One 18-month old girl at my centre, A, was especially interested in cameras after coming back from holidays. Her mum revealed to me that they had a very busy travelling holidays and photographing the scenery and them in it was a big part of the adventure. Every evening they would look at the photos on the computer and naturally A loved this. She was the star of the show. This experience would have showed and explained the world to A in a new way – with her being part of it (Ministry of Education, 2005). It would have helped her to realise who she was and how she could affect and contribute to her wider world by using technological media (Ministry of Education, 1996).
The second day, I decided to offer A
the experience from her holidays but from the other end of the camera. I believe
that A’s interest was connected with her need to tell us what she did during
her time off. However, not having the necessary verbal skills, she decided to
do this in a non-verbal way and the digital camera proved to be the perfect instrument
(Ministry of Education, 1996; Shah & Godiyal, 2009). I gave A the real camera
as one of the available “tools for exploration and communication” (Ministry of
Education, 2007, p. 32). I was a bit nervous letting the camera off my hand given
the young age of the child. I had many questions running through my head: ‘Am I
doing the right thing? Is the camera safe? How close do I need to stay to A to
protect the centre equipment? Is she going to be able to understand what to do
with it?’ However, I didn’t need to be worried at all. A showed me how careful
and competent she was. She looked after the camera very well and held it safely
in her hands. To me it seemed that she was aware of the preciousness of her
‘new toy’. She took many photos and suddenly became the most
important person in the world; everyone wanted to be in her presence. She had
the power over the camera, the power of choice, the power over her proximate
world. The camera provided her with a great sense of confidence and helped her
to fit again into the group of her peers and contribute to the centre family
(Ministry of Education, 2007). A’s sense of belonging to the setting had
suddenly increased remarkably (Ministry of Education, 1996).
These are some examples of the photos A took on this occasion (she took many more but in most of them her friends were clearly recognisable):
A’s exploration of the real camera and
her previous awareness of it gained from her parents helped her to “develop
knowledge particular to technological enterprises and environment and understandings
of how and why things work” (Ministry of Education, 2007, p. 32). A learnt
which button to press, where to look and even how to view the photos on the
screen. She was empowered by her knowledge and the opportunity to share her knowledge
with others (Ministry of Education, 1996).
During this
experience I realised how responsible children can be when given the trust and
opportunity. Yes, plastic toys fly straight to the floor; children know what is
real and what isn’t, what can break and what can’t. They are conscious of their
world and want adults to know their abilities. In the age of technology,
exploration has to involve technological equipment. This is their age and we
have to comply with it.References:
Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki, he whāriki mātauranga mō ngā
mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand:
Learning Media.
Ministry of Education, (2005). Foundations for discovery. Retrieved
from http://www.educate.ece.govt.nz/~/media/Educate/Files/Reference%20Downloads/foundationsfordiscovery.pdf
Ministry of Education, (2007). The New Zealand curriculum: For
English-medium teaching and learning in years 1-13. Retrieved from http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-documents
Shah, A., & Godiyal, S. (2009). ICT in
the early years: Balancing the risks and benefits. E-journal of All India
Association for Educational Research (EJAIAER), 21(2).
Retrieved from http://www.ejournal.aiaer.net/ARCHIVES2009.htm
Iveta, you have highlighted for me the reason why cameras are a good communication tool in ECE. As you stated, an 18 month old does not have the verbal skills to describe the wonderful trip she experienced with her parents. By using the camera to show everyone a pictorial story of her holiday this girl is becoming familiar with the uses of digital print while developing her understanding that cameras have meaning and purpose (Ministry of Education, 1996). By using the camera this girl is developing her understanding that visual representations, such as photographs, offer an important tool for communication and exploration of her world (Ministry of Education, 2007). I can relate to how you felt when you gave her the camera; you think to yourself at the very least “let’s hope this goes well”. We often underestimate children’s capabilities and their perception of what is real and what is not. This is an area where we as adults need to trust in our children giving them the opportunity to extend their learning. The empowerment that girl must have felt from being in charge of the camera would have been enormous. Are there opportunities for the children to take charge of the camera for a short time, narrate their story to you with the both the story and photos printed off as a learning story?
ReplyDeleteHearing about a family holiday has always been a favourite story time for me, and when there are photos, I know they will bring the story alive and I feel like I am on holiday with them, too Yes, I can honestly see ‘A’ as the star of her family holiday, with precious memories captured by a brilliant instrument. Photos of treasured family time together are great keepsakes for ‘A’ to “establish a secure foundation of remembered experiences” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 46).
ReplyDeleteThe shape and blue print of cameras have evolved over the years – yet they never fail to capture those precious moments – moments that are frozen in a frame of time so that we may reflect upon and enjoy them. I admire your sense of leadership. I can just imagine you juggling with those questions about placing the camera in the hands of a very young child. It felt like you doubted yourself. If you did, then I believe it is because you felt you are going to do something right – so again, I say I admire your sense of leadership. You have definitely adopted “the ‘why not’ approach” and as a facilitator you focused on providing ‘A’ with valuable learning opportunities and by placing the camera in her hands, you empowered her to take ownership of her learning (Keesing Styles, 2000). Interacting with her environment and peers, ‘A’ is “managing self, acting autonomously and participating and contributing in social groups (Ministry of Education, 2007). It is an amazing feeling to provide time and space for children to explore and to develop “a feeling of belonging” and responsibility within their environment (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 58).
Hi Iveta, I appreciate your effort on letting 18 month old child exploring a camera. As a teacher I believe that it is very important that teachers believe in children, as they are competent and capable learners (Ministry of Education, 1996). From my practice at the kindergarten I have formed an understanding about children that “High expectations always lead to higher outcome”. Camera is a technology tool which is very common in every household and in this particular instance it helped child A to make a connection between homes and centre (Ministry of Education, 1996). By using the camera A was able to form an understanding about visual representation of things and was able to communicate her ideas as she is not able to speak or write properly at this young age (Ministry of Education, 2007). The magical pictures that A has taken, you can extend the learning by using these pictures in art by making a scrapbook, or photo frame or simply cutting photos with her and revisit these lovely pictures in future.
ReplyDeleteIveta,
ReplyDeleteIn using the camera this child could make the links back to her home life (Ministry of Education, 1996), and also perhaps recall the events she saw through the photographs taken on her holiday and the way in which they were taken either by her parents or even perhaps, herself (MacNaughton & Williams, 2009). Do you know whether she had, in fact, taken any photographs herself on holiday, and so built on her previous knowledge (Ministry of Education, 2007), or you feel that other children would hold the camera as well and as safely as this child did? Would you feel comfortable to give other children of the same chronological age the opportunity or would you consider their development stage first.
We now have access to technology which gives a practically instant result, cameras, iPads, smartphones, microwaves, etc., do you feel that this impacts on a child’s perception of what waiting means? Does this sort of technology affect their development of patience and what happens when things do not happen immediately?