CHCECE018: Nurture creativity in Children

CHCECE022: Promote Children’s Agency

1a.) The skills identified by Broinowski for engaging creatively:

Skill for engaging Descriptor

creatively

Fluency The ability to think of many ideas related to a particular topic.

Flexibility The ability to think about and analyse a problem in many different ways.

Originality The ability to produce something (including thoughts) that is unique.

Elaboration The ability to take an idea and make it more interesting or complex

Curiosity Having an innate sense of wonder.

Complexity The ability to find many different and challenging alternatives to a

problem and to bring order out of disorganisation

Risk taking The willingness to try new approaches and learn from failures

Imagination The ability to go beyond the boundaries of reality

1b.) Thinking dispositions used to promote children’s thinking and creativity by Project Zero at the
Harvard Graduate School of Education:

The Artful Thinking program was developed as part of Project Zero to assist children to explore and
appreciate works of art. Using the artist’s palette as its central metaphor, the program includes the
conceptualisation of thinking routines and thinking dispositions which are used to promote
children’s thinking and creativity. The program refers to 6 thinking dispositions:

1. Questioning and investigating

2. Observing and describing
3. Comparing and connecting
4. Finding complexity
5. Exploring viewpoints
6. Reasoning

2a.) The combination of attributes that is required in order for children to express creativity as
suggested by Russ:
In order to consider the way in which creativity can be fostered in educational settings, it may be
helpful to identify some of the components of creativity in young children. Creativity is closely bound
up with an individual’s personality and emotional life: there is more involved than just ‘thinking
skills’.

1. Personality traits, such as self-confidence, being able to tolerate ambiguity, curiosity and
motivation

2. Emotional processes, such as emotional fantasy in play, pleasure in challenge, involvement in

tasks and tolerance of anxiety

3. Cognitive abilities, such as divergent thinking, ability to ‘transform’ thinking (for example, by
being able to reorder information or shift thinking ‘sets’), sensitivity to problems, breadth of
knowledge and judgement.

2b.)Three factors suggested by Mellou (cited in the reading) that can be used to nurture creativity
in an educational setting:

1. The creative environment – central to this factor is the promotion of children’s active
involvement in learning through play; the provision of a stimulating physical environment;
opportunities for sufficient and sustained periods of play.

2. Creative programmes - specific teaching of creative arts (research not conclusive).

3. Creative teachers and ways of teaching which includes:

- Asking open-ended questions.

- Tolerating ambiguity.

- Modelling creative thinking and behaviour.

- Encouraging experimentation and persistence.

- Praising children who provide unexpected answers.

- Also includes interpersonal interactions with adults and peers.

2c.) The factors that may limit or stifle creativity in early childhood settings are:

• Educators may be overly didactic or prescriptive.

• Discouraging fantasy or by having low expectations about what young children are able
to achieve.
• Pressure for teachers to focus on literacy and numeracy.
• Lack of training in early years practice.
 • A tension between meeting the needs of the group and encouraging the interests of an
individual.

The five Learning Outcomes are designed to capture the integrated and complex learning
development of all children across the birth to five age range. The outcomes are:

• Children have a strong sense of identity

• Children are connected with and contribute to their world
• Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
• Children are confident and involved learners
• Children are effective communicators.

3a.)The Quality Area and element from the National Quality Standard (NQS) that relates to
children’s agency:

• Quality Area 1 Educational program and practice.

• 1.1.6 Each child’s agency is promoted, enabling them to make choices and decisions and
influence events and their world.

3b.)The indicator within Learning Outcome 1: Children have a strong sense of identity that relates
most closely to children’s agency:

Children develop their emerging autonomy, inter-dependence, resilience and sense of agency.

3c.) The element in QA3 Physical Environment that relates most closely to the provision of creative
experiences in Children’s Services with regard to resources:

• Resources, materials and equipment are sufficient in number, organised in ways that
ensure appropriate and effective implementation of the program and allow for multiple
uses.

3d.) The indicators within Learning Outcome 4 Children are confident and involved learners that
relate to children’s creativity in regards to learning:

• Children develop dispositions for learning such as curiosity, cooperation, confidence,

creativity, commitment, enthusiasm, persistence, imagination and reflexivity.
• Children develop a range of skills and processes such as problem solving, inquiry,
experimentation, hypothesising, researching and investigating.
3e) Indicators within Learning Outcome 5 Children are effective communicator’s link children’s
creativity in regard to communication:

• Children express ideas and make meaning using a range of media.

• Children begin to understand how symbols and pattern systems work.
• Children use information and communication technologies to access information,
investigate ideas and represent their thinking.

4a.) Drew and Rankin (2004) define as the key goals for engaging in the creative arts:

• Communicate, think and feel.

• Express thought and feeling through movement.
• Express visual perception and representation through the process of play and creative
art making.

4b.) The 7 key principles of using open-ended materials:

Example Principle for using open-ended materials

Perri and Nora proudly announce: PRINCIPLE 1: Children’s spontaneous, creative

“Look what we did! We made a self-expression increases their sense of
backpack out of paper!” competence and well-being now and into
adulthood.

When working on a collage using
pieces of patterned paper, Conor
says: “Hey, these two patterns are
the same. See they both have
stripes!”
PRINCIPLE 2: Children extend and deepen their
understandings through multiple, hands-on
experiences with diverse materials.

Pre-schoolers, Mia, Rachel, Eva and PRINCIPLE 3: Children’s play with peers
Harry are seated at the drawing supports learning and a growing sense of
table. They are carefully drawing a competence.
vase of flowers that has been placed
on the table. “I’m finished”,
announces Harry. “No, you haven’t
 done the bits of yellow in the
middle”, say Eva. “Oh”, say Harry, “I
forgot! How did you do them?”

“I’m putting all the white rocks in PRINCIPLE 4: Children can learn literacy,
this pile and all the black ones in this science, and mathematics joyfully through
pile,” announce Hanneke. active play with diverse, open-ended
materials.

I see you’ve sorted the rocks PRINCIPLE 5: Children learn best in open-
Hanneke. I wonder how many rocks ended explorations when teachers help them
are in each pile?” make connections.

Wasn’t it wonderful to see how PRINCIPLE 6: Teachers are nourished by

excited the girls were about their observing children’s joy and learning.
paper backpack!”

Educators at Blue Bay Early Learning PRINCIPLE 7: Ongoing self-reflection among

Centre meet monthly to review how teachers in community is needed to support
children are using open-ended these practices.
materials to support creativity.

Open-ended materials – Post Hohmann and Epstein (2011)

Open-ended materials are objects or playthings whose use is not predetermined or narrowly limited
in action or purpose; rather, children can use them in many different ways.
A set of blocks, for example, is open ended because growing children can see and use them in
different ways: Infants reach for, grasp, mouth, drop, and bang blocks; toddlers carry, stack, and
make simple structures with blocks; pre-schoolers pretend and build with blocks, making
increasingly complex structures, and use blocks for pretend-play props; elementary school children
build elaborate designs, structures, and cityscapes of blocks and use them for tools.

Neill (2013) define loose parts:

Loose parts are materials with no specific set of directions, and they can be used alone or together
with other materials. They can be moved, carried, combined, redesigned, lined up, taken apart, and
put back together in multiple ways. The child, rather than a manufacturer or other adult, determines
how the materials are used.

Relationship between loose parts/ open – ended materials and creativity:

• Allows children to use their imagination in many different ways.

• The more flexible are the materials in their environment, the greater the level of
creativity and inventiveness they express.
• Kids really get to know the environment if they can dig it, beat it, swat it, lift it, push it,
join it, and combine different things with it. This is what adults call creative activity...a
process of imagination and environment working together.

The exploration and use of loose parts/open - ended materials supports creativity:

• Allows for individual self-expression of thoughts and feelings.

• Promotes creative thinking - children experiment and explore the potential of materials.
• Provides opportunities for children to share ideas and observe how others use materials.
• Allows children to experiment in using and combining materials in different ways –
promotes problem solving.

Facts:

• Divergent thinking, one of the cognitive skills required for creativity, is enhanced
through problem-solving challenges that allow for various responses.
 • Goleman, Kaufman, and Ray (1992) believe that relationship between thinking and
feelings, between mind and body, are critical to unleashing creativity.
• Young children can be supported to develop problem-solving and critical thinking
through creative movement.
• During creative movement experiences, children learn to think before they act, pay
attention to detail, and consider differences between experiences.
• Linking movement experiences with receptive and expressive language builds children’s
thinking skills.
• Carefully and rigorously reflecting on their past experiences and using their memory to
note relationships and make comparisons based on a set of criteria is an example of
children’s ability to engage in critical thinking.
• When educators ask children to recall what movements they did or saw their peers do
they are supporting children to use their working memory.
• Children can be assisted to recall and use descriptive language and discover new types of
movement when the educator engages them in bodily kinaesthetic and linguistic
connection experiences.
• Creative movement activities foster imagination.
• The scaffolding technique of ‘the three Es’ refers to engage, expand, and empower.
• Selected children’s literature fosters open-ended dance experiences and rich
conversations that promote children’s emerging literacy.

Area of Development

 Social  Emotional  Language  Cognitive  Physical

development development development development development

Benefits of music to children’s learning and development

a. Express feelings; soothe hurt feelings; increase feelings Emotional Development

of self-worth.

b. Explore the numerous ways in which their bodies move; Physical Development
improve balance and coordination; enhance fine motor
skills through finger plays.

c. Interact with peers, cooperate, take turns. Social Development

b. Develop new vocabulary; learn new concepts. Language Development

 c. Develop listening skills in songs requiring specific actions Cognitive Development
at specific times; develop creativity and imagination by
inventing their own song lyrics or dance moves; increase
attention span.

The skills that can be enhanced through music and movement experiences in each developmental
domain for children aged 0 - 24 months:

Developmental Domain
Social-Emotional
Physical (Motor)
Thinking (Cognitive)
Language and Literacy
Skills that are enhanced through music and movement experiences
 Learn and practice self-regulation,
 Experience self-esteem, self-confidence, and self-efficacy,
 Share and take turns,
 Develop cultural awareness and
 Understand emotions, cooperate and build relationships.
 Fine and gross motor skills,
 Balance, body awareness and
 Bilateral coordination or crossing the midline.
 Counting, patterns and sequencing,
 Steady beat,
 Memory,
 Discrimination or observation of differences and
 Pretend play and symbolic thinking.
 Spoken language,
 Dual language learning,
 Receptive language and
 Phonemic awareness.

Parlakian and Lerner (2010) suggest a number of music experiences to support children’s

development in different domains

Age Group Music Experiences to support children’s development

Infant (up to 12 months)  Language and literacy: Sing simple songs, including

Toddlers (12 - 24 months)
Older toddlers (24 - 36
months)
corresponding hand gestures e.g. Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
 Physical: songs that promote body awareness
 Social-Emotional: organise a music parade with instruments e.g. I
am the Music Man
 Thinking: play a game of fast and slow – moving too fast, medium
and slow tempo

The terms dance and movement are interchangeable when referring to creative movement.
Creative movement is an art form whose medium is the human body in motion.

The four basic elements of dance are:

• The body and its different parts and range of movement,

• Space,
• Time,
• Energy

Benefits of dance for young children in early childhood settings as per Bergstein:

• It is both a physical activity and a means of self-expression.

• Offers opportunities for exploring and creating.
• Does not require specific equipment.
• Can be adapted to suit different spaces.
• Can accommodate children with additional needs.
• Can be integrated into other curriculum areas.
• Gives children opportunities to move in new ways.
• Supports physical development.
• Promotes physical fitness.
• Provides opportunities for children to work in groups.
• Promotes critical thinking.
• Facilitates brain development.

Age Group Movement and dance experience to support children’s development

Infant (up to 12 months)  Lap/knee bouncing games e.g. “Giddy Up Horsey”.
Toddlers (12 - 24 months)
 Chasing and catching bubbles; “Waddly Archer”.
Older toddlers (24 - 36
 Ribbon/scarf dancing.
months)
Preschool (3 - 6 years)
 Responding to classical music with bodies; moving like animals,
trees, etc.
Dramatic Play:

A fantasy world created by children where their imagination soars, their language expands, and
their social skills develop.

Benefits of well-developed play on development:

• Development of social skills.

• Emerging mathematical ability.
• Mastery of early literacy concepts.
• Self-regulation.

Educators must support (engage in intentional teaching) play:

• They argue that without adult support the play of many children will never reach its full
potential.

The authors have developed a strategy for assessing and scaffolding children’s play which they
refer to as PRoPELS:

PRoPELS is an acronym that stands for the most critical elements of children’s play that can be
assessed and scaffolded by the adults.

Plan—children’s ability to think about play in advance of playing

Roles children play—including the actions, language, and emotional expressions that are associated
with a specific role

Props—the objects (real, symbolic, and imaginary) children use in play

Extended time frame—play that lasts for long stretches of time: within one play session for an hour
or longer or extending over several play sessions and over several days

Language—what children say to develop a scenario or coordinate the actions of different players as
well as speech associated with a particular role

Scenario—what children act out, including the sequence of scripts and interactions between roles.

Using PRoPELS to assess play gives teachers an idea of how mature play is in their classrooms.

The five stages of children’s make-believe play as suggested by Leong and Bodrova (2012):
On the continuum from most immature to most mature, children’s make-believe play goes through
five stages, with all of its elements (outlined above in the acronym PRoPELS) developing and
expanding:

 Stage 1: First scripts - is best described in terms of object-oriented pretend actions, such as a

child playing with toy cars while making “vroomvroom” sounds.

 Stage 2: Roles in action - be a child walking back and forth in high heels and, when asked,
labelling her actions as playing “mummy.”

 Stage 3: Roles with rules and beginning scenarios - children begin to coordinate their

pretend actions with their play partners, making sure that these pretend actions go with the
roles chosen by each of the players.

 Stage 4: Mature roles, planned scenarios, and symbolic props - children engage in multiple
pretend actions, all being consistent with the roles they are playing while acting out complex
scenarios.

 Stage 5: Planning and negotiating pretend  actions starts to take more time than actually

carrying them out - children sometimes play multiple roles without actually having physical
partners as they both “direct” and “act out” these roles with stuffed animals or even
imaginary partners.

Examples of an age-appropriate creative experience:

Age Group Creative experiences to support children’s development

 Soothing music, gentle rocking, singing to infant, use of high
Birth - 3 months
contrast black and white objects, sound hanging mobiles.
 Movement to music (swaying rocking with adult), use stories to
3 - 8 months
promote facial gestures, use toys with texture, sound, colour, adult
uses facial expression such as happy, surprised.
 Encourage imitation of sounds, use simple musical instruments,
8 - 18months
simple dance and movement, finger painting with water, drawing
with crayons.
 Support children to make choices – colour, songs etc, encourage
18 - 24 months
imagination, pretend play, dance, use non-toxic paints, play dough,
use simple percussion instruments, adult uses simple puppets with
toddler.
 Explore stories – what will happen next?, music, poems, drama
24 - 36 months
games, dance, drawing, painting.
 Poems, finger plays and rhymes, dance, drawing, sculpture,
3 - 4 years:
collage, singing, drama.
  Describe people in their world using pictures, body movement and
4 - 5 years
mime; making up stories, songs, use puppets, role plays, clay,
music and movement, sewing, drawing characters from books.

Key stages in children’s drawing development:

• Scribbling – making marks.

• Pre-symbolism – circles and lines used to represent a person, animal or thing.
• Symbolism – use symbols to create recognisable drawings.
• Introduction of a baseline so that drawing is not floating in space.

Scenario: Exploring Art techniques

Strategy appropriate for a group of pre-schoolers:

• Challenging children to consider new practices.

• Directing attention to detail.
• Drawing on children’s prior knowledge and making links to new experiences.

Experience that challenges children’s thinking:

• Provides children with the opportunity to consider art from a new perspective.
• Allows children to experiment with new techniques.
• Allows children to apply new information to existing knowledge and skills.
• Allows children to consider diverse ideas, perspectives and alternatives.

Introduce children to new knowledge and skills which may not arise if the educator were to only
follow the children’s current interests:

• Introducing new knowledge and skills to children challenges their thinking, offers new possibilities
and allows children to gain information and skills which they might not otherwise experience.

Scenario: Intentional Teaching

The educator use intentional teaching to extend the children’s learning as a follow-up from the visit
to the farm where the children saw the water buffalo:

• Provide natural resources such as leaves, pebbles, water tray to recreate the
environment seen at the farm.
• Add toy animals including water buffalo.
• Provide books that relate to the water buffalo and other animals the children may have
encountered. Include story and reference materials.
• Access the internet to explore facts and to answer any questions that the children or
educator may have.
 • Document the children’s voice by writing the story of the farm visit to accompany the
drawings.

Creativity in the context of Children’s Services:

• Extends to a wide range of creative processes such as problem solving, sharing ideas,
and exploring the work of others.
• Supporting children to produce something (including thoughts) that is unique and
original.
• Supporting children to think of many ideas related to a particular topic.
• Encouraging a sense of wonder, imagination.
• Encouraging children to try new approaches and experiment in areas such as visual arts,
drama, music and dance.
• Encourage children to try something new.

b) Explore the difference between product and process.

• Product centred experiences focused on a preconceived outcome that children may find
frustrating to achieve.
• Process experiences allows children to create and explore possibilities – unstructured
and child-centred.

c) Explore how the physical environment (including open-ended materials and loose parts) can
support creativity.

• Open-ended materials and loose parts are materials with no specific set of directions
that can be used alone or combined with other materials.
• Can be man-made or natural materials.
• Can be used anyway children choose.
• Can be adapted and manipulated in many ways.
• Encourage creativity and imagination.
• Develop more skill and competence than most modern plastic toys.
• Can be used in combination with other materials to support imagination.
• Encourage open ended learning.
• Note: Power Point should include photos of open-ended materials and loose parts.

d) Describe the role of the educator in supporting creativity.

• Facilitate opportunities for open-ended experiences.

 • Provide a wide range of resources and materials.
• Ask open-ended questions.
• Pose problems to be solved collaboratively.
• Encourage exploration and investigation.
• Introduce new vocabulary.
• Introduce children to new skills and techniques – art, dance, music, and drama.
• Provide children with feedback which acts to scaffold learning.
• Encourage children to notice detail – help make connections between what they see, do,
create.
• Assist children to find explanations for their observations/discoveries.

e) Provide examples of creativity in areas such as play (indoors and outdoors), music/movement,
dramatic play and the visual arts: