one box/three round objects
For our first play/create/build classes, we asked each child to bring one box and three round objects. You will be amazed by what children can do with simple, open-ended materials without instruction.
It is incredible to watch these children work with new materials in unique and inventive ways. None of them have taken our class before or worked with found materials in the past. Yet they all dove right in and engaged with us and their materials as if it were their native language. Children have a natural curiosity and ability to see potential in materials.
Here are some of our observations:
As one PreK child was building, someone commented, “It’s almost balanced. It looks like it’s going to fall but it’s not!” Without saying anything, the builder then adjusted the balance so it was stable.
In a third grade class, a child was not building because he had not been able to find a box in his home. We had a short discussion about how boxes come in all shapes and sizes, and we asked him if he thought he might be able to find something right then. His response was immediate: “nope.” The next thing we knew, he had constructed a whole tower with not just one, but two, boxes that happened to be round, not rectangular or square (a peanut can and a cookie tin).
Another third grader was disappointed in himself when he realized that he had brought materials “from home; these are things that I use,” when we had asked them to bring objects that would have otherwise been thrown away or recycled. But that’s how learning happens: he built with what he brought that day and had a clearer understanding of what to bring next time!
A couple of PreK students experimented by putting their items inside their boxes and immediately noticed that they made a sound. This sound became contagious as we all shook our boxes simultaneously. One exclaimed, “I love this noise!”
Another element that became evident throughout all of our classes was the accessibility of the found objects we use while we play, create, and build. Everyone has these items in their homes, as they would otherwise be recycled or thrown away. Even children who forgot to bring their materials to class quickly looked around the room they were in to find a box and a few round objects. This means that everyone can be successful (and we learned that we might even have some of the same materials!).
Children immediately seek connection when they see matching materials on the screen. “I have one of those too!” In our current world where meaningful connections feel harder to hold onto, it is a special moment when we can create that relationship through a screen. The connections we are making were especially evident in our latest class when it was time to say goodbye. One child shouted out, “Don’t go!”
