelings of satisfaction and happiness. Reflection points for you to consider are:
Kirsty Liljegren: What knowledge about children's learning through movement do you draw upon when assessing children's wellbeing? What did you notice about the environment, both physical and relational, that encouraged children's movement for learning? And if you were analyzing this moment of play as a team, how would you go about noting the significant aspects of learning to inform the planning cycle?
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