GRL1501-23 Guide

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GRL1501/1/2022–2025
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CONTENTS
Page
Introduction ix
SECTION A: Movement activities 1
LEARNING UNIT 1: T he role of physical education on development and the impact on the
learning readiness of young children 2
1.1 Introduction 2
1.2 Definition of key concepts 3
1.3 The role of movement in physical, social and emotional and pshychological
development 4
1.3.1 The nature and place of the motor and physical development of the child 4
1.3.2 The physical value and aim of movement 6
1.3.3 The social and emotional value of movement 8
1.3.4 The cognitive value of movement 9
1.3.4.1 Perceptual motor development 10
1.3.4.2 Perceptual motor development 11
1.3.4.3 Categories of movement 12
1.4 The gross motor development of the child according to the motor
development phases 13
1.4.1 Motor development phases 13
1.4.1.1 The reflex system, its role and influence in learning 14
1.4.1.2 Rudimentary movement abilities/phases 16
1.4.1.3 Fundamental motor skills 20
1.4.1.4 General movement skills 20
1.4.1.5 Specific movement phase 21
1.4.1.6 Specialised movement skills 21
1.5 The impact of motor skills on the child's learning readiness 21
1.5.1 The link between movement and learning 22
1.5.1.1 The sensory system 22
1.5.1.2 The vestibular system 23
1.5.1.3 Proprioceptive system 26
1.5.2 Essential learning which takes place through movement 28
1.5.2.1 Movement assists with the development of the vestibular system 28
1.5.2.2 Movement facilitates the development of body awareness 28
1.5.2.3 Development of spatial awareness 29
1.5.2.4 Laterality 29
1.5.2.5 Directionality 29
1.5.2.6 Crossing the midline 30
1.5.2.7 Development of the concepts of "background" and "foreground" 31
1.5.2.8 Ability to focus on a specific point 32
1.5.2.9 Visual tracking 32
1.5.2.10 Movement improves visual skills 32
1.6 Conclusion 33
1.7 References 34
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1.7.1 Articles 35
1.7.2 Recommended books 36
1.7.3 Google links 36
LEARNING UNIT 2: L esson planning, making equipment and assessing gross motor
ability 39
2.1 Introduction 39
2.2 Definition of key terms 39
2.3 Safety precuations for movement lessons 40
2.4 The role of the teacher in the planning and accompaniment of movement
activities 41
2.4.1 The importance of engagement through discussion during the
presentation of movement activities 42
2.4.2 Open-ended questions are valuable as a teaching strategy in movement
activities 42
2.5 Planning the multiple-station movement lesson 43
2.5.1 Characteristics of a multiple-station movement lesson 43
2.5.2 Setting up a variety of stations 44
2.6 Presentation of movement lessons 45
2.6.1 Providing encouragement 45
2.6.2 Including learners with disabilities 45
2.7 Multiple-station lesson format 45
2.7.1 Warm-up 46
2.7.2 Main section 46
2.7.3 Conclusion of lesson 49
2.7.4 Example 1 of a full lesson layout on one A4 page (Krog 2017) Grade R 50
2.7.5 Example 2 of full lesson layout on one A4 page (Krog 2016) Grade R 51
2.8 Incorporating various subjects in movement lessons 52
2.9 Making your own equipment 53
2.10 Physical milestones and development of the child 55
2.11 Assessing a movement activity 55
2.12 Indigenous games 58
2.12.1 Lesson plan for games 58
2.12.2 Examples of traditional games 59
2.13 Conclusion 59
SECTION B: Creative arts – visual arts 63
LEARNING UNIT 3: The importance of visual art for young children 64

3.1 Introduction 64
3.2 Defintion of key terms 64
3.2.1 The concept of creativity 64
3.2.2 Five stages of the creativity process 65
3.2.3 The creativity process 66
3.2.4 The role of the educator in encouraging creativity in young learners 66
3.3 What is art? 67
3.3.1 Types of art (art disciplines) 68
3.3.2 Visual arts 69
3.4 Art elements 70
3.4.1 Visual art elements 70
3.4.2 Two-dimensional artwork 74
3.4.3 Three-dimensional artwork 75
3.4.4 The role of the teacher in teaching 2D- and 3D-art 76
3.5 Importance of visual arts in Grade R 77
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3.5.1 Benefits of art in young children 77
3.5.2 Importance of visual art in the Foundation Phase 78
3.5.3 Teacher's approach in guiding learners towards art activities 79
3.6 Stages of development in early childhood art 80
3.6.1 Viktor Lowensfeld's stages of artictic development in children 80
3.6.2 Overview of Piaget's stages of development 81
3.6.2.1 The teacher's role to encourage scribbling in young child 83
3.6.2.2 The practitioner's role in supporting children to make marks 84
3.6.3 Kellogg's outline of developmental stages 85
3.6.4 The role of the teacher in guiding learners through scribbling 87
3.7 The holistic model of child development in art 88
3.7.1 Holistic development 88
3.7.2 Physical development 88
3.7.2.1 Gross motor skills and development 89
3.7.2.2 Fine motor skills 90
3.7.3 Social development 90
3.7.4 Cognitive development 91
3.7.5 Emotional development 91
3.8 Multicultural approach in visual arts 91
3.9 Sensory development – art therapy 92
3.10 Conclusion 93
3.11 Additional learning experience 93
LEARNING UNIT 4: Implementing the Grade R programme 94
4.1 Introduction 94
4.2 Defining key terms 94
4.2.1 Daily routine 94
4.3 Understanding the daily programme in Grade R 94
4.3.1 Elements of a daily programme 95
4.3.2 Breaking down of the themes 95
4.3.3 Things to consider when developing the theme 96
4.3.4 Prepating for emergencies 96
4.4 Planning for a Grade R class 96
4.5 Art across the curriculum for the foundation phase 98
4.5.1 Integrating art across the Grade R daily programme 100
4.5.2 Characteristics of an integrated curriculum 100
4.5.3 The following is an examples of art lessons 100
4.6 Developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) 102
4.6.1 Applying developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) when designing a
daily programme 103
4.6.2 During the preschool years 104
4.7 The role of the teacher in desiging activities 104
4.7.1 Teacher-guided activities 104
4.7.2 Child-initiated activities 105
4.8 A Grade R art classroom 106
4.8.1 The role of the teacher in a Grade R class 107
4.8.2 Classroom layout 107
4.8.3 Factors to consider when planning your prescribed classroom layout 108
4.8.4 The role of the teacher in a Grade R class 109
4.9 Inclusion of play in the art classroom 109
4.9.1 Types of play 110
4.10 Assessing learners' progress in visual art 110
4.10.1 What is assessment? 110
4.10.2 Why do we assess in Grade R 110
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4.10.3 Principles of valid and reliable assessment for young children 111
4.10.4 How does the teacher assess the Grade R learner? 112
4.10.5 The role of the teacher in the assessment of young children 114
4.10.6 The assessment process 115
4.11 Suggested activities for Grade R 118
4.12 Conclusion 119
4.13 Additional learning experiences 120
4.14 Additional resources 120
5.15 References 120
SECTION C: Creative arts – music, dance and drama 125
LEARNING UNIT 5: The value of music for child development 126

5.1 Introduction 126
5.2 Importance of music in the early life of children 126
5.3 The value of music in young children's holistic development 127
5.3.3 Social and emotional development 130
5.4 Summary 132
5.5 Resources 132
LEARNING UNIT 6: Teaching music in the Grade R classroom 134
6.2 Music in the context of the Grade R curriculum 134
6.2.1 Music as a component of the Creative Arts 135
6.2.2 Principles of teaching music 136
6.3 Teaching music in Grade R 137
6.3.1 Resources to teach music in Grade R 137
6.3.2 Terminology and concepts explained 138
6.4 Music activites in a music programme 139
6.4.1 Singing 139
6.4.2 Games and action songs 140
6.4.3 Instruments and the body as percussion instrument 141
6.4.4 Movement 142
6.4.5 Listening 142
6.5 Lesson planning 143
6.5.1 Aspects required for a good lesson plan 144
6.5.2 Lesson plan examples 145
6.6 Integrating music with other Foundation Phase subjects 147
6.7 Summary 147
6.8 References 148
LEARNING UNIT 7: The importance of dance for child development 150
7.2 The significance of dance 150
7.2.2 Social development 151
7.2.4 Emotional development 152
7.2.5 Creative development 152
7.3 Resources 153
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LEARNING UNIT 8: Teaching dance in the Grade R classroom 154
8.2 Key concepts of dance 154
8.2.1 Body awareness 154
8.2.2 Choreography 155
8.2.3 Improvisation 155
8.2.4 Stance 155
8.2.5 Space 155
8.2.6 Rhythm 156
8.2.7 Gesture 156
8.2.8 Jete 156
8.2.9 Kinesphere 156
8.2.10 Projection 156
8.3 Dance in the classroom 156
8.3.1 Improvisation as main component of the dance programme 157
8.3.2 Elements of a dance lesson (lesson structure) 158
8.4 Practical considerations 159
8.5 The role of the teacher during a dance class 160
8.6 Integration of dance across the curriculum 160
8.7 Conclusion 161
8.8 References 162
LEARNING UNIT 9: Drama in early childhood education 163
9.2 Defining child drama and dramatic play 163
9.3 The significance of drama in the holistic development of the child 165
9.3.1 Language development and communication 165
9.3.2 Socio-emotional development 166
9.3.5 Sensory awareness and recall 166
9.3.6 Aesthetic development 167
9.3.7 Development of imagination 167
9.4 The elements of child drama 167
9.5 Drama in the curriculum 168
9.5.1 Structure of the drama lesson 169
9.5.2 Dealing with discipline 169
9.6 Practical considerations in dramatic play 170
9.7 How to use drama to assess the development and readiness of a child 170
9.8 Strategies for integrating drama across the curriculum in teaching and learning 172
9.9 Conclusion 172
9.10 References 173
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Introduction
Welcome to the module GRL1501 – Movement and Creative Activities, a first-year module
which forms part of the Grade R Diploma programme.
The module intends to develop the qualifying students’ knowledge regarding the
understanding of the nature, importance and role of physical activities, music and creative
activities in the life of the child. The relationship between the neurological development
of the child and movement as well as the impact thereof on the child’s learning readiness
is emphasised in order to address motor development requirements by determining
gross motor efficiency and perceptual motor ability, designing appropriate movement
activities and lessons, making suitable equipment, presenting and evaluating the child’s
gross motor skills in early childhood development.
The module also addresses knowledge of the two parallel and complementary streams of
creative arts. It explores and develops creative ideas based on personal experiences using
the sensory system as observational tool. This module further provides a fundamental
understanding into musical development through experiences in singing, playing
instruments, doing rhythmic movement and listening activities with children in this
developmental phase.
In this module, you will learn and investigate the impact movement and creative activities
have on teaching and learning in the early grades. This means it is linked to the teaching
practice module. The information in this study guide is organised according to learning
units. The outcomes of each learning unit are stated at the beginning of the unit. You
are advised to formulate questions to test your knowledge and skills around these
outcomes. The activities in each learning unit are designed to further assist you with
your understanding of the content. Self-reflection questions have been set at the end
of each learning unit to help you assess your mastery of the content. Please note that
these questions do not include every question that could possibly be set on the content.
This study guide explains how you (as a teacher) should use the content of this module
to plan and guide your teaching. You are advised to obtain and interact with this policy
documents, which can be accessed on this website: https://www.education.gov.za/
Curriculum/CurriculumAssessmentPolicyStatements(CAPS)/tabid/420/Default.aspx.
Information pertaining your assignments has been provided online, which will also guide
you on how to approach and plan your study of each leaning unit. There is no prescribed
book for this module. It is my hope that you engage with this module and find it practical,
useful and, most importantly, interesting.
All the best with your studies!
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Section A
Movement activities
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Learning unit 1: T he role of physical education on development and the impact on

the learning readiness of young children2
Learning unit 2: L esson planning, making equipment and assessing gross motor
ability39
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Learning unit 1
The role of physical education on development
and the impact on the learning readiness of young
children
1.1 INTRODUCTION
This learning unit aims to introduce you to the role of physical education in the development
of the young child. It will focus on the nature of motor development and illustrate the
value of motor development in the life of the child. The importance of motor and physical
activities in Grade R will be highlighted. This unit will also address the role and impact
of movement on the learning readiness of the child. For the purpose of this module, you
need to take note that physical education is presented as movement activities in Grade
R within the Foundation Phase.
LEARNING UNIT OUTCOMES
On the completion of this learning unit, you should be able to:

• Define key concepts relevant to this learning unit, motor development, movement,
physical literacy, perceptual motor and physical education.
• Illustrate the role of movement in physical, social, emotional and psychological
development.
• Understand the gross motor development of the child according to the motor
development stages.
• Interpret the impact of motor skills on the child’s learning readiness.
• Understand the link between underlying sensory systems, movement and learning
readiness.
1.2 DEFINITION OF KEY CONCEPTS

• Motor development is characterised as a clear pathway which occurs from birth to
adulthood. It is a continuous process that occurs over the aforementioned period. Motor
development is predictable according to the skills acquired from birth to adulthood.
• Movement refers to the physical and entire motor development process from infancy to
old age and includes all the developmental patterns of basic motor skills at all age levels.
Movement lies at the heart of learning. Learning, language and behaviour are all linked
in some way to the function of the motor system and the control of movement. It is
known that children have an insatiable desire for movement, but very often, educators
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and parents suppress the desires of the child and believe that they only learn when
they are sitting still and paying attention.
• Movement activities are an essential ingredient of physical activity. These activities
not only include the various categories of movement such as stability, locomotion and
manipulation activities, but also a wide range of activities which must be planned for
and presented to learners in the Foundation Phase.
• Physical development refers to the process linked to the child’s structural or body size.
• Sensory motor integration refers to a relationship between the sensory system (nerves)
and the motor system (muscles). It also refers to the process by which these two systems
(sensory and motor) communicate and coordinate with each other.
• Fundamental movement skills are movement patterns that involve various body
parts and provide the basis of physical literacy. Fundamental movement skills are the
foundational movements, or precursor patterns, to the more specialised and complex
skills used in play, games and specific sports.
• Physical literacy is the ability to move with competence and confidence doing a
wide variety of physical activities in multiple environments that benefit the healthy
development of the whole person. A child who is competent in movement is able to
perform a variety of much-needed fundamental motor skills.
• Perceptual motor is a combination of sensory skills and motor skills that allow a person
to synchronise body movements. Perception has to do with the contact that the brain
makes with the outside world by means of data which is gathered through the senses.
This development begins at a very young age and involves perception of relations in
space, for instance, enabling a child to see an animal in a tree (a leopard or bird). This
leads to the development of background and foreground. It also involves a perception
of position in space when infants look at an object on a mat. No matter what angle they
are looking from, it will stay the same.
• Physical education is considered the education of, by and through human movement.
It can mean different things to different people. It is an essential subject which is
dedicated to learning about the psychomotor domain and at the same time focuses on
the development of lifetime physical activity patterns and behaviour.
ACTIVITY 1.1
In your own words, define the following key concepts:

(1) motor development
(2) movement
(3) physical development
(4) physical literacy
(5) physical education
(6) perceptual motor
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1.3 THE ROLE OF MOVEMENT IN PHYSICAL, SOCIAL AND
EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT
Movement is the main focus of a child’s development and has an impact on his/her
cognitive and affective development as well as his/her motor development. It provides
children with a concrete means with which to act in, interact with and react to the world.
Children use movement to explore, experiment with and discover their surroundings,
and as an information-gathering device to help them acquire increasingly complex
knowledge. Movement can help children expand their way of seeing themselves and
their surroundings and is therefore an inseparable part of the child’s being.
The amount of time available for movement has reduced. According to the Healthy
Active Kids Report Card South Africa (2016; 2018), the modern world has resulted in
the modern child being far more sedentary and obese (Uys et al 2016). Children spend
a great amount of time watching television, playing on computers and messaging on
their cellphones. Because of this, their physical fitness has declined. Physical activities
form the most important part of a young child’s life. It is their means for exploration and
discovery. It assists the child in staying active, increases healthy living and contributes to
lifelong participation.
Motor skills involve the movement and coordination of our muscles and body. The
development of motor skills is linked to the central nervous system. Motor development
therefore follows a definite neurological sequence, which directly influences the child’s
functioning and learning, which is the underpinning departure of this section. It is divided
into gross motor skills and fine motor abilities. Gross motor abilities require the child to
use their arms, legs and large parts of their body. Activities like crawling, jumping, running
and skipping utilise the large muscles of the child’s body. Fine motor abilities develop later
and require the use of the smaller muscles in the fingers, hands and feet for important
actions like picking up an object or holding a pencil. It is crucial for the young child to be
provided with opportunities to develop their gross motor skills before the development
of their fine motor skills can be refined.
ACTIVITY 1.2
(1) View the Health Active Kids Report Card for 2016 and 2018 in the e-reserve list.
Can you list the various aspects which are used to compile the status of physical
activity across South Africa?
1.3.1 The nature and place of the motor and physical development of
the child
Children are unique and each one of them develops differently. There are various factors
which influence a child’s development. Children go through various phases of growth
which scaffold each other. The most important stages are physical, social-emotional and
cognitive growth. Movement helps to enhance these particular aspects.
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Movement is the most basic and the most important subject of a curriculum. It is through
this subject that children learn to think and feel, to use their senses and imagination, as
well as to express their feelings and communicate through participation in the movement
programme. Children should be allowed enough time to do movement which is part of
physical education outlined in the curriculum. Teachers must make it fun and provide
some measure of success in order to encourage children to continue doing movement
and not to lose interest at an early age.
We often do not realise that children are developing and maturing every day. It is important
to know that children have particular diverse capabilities and needs. For this reason, we
need to take cognisance of what Palmer (2016) considers on her blog as the key benefits
of early childhood education (search the blog on the link provided in the list of e-reserves).
The key benefits Palmer (2016) discusses can be linked directly to this learning unit and
are essential in a child’s motor development as well. Let us consider the various aspects
of how a child benefits if incorporated in movement:
• Socialisation through movement activities with others in a safe, structured environment,

which is important for development.
• Cooperation through movement activities provides opportunities for sharing,
cooperation, taking turns and perseverance within a safe learning environment that
is guided by teachers who have the children’s best interests at heart.
• Holistic development enables us to build a strong foundation for a child’s emotional,
social, physical and psychological development.
• Enthusiasm for lifelong learning through movement is what teachers need to
inspire children towards and further create opportunities for lifelong participation in
physical activity.
• Conveying the value of education through experience in movement activities in
the Foundation Phase provides new perspectives on the importance of education.
• Respect is developed through movement activities as learners learn how to respect
each other while learning new motor skills and playing indigenous games.
• Teamwork in movement activities instil the value of teamwork during a variety of
games and challenges.
• Resilience is taught through movement as learners have more opportunities to
experience and negotiate challenges which provide for resilience.
• Concentration is developed with the many opportunities which are presented for the
learner to improve concentration and enhances learning during movement activities.
• Patience and tolerance of diversity are taught through interaction with others during a
movement lesson. Movement exposes learners to an abundance of social experiences
which assist with teaching patience and tolerance.
• Confidence and self-esteem are developed while participating in movement.
Movement activities promote a strong sense of wellbeing, which improves confidence,
optimism and self-esteem. It encourages learners to explore their talents and skills.
• Cultural diversity is enhanced in movement. Being exposed to a variety of activities from
different cultures through movement teaches children respect for others, understanding
and empathy.
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Through the presentation of movement activities in the Foundation Phase, it is important
to consider the above-mentioned diverse capabilities and needs of learners within an
African perspective.
ACTIVITY 1.3
(1) Can you think of examples of indigenous games which children can play which
enhance cultural diversity?
1.3.2 The physical value and aim of movement

Recently, movement has come under the magnifying glass, especially because of its effect
on the young child’s physical development. The importance of movement to promote
healthy eating habits, to reduce stress, to help avoid substance abuse, reduce obesity
and promote a healthy active life style should be part of the school’s physical activity
programme. Many schools omit the prescribed time for physical activity and deem it to
be a waste of time. The physical education programme is part of holistic development
which is required in order to promote movement experiences that contribute to the total
growth and development of children. Physical education must provide opportunities for
experiences of physical activity.
Research has proven the physical benefits of physical activity (Kalaja, Jaakkola, Liukkonen
& Digelidis 2012; Armstrong, Lambert & Lambert 2011). The need to help children learn
motor and lifetime activity skills is essential. For the purpose of this section, the focus
is on young learners in the Foundation Phase (Grades R). You as the teacher in the
Foundation Phase must realise the value of movement for the development of learners
from Grades R to 3 as integrated beings. Movement influences a number of aspects of
children’s development which form a balanced, integrated whole. Children’s bodies
are their primary instruments for exploration, for experiencing their world and what
they can achieve physically. The physical aspect of movement is intertwined with other
aspects of physical health. The four main objectives of physical development are: vigour,
strength, stamina and suppleness. Activities should be planned in order to create ample
opportunities for children to reach these objectives. The primary aim of physical education
is to help children realise their movement potential. Children learn within the framework
of their own abilities, capabilities and efforts. The teacher needs to provide the setting,
opportunities, feedback and encouragement for each child to succeed.
What do running, jumping and throwing have in common? They are all things that children
love to do, and at the same time, are key building blocks for being physically active for life.
This is called physical literacy and refers to the ability to perform fundamental motor skills
proficiently and to have the motivation, confidence and competence to move for a lifetime.
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ACTIVITY 1.4
Can you answer the following questions?

(1) Is physical literacy important?
(2) What does physical literacy entail?
It is essential for teachers to understand the importance of learning through active play
and structured play in movement lessons for children between zero and nine years old. To
increase the chances for children to be physically active for life, they must develop physical
literacy at an early age and this needs to be maintained through childhood and adolescence.
The early years therefore provide a window of opportunity for developing motor skills and
establishing lifelong patterns. It is also a time of rapid growth and physical, emotional and
social development. Physical activity in the first five years helps the child’s brain grow
and develop and improves their social skills for later years. Children of all ages learn through
active play. Active play can be done in a number of ways including adult-directed or free play,
indoors or outdoors, and in groups, pairs or alone. Active play helps children to improve their
movement skills and confidence which again motivates further active play or exploration
as illustrated in the figure below.
Figure 1.1
Learning through active play in movement activity
You as a teacher, will need to model and support the learners during these activities to
become physically literate by means of the following:
• various opportunities to play and socialise with each other

• a place that allows them to move freely (various movement stations)
• challenging games
• opportunities for them to express themselves and take the lead in the movement
activities
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It is therefore important for you to identify the specific movement aims to develop the
fundamental motor skills needed to function. These are divided into three categories,
stability, locomotion and manipulation, which will be discussed later in this section.
Another important physical aim is to help the child gain the necessary motor control.
Motor control refers to body management, which is to physically control the body. This
will all assist in encouraging and increasing the desire for movement which further aims
to help the child to keep physically fit and healthy. Motor control is also a key requirement
for learning readiness and is discussed later in this section.
ACTIVITY 1.5
(1) What are the advantages of incorporating movement activities from a young age?
(2) Define active play and structured play, from zero to nine years.
(3) What is the role of the teacher in providing for active play and structured play?
(4) Discuss the difference between motor control and the movement aims.
1.3.3 The social and emotional value of movement

The social and emotional development of the young child is important and it is often
described as socio-emotional development. It helps to create a positive self-concept and
body image which are linked in the young child. The experience of successful movement,
or the lack of it, is important for the formation of a positive or negative self-concept as
the young child experiences the world corporeally (bodily) by means of movement. A
positive self-concept is formed when children experience themselves as loved, accepted
and successful. Children have concrete experiences of these aspects. It is the sum of
these feelings and experiences that in turn creates a positive body image. The young
child’s relationships with people in their environment, as well as the environment itself,
play a major role in developing the self-concept. An environment rich in opportunities
to explore and experience success encourages children to explore, therefore expanding
their knowledge and abilities.
A young child’s willingness to enter into and explore new situations is largely determined by
their expectations of success. It is, therefore, important for the teacher to plan movement
lessons that are exciting and inviting to the learners. The equipment choice is crucial. The
selection, availability and degree of difficulty of the equipment chosen, critically affect
the child’s expectation of success. This then determines their willingness to participate
and to solve problems. A positive experience during a movement lesson will encourage
initiative, originality and creativity in concept formation and problem solving.
There are a number of people who all add to a child’s socio-emotional development. These
include other teachers, parents, coaches, friends, peers and family with whom the child
has a need to connect in different ways. During the early years, parents and caregivers no
doubt have the greatest influence. Figure 1.2 provides a summary of the socio-emotional
development. Between the ages of six and nine years of middle childhood, their friendship
groups get bigger and they learn to compare themselves with others. In later childhood,
10 to 13 years, their friends are more important and their social contacts are built. During
adolescence, 13 to 20 years, peer groups become the dominant influence.
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Figure 1.2
Socio-emotional development
(Source: Adapted from Krog [2017a:130])
ACTIVITY 1.6
(1) In what way do young children benefit socially and emotionally from movement
activities?
(2) What socio-economic characteristics need to be taken into consideration in zero-
to-five-year-old children when compiling movement lessons?
1.3.4 The cognitive value of movement

According to Krog (2017a), Piaget was at the forefront of recognising the importance of
movement in the development of a child’s cognitive and psychomotor abilities. Emphasis
was placed on the importance of movement as an information-gathering tool for children
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in order to explore and learn about the world around them. Figure 1.3 provides an
illustration of the various aspects of cognitive development.
Figure 1.3
Cognitive development
1.3.4.1 Perceptual motor development

Perceptual motor development refers to the child’s ability to receive, interpret and
respond successfully to sensory information. Perceptual motor learning further involves
the implementation and refinement of sensory sensitivity to the child’s world through
movement by mainly expanding the learner’s spatial and temporal world. The development
of perceptual motor skills requires the development of body awareness, spatial awareness,
directionality, laterality, and the crossing of the midline and background and foreground.
These skills include locomotor skills, stability skills and manipulation skills (hand-eye and
foot-eye coordination). It also refers to learning to move with efficiency and control. A
balanced movement programme should promote the development of perceptual motor
skills as this has an impact on the child’s ability to learn and should include
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• visual perception, like following an object with their eyes
• eye-hand and eye-foot coordination
• figure-ground perception
The acquisition of these skills is important because without them, children often struggle with
fine motor skills that are essential for formal schoolwork such as handwriting, paperwork
and even reading. The basis of fine motor skills is therefore laid by sufficient perceptual
motor abilities. Movement concepts are ideal to reinforce ideas related to academic abilities
which involve science, mathematics, literacy and social studies.
1.3.4.2 Psychomotor development

Psychomotor development (figure 1.4) should be the centre of a physical education
programme (Krog 2016). Accordingly, it refers to learning to move with control and
efficiency. Both cognitive and affective competencies are developed through psychomotor
development as well as learning through movement. Psychomotor development is divided
into two components, namely movement abilities and physical abilities. Movement abilities
include the three broad categories of movement, namely locomotion, manipulation and
stability. Physical abilities refer to physical fitness or motor fitness which includes the
development of spiritual, emotional, social and physical fitness.
Figure 1.4
Life skills
(Source: Krog 2020)
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ACTIVITY 1.7
(1) Define perceptual motor development and state which perceptual abilities are
linked to academic learning.
(2) Explain how effective development can be improved using movement programmes.
1.3.4.3 Categories of movement

Movement is divided into three main categories, firstly, action movements which are
defined as all spontaneous, reactive motor expressions aimed at a specific goal; secondly,
expressive movements, which add meaning to the movement; and thirdly, representational
movements. This classification actually says very little about the “mechanics” of the
movement. It would be difficult to view all movements performed by young children
and aims at a specific goal. The goal may be clear to adults but it is often unclear to the
child. Thus, movement is divided into three categories of fundamental movement skills
which represent a practical approach that provides a basis for curriculum planning, namely
stability, locomotion and manipulative skills.
• Stability (non-locomotion skills)

Stability forms the basis of all locomotion and manipulation skills. It requires maintaining
equilibrium throughout a task. It gives the toddler a sense of security to try new movements
confidently. In order to run, jump or even walk, balance has to be unconscious. Also,
before being able to hit a ball, balance is also needed.
Mastering stability is a critical motor task for the young child. It is far more than just
motor equilibrium. It is in fact a physical, psychomotor and cognitive task. The sense of
equilibrium requires a total body awareness and a sense of left-right, front-back and top-
bottom. Efficiency of body movement depends on the sense of body location. A child can
only improve his/her efficiency once he/she begins to structure sensory feedback from
his/her own movements. It is important to know that stability (balance) is dependent on
a proper vestibular functioning.
• Locomotion
Locomotion refers to changes in the location of the body relative to fixed points in the
ground. This is when the body is being transported in a horizontal and vertical direction
from one point to another. The most basic form of locomotion is a baby’s crawling, rolling
and sliding. To be involved in walking, running, hopping, jumping, skipping and leaping,
is to be involved in locomotion. The importance of locomotion is not the complexity but
the degree of control mastered by the child. Control and coordination enable the young
learner to determine the speed (fast, slow), intensity (loud, soft) and duration (long, short)
of movement.
Rhythmically coordinated movement indicates that the child has mastered the fundamental
skill of locomotion. The absence of rhythmic locomotion in an older child often indicates a
problem of some kind since by this stage he/she should not only have mastered locomotion
12
but in the normal course of events should be refining it. Rhythmic locomotion also
forms the basis for sporting activities and less obvious movement tasks such as speech.
Coordinated movements are required to function sufficiently in the class.
• Manipulation
Manipulation is the last skill that is developed. The word “manipulation” suggests the
handling of objects and includes tasks like kicking, stopping and rolling an object with
one’s feet. Successful manipulation is an advanced motor activity. Infants develop the
ability to pick up and hold objects from the age of about 18 months. It manifests earlier
than stability because an infant starts to reach for objects even before they can sit or crawl.
Each child’s individual mastery potential must be emphasised. You should not measure
one child’s ability against another. Their own development is important. Manipulation is
important for participation in most forms of sport as well as for control of the everyday
world. Writing, eating and tying shoelaces all depend on manipulation skills.
This category is essential for exploring the surrounding world. Stability and locomotion
help the child structure his/her world in terms of dimensions, direction, space and time,
but manipulation is the main means of exploring it. A baby or young child relies mainly on
his/her sense of taste to gain information about his/her environment. It is only at a much
later stage of development that the child’s visual and auditory senses assume a primary
role in exploration. As the child’s manipulation becomes more refined, the amount of
information gleaned from the surrounding world increases. This is very important for
concept formation and the development of abstract thinking.
ACTIVITY 1.8
(1) Name and define the three categories of movement. Also give an example, applicable
to zero- to five-year olds, and to six- to nine-year olds, to substantiate each category.
1.4 THE GROSS MOTOR DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHILD

ACCORDING TO THE MOTOR DEVELOPMENT PHASES
Young children spend hours engaging in movement in order to explore their surroundings.
During their exploration, they are faced with various motor challenges that form an
essential part of motor development as well as human growth and development. Motor
development is divided into six motor development phases.
1.4.1 Motor development phases

The six phases of motor development highlight the different stages that a human being
goes through from birth to adulthood. It is a continuous process that occurs over time.
Motor development shows a progressive change in movement throughout the life cycle.
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The acquisition of motor skills in each phase is predicable, but each person differs according
to the rate and extent of development. It is further determined by individual and other
factors such as heredity and environment within the movement activity (Krog 2019).
You need to read with understanding in order to distinguish the difference between and
progression through the various phases. Figure 1.5 illustrates how motor development
progresses, as well as the importance of the fundamental stages or phases which pertain
to children between the ages of two and adulthood. The following figure illustrates the
six phases of motor development, which are identified by Gallahue, Ozmun and Goodway
(2012) and adapted in Krog (2017).
Figure 1.5
Phases of motor development
(Source: Adapted from Gallahue et al (Krog 2017:135)
1.4.1.1 The reflex system, its role and influence in learning

Phase one is the reflexive movement phase. It ranges from birth to about one year of
age. In this phase the infant participates using reflexive movements. The reflexes discussed
later in this section include the Moro, rooting, palmar, asymmetrical tonic neck and spinal
Galant reflexes.
The movements of a newborn are actually reflexes which are the initiators of movement
patterns during early childhood development. They form an integral part of growth and
development. These involuntary movements are used to map general neurodevelopment
and uphold the basic skills required for learning. Reflexes provide the foundation for all
14
motor development. They are involuntary movements and are subcortically controlled
(controlled by the lower brain).
Reflexes are significant for a child’s ability to learn to attend, read and write. Reflex
activities provide the basis for later cognitive development (Krog 2016). In the first month,
the newborn is essentially controlled by reflexes, which form the foundation of all motor
development. Sucking, swallowing, breathing, crying, coughing and sneezing need to
be in place so that the child can progress to more skilled movements such as rolling,
sitting, creeping, crawling, walking and running. Reflexes emerge in utero and should be
inhibited (vanish) around certain times. Should these reflexes stay uninhibited (retained),
it may result in problems later in life. Sally Goddard Blythe is an expert on reflexes and
has published a number of publications about the influence of reflexes on learning.
Read the following resources in conjunction with this section:
1. Krog, S. 2015a. Movement activities: A critical link in developing motor skills and
learning in early childhood. African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation
and Dance (AJPHERD), 21(1):426–443.
2. Krog, S. 2016. Physical education in the Foundation Phase. In M Naudé & C Meier (Eds).
Teaching life skills in the foundation phase. Pretoria: Van Schaik Publishers.
3. Website: www.integratedlearningstrategies.com.
The Moro reflex
The Moro reflex is the first reflex which emerges around nine weeks in utero. It is a rapid
movement made in response to sudden stimulation. It is fully present at birth and should
be inhibited (around five to six months of life). A child whose Moro reflex has not been
inhibited can display anxiety. The most common known effects on learning should this
reflex not be inhibited are anxiety, possible auditory confusion which could result from
hypersensitivity to specific sounds, sensory overload, emotional and social immaturity,
oculomotor and visual perception problems, and possible poor pupillary reaction to light
when it comes to learning (Goddard 2002). Only a trained physical or movement therapist
is able to detect retained reflexes.
ACTIVITY 1.9
Read about the Moro reflex and the impact it has on learning at www.integratedlearning
strategies.com.
• The rooting reflex
The rooting reflex which emerges between 24 to 28 weeks in utero is at its strongest in
the first couple of hours after birth. This reflex is inhibited between three and four months
of life. The sucking and swallowing reflexes are vital for early feeding. A retained rooting
reflex may result in continued sensitivity and immature responses to touch in and around
the mouth area. It may further result in poor speech and articulation development later
in childhood (Goddard 2002).
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• The palmar reflex
This reflex used for grasping emerges at 11 weeks in utero and is fully present at birth.
When lightly touching the palm of the hand it will result in closure of the fingers. The link
between the palms with movements of the mouth can be seen when a child first learns to
write and draw. Children sometimes push their tongues out and almost lick their lips with
circular movements. Speech difficulties, poor manual dexterity and overflow movements
with the tongue in the mouth may be noticed should the reflex not be inhibited.
• The asymmetrical tonic neck reflex (ATNR)
This reflex develops from 18 weeks in utero and is fully present at birth. The ATNR assists
and reinforces the birth process and is inhibited at about six months of life. Children
with retained ATNR have problems with cross-pattern crawling as well as with hand-eye
coordination.
• The spinal Galant reflex
This reflex emerges at 20 weeks in utero, is actively present at birth and is inhibited
between three and nine months of life. A child with a retained spinal Galant reflex may
display symptoms that could lead to fidgeting, the inability to sit still, clumsiness, poor
concentration, poor short-term memory, bedwetting and frequently making noises
(buzzing, humming).
1.4.1.2 Rudimentary movement abilities/phases

Phase two is the rudimentary movement phase. It includes the basic motor skills learnt
in infancy: reaching, grasping and releasing objects, sitting, standing and walking. Skills
acquired during the rudimentary movement phase (during the first two years) form the
foundation for the fundamental phase indicated in figure 1.6.
The reflexes, which are involuntary movements, assist the child in the first few months of
life in developing permanent movement patterns. Rudimentary movement during infancy
will include various challenges which children are faced with. Infants must be able to lift
their heads while lying on their stomachs, roll over from lying on their stomachs to their
backs, spend time on their hands and knees, crawl, do cross-pattern crawling, get up
from the floor to stand and then walk. The sequence of these rudimentary movements
is provided in figure 1.6.
16
Prone with head extension Prone on elbows Rocking side to side
Rolling from prone to supine Rolling over Prone extended arm support
Crossing midline Crawling (on belly) Four-point on all-fours stance
Creeping Kneeling Half-kneeling
Cruising Standing Walking
Figure 1.6
Rudimentary movements
(Source: Krog 2016)
Tummy time is one of the most important stages of learning development, helping the
child to develop depth perception, and back and core muscles. Reaching and grasping
while on the tummy improves hand-eye coordination, visual tracking and hand strength.
This will eventually lead to good readers, who pay attention and focus in the classroom,
have the ability to listen, follow directions and copy notes from the chalkboard, and sit
still at their desks. Look at the image below and determine if you are able to answer the
two questions posed: Does tummy time develop gross motor abilities? Why is tummy
time important for later learning?
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Figure 1.7
Tummy time
(Source: www.integratedlearningstrategies.com)
Research has further pointed out how important the development of motor skills during
the rudimentary movement phase is. The child needs to gain control over certain motor
skills as they have relevance for later learning. A brief discussion is provided below of
lying prone with head extension, rolling, sitting and crawling.
• Prone with head extension
Motor development starts when the baby attempts to lift his/her head when lying and
in this way moves against the forces of gravity. The action of lifting the head enables a
baby to gain control of the head and develop muscle tone which is a key component
to be able to sit in a chair and also gain control of the body. Time spent on the stomach
is far more important than many parents think (Liddle & Yorke 2004:43–47; Krog 2016).
Total body movement must be developed with the head and the movement of the limbs
on one side to the eventual independent movement of the head and limbs. With repeated
tummy time efforts, the child is able to bring one side of the body to the midline and
eventually to cross the midline from one side of the body to the other (Goddard Blythe
2006a).
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• Rolling
Rolling is one of the first attempts of any child to cross the midline. During the many
attempts to roll over, the child is also learning how to defy gravity. A number of classroom
activities require the ability to cross the midline. For example, the ability to fasten shoelaces,
pass objects across the body from left to right or right to left, read from left to right (this
requires the eyes to track the sentences across the page) and write from left to right
across the page. Drawing a figure eight lying on its side also requires the ability to cross
the midline.
Figure 1.8
Drawing a figure eight
Rolling also assists with the optimal brain development of the connections between the
eyes, hands and other body parts. The coordination of all body parts is needed to be
able to sit in a chair, write on paper and look at the board and back to the board again.
The ability to control the body relies on a certain degree of muscle tone. A child with low
muscle tone can experience problems with gross motor as well as fine motor activities.
• Sitting
Whether playing with blocks or toys or eating, hand movements need to be coordinated.
The hips and shoulders work separately while enabling rotation of the head as well. Sitting
also helps to develop muscle tone and general balance in a chair. The ability to maintain
balance provides an effective stable base to perform eye-hand and fine motor functions.
Should these actions not be stable and almost automatically ingrained, the child will lose
concentration and focus. This could lead to the child falling behind academically (Goddard
Blythe 2006a; Hansford 1992).
• Crawling
The most important motor development milestone of an infant is crawling. It assists with
a child’s visual development of near and far vision. The crawling movement elaborates
nerve networks which lead to the development of hand-eye coordination. It also assists
with the integration of the left and right side of the body which is needed for walking as
well as stabilising the shoulder girdle. The stability of the shoulder girdle forms the basis
of fine motor control, which is required for cutting activities, tearing activities, holding
pens, painting activities, stacking blocks and turning pages.
Crawling also lays the foundation for spatial awareness (proprioception). A good sense
of spatial awareness enables the child to distinguish left from right, as well as to avoid
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the reversal of letters like b, d and p. It also increases visual development, balance and
the integration of the two sides of the brain. General strength and coordination of the
shoulders, wrists, hands and fingers are improved during the crawling stage (Liddle &
Yorke 2004:71; Pheloung 2003; Krog 2016).
In conclusion, crawling helps with the development of the vestibular (balance),

proprioceptive (body in space, spatial) and visual systems which are initiated once the
child starts crawling. Developing fundamental motor skills relies on sufficient opportunities
provided for the development of these rudimentary movements and are discussed in
the next section.
1.4.1.3 Fundamental motor skills

Phase three, the fundamental movement phase, is the most relevant phase for this
learning unit which ranges from two to seven years (figure 1.5). Krog (2010) explains that
during the fundamental phase, children achieve better control over their gross and fine
motor movements. Children do not always develop fundamental motor skills naturally
through the maturational processes. These skills must be taught to children. Motor skills
such as running, jumping, throwing and catching are refined during this phase of motor
development (Hands 2012). The skills learnt in this stage are initially learnt in isolation.
There are three subsections of the fundamental movement skills. During the initial phase
(two to three years), the first goal-orientated attempts are exaggerated as children’s
bodies have poor rhythm and temporal/spatial sequencing. During the elementary phase
(four to five years), children are seen to have better control, and rhythm and temporal/
spatial sequencing are still somewhat restricted or exaggerated while mature elements
are missing. During the mature phase (six to seven years), children are mechanically
efficiently coordinated and more controlled elements are present. Once these skills
have been mastered in each phase, they can then be combined with other skills to form
movements that are coordinated.
Should the child have difficulty in performing fundamental motor skills, he/she must be
provided with opportunities to revisit the movements acquired in the rudimentary phase,
such as rolling, crawling, cross-pattern crawling, cross-pattern walking and rocking. You
will need to know how these fundamental motor skills affect learning in the class when
it comes to writing activities, reading and mathematics.
1.4.1.4 General movement skills

Phase four, the general movement skills phase begins at about eight to ten years
of age. General motor skills have a similar focus to fundamental motor skills; however,
accuracy, form and skilled performance of fundamental movement skills are emphasised.
Young children become more involved in a variety of sport skills during their primary
school years (Grades 3 to 5). An increased exposure to, and development of motor skills,
are required. It is necessary for children to start focusing on a degree of competency.
Teachers must, however, still avoid overspecialisation or overloading (too many activities)
at all costs. Children are still young and their skeletal structure is still fragile. Tendons and
ligaments are not fully conditioned for any intensive activity.
20
1.4.1.5 Specific movement phase
Phase five is the specific movement phase and covers 11 to 13 years (Grades 6 to 8).
This stage involves the refinement of fundamental and general motor abilities. At this age,
children are psychologically more mature and capable of coping with activities which
require form, skill and accuracy (Krog 2017).
1.4.1.6 Specialised movement skills

Phase six is the specialised movement skills phase and covers ages 14 and older. The
focus during this stage is on developing specific skills for high levels of performance. It
entails the development and application of a range of leisure as well as Olympic-standard
activities as not all children will become elite athletes. Specialising too early should also
be avoided and may hamper the development of general and specific movement skills.
In conclusion, teachers in the Foundation Phase must understand the progression of

motor development through the stages, indicated in this learning unit. Foundation Phase
teachers need to refrain from specialising in highly skilled motor skills as these can only
be performed at an older age once children have developed the necessary body strength
and maturity. Opportunities should be planned for the many experiences in movement
considering the age and motor development stage. It is further necessary to know that
there is a link between motor development and a child’s learning readiness.
ACTIVITY 1.10
(1) Which aspects that are important for later learning may not develop if children do
not roll and crawl?
1.5 THE IMPACT OF MOTOR SKILLS ON THE CHILD’S

LEARNING READINESS
We have a brain because we have a motor system that allows us to move away from danger
and towards opportunity. Educational systems that reduce most students’ movement to
one activity of merely a writing sequence of letters and digits on a playing field the size
of a sheet of paper don’t understand the significance of motor development (Hannaford
2005:107).
The child’s readiness for school depends on a number of aspects, school maturity, social
maturity, emotional maturity and physical maturity. No child is able to develop readiness
on their own; they require the necessary stimuli to assist in readiness and must be provided
with encouragement. Each one matures at a different pace and all children are not equally
ready when entering school. Apart from emotional and social readiness for school, the
child also needs sufficient motor development skills to be able to learn. A number of skills
are discussed in this section.
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A well-taught and well-planned movement programme can have a huge influence on
a growing child who is learning to use his/her own body, developing attitudes about
exercise and activity, as well as acquiring knowledge related to the body and movement. A
child’s participation in a well-structured movement programme can influence peer group
acceptance, assist with the development of a good self-concept, increase confidence and
have a positive effect on other aspects of a child’s development and academic performance.
1.5.1 The link between movement and learning

Movement is essential to the child’s general development, and to intellectual development
in particular (Krog & Krüger 2011). From birth, children use movement as the gateway to
senses, and act upon and discover the world around them. The child’s experience of the
world is primarily through senses and motoric abilities. A child’s sensory motor system
develops through movement when using the far senses (touch, smell, taste, sight and
hearing) and the near senses (vestibular, proprioceptive and kinaesthetic systems).
1.5.1.1 The sensory system

It is necessary to emphasise the development of a healthy sensory system as it is crucial
for the development of learning readiness. According to Kokot (2006:51), children who
experience trouble with their sensory systems also usually have one or more developmental
problems or delays which have an impact on their academic achievements. The body
cannot function without the sensory system as it is an interrelated system. Very early
in life, sensory awareness develops and it is directly related to movement. The sensory
system (vestibular, proprioception, tactile, visual and auditory) along with the gustatory
(taste) and olfactory (smell) systems form the full complement of ways through which
information can reach the central nervous system (CNS). The development of the sensory
system (figure 1.9) is hierarchical in nature.
Seaman, DePauw, Morton and Omoto (2003:50) state that the first systems to develop
are the vestibular, proprioceptive and tactile systems (earlier-maturing sensory system).
At birth, the mentioned systems are almost completely mature and functional, whereas
the visual and auditory systems (later-maturing systems) are not as mature. The later-
maturing systems are interdependent of the earlier-maturing systems.
22
Figure 1.9
The five sensory system structure
(Source: Seaman et al 2003:50)
ACTIVITY 1.11
(1) In your opinion, do you think the sensory system has an influence on learning
readiness? Give reasons for your opinion.
1.5.1.2 The vestibular system

The vestibular system can be considered to be a person’s internal global positioning
system (GPS) for motor planning and attention. It is considered to be the internal guide
which tells your body where you are and where you need to go. This system works hand
in hand with the body’s visual and proprioceptive system. It also sends messages to the
brain and other parts of the body providing information on how to respond to the sensory
information that the body is exposed to on a daily basis.
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Figure 1.10
The vestibular system
(Source: www.integrated learningstrategies.com)
The vestibular system is vital for a child’s learning. If this system is underdeveloped
or experienced some type of inflammation or injury, a learner may experience some
difficulty in the classroom with attention and focus, reading, writing, behaviour and
retaining information. The vestibular system sends messages to the brain which in turn
sends messages to the different parts of the body (motor planning, proprioception, vision,
auditory, hand-eye coordination, muscles and joints).
ACTIVITY 1.12
Think of the following situation:

You need to tie your shoelaces and your brain is sending the message of what to do.
Do you think you will need to have balance, coordination, muscle tone, fine motor skills
and hand-eye coordination to perform this? In actual fact, this task is the same for most
of the tasks learners need to perform at school. Think of drawing a figure eight, writing
from the left side of the page to the right side.
If the vestibular system did not develop properly, learners may constantly fidget while
sitting. They will not be able to sit still and will find it difficult to listen and attend to
what the teacher is saying. They will also find it difficult to copy notes from the board.
These learners will find it difficult to keep up with other learners and will be distracted
in the class. They have to work much harder to control their body and movements to
be able to focus, retain information, solve problems, be organised, write letters correctly
and track words across a page.
24
(1) Why is our vestibular system critical for learning?
(2) Why is the vestibular system critical for movement?
The vestibular system is different from the other sensory systems. It is found inside the
skull which protects it and is very small and intricately formed. The vestibular system helps
to detect a person’s position in space and the signals it gets from the brain. It also helps
to detect gravity, movement and other sensations in order to help the body with balance.
The vestibular system consists of receptors located in the inner ear, inner ear apparatus, as
well as the visual system, auditory system and proprioceptive system, all coming together.
The apparatus in the inner ear include the utricle, saccule and three semi-circular canals.
The vestibular system is constantly bombarding the brain with messages. These messages
include, for example, how fast the body is accelerating, if the head is rotating, how much
pressure is on the pads of the feet and visual cues to an upcoming object (e.g., how close
you are to the table, another person or a car). These messages cannot be turned off. Even
when you are motionless, they signal the incessant pull of gravity.
The vestibular system is sometimes over-stimulated which may result in your eyes being
unable to focus and you feeling nauseous and unable to stand. This is why some people
get carsick or seasick on a boat. Delacato (1970) was at the forefront of research and found
that the input senses (vestibular and proprioception) are developed in their own particular
sequence and are of particular importance to the development of the brain. These senses
form the basis of the output channels, namely mobility, speech and hand preference.
Figure 1.11
The semi-circular canal structure
(Source: Sensory processing dysfunction – vestibular activation 2009)
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The following are some of the signs that learners have an underdeveloped vestibular
system:
• balance and coordination problems

• stumbling into people, furniture, objects, battling to walk in a straight line
• appearing clumsy
• may experience dizziness or nausea
• spinning sensation or vertigo
• heavily weighted or pulled in one direction
The vestibular system, visual system and proprioceptive system are all connected. This
means that an underdeveloped vestibular system would have an impact on the visual
system and proprioceptive system (body in space). It is essential to notice the signs that
could prevent a child from learning. Because the vestibular, visual and proprioceptive
systems are all connected, the following signs may indicate that learners have an
underdeveloped visual system:
• double vision
• trouble focusing or tracking objects with the eyes
• words seem to jump, bounce or float
• do not like traffic, crowds or stores
• difficulty with bright light, computer monitors and digital televisions
• poor depth perception
ACTIVITY 1.13
(1) Based on what you have read, what do you think are the possible signs of an
underdeveloped vestibular system?
1.5.1.3 Proprioceptive system

The Latin meaning of proprio means “one’s own” (Kranowitz 2005). It refers to the body’s
“internal eyes” so to speak, which give information about where the body or body parts
are in space, how the body parts relate to one another, how much and how quickly the
muscles are stretching, how fast the body is moving through space, how the timing is
and how much force the muscles put forth. Proprioception is therefore the body’s sense
of itself in space and this is one of the most important aspects for learning.
Every muscle in the body has proprioceptive receptors that inform the body about its
physical position and provide feedback necessary for movement and maintaining balance.
It is the actual awareness of sensations that come from receptors in the muscles, joints, skin,
tendons and underlying tissue. This awareness is critical to the motor action of reflexes,
automatic responses and planned movement (Krog 2015; Cheatum & Hammond 2000;
Hannaford 2005; Kranowitz 2005).
The vestibular, visual and the proprioceptive systems give constant information about
what is happening to the body and where the body is in terms of the three-dimensional
26
space in which the child exists. The interaction between the three systems helps keep
the body upright and balanced. The proprioceptive system plays a key role in helping a
child maintain equilibrium, progress through the motor-development stages and later
perform complex motor skills. It is further necessary for the development of the schema
which is the internal awareness or map of the relation of the body and the body parts
to each other. It has been found that without a well-developed body schema, there is
little hope that the child can progress through the developmental stages of laterality,
directionality and directional discrimination. It is also closely connected to both the tactile
and the vestibular systems. It helps to integrate touch and movement sensation, which
helps the child to determine how much force is required when reaching for a pencil,
writing, drawing or sitting on a chair. Proprioception is also known as body awareness. It
is essential for the child to know what his/her body parts are. You need to determine if
children know they have arms, legs, feet, knees, a back, a stomach and the like, and can
locate it on their body.
A child may experience the following proprioceptive system (muscles, joints, skin)
challenges:
• muscle or joint pain

• trouble with throwing a ball with the correct timing or force
• finding it hard to read and track their hand while they write
• being sensitive to walking or footwear
• finding it difficult to copy notes from the chalkboard
• possibly being too close to another person’s space and not respecting personal
boundaries
The entire human nervous system develops through the use of the sensory motor system
and every child must be provided the opportunity to use these particular senses. This
learning unit emphasises the importance of movement activities and its impact on learning
readiness. Delacato (1970) was at the forefront of research and found that the input senses
(vestibular and proprioception) are developed in their own particular sequence and are
of particular importance in the development of the brain. These senses form the basis
of the output channels, namely mobility, speech and hand use.
Sufficient opportunities for appropriate experiences are needed as they play a central
part in determining the strength or weakness of the brain’s architecture. A child’s ability
to learn will be influenced by the extent to which sensory enriched environments are
provided. Interactive environment experiences during this critical stage of early childhood
development (birth to nine years) literally shape the architecture of the developing brain
(National Science Council on the Developing Child 2007a).
Physical activity is known to boost brain power and assists in long-term memory, reasoning,
attention and problem-solving tasks. In order to keep our brains at peak performance, our
bodies need to work hard. Mind and body should be seen as one entity and not always
as two separate entities. Learning is not only in the mind; it is reliant on the functioning
of the whole body as well.
27 GRL1501/1
The young child’s immature brain is a highly adaptive and flexible organ which is capable
of absorbing a wide variety of experiences and influences at a young age. Research has
shown that certain opportunities during the early years are ideal for developing a child’s
motor ability. A range of experiences provides the brain with more neural connections
to strengthen language and cognitions skills (Krog 2015b; Fredericks, Kokot & Krog 2006)
ACTIVITY 1.14
(1) Why do you think movement lessons should include activities to improve the
functioning of the vestibular and the proprioceptive systems?
1.5.2 Essential learning which takes place through movement

Children from a young age have an insatiable desire for movement and the benefits are
far greater than are usually realised. The following learning takes place through movement
and is essential in acquiring the skills required for school readiness.
1.5.2.1 Movement assists with the development of the vestibular system

A variety of activities can be provided to develop the vestibular system. Log rolls, where
children lie stretched out on their backs and slowly roll over onto their stomachs, can be
included in a movement lesson. Balancing activities are also recommended and include
activities with the eyes open and closed.
1.5.2.2 Movement facilitates the development of body awareness

Body awareness refers to the child’s awareness of his/her own body parts, to be able to
move with confidence and to know where and how he/she is moving. Body awareness
includes the terms body image (self-concept), body concept (knowledge of own body)
and body schema (internal awareness of where body parts are in relation to each other).
According to Krog (2016), it involves combining and making sense of information received
form the sensory systems in the brain, namely the balance system (called the vestibular
system), the touch system (tactile system), the sense organs for seeing (called the visual
system) and the positioning system (proprioceptive system).
Insufficient experiences in movement activities will result in a possible negative body

image with the child ending up not knowing who he/she is and what he/she can do. Poor
body awareness will also result in a child not knowing they have, for example, hands, feet,
legs and a back when asked to point them out.
28
1.5.2.3 Development of spatial awareness
Spatial awareness refers to the awareness of space, first with an inner awareness of the
body, progressing to an awareness of space around the young child. This is also referred
to as proprioception which is the child’s awareness of where his/her body is in space.
Spatial awareness refers to knowledge of where the body is in space and where it is
in relation to objects around and near it. Spatial awareness has an impact on letter
identification and orientation on a page, for instance the difference between p, b and
d. This concept needs to be taught from a young age and the child must physically
experience it using his/her body first (Krog 2016).
Children who struggle with spatial awareness can have difficulty with simple tasks as they
move within their environment. When a child has trouble with balance and coordination,
runs into furniture, moves awkwardly, has trouble with personal boundaries and cannot
read from the chalkboard, he/she may not have fully developed spatial awareness.
Learners who have difficulty with spatial awareness in the classroom may have problems
in subjects like writing when required to write between the lines, letter formation, and
have trouble with correctly spacing their letters and words on paper, colouring in a printed
picture and trying to fill in a table which has limited space. In mathematics they may not
understand sequences, shapes and graphs. These aspects are linked to spatial awareness.
1.5.2.4 Laterality
Laterality refers to the child’s awareness of the right and left sides of his/her body and in
general the knowledge of right and left. The child develops a dominance to either left or
right. Movement helps to develop laterality which assists the child to be able to recognise
left and right. This is necessary as writing entails writing from left to right, reading occurs
from left to right, as do other class activities which require the recognition of left or right.
Children with insufficient knowledge of laterality will not know their left hand from their
right hand. Identification of left and right is therefore problematic and they will hold up
the incorrect hand when asked “show me your right hand”, start on the wrong side of
the page or move to the incorrect side when asked to “move to your right” or “on your
right is the table”. A child who lacks a dominant hand will have poor handwriting skills.
This will lead to more fine motor skill problems and he/she will find it hard to form letters.
1.5.2.5 Directionality
Directionality refers to a learner’s understanding of the difference between left and right,
up and down, under and over, around and next to, behind, and the like. The child needs
to know and differentiate between various directions. These include up, down, around,
inside, outside, backwards, forwards, under, over, on top of and behind. Knowledge of
the mentioned directions is needed during the school day.
Directionality problems may occur when you ask a child to pack their books inside the
cupboard, under the table, on top of the chair, or stand on the bottom of the steps, walk
backwards or move forwards. These aspects all have to do with showing or pointing to
29 GRL1501/1
a certain direction. These children may have problems reading maps as they get older,
and following instructions in general.
1.5.2.6 Crossing the midline

Midline crossing refers to the crossing of the midline, which is the imaginary line down
the centre of the body. It is the learner’s ability to reach across the midline with the arms
and the legs, crossing over to the opposite side. For example, writing from left to right
across the page with the right hand or left hand without swopping hands in the middle
(Krog 2016).
In the previous section you read about how crossing the midline is practised by babies
(figures 9.6 and 9.7)
• while they are trying to roll over onto their back (supine) to stomach (prone)
• by repeating it many times as they start exploring their surroundings
• while practicing visual motor skills while crawling as their eyes cross over when they
watch either their left hand or right hand moving in front of them
ACTIVITY 1.15
(1) Have you ever considered why crossing the midline is needed to complete activities
such as reading and writing?
This will include activities such as reading, writing and a number of gross motor skills
required when in the classroom, playing or taking part in sport. In reading, the eyes must
be able to track the words on the page from left to right. If the child cannot cross the
midline, the movement of tracking using the eyes is inherently also problematic. It will be
difficult to follow an object and the eyes may jerk or jump ahead of what is being followed.
Writing on paper also requires the ability to cross the midline. You have to be able to start
on the left and end on the right. Passing objects from one side to the other also requires
the ability to cross the midline. Crossing the midline therefore forms a good foundation
for future gross motor movements.
Children need adequate time to develop this critical milestone which is used to help the
left and right sides of the brain work together. If this is not done, the following problems
may occur:
• Children who have trouble crossing the midline cannot perform tasks that require
their right hand to perform on the left side of their body and vice versa.
• They also find it difficult to perform a task that requires both hands to work together.
The reason for this is because the two sides of the brain are not properly communicating
with one another.
• Children who cannot cross the midline also appear to be ambidextrous. This means
they are able to use both hands at the same time but are unable to cross the midline.
They also have not developed a dominant hand yet. It is necessary that they have
30
a dominant hand with which to write and perform fine motor skills, while the other
hand assists and is less skilled. If the brain has not determined a dominance, both
hands will remain unskilled and fine motor skills will be problematic.
• Children who cannot cross the midline experience problems when trying to read.
Reading requires the ability to have good visual tracking skills.
• If they cannot cross the midline, they tend to hesitate or lose their place when their
eyes move from reading the words in front of them on the left side of the page to the
words in front of them on the right side because doing so requires the two sides of
the brain to communicate.
• Their eyes will skip words and they will not be able to track smoothly across the line
they are reading.
• Crossing the midline will result in hand switching depending on the side of the paper
they are busy writing on.
• Certain letter formation is also difficult such as drawing a figure eight and drawing
horizontally or diagonally across a page. A child may tend to turn the paper to avoid
having to cross the midline.
• A number of motor skills are also affected by the inability to cross the midline, namely
walking, catching and throwing across to the opposite side of the body.
• These children are uncoordinated in a variety of motor skills. Children who cannot
cross the midline tend to swing the left arm with the left leg and the right arm with
the right leg. This gives them the appearance of walking like a stereotypical robot.
They often do not participate in physical activity at a later stage of their lives which is
essential for developing a healthy lifestyle.
• General self-care activities such as doing up buttons, putting on socks and shoes, and
brushing teeth and hair require crossing the midline or the cooperation of both hands.
They may struggle with these tasks and often try to avoid them.
Children who have trouble crossing the midline may have the following symptoms:
• unable to determine laterality, which is left and which is right, as they use both hands
• unable to determine the dominant hand because they are using both at the same time
• unable to touch the left shoulder with the right hand
• will turn the paper on the desk in order to write, thus avoiding the midline
• will write on the vertical line down – will squash letters down a chosen side
• unable to read from left to right – will stop in the middle of a sentence
1.5.2.7 Development of the concepts of “background” and “foreground”

The child needs to have an understanding of what the difference is between background
and foreground. This means what is near and what is far away from him/her. In a class this
would mean the child should be able to see the book on the desk and then look at the
board or teacher standing in front of the class. This is also referred to as accommodation,
which includes convergence (near-point focusing) and divergence (far-point focusing)
(Krog 2016). Should a child not be proficient, they could display problems with visual
work, reading and writing activities.
31 GRL1501/1
1.5.2.8 Ability to focus on a specific point
It is necessary for the child to be able to focus on a specific point such as small, static
two-dimensional letters on the paper in schoolbooks. Academic learning is dependent
on visual skills in order to see the written symbols when reading, writing, spelling and
doing mathematics. Focusing on what the teacher is showing on the board is linked to
ocular motility (the ability to use the eyes in union to look onto the board and in the book.)
1.5.2.9 Visual tracking

Nowadays children sit and watch television, and play on tablets, gaming stations or
cellphones for considerable lengths of time. During these activities, the eyes do not do
much in the line of tracking activities. Delacato (1974) specialised in assisting children with
reading problems. He also found that the inability of the eyes to follow the words across
the page (visual pursuit) directly influences the child’s ability to read fluently. His finding
is supported by Sally Goddard who is a well-known researcher on learning difficulties
and the role of reflexes on learning (Goddard 2002).
Another important visual skill is binocular fusion (the ability to sweep the eyes together in
a coordinated way). To be able to read across a page, look on the board and in the book
and follow the teacher in the classroom, the visual pursuit of the eyes should be fluent.
Other visual activities such as tracking a ball or beanbag that is thrown at an object, as
well as following sequencing patterns or numbers in a mathematical problem require
good visual pursuit skills (Krog 2016). Often poor visual tracking lacks fluency and the
eyes then jump across the reading line. It is possible that “saw” may be read incorrectly
as “was” as the eyes dart ahead due to poor eye muscle control.
Children often complain of watery eyes or headaches which may be the result of inadequate
eye movements. Teachers must take the time to do a few easy activities. Start off by asking
the child to sit and look ahead and then give the instruction to follow your directions using
their eyes without moving the head. In other words, ask the child, for example, to look
up, look right, look down, look left and look right. This enables the child to strengthen
their eye muscles which are critical to fluent eye control.
ACTIVITY 1.16
(1) Name the different eye functions and their roles in classroom activities.
1.5.2.10 Movement improves visual skills

Following an object being thrown through space can only be improved with more practice.
Perceptual motor abilities need to be enhanced and can include throwing beanbags
into buckets/boxes or kicking at a specific target. Such activities require the eyes to work
together with other body parts such as the hand which is throwing the beanbag or the
foot which is kicking the ball. This will lead to more refined hand-eye coordination and
eye-foot coordination (Krog 2016).
32
ACTIVITY 1.17
(1) How do movement activities assist the visual development of the child?
1.6 CONCLUSION
The role and impact of physical education on the development of the learning readiness
of young children must never be underestimated. The young child’s ability to perform
fundamental movement skills at an early age will increase their likelihood of participating
in physical activities during adulthood.
Children require opportunities to become involved in coordinated movements using their

eyes, ears, hands and feet as well as their core muscles. These coordinated movements
activate and develop both sides of the brain.
Motor development is marked by a series of milestones or achievements a child needs

to master before he/she has the ability to move on to master more difficult ones. Most
of the time, “physical development” refers to gross motor development, which includes
the large muscle groups in the arms and legs (Mostafavi, Akabari & Haji-Hosseini 2013).
Overall, physical development encompasses a large variety of tasks and abilities, from
a baby being able to crawl across the floor to fetch objects, to young children running
outside, picking up objects and carrying them around, playing with balls and riding a
bicycle. All these skills must be mastered by children during the early child development
phase.
1 SELF-EVALUATION QUESTIONS
y Describe any five problems that inhibit children’s movement in our modern society.
y The linear development of movement takes place in a specific order. Provide a drawing
or sketch to illustrate the correct order and briefly discuss the order.
y How does movement promote cognitive development?
y Describe any three reflexes and indicate how they could influence learning should each
one not be inhibited (i.e. it remains present).
y Explain in what way movement can improve visual skills. Also provide examples specific
to how it will assist improvement.
y Provide a definition for the key movement-related aspects below. Thereafter, discuss in
what way these aspects assist with the learning readiness of a child.
(a) spatial awareness
(b) body awareness
(c) crossing the midline
(d) laterality
(e) directionality
y What is the role of the vestibular system in preparing the child for learning readiness?
33 GRL1501/1
Additional learning experiences
Blogs
• Palmer, V. The 13 Key Benefits of Early Childhood Education: <br>A
Teacher’s ...
• https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-13-key-benefits-of-ea_n_7943348
1.7 REFERENCES
Delacato, CH. 1970. A new start for the child with reading problems. A manual for parents.
Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas.
Delacato, CH. 1974. The diagnosis and treatment of speech and reading problems. Springfield,
IL: Charles C Thomas.
Centre for Excellence for Early Childhood Development. 2011. Physical activity and young
children. Available at: http://www.excellence-earlychildhood.ca. [Accessed on
14 September 2014].
Cheatum, BA & Hammond, AA. 2000. Physical activities for improving children’s learning
and behaviour. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Department of Basic Education (DoBE). 2011. Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement
Grades R–3. Life Skills. Pretoria: Government Printer.
Fredericks, CR., Kokot, SJ & Krog, S. 2006. Using a developmental movement programme to
enhance academic skills in Grade 1 learners. South African Journal for Research in Sport,
Physical Education and Recreation, 28(1):29–42.
Gallahue, DL. 2012. Developmental movement experiences for children. New York: MacMillan.
Gallahue, DL., Ozmun, JC & Goodway, J. 2006. Understanding motor development: infants,
children, adolescents, adults. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.
Goddard, SA. 2002. Reflexes, learning and behaviour. A window into the child’s mind. Eugene,
OR: Fern Ridge Press.
Goddard Blythe, SA. 2006. Developmental exercise programme. For use in physical education
classes for children with special needs. Chester: The Institute for Neuro-Physiological
Psychology (INPP).
Hannaford, C. 2005. Smart moves. Why learning is not all in your head. Salt Lake City, UT: Great
River Books.
Hansford, PK. 1992. Motoring competence, behavioural confidence and classroom function.
The pre-school years, 22:28–35.
Healthy Active Kids Report Card South Africa. 2016 & 2018. Brochures will be uploaded on
myUnisa on the module portal.
Kalaja, SP., Jaakkola, TT., Liukkonen, JO & Digelidis, N. 2012. Development of junior high school
students’ fundamental movement skills and physical activity setting. Physical Education
and Sport Pedagogy, 17(4):411–428.
Kokot, SJ. 2006. Movement and learning. Manual 1. Integrated Learning Therapy Training.
Unpublished manual.
Kranowitz, CS. 2005. The out-of-sync child. Recognising and coping with sensory processing
disorder. New York: Skylight Press Books.
Krog, S. 2010. Movement programme as a means to learning readiness. MEd Specialisation in
Guidance and Counselling. Unpublished dissertation. Pretoria: University of South Africa.
34
Krog, S & Krüger, D. 2011. Movement programmes as a means to learning readiness. South
African Journal for Research in Sport, Physical Education and Recreation, 33(3):73–87.
Krog, S. 2015a. Movement activities: a critical link in developing motor skills and learning
in early childhood. African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation and Dance
(AJPHERD), 21(1):426–443.
Krog, S. 2015b. Speed stacking: an appropriate tool to enhance academic learning in the
foundation phase. African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation and Dance
(AJPHERD), 21(4):417–433.
Krog, S. 2016. Physical education in the Foundation Phase. In M Naudé & C Meier (Eds).
Teaching life skills in the foundation phase. Pretoria: Van Schaiks.
Krog, S. 2017a. Growth and development. In S Krog & R Naidoo (Eds). Teaching physical education
and sports coaching. Cape Town: Oxford University Press.
Krog, S. 2017b. Teaching sports skills. In S Krog & R Naidoo (Eds). Teaching physical education
and sports coaching. Cape Town: Oxford University Press.
Liddle, TL & Yorke, L. 2004. Why motor skills matter. New York: Contemporary Books.
Mostafavi, R., Akabari H & Haji-Hosseini, S. 2013. The effects of SPARK physical education
program on fundamental motor skills in 4-6-year-old children. Iranian Journal of
Paediatrics, 23(2):216–219.
National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. 2007. The timing and quality of early
experiences combine to shape brain structure. Working Paper 5. Available: http://www.
developingchild.net. [Accessed on 18 February 2019].
Pheloung, B. 2003. Help your child to learn. Sydney: Iceform.
Seaman, JA., DePauw, KP., Morton, KB & Omoto, K. 2003. Making connections. From theory to
practice in adapted physical education. Arizona: Holcomb Hathaway Publishers.
Sensory Processing Dysfunction – Vestibular Activation. February 1, 2009. Available: http://
www.autism-community.com/senory-processing-dysfunction-activation. [Accessed on
24 February 2019].
1.7.1 Articles
Armstrong, MEG., Lambert, EV & Lambert, MI. 2011. Physical fitness of South African
primary school children, 6 to 13 years of age: Discovery Vitality Health of the Nation Study.
Perceptual and Motor Skills, 113(3):999–1016.
Barnett, LM., Hardy, R., Lubans, DP., Cliff, AD., Okely, A., Hills, P & Morgan, PJ on behalf of
the Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Stream of the Australasian Child and
Adolescent Obesity Research Network (ACAORN). 2013. Australian children lack the
basic movement skills to be active and healthy. Health Promotion Journal of Australia.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/HE12920.
Fredericks, CR., Kokot, SJ & Krog, S. 2006. Using a developmental movement programme
to enhance academic skills in Grade 1 learners. South African Journal for Research in
Sport, Physical Education and Recreation 28(1):29–42.
Hands, B. 2012. How fundamental are fundamental motor skill? Active and Healthy
Magazine, 19(1):14–17.
Krog, S & Krüger, D. 2011. Movement programmes as a means to learning readiness. South
African Journal for Research in Sport, Physical Education and Recreation, 33(3):73–87.
35 GRL1501/1
Krog, S. 2015a. Movement activities: a critical link in developing motor skills and learning
in early childhood. African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation and Dance
(AJPHERD) 21(1):426–443.
Krog, S. 2015b. Speed stacking: an appropriate tool to enhance academic learning in the
foundation phase. African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation and Dance
(AJPHERD) 21(4:2):1417–1433.
Uys, M., Bassett, S., Draper, CE,. Micklesfield, L., Monyeki, A., de Villiers, A., Lambert, EV &
the HAKSA 2016 Writing Group. Results from South Africa’s 2016 report card on physical
activity for children and youth. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 2016, 13 (Suppl 2):
S265–S273. http://dx.doi.org/10.1123/jpah.2016-0409 © 2016 Human Kinetics.
1.7.2 Recommended book

Krog, S. 2020. Physical education in the Foundation Phase. In M Naudé & C Meier (Eds). Teaching
life skills in the foundation phase. Pretoria: Van Schaik Publishers.
1.7.3 Google links

• Exploring physical and health literacy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4PjX9mXYq8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACJN_S3oWTE http://www.facebook.
com/783746381640264/posts/2581358048545746
Learning unit 8
These can be added to additional reading for the following:
Terminology
Motor development
http://helpmegrowmn.org/HMG/HelpfulRes/Articles/WhatMotorPhysicalDev/index.html
Fundamental movement skills

https://goodhabitsforlife.act.gov.au/kids-at-play/fundamental-movement-skills-fms-1
https://sportnz.org.nz/assets/Uploads/attachments/managing-sport/young-people/
Developing-Fundamental-Movement-Skills-Manual-Introduction.pdf
Sensory motor integration https://www.sensoryprocessing.info/sensory-processing.htm
https://childdevelopment.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Sensory-Processing.pdf
Perceptual motor
https://us.humankinetics.com/blogs/excerpt/helping-children-develop-to-their-full-
potential-through-perceptual-motor-experiences
36
Phases of development
http://vvos.co.za/bestuur/nuusbriewe/2-4MovementbyKarynaLeRoux.pdf
The reflex system, its role and influence on learning

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUVDWwBMnsk (This explains each reflex a little.)
Moro reflex https://www.nestedbean.com/pages/moro-reflex https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=s_lAFst43TE 2014
https://www.parent24.com/Baby/Newborn/The-Moro-reflex-20150826 2018 (This is a

very short article and video.)
Rooting reflex
https://study.com/academy/lesson/rooting-reflex-in-babies-definition-lesson-quiz.html
Palmar reflex
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTMV1Bc1m4g
https://www.parent24.com/Baby/Newborn/watch-the-palmar-grasp-reflex-20181121
The asymmetrical tonic neck reflex

https://www.parent24.com/Baby/Newborn/Asymmetrical-Tonic-Neck-Reflex-20150826 https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArhL_1Q9icg
The spinal Galant reflex

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gA2auEA-5u0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZP-UycQO_W4
Rudimentary phase
• Prone with head extension https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2jLmUxri0E
• Rolling https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsoShsxA7q8
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEnzqSK-j_s
• Sitting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5fj_LAnu-k https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=I7bs-RFy6yg
• Crawling https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSLdZWRKlQ4 https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=zkcN7DMUiMc
• The sensory system

https://abilitypath.org/2014/06/08/how-your-childs-sensory-system-develops/
https://sensory-kids.com/what-are-the-sensory-systems/
https://chlss.org/blog/8-senses-parenting-sensory-processing-disorder/
https://pathways.org/topics-of-development/7-senses/
• The vestibular system

https://vestibular.org/understanding-vestibular-disorder/human-balance-system
https://neuroscientificallychallenged.com/blog/know-your-brain-vestibular-system
37 GRL1501/1
• The proprioceptive system
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2iOliN3fAE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsAPu14xWgA https://spdaustralia.com.au/
the-proprioceptive-system/
• Body awareness
https://nspt4kids.com/healthtopics-and-conditions-database/body-awareness/
https://www.yourtherapysource.com/blog1/2018/09/21/why-is-body-awareness-
important-2/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrv1RcHtQZ4
• Laterality
https://blog.neuronup.com/en/crossed-laterality/
https://www.edubloxtutor.com/gross-motor-skills-handwriting/
• Directionality
https://www.pgpedia.com/d/directional-awareness
https://ot.eku.edu/sites/ot.eku.edu/files/files/Directionality.pdf
http://www.smuggsuniversity.com/Laterality%20and%20Directionality.pdf
https://www.ot-mom-learning-activities.com/handwriting-for-kids.html
• Crossing the midline

https://childdevelopment.com.au/areas- of-concern/f ine-motor-skills/
crossing-the-bodys-midline/
https://www.ot-mom-learning-activities.com/crossing-the-midline.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7CGtXihy3o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkrZBsOlt3k
• Foreground and background development

http://learningwithsunflowersmiles.blogspot.com/2015/09/importance-of-visual.html
https://www.educanda.co.za/news/early_learning_figure_ground_development_in_
babys_and_toddlers
https://www.livingandloving.co.za/baby-blog/baby-development/the-
development-of-visual-perceptual-skills
38
Learning unit 2
Lesson planning, making equipment and assessing
gross motor ability
2.1 INTRODUCTION
This learning unit aims to provide you with guidelines on how to design, plan and
implement lessons that can be used to teach fundamental movement skills in the
Foundation Phase. This unit will also cover the rules and safety precautions that need to
be included into your lesson plans, the role that you as teacher play in the planning and
facilitation of lessons, how to make your own equipment, and how to assess learners and
ensure that the learner meets the milestones for the curriculum requirements for their
age. Guidelines will also be provided on how to observe and assess a learner’s motor
ability during a movement lesson.
On the completion of this learning unit, you should be able to:

• Define key concepts relevant to this learning unit, namely safety precautions, multiple-
station movement lessons and indigenous games.
• Apply appropriate rules and safety precautions in lesson plans.
• Explain the role of the teacher in the planning and facilitation of lessons.
• Make equipment from available material for movement lessons.
• Match movement activities to the physical milestones and development of a child
and for the curriculum requirements.
• Design a range of age-appropriate activities that can assist learners in moving effectively.
• Assess and observe a learner’s motor ability and competency during the movement
lesson.
2.2 DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS

• Safety precautions: Measures taken to ensure the safety of children during movement
lessons. These include the equipment, which must be checked, as well as how the
lessons are planned and presented.
• Multiple-station movement lessons: A movement lesson which consists of multiple
stations with varied activities. A number of stations are provided which allow learners
to experience a number of different motor skills and abilities. It is set out according to
a specific format and learners rotate in small groups to each station.
39 GRL1501/1
• Indigenous games: These are games which are passed down through the various
generations. They are unique to a community and promote teamwork, a sense
of community and healthy fun-filled competitiveness. Including them in the curriculum
adds to greater cross-cultural tolerance and respect (Naidoo & Krog 2015).
ACTIVITY 2.1
In your own words, define the following concepts:

(1) safety precautions
(2) multiple-station movement lessons
(3) indigenous games – give reasons for the inclusion of these games in the curriculum
2.3 SAFETY PRECAUTIONS FOR MOVEMENT LESSONS

It is important to create a safe environment for children to explore and discover through
movement. Taking the necessary precautions when planning a movement lesson ensures
that your learners are safe and that you have done all you can to prevent them from
getting injured while engaging in a planned movement lesson. Make sure that the learners
can play safely, have adequate space to do their activities in and check the equipment
regularly. Movement lessons should be presented outside the classroom. The following
are the requirements for the equipment and space for movement lessons:
• Clothing should not restrict the learners’ movement or get hooked on the equipment
during the lesson.
• Provide grass, soft sand, carpets or mats for the learners to land on when jumping off
apparatus if possible.
• Learners should not have anything in their mouths, hand or pockets that can injure
them while participating in the activities.
• Throwing, hitting and kicking activities should be gentle enough to avoid injury and
there must be sufficient space to do these activities.
• Activities should be conducted away from the school buildings or objects that may
cause injuries to learners.
• No slippery landing areas should be used.
• Equipment used for standing and sitting activities should be sturdy and stable.
• The size of the equipment should suit the age group of the learners.
• The area should be free of litter (e.g. broken glass and rocks), electrical hazards, high
voltage power lines and sanitary hazards.
• Moving parts should be free of defects (e.g. no pinch and crush points, not excessively
worn).
• The ground underneath the equipment must be checked for rot, rust and termites.
• The equipment should be free of sharp edges, protruding elements, broken parts,
toxic substances and materials that can cause choking.
• There should be no openings that can entrap a learner’s head or that can entangle them.
40
ACTIVITY 2.2
(1) Do you think these safety precautions are necessary? Provide reasons for your
answer.
2.4 THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER IN THE PLANNING AND

ACCOMPANIMENT OF MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES
It is necessary for the teacher to take the lead in planning the movement lessons. Thorough
planning entails making provision for a variety of aspects and knowing the different
learning abilities, differences in the motor abilities of learners, the cultural diversity of
learners and learners with special needs, suitable equipment, a variety of activities to
meet the needs of each learner and taking the importance of movement into account.
It is necessary for the teacher:
• To know the learners in the class and plan activities that spark their curiosity.
• To note through observation the skills the learner is good at, what can be improved
on and where variety can be added.
• To look out for non-verbal cues, such as body language and facial expressions during
a lesson.
• To create an environment that allows the learner to explore and discover.
• To support the learners and not to criticise them about the activities they cannot do.
• To encourage them while they are participating and completing the activities set out.
• To always listen to a learner’s suggestions and react positively to it.
• To include activities that provide sufficient cultural diversity and accommodate learners
with special educational needs.
ACTIVITY 2.3
(1) What is your role as a teacher when planning a multiple-station lesson?

(2) Why do you consider it important?
2.4.1 The importance of engagement through discussion during the

presentation of movement activities
During the warm-up: Discussion is an important tool as it helps the teacher link the
learners’ life-world. It also allows the teacher to ascertain the learners’ existing knowledge
of certain movement activities. During these discussions, the teacher can determine
whether the movement lesson has followed a logical progression. Discussions can stimulate
thoughts and encourage questions from the learners. It provides an opportunity for them
to be creative problem solvers both individually and within a group. The discussion also
provides clear guidelines of what is acceptable behaviour during the lesson and defines the
rules and boundaries that govern the lesson. These can be repeated as often as needed.
41 GRL1501/1
During the main section of the lesson: It is important for the teacher to engage with
the learners during the lesson. This will enable the teacher to praise the learners, identify
strong as well as weak areas the learners have and assist the learners in extending their
efforts. The teacher should always remember that it is essential to support the learners’
discovery and exploration and not to restrain the learning taking place. The following is
suggested:
• Create a partnership with the learners and engage on their level.

• Follow the learners’ actions.
• Enquire what the learners’ intentions are.
• Remember to listen to the learners engaging with each other during the lesson.
• Talk to learners about what they are thinking and doing.
• Focus on their actions and make comments, repeat, amplify and build on what they say.
• Acknowledge the learners’ choices and actions.
• Allow learners to gather their thoughts.
• Accept the answers and actions of learners even if they are wrong. Remember there
is never a wrong in movement. Encourage learners to do things for themselves.
At the end of the lesson (cooling down): This discussion at the end of the lesson is
important as this is where you give the learners feedback and praise their efforts. This
should be done while the learners are cooling down with a calming, relaxing activity.
Engage with the learners so that they can share their own discoveries with the other
learners and in doing so learn from each other. This also builds the learners’ vocabulary
and introduces them to new expressions linked to movement.
2.4.2 Open-ended questions are valuable as a teaching strategy in

movement activities
Open-ended questions form an important part in developing divergent, creative thinkers.
Questions in the exploratory phase have to be completely open to allow any possible
answer or suggestion. There should not be a wrong or right answer. Questions asked during
the discovery phase should still be open ended, but more restricted regarding solutions
to problems, although open enough to allow the child to choose, show initiative and be
creative. The questions asked during such an activity should be planned and include both
simple and more advanced discovery. Questions asked during the indirect combination
phase should combine the restrictions on locomotion and manipulation required during the
discovery phase so that problem solving becomes more difficult, encouraging creative
thinking, initiative and problem-solving skills from the child. The questions are important
for the formulation of a specific response and are gradually funnelled to reach an objective.
They are not actually open ended because they have specific answers and reactions. For
example, can you throw the beanbag into the box? Can you dribble the ball between the
beacons? Can you jump into the hoops using both feet?
42
ACTIVITY 2.4
(1) What do you think the value is of open-ended questions as a teaching strategy
during the presentation of movement lessons?
2.5 PLANNING THE MULTIPLE-STATION MOVEMENT LESSON

What is the motivation in using a multiple-station movement lesson? Very often a class
consists of 30 or more learners, each with varying movement abilities. The whole class
should be accommodated at the same time. Think of a circuit in the gymnasium. Various
movement problems are posed by the teacher and these problems should be solved by
the learners at these activity stations. Learners may move around and explore and discover
through movement in order to solve the problems in their own way. The teacher should
seldom give direct orders, rather ask open-ended questions, encourage the learners and
comment on their problem-solving techniques to strengthen their confidence in their
own capabilities. This approach conforms to the learner-centred approach or informal
teaching.
2.5.1 Characteristics of a multiple-station movement lesson

A multiple-station movement lesson has the following characteristics:
• It is a planned teaching and learning event.

• Within certain limits, the learner should be free to make choices.
• Teaching time, place and content are flexible.
• The skilled teacher guides and helps the learner to make choices, to explore and to
discover.
• The individual needs and interests of the learner determine the content of the teaching
and learning activity.
• Teaching and learning are not directed at learning results or a formal examination.
• The teacher should know the needs and interests of the young learners and should
have a thorough knowledge of movement development and movement principles.
• Safety limits should be set for the learner (every station should be demarcated with
ribbons indicating the boundaries).
• The environment should be planned and structured by means of appropriate apparatus
to facilitate the objectives and goals.
• The teacher should have a thorough knowledge of the teaching skills necessary to
encourage and guide the learner, namely discussion, questioning, guiding, observation
and assessment.
• Using these teaching skills within the movement environment, the teacher should allow
the learners to move, explore and discover in their own way within the prescribed limits.
• There is not necessarily a single correct way of doing things. If learners are allowed to
explore different ways of doing things, they will be more creative and will find better
ways of moving.
43 GRL1501/1
A multiple-station movement lesson and self-guided movement lesson help the teacher to
present a variety of motor activities all at once. Learners of varying degrees of perceptual-
motor control and confidence can participate at the same time as they are not competing
against other. If learners are allowed to perform the same activity simultaneously, a situation
will result where the more able learners will finish ahead of the others and will become
bored while waiting for the strugglers to finish. Expecting all learners to perform the
same activity with an equal amount of skill is alien to informal and child-centred teaching.
ACTIVITY 2.5
(1) Give reasons why you would use a multiple-station movement lesson to present
physical education.
2.5.2 Setting up a variety of stations

Setting up various stations allows learners to participate in a variety of activities within
a short time. The teacher can plan four to six different stations to accommodate all the
learners at the same time. A variety of stations would help learners to
• widen their social interest in the world around them

• repeat contact with other learners (this reduces egocentricity and increases social
participation)
• exercise self-discipline while moving from one activity to another
• consider others in the time used for a specific activity
• avoid waiting their turn at the various activity points
• exercise freedom of choice in a responsible manner and to solve movement problems
in their own way while exercising initiative and creativity
• increase positive self-image and confidence to face new challenges
Another problem teachers often mention, is the lack of sufficient time to plan and structure
the environment by means of apparatus. One way of overcoming this problem is to use
existing structures on the playground and to add beanbags, hoops, tyres or balls to large
outside apparatus. It is also not necessary to prepare a new playground activity for every
day. For movement lessons, the teacher should only change lessons every third week to
determine which child has improved and can move on.
ACTIVITY 2.6
(1) Which aspects may impede the success of presenting a movement lesson? Give
reasons for your answer.
44
2.6 PRESENTATION OF MOVEMENT LESSONS
A number of aspects must be mentioned when presenting the multiple-movement
lesson. Teachers, who are unfamiliar with this method of movement, usually have one
fear, namely losing control and a resultant breakdown in discipline. Most teachers are,
however, familiar with this method in a different format.
The multiple-station movement activity bears sufficient resemblance to free play to calm
the teacher’s fears about the breakdown in discipline. It is a structured movement lesson
which needs careful planning. Movement activities are teacher directed but learner
centred. The teacher should structure the lesson so that specific outcomes are achieved,
even though learners are still allowed the opportunity to explore and discover. Learners
need to be presented with a number of activities and opportunities to enable them to
master the skills necessary for their development.
2.6.1 Providing encouragement

Be enthusiastic and praise the learners for their efforts and not only for their achievements.
Positive reinforcement and encouragement are very important. Remember to praise the
learners for demonstrating good behaviour, cooperation, and the like. Praise lets the
learners know that good behaviour will be noticed, which will increase the likelihood
that they will continue to demonstrate good behaviour. If teachers only pay attention to
learners who display bad behaviour, more learners will most likely behave poorly in an
effort to gain attention. Reward good behaviour and true effort.
2.6.2 Including learners with disabilities

Learners with all kinds of abilities can and should be included in physical activities
and sport. Learners with disabilities may fall behind their peers in the development of
fundamental motor skills. Simple and general changes to each activity can successfully
help the teacher to include learners with various disabilities. Easier, harder and leader
advice sections will be very useful. In many movement activities simple modifications
(lower targets, reduced distances, reduced weights of apparatus and simple instructions
with many demonstrations) are helpful for including all learners in the same activity,
regardless of their abilities.
Should a learner in the group with disabilities require adaptations beyond those suggested,
the teacher may seek assistance from the learner’s parents and local educational
professionals who work with the learner.
2.7 MULTIPLE-STATION LESSON FORMAT

The planning of a movement lesson that consists of multiple stations (more than one)
provides the opportunity for the whole class to be occupied and involved at the same
time. It creates a variety of stations to accommodate children with varied abilities. To make
this possible, a variety of activities must be carefully planned, incorporating various motor
45 GRL1501/1
abilities to address laterality, directionality, crossing the midline, locomotion, manipulation,
stability and body awareness.
The lesson format should consist of a warm-up, a main section (consisting of various
stations) and a cooling-down activity.
2.7.1 Warm-up
The warm-up should include stretching activities or action songs, for example, the action
song “heads, shoulders, knees and toes” for Grade R. Suitable stretching activities should
be included for Grades R. The teacher should include a brief explanation of what the
learners will do in each station. Explain the rules, then take the children to each station
and explain what is expected of them at each station. Ask the young learners open-ended
questions to engage them in a brief conversation about the various activities. This will
prepare the learners for the movement lesson that will follow.
2.7.2 Main section

The number of children in the class will determine the number of stations to be set
up in the lesson plan. For example, a class of 48 learners can be divided between six
stations, with each station having eight learners each. The following guidelines should
be remembered when planning a multiple-station movement activity:
• There must be sufficient equipment for each station.

• The learners need to be given boundaries so that they stay within a certain area.
• Number each station clearly.
• The learners must know which group they are allocated to.
• Provide flashcards that show direction or explain activities.
• Explain the rules and procedures of the lesson before starting the lesson.
• Clearly explain the rotation between the stations.
• The lesson content must be fun and exciting.
• Include a warm-up and cool-down activity in the lesson.
• A variety of fundamental motors skills must be included.
The lesson must be planned on one A4 sheet of paper. It is important to carefully plan the
rotation between stations. Each station and the method to be used or rotation between
stations need to be explained in detail to learners so they understand what is expected
of them during the lesson. For example, 1_2_3_4 (rotate clockwise or anti-clockwise) as
can be seen in the diagram that follows.
• Divide the class into groups beforehand.

• Place each group at a station.
• On the signal, rotate as a group.
• Complete the activities at the station.
• Give the signal to stop and pack equipment neatly, signal to rotate.
46
Divide the learners into groups before the session starts. This will provide more time
during the session to do the activity. Match up the learners the way you think would
work best. For example, for some activities match up partners of equal ability. For other
activities match a learner who has stronger motor skills with another learner who has
less-developed skills and encourage the more skilled learner to help the other learner.
When dividing the learners into groups, be fair to all the participants.
• Divide the class into groups beforehand. On a given signal, the groups should move
to the stations indicated.
• After two to three minutes at a station, give the signal to stop. (The time depends on
the time it takes learners to complete the obstacle course at that particular station.)
• On the next signal, the groups should move to the next station (1_2_3_4_1).
• Decide to rotate clockwise or anti-clockwise.
Repeat the activities over two or three weeks to provide enough time for the young
learners to develop and master the motor skills involved in each activity. Try to include
challenges at some stations for the learners. One station could be a problem-solving
station. A flashcard with a picture of a question mark on it, could be used to denote this
area. Apparatus for this station should be laid out with minimal instructions. The young
learners will need to use critical and creative thinking to solve the problem using the
apparatus or equipment provided.
ACTIVITY 2.7
Look at example 1 of the full lesson plan, which is provided in paragraph 10.8.4 and
then plan your own station which includes the equipment and the flashcard below. Do
you think learners would benefit from such a station, and what would the benefits be?
47 GRL1501/1
Obstacle courses are suitable as one station of a multiple-station lesson. An obstacle
course needs less equipment and can accommodate more learners. Learners must do
a variety of activities at the obstacle course station. It can include activities to improve
spatial awareness, laterality, directionality, crossing the midline, manipulation and
balancing, all at one station. There should be arrows on flashcards to follow and the
route should be laid out. The lesson plans provided present one idea. An obstacle
course must fit into the limited space together with the other stations.
ACTIVITY 2.8
(1) View the example of the outdoor obstacle course below. Come up with your own
ideas for planning an obstacle course as part of the multiple-station lesson.
Figure 2.1
Outdoor obstacle course
(Source: Singh 1993)
48
Lesson format
The planning of the multiple-station lesson presentation will only be accepted in the
following format: Only use one A4 page for an entire lesson. The layout is provided
and you need to complete the lesson in the space given. No other layout than the
example given here will be accepted. For example:
Warm-up.
Describe the warm-up and action song.
Station 1 (e.g. ball activity) Station 2 (e.g. hoop activity)

Aim: Knock the skittles over by throwing Aim: Jump into the hoop with two feet.
the balls at them. Outcome: To develop locomotion.
Outcome: To develop hand-eye Question: Can you jump into the hoop with
coordination. two feet or one foot?
Question: Can you throw the ball at the Drawing of activity
skittles?
Drawing of activity (stick drawing
adequate)
(One block should be used for each activity.)
Station 3 (e.g. beanbag activity) Station 4 (obstacle course)

Aim: Carry the beanbag on your head while Aim: Move through the obstacle course
walking on a beam. carrying a cup of water.
Outcome: To develop balance. Outcome: To develop hand-eye
Question: Can you carry the beanbag on coordination, balance and locomotion
your head or other parts of your body? Question: Can you move through the
obstacle course carrying a cup of water?
Drawing of activity
Drawing of activity
Conclusion of lesson
Calming and stretching activities and packing away equipment
2.7.3 Conclusion of lesson

This section of the lesson should be calming and involve relaxation, as well as stretching
activities. Maybe add a discussion where the learners are asked what they discovered and
experienced and how they solved the problems they encountered (e.g., What was the
easiest/most difficult? Who could carry the water? How many skittles could you dribble
past?). All the questions should relate to the activities. Conclude with a relaxation activity. In
other words, calm the learners down.
49 GRL1501/1
Remember that it takes time for the lesson to go as planned and to run smoothly. It will
be a bit disorganised and noisy at first, but the learners will be having fun and, more
importantly, engaging in physical activities. Below are two examples of lesson plan layouts
to assist you in planning your own lesson.
2.7.4 Example 1 of full lesson layout on one A4 page (Krog 2017) Grade R
WARM-UP: Any stretching activity or movement: swinging arms, touching toes, stretching up and touching toes. Action
song “head shoulders, knees and toes”.
Station 1: Obstacle course Station 2: Exploration area

Aim: Move through the obstacle course. Aim: Develop gross motor creativity.
Outcome: Develop spatial awareness, balance, gross Outcome: Develop problem solving, exploration and creativity.
motor development and locomotion.
Question: What can be done with the equipment? Look at
Question: Who knows what to do here? What can we do the flashcard (?) What plan can you make?
here? Can you take the beanbag with you?
Station 3 Station 4
Aim: Throw the beanbag at the tins. Aim: Dribble and kick the ball.
Outcome: Develop hand-eye coordination activities. Outcome: Develop eye-foot coordination.
Questions: Can you use the beanbag to throw over the Question: Can you kick the ball around markers and kick it
tins? into the box?
Ball
Dribble the ball between the markers.
Kick the ball into the box.
COOLING DOWN: Let the children do stretching activities. Ask which activities they enjoyed the most.
50
2.7.5 Example 2 of full lesson layout on one A4 page (Krog 2016) Grade R
INTRODUCTION/WARM-UP: Children take part in an active warm-up. Explain each station’s activity to the children. (Use
open-ended questions, e.g., What do you think we should do here?)
Station 1 Station 2
Aim: Complete the obstacle course. Aim: Exploration area
Outcome: Develop spatial awareness, balance, gross motor Outcome: Promote spatial awareness, exploration and
skills and locomotion. creative thinking.
Questions: Who knows what to do? What can we do here? Questions: What can we do with all the equipment? What
Can you take the beanbag with you? Can you do the obstacle does the flashcard mean? Can you think of a clever plan?
course?
Station 3 Station 4
Aim: Jump along the line in a bag. Aim: Throw the ball into a basin of water.
Outcome: Develop locomotion, strength and balance. Outcome: Develop hand-eye coordination and number
concepts.
Question: Can you move in the bag on the zigzag line
without falling over? How far did you get before you fell? Questions: Can you throw the ball into to basin? How many
times did you throw the ball into the basin?
COOLING DOWN: The children and the teacher sit together and discuss the stations. Which was the best activity? Which
was the most difficult/easiest/nicest? How many times did you throw the ball into the water? Do basic stretching activities.
Keep in mind that the above lesson layout examples are compiled for Grade R. Remember
to consult the CAPS document to make sure the lesson is aligned with the required
curriculum outcomes. Please note: You are not allowed to copy the examples of the
lessons for your own assignments, teaching practice or any examination should you be
asked to provide a lesson.
51 GRL1501/1
2.8 INCORPORATING VARIOUS SUBJECTS IN MOVEMENT
LESSONS
The activities indicated below are examples of locomotion activities which can be used in a
lesson. The six different activities make up a multiple-station lesson. Movement activities
will enhance the learners’ mathematics and reading abilities. Pre-mathematic skills require
the ability to understand sequencing, patterns, space, size and weight. Movement activities
are also ideal to enhance coding. Look at the stations below and try to find activities which
enhance the mentioned concepts. Reading requires the child to recognise and understand
symbols and/or pictures, and the ability to track visually. Can you find stations which enhance
literacy? Give reasons for your choice.
Figure 2.2
Examples of locomotion activities
(Source: See Pinterest links below)
Internet links for coding, sequencing, patterning activities for movement stations:
• https://za.pinterest.com/pin/476818679290120959/
ACTIVITY 2.9
(1) Design your own lesson and make sure that you apply all the principles needed in
compiling an effective multiple-station movement lesson.
52
2.9 MAKING YOUR OWN EQUIPMENT
The use of equipment enhances the movement programme and creates an exciting variety
for the learners to explore. Equipment such as ladders, beams, boxes and jungle gyms
can add to the excitement of a movement lesson. Adding equipment to a lesson can also
help to alleviate a learner’s self-consciousness and may be inviting and encouraging to
learners who do not participate usually. It also ensures that large groups are kept busy
and it adds fun and an element of interest to the lesson. If the school does not have
equipment available, it is easy to make your own equipment from waste material. The
learners can get involved in this project and assist in painting and decorating the various
items. Make sure that there is sufficient storage space for the equipment. The learners
can also help unpacking and tidying up the equipment for the lessons. Below are some
ideas of what you can use to make your own equipment.
Balancing stilts Balls

Empty paint cans or sturdy food cans can be Balls are important items to have when planning
used to create stilts that the children can use a lesson. It is ideal to have balls of different sizes.
for balancing. Clean and paint the cans, then Balls are used for manipulation activities, which
drill two holes in the cans and attach thick include throwing, kicking and hitting. Balls can
string or wool securely to the can. The string be made by scrunching newspaper up into a ball
needs to be long enough so the children can and then covering it with clear tape. Alternatively,
hold it while balancing on the cans. use shopping bags stuffed with newspaper and
tied tightly at the top to create a ball. Balls can
also be made with wool or foam chips.
Balance beams Skipping ropes

Long wooden planks can be used to create Empty and clean deodorant bottles can be
balance beams. These can be lifted with used to make the handles of a skipping rope.
bricks or smaller pieces of wooden blocks. Drill a hole in each bottle and thread a thick
They must be sturdy and safe for children string through the hole, knotting each end.
to move on. Alternatively, weave plastic bags into a rope that
can be used without additional handles.
Beanbags Flashcards
Beanbags should be made with bright, strong Flashcards should be made with strong, sturdy
material. Primary colours are suggested. They cardboard and covered with strong contact
should be filled with polystyrene chips. The plastic. Pictures of children doing specific
suggested size is 8 cm x 8 cm. The shapes of activities or animals that can be linked to
the beanbags can vary. It is ideal to have four movement (frog for frog jumps) can be printed
shapes each in primary colours. and placed on cardboard, especially for Grade R
learners. Also have a set with shapes, numbers
and arrows (indicating different directions) that
can be incorporated into your lessons.
53 GRL1501/1
Beacons Ball scoops
The tops of plastic cold-drink bottles can These can be used to scoop up balls during an
be cut and shaped like a triangular beacon. activity. Cut out the top and handle part of a milk
These can be used for the children to run bottle. Paint and decorate as desired. Movement
between or as a start and end point of an equipment can be made with various recycled
activity. products. This equipment is fun, cheap and easy
to make and give your creativity free reign.
Hoops Rackets (bats to hit balls)

Hoops are versatile and can be used in a Wire hangers and nylon stockings can be used
variety of ways in a movement lesson. Make to make rackets to use with soft balls. Bend the
your own hoops by using plastic piping, 1,5 hangers to form a diamond shape and pull the
cm in diameter and wooden dowels a few stockings firmly around the wire, securing it at
centimetres smaller. Use the wooden dowels the top.
to join the ends of the piping and cover with
insulation tape.
Knitted or material bands Activity mats

Knitted or material bands (100 cm × 10 cm) Use an old sheet and stitch a variety of shapes
should be made in bright colours. Velcro can (squares, blocks, triangles, circles, hands and
be added to the ends of each knitted band so feet) on it. Children get a card which indicates
they can be joined together to make different the pattern or sequence they need to follow,
shapes. for example, put you right hand on the green
block, left foot on the yellow circle or right hand
on the blue triangle.
ACTIVITY 2.10
(1) View a presentation on the module portal of myUnisa: Krog S. Making your own
equipment. PowerPoint presentation GRL1501.
(2) Download the following references to help with ideas on making your own
equipment for movement lessons:
• Schiller, W & McCallum, J. 1996. Play pack. Sportstart and playshop equipment and
activity ideas of parents. Australian Sports Commission: Paragon Printer.
• Singh, R. 1993. Sportstart: developing your kids’ skills at home. Fyshwick, ACT: Australian
Sports Commission: Paragon Printer.
ACTIVITY 2.11
(1) Think of other waste materials or other activities that can be used with the waste
material discussed in movement lessons, and list five such activities. Provide a design
of your own created apparatus. Pinterest is a valuable free app to find resources.
Internet links for equipment:
54
• https://za.pinterest.com/pin/AUYffQ-vVdj3HSWAXwweqbPiAcxuIDhN4h2esz0npu
TH-tr5UeHL7xMg/
• https://za.pinterest.com/pin/441423200977387756/ https://i.pinimg.com/564x/81/7f/
d1/817fd1ad3f9685b6d0efd8700da1a102.jpg
2.10 PHYSICAL MILESTONES AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE

CHILD
Knowing the phases of motor development can assist the teacher in understanding
what is expected of a child at different ages. We know that not all children can do the
same things physically at the same time. Children are expected to have certain motor
skills at certain ages. When children execute certain activities, the level of competence
at which they are done differs. Unrealistic expectations should be set aside as they place
unnecessary pressure on the learner who is not proficient in certain motor skills.
There are general guidelines to assist a teacher in better understanding what motor ability
is expected of a child between the ages of four and nine years (refer to your module
portal on the myUnisa website). Use these guidelines when planning a movement lesson
and assessing a learner’s ability to perform the motor skills that you have planned. Your
activities should not be too difficult as this may harm the child’s self-esteem. The activities
should provide the learners with a challenge but should also be at an age-appropriate
level to enable the learners to complete the assignment. It is important to remember that
gross motor skills must develop before fine motor skills do.
ACTIVITY 2.12
(1) View the table which is provided on the module portal on myUnisa. This will give
you an indication of the motor skills that learners should be able to master between
four and nine years.
2.11 ASSESSING A MOVEMENT ACTIVITY

Assessing a learner’s motor development is crucial as it provides an indication of where
learners are at their motor development, what the learner is able to do and which areas
still need to be improved. The most important aspects that are observed and assessed
are the learner’s motor abilities related to body awareness, dominance, spatial awareness,
laterality, directionality and midline crossing. The explanation of these aspects and their
impact on learning were discussed in the previous learning unit. These aspects are crucial
when assessing a learner and should be included in the gross motor checklist. Table 9.1
is an example of a gross motor checklist which can be used to assess the learners during
movement lessons.
55 GRL1501/1
Table 2.1
Gross motor checklist for Grade R
Activity Not yet Almost Achieved

achieved achieved
Balance on one foot for ten seconds 
Balance on one foot for ten seconds arms raised shoul- 

der height
Walk forward ten steps heel to toe, keeping balance 
Balance on tiptoes, bending forward from hips 
March, skip to rhythm 
Throw a beanbag in box (from two metres away) 
Do cross-pattern walking over a rope 
Balance a beanbag on the head while walking five 

metres
Walk on a low beam 
Kick a ball 
Source: Krog (2016)
Assessing a learner’s motor development is important as it provides an indication of

what the learner is able to do and what needs improvement. Table 9.2 is an example of
an observation table that may be used to determine how proficient a learner is.
56
Table 2.2
Observation table to assess the general motor ability of learners
Name of learner: PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT GROSS MOTOR

_____________________ Mass: _______________kg DEVELOPMENT
COORDINATION
Date of birth: Length: ___________cm
Basic motor movements (run,
_____________________ GENERAL HEALTH climb, jump and hop)
Current age: • Lively • Agile
_____________________ • Energetic • Controlled
• Sometimes slow • Good
Grade: • Tires easily • Somewhat clumsy
_____________________ • Uncontrolled
Date of
observation: ___________
BALANCE BODY AWARENESS DOMINANCE

Handling of beanbag/ball Knowledge of body parts Prefers:
• Well controlled • Names body parts Hand
• With confidence • Names most body parts • Left/right/both/unsure
• Uncontrolled • Shows body parts
• Shows certain body parts Foot
EYE-HAND
COORDINATION • Unable to name or show • Left/right/both/unsure
body parts
• Stringing Eye
• Skilful LATERALITY
• Left/right/both/unsure
• Not yet competent Inner concept of left and
DIRECTIONALITY
• Uncoordinated right
Physically performs an activity
• Sure
indicating
• Unsure
• up
• over
• down
• around
• under
• behind
• in front of
MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES MIDLINE CROSSING

Participation Skills
• Enthusiastic • Adaptable • Agile
• Active participation • Agile • Controlled
• Usually participates • Daring • Good
• Shaky/unsteady • Uses own initiative • Somewhat clumsy
• Disruptive • Satisfactory • Uncontrolled
• Hesitant • Clumsy • Avoidant
• Observes others • No skills mastered yet
Source: Krog (2016)
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When should an assessment be conducted?
It is advisable to do an assessment every term. This will help to plan for the necessary
support the learners may need in the lessons. Add the various activities for the lessons
to the assessment. For example, incorporating more balancing or more crossing midline
activities should they be found to be problematic.
ACTIVITY 2.13
(1) Design your own checklist for Grade 3 learners using the checklists for Grade R as
an example. Also read the publications mentioned below. You will find them in the
e-reserves which can be downloaded from the myUnisa library website:
• Department of Basic Education (DoBE). 2011. Curriculum and Assessment Policy
Statement Grades R–3. Life Skills. Pretoria: Government Printer.
• Krog, S. 2016. Physical education in the Foundation Phase. In M Naudé & C Meier
(Eds). Teaching life skills in the foundation phase. Pretoria: Van Schaiks.
2.12 INDIGENOUS GAMES

Playing is part of the child and games are enjoyable, therefore they should be introduced as
part of children’s physical education. Games help with the promotion of social, emotional
and physical wellbeing, as well as mastery and a sense of importance. Indigenous games
are part of each country’s cultural heritage and promote group centredness and solidarity,
humanness and cooperation. In addition, they teach learners to implement fundamental
motor skills as well as complex rules and team strategies. They help learners to understand
cultural diversity in various indigenous games. South Africa has a rich diversity of games
in which learners can participate to promote the various ethnic groups. Indigenous games
should not exclude games of countries worldwide (Roux 2017).
2.12.1 Lesson plan for games

The lesson plan will not differ in the format from the previous multiple-station lesson plan.
• Introduction and warm-up (5–10 minutes)

• Technical phase (15–20 minutes)
• Game phase (15–20 minutes)
• Cooling down and reflection (5–10 minutes)
You need to find suitable games for learners in the Foundation Phase and limit the time
of the lesson. The learners in your class can also ask their parents for game ideas. There is
a lot of information available on the internet you can use for lesson planning. Additional
information will also be provided on the module portal of myUnisa.
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2.12.2 Examples of traditional games
The following are just a few traditional South African games:
• Kgati (rope skipping also known as ugqaphu ntimor) which is a rhythmic skipping game.
• Jukskei (from Cape Afrikaner origins) is played by placing a peg upright in the ground
and using a skittle to try and hit this target from a distance.
• Dibeke is a running ball game, where two teams take turns in opposing and defending by
trying to stop the opposition from reaching the other side.
• Five stones is played by two teams of four to six players. A stone is tossed in the air
while trying to catch another stone.
• Lintonga is played by two persons each with a stick; one “attacks” and the other defends
(Naidoo & Krog 2015).
ACTIVITY 2.14
(1) Use the internet to find various indigenous games mentioned in section 2.12.2,
which are typically African. Ask the learners in your class if they know of games
which their grandparents and parents played when they were younger.
2.13 CONCLUSION
The planning, presenting and assessing of a movement lesson is an important part of
physical education. Lessons need to be well thought-out and structured and should
incorporate a variety of activities to provide the young child with opportunities to learn
and develop their gross motor skills and have fun. It is crucial that the safety of the learners
is kept in mind when planning any lesson. This ensures that the learners develop and
learn in an environment where they cannot be harmed.
Lesson plans must be documented to denote exactly what is expected from the lesson,
and the learners need to be briefed on their expectations before the beginning of the
lesson. This lessens the learners’ anxiety and gives them an opportunity to discuss their
concerns and provide suggestions on how to solve problems.
The teacher needs to engage with the learners and observe their progress during the
lesson. This is important as it gives the teacher a clear indication of where the child is in
his/her development.
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2 SELF-EVALUATION QUESTIONS
y C an you think of five safety measures to keep in mind when you present movement
activities?
y Movement activities assist in preparing the young child for school. Can you define the
terms directionality, midline crossing, laterality and spatial awareness?
y Explain how these four important aspects assist with learning.
y What activities would you provide to improve directionality, body awareness and
spatial awareness?
y Design a short checklist in order to assess a Grade R learner’s movement ability.
y Design a multiple-station movement lesson for Grade R learners. Your lesson must
include the following: 1) a warm-up; 2) at least four stations; 3) a description of the
activity (aim); 4) the outcome of the activity (outcome); 5) a drawing; and 6) cooling-
down activities.
y Provide an example of an indigenous game that you can teach learners in Grade R.
COPYRIGHT CLAUSE: Remember no example given in any study material may be used
for your own assignments or for your teaching practice lessons.
Additional resosurces
Department of Basic Education (DoBE). 2011. Curriculum and Assessment Policy

Statement Grades R–3. Life Skills. Pretoria: Government Printer.
Krog, S. 2013. Movement and motor development. In R Davin (Ed). Handbook
for Grade R. Cape Town: Pearson Education:103–114. (New edition to be
published in 2020.)
Krog, S. 2016. Physical education in the Foundation Phase. In M Naudé & C
Meier (Eds). Teaching life skills in the foundation phase. Pretoria: Van Schaiks.
(New edition to be published in 2020.)
Krog, S & Naidoo, R. Teaching physical education and sports coaching. Cape
Town: Oxford University Press.
Naidoo, R & Krog. S. 2015. Chapter 10. Physical education. In I Gous & J Roberts
(Eds). Teaching life orientation. Senior and FET Phases. Cape Town: Oxford
University Press.
Roux, CJ. 2017. Teaching games. In Physical education and sports coaching. Cape
Town: Oxford University Press.
Schiller, W & McCallum, J. 1996. Play pack. Sportstart and playshop equipment and
activity ideas of parents. Australian Sports Commission: Paragon Printers.
Internet resosurces
• Long-term athlete development

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/49778283_The_Long-Term_Athlete_Develop-
ment_model_Physiological_evidence_and_application
https://www.activeoxfordshire.org/uploads/long-term-athlete-development-article.pdf
60
• Safety precautions for movement lessons
https://safety.ophea.net/safety-plan/168/1810 https://study.com/academy/lesson/safety-
guidelines-for-physical-education.html
• The role of the teacher in the planning and implementation of movement activities
http://ebip.vkcsites.org/teacher-directed-physical-activity/
• The importance of open-ended questions
http://info.teachstone.com/blog/open-ended-questions-in-the-classroom
http://www.halseyschools.com/6-kinds-of-open-ended-questions-you-should-ask-
your-preschooler/
• Multiple-movement lessons
https://www.tututix.com/making-creative-movement-lesson-plans/?utm_
source=Pinterest&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=Teachers
• Lesson layout ideas
https://www.teacher.org/lesson-plans/p-e/
https://sharemylesson.com/search?grade%5B0%5D=elementary_%28grades
_k-2%29&subject%5B0%5D=motor_skills
• Making equipment
Hula-Hoops https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFXSk5F0E_w
Balls that can be used for rolling/catching https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gL3Pg1ThiW0
Beanbags https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An9MHTmFlIg
Balance beams https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An9MHTmFlIg
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62
Section B
Creative arts – visual arts
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Learning unit 3: Introduction to visual art for young children64

Learning unit 4: Implementing the Grade R programme94
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Learning unit 3
Introduction to visual art for young children
3.1 INTRODUCTION
In this learning unit, you will learn about visual and creative art and how they relate to
different stages of visual art development in the young child. The knowledge you gain
from this learning unit will prepare you to teach visual and creative art at Grade R level.
The unit begins with the definitions of the key concepts and shares theories of child art.
Furthermore, the relationship between the different stages of child development and
the sensory appeal of the child in an art classroom is explored. These critical stages of
development cover the following aspects of the learner: physical, emotional, perceptual
and social development.
Visual art is recognised and regarded as a core component of early childhood development
and is an essential subject that shapes children’s artistic and creative growth and helps to
establish their identity. It also encourages learners to apply their creative minds in dealing
with every-day life actively, and creatively and critically solving real-life challenges. In the
Foundation Phase, teachers need to be able to demonstrate competence, maintain good
standards of excellence in art education and continuously upgrade their knowledge and
skills through life-long learning. This learning unit will aid you as a future art teacher to
achieve these essential skills, knowledge and values.
After the completion of this learning unit, you should be able to:
• Explain the appropriate stages in the development.
• To critically apply and/or creatively develop lessons/activities and tasks that consider
the different stages of creativity in child development.
• Assess creative activities in an appropriate manner.
3.2 DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS
3.2.1 The concept of creativity

What is creativity? Existing literature shows that the concept of creativity has expanded
into a wide-range of fields in the world of work including the arts, science and business
disciplines. Children are naturally creative. They see the world through fresh, new eyes and
then use what they see in original ways. The young child will use the materials available
64
to explore the characteristics of the material and only after that use it to give expression
to experiences and feelings (Van Rensburg 2020).
Fazylova and Rusol (2016) describe creativity as “a state of mind in which all our intelligences
are working together” and as “the ability to solve problems and fashion products and to
raise new questions”. Some definitions relate to: (i) the ability to see things in a new way;
(ii) breaking the boundary and going beyond the information; (iii) making something
unique; and (iv) combining unrelated things into something new (Fox & Schirrmacher
2012). Creativity can be understood as having the power or quality to express yourself in
your own way. Jackman (2011) states that creativity includes producing something new
or unique as well as “thinking out of the box”. Even in a Grade R class, a teacher will be
able to observe some of the above mentioned characteristics in a learner who is artistic
and/or technological gifted (Van Rensburg 2020).
3.2.2 Five stages of the creativity process

1. Preparation (acquisition of skills, techniques and information): This stage is normally
best carried out in a quiet environment. It is when an artist is trying to absorb as much
information as possible because this information will go into the sub-consciousness.
The person collects creative ideas – writing them down in an idea notebook – that he/
she is drawn to because he/she has proactively chosen to bring in new information
and inspiration.
2. Incubation: This is when all the information that you have gathered in the preparation
stage really starts to stir up in the back of your mind, in the sub-consciousness. This
is an extremely important stage because sometimes it can take days, weeks, months
or even years.
3. Withdrawal from the problem: This is the process when an individual finds it
difficult or impossible to access his/her skills, creativity, or motivation as he/she is
used to, or a person is stuck for ideas or inspiration. One technique that some find
diverting in trying to shape a drawing or looking at the object he/she is drawing, is
to not lift his/her pencil or marker off the page until he/she is done.
4. Insight or illumination: A process when a person eventually spits out a novel idea
that feels as if it came out of nowhere – but it did not, it originates from a person’s
creative process. With insight, it is really the idea of the “Aha” moment. Although it is
probably the smallest part of the five steps, it is possible one of the most important
parts. It happens when the sub-consciousness in the previous stages is bubbling
away and this stage of illumination really allows the mind to work on something
else in order to bring these ideas to the forefront of your mind.
5. Evaluation and elaboration: This is an important stage because it requires self-
criticism and reflection. After creating something, a person can ask him/herself
questions like: “Is this a novel or new idea or is it a stricken idea that has been thought
of before?” Or the person may ask someone: “What do you think about this?” It is a
very important part because we only have a limited amount of time to do certain
things. You will often find that people who are called the most creative people excel
at this stage. They have all these ideas but they can use self-criticism and reflection
to say: “These ideas have the most merit”.
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Note that only (i) and (ii) are applicable in the Grade R class.
3.2.3 The creativity process

Botella, Zenasni and Lubart (2018) define the creative process as a succession of thoughts
and actions leading to original and appropriate productions. They describe the creative
process according to two levels: a macro level, featuring the stages of the creative process;
and a micro level, which explains the mechanisms underlying the creative process, for
example, divergent thinking or convergent thinking.
Table 3.1
The creativity process suitable for the Foundation Phase
Process Explanation
Inspiration The child is inspired by something from nature or by an event that

has occurred in his/her life. Sometimes, an idea seems to come out
of nowhere.
Percolation This involves refining ideas by making sketches or playing around

with ideas visually. The child can have an idea for a long time before
creating the piece of art that inspired him/her.
Preparation Preparation includes the time spent obtaining and organising supplies
and creating a blueprint for what the piece will be. Maybe that means
making (rough drawings or sketches) or creating a dummy outline
for a book project.
Creation This is the time when a child has finalised his/her own path of making
art. He/ She has a pen, paper, crayon, clay or brush. He/ She then
starts creating. The process of creation can vary depending on an
individual’s personal temperament or his/her artistic style.
Reflection After the child has created a piece of art, he/she may discover a slight
error or have doubts about what he/she has created. He/she can share
it with family and friends or hang it on the wall. Regardless of the end
point of the art, its completion often leads to a period of reflection.
(Source: Author)
3.2.4 The role of the educator in encouraging creativity in young

learners
The educator plays the following role in encouraging art in young learners:
• During the art activities timeslot, the educator may ask learners to suggest as many
uses as they can for common objects such as an empty oatmeal box. In this way,
the educator encourages problem solving and creativity. In the classroom the educator
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can ask learners to think of different objects, for example, the shape of a circle, triangle
or square; things that are red, purple or green; and things that are sticky, hard or soft.
• The educator can ask learners to look through the classroom windows and list things
they only see in winter or summer, and things which are circular, rectangular or a certain
colour. In this way, the learners’ curiosity, sensitivity and a sense of observation are
encouraged. The educator could also take the learners outside and let them explore,
which will also encourage their curiosity.
• Educators should not criticise the children’s ideas. The greater the number of ideas,
the greater the possibility that some really good ideas will emerge. There is no right
or wrong in creativity.
ACTIVITY 3.1
Reflection exercise
(1) Define the following terms
(i) creativity
(ii) art
(2) Why do you think it is important to teach art to young children?
(3) Explain the following terms:
(i) imagination
(ii) observation
(iii) self-expression
(4) How would you encourage creativity in your class?
1FEEDBACK FOR ACTIVITY 3.1
In your response to this activity, explicit knowledge of the concept of creativity is crucial as
well as how young children learn. For example:
(1) The teacher needs knowledge of the importance of creativity to young children and
how to support young children to be creative in art like drawing or painting. It is also
important that the teacher should know how creativity benefits young children.
(2) An art teacher must understand his or her role in the art classroom in terms of what
he or she needs to provide for the learners.
3.3 WHAT IS ART?

Dissanayake (2015) defines art as the human expression of an aesthetic experience. This
implies that children at a young age can show their appreciation of any visuals that are
appealing to them. Art also involves the development of life skills such as playing in sand,
which contributes to writing skills, while playing with food can for example develop
textural skills and abilities. These arts components independently or jointly engage and
develop the child intellectually, socially, emotionally and physically. Learning through the
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arts involves active engagement in practical learning that unites mind and body, emotion
and intellect and object and subject of the learner.
3.3.1 Types of art (art disciplines)

The major classification of the types of art from the traditional perspective is based on
three main types: visual arts, applied arts, and performing arts. According to López-Bertran
(2019), the study of art has been conducted from a modern and Western point of view and
it was based on the idea of expressing individual values and skills inside a network that
produces artistic creations (Corbey et al 2004:357–362). All types of art can be scrutinised
from a formal point of view. Relevant issues to be considered are the materials, the shape
and size of the artefacts or their dimensionality (2D or 3D). Other formal issues are colour,
texture, symmetry, harmony, and the distribution and pattern, if any, of the decorative
motifs. Visual art encompasses many different art forms that range from painting, drawing,
sculpting, and printmaking, to newer media such as installation art, digital technology-
based art and mixed-media art. Other additional art forms include the following:
Animation art
• It is the visual art of creating a motion picture from a

series of still drawings or clay.
Body art
It is one of the oldest forms of art which includes body

painting and face painting, as well as tattoos, mime, "living
statues" and (more recently) "performances" by artists.
• It usually encompasses what one society believes is

beautiful, expensive, noble, religious, or of high status.
• An outside society may react quite differently to beards,
tattoos, black teeth, or oddly shaped bodies.
Collage
It is a composition that consists of various materials like

newspaper cuttings, cardboard, photos, fabrics and the like,
pasted to a chart paper, board or canvas.
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Computor art
It refers to all computer-generated forms of fine or applied

art, including computer-controlled types. Also known as
digital, cybernetic or internet art.
• This is any art in which computers play a role in production

or display of the artwork. Such art can be an image, sound,
animation, video, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, videogame,
website, algorithm, performance or gallery installation.
Design
This refers to the plan involved in creating something

according to a set of aesthetics. Examples of artistic design
movements include: Art Nouveau, Art Deco, De Still, Bauhaus,
Ulm Design School and Postmodernism. There are also many
different forms of design, such as fashion design, landscape
design, architecture design, graphic design and information
design.
Drawing
A drawing can be a complete work, or a type of preparatory

sketching for a painting or sculpture. A central issue in fine
art concerns the relative importance of drawing (line) versus
colour, chalk, charcoal, cone crayon, pastel, pen and ink and
pencil.
Figure 3.1
Art forms with pictures
(Source: Author 2020)
3.3.2 Visual arts

According to Koster (2012:229), visual art can be defined as creating something through
means of line, shape, colour, hues, form, texture, pattern and space in a two- or three-
dimensional context. During the process of creating visual artwork, the Grade R learners
will be engaged in an explorative way where he/she experiments, discovers and repeats
things if it did not work the first time. Their main focus is that they explore and are actively
involved with the materials (Fox & Schirrmacher 2012:6). The teacher’s responsibility is to
provide a variety of art materials and tools, for example paintbrushes, scissors and glue
that invite a child to explore while participating in different art activities every day of the
week.
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3.4 ART ELEMENTS
Art elements refer to the visual literacy which is the language of art. This means it is good
to determine which art elements will be utilised in the specific art lesson. Elements of
art are critical tools that are employed when producing any form of work of art because
they convey visual composition and reflect various moods that are presented by the artist
and the produced artwork.
According to Diwa (2018), elements of art are the core traits of any artwork, visually
detectable and separately identifiable. Not all art elements need to be a part of each
artwork, sometimes the deliberate absence of some of them is a distinguished characteristic
of an art style. However, one rule goes for all of them – learning how to paint is necessary,
besides and despite natural talent, knowledge is the elementary stepping stone for artistic
achievement.
3.4.1 Visual art elements

A basic understanding of the visual art elements is important to the teaching of the visual
arts. Visual elements include the following:
a. Line is a fundamental element in art that is commonly used by children during

the production of their schematic art production stage. Through line children can
produce scribbled and linear pictorial images. Line helps learners to create rhythm.
This includes harsh rhythm produced through angular lines and harmonious rhythm
produced through contour lines. Line can also be used to reflect the mood and
emotional senses of the child.
Fox and Schirrmacher (2015:123) affirm that line as an art element has several
properties that include long, high and short lines, thick and thin lines, big and small
sized lines, horizontal and vertical lines, back and forward lines, dark and light lines,
fast and slow lines, as well as sharp and soft lines. He further defines line as
• a visible mark made by an artistic tool, such as a crayon, moved across a surface,
such as paper
• a continuation of dots
• something used to make letters, words, numbers, symbols and signs
Lines surround us everywhere. They appear on our body (fingers, creases in your
skin, hair strands), in patterns on your clothes, printed words across a page, legs of
chairs, buildings, etcetera. Vertical, horizontal, diagonal and curved lines can evoke
different ideas. Horizontal lines convey a feeling of calm, while vertical lines such
as cityscape and standing figures convey height. Both diagonal and curved lines
suggest actions.
Although young children can randomly draw lines, the art teacher has a fundamental
role to play in teaching children how to draw different kinds of lines. He/she must
also teach where these lines can be applied in drawing.
70
b. Shape: Most of the art we see is two-dimensional: a drawing, a painting, a print or
a photograph which is usually viewed as a flat surface. Most two-dimensional art
tries to create the illusion of three dimensions by combining the visual elements to
a greater or lesser degree. Fox and Schirrmacher (2015: 127) state that shape refers
to the outside form of an object, and its characteristics are classified as follows:
• simple or complex
• circular or angular
• geometrical (circle, square, triangle, rectangle or non-geometrical shapes that
include irregular free form, organic)
• hash or smooth, abstract or realistic
• proportional or non-proportional
c. Colour is categorised and sub-categorised by Fox and Schirrmacher (2015: 124) as

follows:
• Primary colours – these colours are basic colours through which other colours
can be obtained. Primary colours are limited to red, yellow, and blue.
• Secondary colours – these colours are obtained by combining two primary
colours resulting in three secondary colours:
red + blue, yielding violet

yellow + red, yielding orange
blue + yellow, yielding green
The colour wheel
The colour wheel is useful for studying colour. The order of the colours corresponds to
the order of colours in the rainbow. The relationships between the colours can be seen
when they are placed in a circle, from which general rules about mixing and painting with
colours can be developed. The children will be interested to learn about the colour wheel,
but an over-theoretical approach to colour should not replace “hands-on” exploratory
activities.
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Figure 3.2
Colour wheel
(Source: Shutterstock 2020)
Colours ranging from yellow to red-violet are the warm colours. Colours in the yellow-
green to violet range are the cool colours – in paintings, they appear to recede from the
viewer. Colours that are near one another on the colour wheel and are closely related,
for example red, orange and yellow, are referred to as analogous or related colours.
Because related colours, for example yellows and greens, do not dull one another when
mixed, mixing is often the best way to lighten or darken colours without reducing their
intensity. Colours that are directly opposite each other on the colour wheel, for example
red opposite green and yellow opposite violet, are called complementary or contrasting
colours, that is, a primary opposite a secondary colour that has been mixed from the
two remaining primaries. They create a very dramatic effect when placed side by side in
a painting. When mixed together, complementary colours neutralise or dull one another
and they produce neutral greys or browns. Colour is produced and noticeable through a
reflection of light on an object. Such light can be produced through a spectrum in order
to produce seven spectrum colours. In a classroom, colour combination is produced and
guided by the colour wheel, and children use colour to portray various emotions and
feelings. O’Connor (2008) argues that colour harmony is presented through the use of
complementary colours that bring equilibrium to an artwork. Good examples of such
colours are red and green, yellow and purple as well as blue and orange. A similar principle
of colour harmony can also be reflected on handwork which creates visual balance in the
ultimate theatrical production.
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Fox and Schirrmacher (2015:124) state that there are various kinds of colours. These include
neutral colours which are limited to white and black. This classification of neutral colours
incorporates grey, which is a mixture of black and white. Other types of colours are hues,
which are pure unmixed colours that have various colour ranges in the same colour code.
The final type of colour range is covered by tints, which are any colour that has a neutral
colour added to it.
c. How children choose colours
According to Ekanem, (2016), during the pre-schematic stage of creative development,

it is noticed that children tend to be more pre-occupied with their experimentation
than with representation. He further states that children seem to be extremely
interested in their attempts at creating forms. This means that when children paint,
they prefer to use colour they are instructed to put together – they do not mind
the difference between colours used to paint an object and the true colours of the
object represented (for example, the leaves of a tree are green). Another example is
a child at this stage, who is making a painting of his father or mother, who does not
see anything wrong in using blue, green or red as the colour for the skin. Ekanem
(2016) highlights that there seem to be many reasons for the children’s choices of
colours at the pre-schematic stage of development. The size, shape and convenience
of holding a wax crayon, pastel or brush may be the reason for the choice of colour
and the meaning of colours tends to be highly individualised.
d. Texture is explained as the degree of roughness and smoothness of any surface.

Children need to experience the feel of different materials that are involved in art
activities. In an art classroom, scrap material can be used to produce a collage art
project, using different textured surfaces and objects.
e. Tone is referred to as the degree of darkness and lightness of an object. It is commonly

known as shading. A good example is a black and white photograph, which is made
of tones whereby the darkest tone is black and the lightest is white. “Tone” is also
referred to as the brightness or darkness of colour. Tones help to create the illusion
of space and depth in a painting or drawing and to create atmosphere and contrast.
f. Composition is concerned with how objects are arranged in the pictorial landscape
and the picture plane. Young children are not pressured to use formalised composition.
However, children should be encouraged and taught the good rules of composition
in art projects. When the children’s art projects are completed, they should be
reflective of excellent object arrangement in the picture plane. A good example
here is a collage.
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g.
Figure 3.3
Food photo collage and fabric collage
3.4.2 Two-dimensional artwork

Naude and Meier (2016) define two-dimensional artworks as those composed of flat
designs that only have height and breadth. A two-dimensional work can however have
perceived depth, based on the use of proportion, composition and tonal values in the work.
It consists of paintings, drawings, prints and photographs, which differ from each other
primarily in the technique of their execution. Our initial response to all four is probably
a response to subject matter – that is, we first notice what the painting, drawing, print,
or photograph is about. In geometry, a two-dimensional shape can be defined as a flat
plane figure or a shape that has two dimensions – length and width.
Two-dimensional or 2-D shapes do not have any thickness and can be measured in only
two faces. Such recognition leads us to the work’s meaning and begins to shape our
response to it. Beyond the recognition of the subject, however, lies the technical elements
chosen by artists to make their vision appear the way they wish it to appear, and these
include media and composition. The two dimensions depicted are length and width and
the objects on the picture are flat. The two examples below represent two-dimensional
artwork.
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Figures 3.4 Figure 3.5
Drawing Painting
3.4.3 Three-dimensional artwork

These are works that occupy space and have height, breadth, and width. This process
is usually called modelling, can be viewed from all sides, and they are free-standing.
During 3-D activities, children learn to construct objects in order to develop fine-motor
and sensory co-ordination (eye-hand coordination): manipulation of for example scissors
and other tools and equipment. Teachers can make use of recycled objects, or objects
in the classroom to build according to the theme for that week. Another good example
of three-dimensional art is pottery. It is one of the most ancient craft practices that is
produced by children’s hand work activities and involves the use of clay and hands with
minimal craft tools. Three-dimensional objects describe depth – see the examples below.
Figure 3.6
Three-dimensional objects
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3.4.4 The role of the teacher in teaching 2D- and 3D-art
The role of the teacher in an art classroom is to create a conducive atmosphere during the
art lesson, dealing with challenges and motivating the children to create artworks that
depict their world in a personal way. The presence of the teacher is to guide and navigate
learners during the art project production. Therefore, the art teacher’s duty includes to:
• Observe children when they are creating and check how they use art elements in the
work that they create, for example rubbing of textured surfaces. This example focuses
on the art element: texture such as weaved baskets and crosshatched material. In this
instance, the teacher’s observation role is to determine the learners’ reaction on how
they differentiate between textured and non-textured materials.
• Always be aware of the children’s needs and appraise all their successes.
• Encourage children’s efforts as they work, by moving among them, discussing, asking
probing questions and where necessary, directing observation and helping to refresh
interest that has decreased or courage that has failed.
• Be sensitive to when such intervention would be helpful and when not. If the teacher
notices that the child is disappointed by his/her finished work, discuss his/her struggles
to help him/her pinpoint the problem area.
• Positive aspects should also be discussed, for example how well they saw and interpreted
a particular curve, shape, colour or mood. The teacher can design classroom projects
that will help children explore their interaction with art elements, for example, the
creation of a colour wheel by learners under the guidance of the teacher.
ACTIVITY 3.2
Carefully read the case study below and then answer the questions that follow.
In the same week that you start your teaching practice, the school is raising funds to
fix the playground where learners can play freely. When teaching art in Grade R, you
need to tell the learners to bring different artworks for the display table. Among the
pieces of artwork are children’s drawings, paintings, paper-mâché objects, puppets,
clay art, pottery, children’s framed photos, beadwork, different types of collages and
mathematical resources such as board games and building blocks. You want the learners
to arrange all the two-dimensional material together and all the three-dimensional
material together on the display table.
Based on the scenario above, answer the following questions:
Questions
(1) How would you define the terms two dimensional and three dimensional to the
learners?
(2) In the case study, which artwork can you identify as two dimensional and three
dimensional?
(3) Discuss in three sentences why pottery is regarded as three dimensional.
(4) What would be your role as teacher during these activities?
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In response to this question, it is crucial as a Grade R teacher that you know the difference
between two dimensional and three dimensional. As Grade R teachers, the students must
know different art forms and their roles in guiding learners to do art. This activity will require
the mastery of different art techniques and the appropriate approaches of teaching art.
3.5 IMPORTANCE OF VISUAL ARTS IN GRADE R

Visual art education plays a significant role in fostering young children’s learning, thinking
and communicating. In Grade R, many children experience creating art in a controlled
environment and with a variety of media for the first time. Van Stade, Davin and Blunden-
Greeff (2013) state that children’s learning through the art is aligned with their learning
about life. Arts also provides them with opportunities of finding new ways to understand
and present their world. Furthermore, it is through the practice of art that children absorb
certain values and come to an understanding of their culture. There are many debates
surrounding the differences and purposes of art and craft, art and design, etcetera. Even
though it is not the focus of this section, it is important for learners and future art teachers
to know what the difference is between art and craft and when art is considered an artwork
and when a craft; different types of skills are also associated with each of these practices.
Children participate in visual arts activities, such as playing with building blocks, drawing,
painting or finger-painting, and sculpting clay or playing with sand (NEA 2004). Participation
in visual-based art activities is largely non-verbal but requires gross and fine motor skills
that enable children to construct creative pictures. In doing this, children get opportunities
like scribbling in a standing position on large surfaces like A3 paper (where they develop
gross motor skills), which is the foundation to writing and drawing clear and recognisable
objects and letters (which uses fine motor skills).
3.5.1 Benefits of art in young children.

In recent years, school curricula have shifted heavily toward common core subjects
of reading and mathematics, but arts have been neglected as one of the beneficial
subjects – beneficial for both learners as well as teachers. Although art education may
be regarded as a luxury, simple creative activities are some of the building blocks of child
development. Learning to create and appreciate visual aesthetics may be more important
to the development of the next generation of children.
• Motor skills: Many of the motions involved in making art, such as holding a paintbrush
or scribbling with a crayon, are essential to the growth of fine motor skills in young
children. Around the age of three, children should learn to draw a circle and begin to
use safety scissors. Around the age of four, children should be able to draw a square
and begin cutting straight lines with scissors as it develops the dexterity children will
need for writing.
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• Language development: For young children, making art or just talking about it,
provides opportunities to learn vocabulary for colours, shapes and actions. In the
Foundation Phase, children can use descriptive words to discuss their own creations.
• Decision making: Art education strengthens problem-solving and critical-thinking
skills. The experience of making decisions and choices when creating a piece of art
carries over into other parts of life.
• Visual learning: Drawing, sculpting with clay and threading beads on a string all
develop visual-spatial skills, which are more important than ever.
• Inventiveness: When young children are encouraged to express themselves and
take risks in creating art, they develop a sense of innovation that will be important in
their adult lives.
• Improved academic performance: Studies show that there is a correlation between art
and other achievements. A report by Americans for the Arts states that young people
who participate regularly in the arts are four times more likely to be recognised for
academic achievement, to participate in a mathematics and science fair or to win an
award for writing an essay or poem than children who do not participate.
3.5.2 Importance of visual arts in the Foundation Phase

Art classified as handwork has been used for recreation activities since the beginning of
human existence. Handwork and craft curriculum activities engage the whole human
being’s functionality. It is therefore evident that handwork (craft) activities in the classroom
would positively affect a growing child, because such activities
• stimulate motor activity to the realm of skill

• transform willpower into forms of beauty
The teaching of art and craft is one of the important building blocks in the growth
and cognitive development of children particularly during the foundation phase of the
schooling system. Wright and McArdle (2014) state that good art and craft education has
a constructive influence on individual children and the community. They further indicate
that art and craft activities in the classroom have positive processes and outcomes for
the children:
• Constructive thinking is activated in the child when the individual child is tasked to
construct things or fit such things together. Such thinking is mostly explored when
the child has to figure out how to employ certain art and craft materials in order to
produce a constructive outcome. This could include modelling something out of clay
or having to fit different boxes (shapes and sizes) together.
• Imagination means that learners have to formulate images of objects or figures in their
minds. Some learners engage in the imagination exercise by remembering some of
their experiences or their imagination of exposure to certain life activities. Imagination
contributes to the child’s mental growth and life experiences which he/she will reflect
on through his/her life journey. Imagination can reflect fantasy or “real-life” worlds.
• Observation is one of the fundamentals of art and craft activities that requires the child
to be alert of the immediate, home and school environment. Observation activities
manifest themselves when the learners are for example requested to make a “picture
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of a house”. Based on the request, the learner will engage his/her observation skills and
look at the world around himself/herself and attempt to depict his/her observations
using art elements such as colour, shape and texture. Through observation activities
learners ignite their intellectual skills and abilities.
• Initiative means the ability of learners to think by themselves to perform something
on their own without being told what to do. Therefore, children who suggest things
to others portray initiative skills. This can be explored by the educator by guiding and
teaching as little as possible and letting learners initiate their own choices to complete
the project. Some learners may make their own choices of colour scheme, material
use and decide on their own shapes and forms.
• Self-expression is an articulation of most human beings. Through self-expression
learners have the ability to showcase their emotions and ideas in the strongest
sense. Educators must endeavour not to discourage the learners’ expressions – these
expressions can be reflected in the art and craft projects naturally and efficiently.
Expressing feelings through art and craft can be easier than expressing such feelings
verbally or through writing.
• Control of hands and coordination through the use of koki’s, colouring crayons,
scissors and paintbrushes the learner develops eye-hand coordination. The perfection
of hand control helps leaners to acquire the skill to manoeuvre and to produce myriad
hand skills. The younger the children are, the “bigger” the crayons or brushes should
be and the older they get, the smaller the brushes and crayons get: shift from gross
motor skills to fine motor skills.
• The quality and characteristics of the materials used will help learners develop
ways and means to produce quality products and learn how other materials react
under certain conditions. Through materials, learners gain practical knowledge and
material handling experience, such as paint and brush strokes, what kind of glue is
suitable to paste paper activities like geometrical shapes, and what glue to use when
doing box constructions activities.
• Personal and social well-being as part of the Life Skills curriculum is enhanced because
free creative art activities allow learners to put their inner feelings and thoughts on
paper without restrictions and being criticised. It also serves as their language as they
do not have the vocabulary, and as communication skills to verbalise what lacks in
their lives or bothers them. A well-trained teacher will be able to ask questions about
the child’s picture and guide the conversation to get relevant information from the
child regarding his social and emotional well-being.
• Sense of appreciation of beauty in art and craft means that all senses are explored,
like the sense of sight, smell, touch, hear, and taste. A sense of appreciation is therefore
explored through these senses.
3.5.3 Teacher’s approach in guiding learners towards art activities

The presence of the teacher is a critical factor because he/she will guide the learners to
the heightened levels of creative reflection by giving them classroom activities that suite
their level of artistic development and competencies. Such creative reflection comes
across when combined with the holistic developmental approach outlined by theorists
which would ultimately improve the artistic development of the child. The second largest
influence that affects a learner’s artistic development is motivation and appraisal. It is
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also important to note that at this point/age it is not necessarily about “artistic talent” or
“how well a child can draw” – it is about developing a variety of critical and creative skills
that will help them later in life. Such motivation would be intrinsic if the art activities and
school curriculum are composed of topics that are based on the child’s environment and
the learner’s prior learning experiences. This in turn has the potential to allow children
to have their own voices through artistic expressions. Questions should be designed to
provoke a visual and at times a kinaesthetic response and to stimulate learners to further
concentration and involvement. It is crucial to note that the role of the educator is to teach,
guide, facilitate and mentor learners at different stages of their development during art
activities in the classroom.
ACTIVITY 3.3
(1) State in your own words why it is important to teach art in young children?
(2) Design any activity through which you will develop the control of hands and
eye-coordination.
(3) Discuss any three benefits of art.
3.6 STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT IN EARLY CHILDHOOD ART
3.6.1 Viktor Lowenfeld’s stages of artistic development in children

Viktor Lowenfeld was born in Austria in 1903. He and his family fled Vienna for England
during World War II and later settled in the United States. Lowenfeld is viewed by many as
the father of art education. He spent years collecting and studying thousands of children’s
drawings in the 1940’s and 1950’s (Smith, 1987). From his observations of the characteristics
of children’s drawings, he developed five stages of artistic development: scribbling, pre-
schematic, schematic, dawning realism, and pseudo-naturalistic (Lowenfeld & Brittian
1982). The first stage, scribbling, begins at age two and usually lasts until the age of four.
This is the child’s first opportunity to draw and use art materials. The young artist begins
with random marks which later evolve into controlled scribbles. The second stage, the
pre-schematic stage, usually ranges from four years of age to around seven (Grandstaff
2012). Lowenfeld and Brittain (1982) confirm that during the scribbling stage children
enjoy experimenting with crayons on paper to yield a very different end product. This
stage starts with an uncontrolled scribble and only moves to a controlled scribble later on.
The stages of development in art can be described as follows:
• The scribbling stage – zero to two years. Scribbling is a process of both controlled and
uncontrolled marking – making or drawing hurriedly without paying attention to style
or legibility. The first disordered scribbles are simply records of the child’s enjoyable
kinaesthetic activity and no attempts are made at portraying the visual world. After six
months of scribbling, the marks are more orderly as children become more engrossed.
Soon they begin to name scribbles, an important milestone in development. On the
other hand, Piaget indicates that the scribbling stage usually comes naturally as a child
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explores and discovers many new things in his/her surroundings. Piaget further states
that as young children develop, they acquire new meaningful movements that help
them understand and interact with the world that surrounds them. Scribbling is one
of these movements. As children mature, the most that they can produce in this stage
are basic scribbles. Children draw things as they are known and understood rather
than as they are actually perceived (Longobardi, Quaglia & Lotti 2015).
• The pre-schematic stage – three to five years. The first conscious creation of form
occurs around age three and provides a tangible record of the child’s thinking process.
The first representational attempt is a person, usually with a circle for a head and
two vertical lines for legs. Later other forms develop, clearly recognisable and often
quite complex. Children continually search for new concepts so symbols constantly
change.
• The schematic stage – six to eight years. The child arrives at a “schema”, a definite
way of portraying an object, although it will be modified when they need to portray
something important. The schema represents the child’s active knowledge of the
subject. At this stage, there is a definite order in space.
• The gang stage (the dawning of realism) – eight to twelve years. The child finds that
schematic generalisation no longer suffices to express reality. This dawning of how
things really look is usually expressed with more detail for individual parts but is far
from naturalism in drawing. Space is discovered and depicted with overlapping objects
in drawings in a horizon line rather than a base line. Children begin to compare their
work and become more critical of it. This is why the drawings will often become smaller
and smaller on the page. While they are more independent of adults, they are more
anxious to conform to their peers.
• The pseudo-naturalistic stage – 12 to 14 years. This stage marks the end of art as a
spontaneous activity as children are increasingly critical of their drawings. The focus
is now on the end product as they strive to create “adult-like” naturalistic drawings.
Light and shadow and folds and motion are observed and translated to paper with
mixed success. Space is depicted as three-dimensional by diminishing the size of
objects that are further away.
• The period of decision – 14 to 16 years. At this stage learners are critically aware of
the immaturity of their drawings and are easily discouraged. Lowenfeld’s solution
is to enlarge their concept of adult art to include non-representational art and art
occupations besides painting (e.g. architecture, interior design and handcrafts).
3.6.2 Overview of Piaget’s stages of development

• The sensorimotor stage from zero to 2 years is a sensitive stage whereby the child’s
discovery level is nurtured. During this stage, the child is curious about the world and
his/her surroundings, as well as how objects at hand respond to actions. It is at this
stage that the child coordinates senses with motor responses, and links objects to
smell, taste, touch and hearing.
• The pre-operational stage from 2 to 7 years is a developmental stage during which
the child uses well formulated syntax and grammar and the use of language is most
significant to both the child and the guardian. This is a stage where children construct
and refine the concepts of time and space and interpret information.
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• The concrete operational stage from 7 to 11 years – during this stage the child
understands concrete conversation and cognitive operations.
The scribble stage (two to three years) – though Piaget’s stages also begin with scribbles,
we will not discuss this stage here as it is consolidated by Lowenfeld in the above stages.
This stage differs from others in that the initial phase is disordered (uncontrolled)
scribbles when repeated random connected marks are made. Scribbles are categorised
as follows:
• Random scribbling
The first phase of scribbling is known as random scribbles. This phase is characterised
by a child making haphazard markings on walls, papers or any other surface. The random
scribbles form the basis of writing and drawing. During this stage, a child makes accidental
and tentative lines with varying lengths, sizes, shapes and directions. Random scribbles
are done using whole arm movements with a crayon or any other tool that can be used
for drawing since the child has not yet developed fine muscle control. At this phase,
the child making scribbles is not fully aware that the marks that are being made on the
surface are coming from him/her and that is why he/she may not look at the surface as
he/she scribbles.
As the child’s brain develops, he/she begins figuring out that the marks being made are
coming from him/her and thus starts to be passionate about scribbling. Most children
begin scribbling at about eighteen months to two years of age. They will scribble with
anything at hand and on any nearby surface, even floors or walls. Their first marks are
usually an aimless group of lines. Children simply enjoy the physical motions involved in
scribbling. It is the act of doing and not the product that is important to the child. For the
toddler, art is a sensory-motor activity. As a child draws or paints, every part of the body
moves, all working to move the crayon or brush across the paper. In the early scribble
stage, a child does not have control over hand movements or marks on the paper. The
marks are random and go in many directions. See the figures below.
Figure 3.7 Figure 3.8

Circular movements Longitudinal movements
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• Controlled scribbling
The second phase involves controlled scribbles. These are scribbles made by a child
who is already aware that the marks made on a paper are coming from him/her. At this
level the child recognises that he/she can control the marks since his/her brain is more
developed – the child has developed enough muscle control. He/she will try to make
different kinds of squiggles and marks using repeated motions. Between ages two and
four, the child is already gaining some control of the scribbles he/she makes. The scribbles
are more organised circular swirls. This controlled scribble is a manifestation of developed
control of the muscles of his/her hands and fingers. At the early transition stage, the child
may yet have problems holding his/her crayon or marker. However, with time he/she will
learn to hold the marker between his/her thumb and pointer finger. During this phase,
the child also tends to make connections between motions and marks and these are
unconnected and are made in different directions. As children gain control of the marks
on the page, they start to name their scribbles and engage in imaginative play when
drawing. A child may announce what he/she is going to draw before starting.
• Named of scribbles
The third phase is known as the named scribbles and it is at this stage that a child begins
labelling the scribbles. His/her mind has developed well enough for him/her to realise
that the shapes he/she has made resemble real objects in the world. The drawing at this
level may not be very different from those in level two but the child’s mind has certainly
grown, giving him/her a purpose in mind as he/she draws. For example, a child may have
an intention of drawing a person but on hearing someone else mention something else,
he/she changes his/her mind and draws whatever is mentioned – an orange – and then
tries to name it. During this phase, all the drawings that are made become meaningful
(Hanline et al 2007).
3.6.2.1 The teacher’s role to encourage scribbling in young children

The best contribution that the teacher or parent can make is to offer children the proper
materials and the encouragement to engage in scribbling. In selecting appropriate art
materials, it is important to provide scribblers with a medium that enables them to easily
gain control of their marks. Tools such as crayons, non-toxic markers and pencils work
well. Water colour paints on the other hand are difficult for young children to control and
should be avoided. Tempera paint can be used provided it is a fairly thick consistency so
that it does not run down the page. Colour does not play a particularly important role
in scribbling. Teachers must offer a few sets of colours in numbers that provide a good
contrast with the paper used. A dark crayon marker or pencil is recommended along with
white or manila paper (12 by 18 cm). With tempera paint, provide a large, fairly absorbent
sheet of paper (18 by 24 cm) along with bristle brushes. Children can work on the floor
or any other horizontal surface when scribbling.
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3.6.2.2 The practitioner’s role in supporting children to make marks
Practitioners working with children in the early years can promote children’s mark making
and encourage them to express themselves in this creative manner. Mark making does not
only involve a pen and paper but also allows children to explore new media and materials.
For example, large pieces of paper can be placed on the floor and the children can use
their whole bodies to make marks, or they can be taken outside to draw on the floor with
chalks that can be washed away. Making marks can even involve food. Children can draw
shapes and put their fingers in food sauce as this counts as mark making. Through this
activity, children explore their creativeness for enjoyment and it also encourages them to
make marks in the future. Playing with food exposes the children to different textures –
this has an influence on their development and tolerability towards different foods and
textures (in their mouth or on their skin).
Mark making develops children’s physical skills and expands their creative skills and
imagination. When children produce something, they are able to express their feelings
and are also given a stepping stone into writing. Therefore, the teacher must respond
positively to the marks that children produce, giving lots of praise for their hard work
and taking their time to listen to the child whilst they are explaining their picture and
sharing the story they have created. Negative comments, lack of interest, over-questioning
the image and trying to correct it can lead to the child feeling discouraged and can be
counter-productive when trying to encourage children to mark making. Mark making
itself added together with the encouragement and praise from adults around them
creates a fantastic opportunity for children to make sense of the world and express their
feelings in a fun and creative way; all the while reaping in the developmental benefits
mark making has to offer.
b. The pre-schematic stage (3 to 4 years)

The pre-schematic stage is a secondary stage where the child begins to experience a
feeling of artistic satisfaction, based on the outcomes of their drawings. Young children
at this stage of artistic development begin to see connections between the shapes that
they draw and the physical world around them. Circles and lines may be described as
people or objects that are physically present in the child’s drawing. Pre-schematic rural
and urban children do their drawings and paintings in a representation format.
• Some children go to the extent of naming their output, for example, natural objects
such as trees in the landscape or family members.
• As children continue to interact with the art materials, they develop clear concepts of
how to control their hands more efficiently in relation to the art material used. Most
children are egocentric towards their lives, playing games and art play activities.
• The use of colour at this stage is not realistic but is based on the available colours of
the crayons to their disposal.
• Figures and other objects are used in the same picture plane without strong space
relationships.
• Some children will put more details in their art depictions than others, due to various
levels of observation and intelligence. The pre-schematic stage refers to that stage
when the child is drawing his first symbols but has not yet developed “schema”.
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c. The schematic stage (4 to 5 years)
• During this age group the child adopts special schemas that are suitable and best
for them. For example, a child often adopts an approach or way of depicting a tree,
a male and a female figure. Thus, it becomes feasible to distinguish which drawing
belongs to which child.
• Colour schemes are still used as a personal choice and as per colour crayons available
to the child.
• Some pupils turn to elongated important elements in their drawings, for example, if
the ball in the field is important to the child the ball will be exaggerated – probably
consciously or unconsciously. The child will also draw things as he/she experiences
it; a tree will for example be quite tall, as the child experiences it being high up; or
the windows of a house will be drawn right at the top of the house, as the child also
experiences them as being much higher than him/herself.
3.6.3 Kellogg’s outline of developmental stages

Rhoda Kellogg (1898–1987) was a psychologist and the director of a nursery school in
San Francisco. From 1948 to 1966, she collected more than one million drawings made
by children between two and eight years. The collection of these drawings represents
drawings from children around the world. Kellogg developed a classiﬁcation system that
describes the development of graphic expression in young children. Beginning with basic
marks (or scribbles) through to pictorial representations, children follow a predictable range
of graphic development. This natural construct appears to be universal and supports her
theory that formal design emerges before pictorialism.
Kellogg also identified various symbols that have been drawn by children across various
cultures. The mandala design which is a simple circle or square divided by intersecting
lines is produced by children in different parts of the world. Kellogg also discovered that
pre-schoolers and toddlers, unlike older children, are not concerned about their art pieces
looking nice or resembling real things. They move their hands to express a feeling that
comes from within them and are delighted by the movement and scribbles they produce.
With this knowledge in mind, it is important not to force children to look at physical objects
and try to copy it but to allow them to experiment and create in their own unique way;
thus, providing them an opportunity to express their own ideas and feelings.
• Scribble stage: 2 to 4 years
These are the earliest drawings of young children. They are simple and random markings,
made for the pleasure of drawing scribbles. During this stage, the young children have
no concern in trying to draw to represent anything but are rather enjoying the process
of making scribbles on the paper.
• Basic form stage: 4 to 5 years
Children begin to draw simple lines and shapes. Kellogg identified several universal
symbols that children use around the world. These include the mandala, sun, ladders,
spirals, wavy lines and rainbows. These symbols are used to communicate and are the
beginnings of writing. Children in this stage continue to draw for pleasure.
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Figure 3.9
Mandalas
• Pictorial stage: 5 to 6 years
During this stage, children use the shapes from stage two to draw symbolic representations
of real people and things such as houses, trees and windows. They start to identify
their drawings, tell related stories and expand their drawings to include new meanings
and understanding. Positive and appropriate nurturing of pre-schoolers and toddlers
commencing with artistic efforts can provide a strong foundation for later development
and enjoyment of artistic experiences.
d. The transitional stage
During this stage, the child (usually 9 years or older) is starting to mature and attempts
to produce art work that meets adult standards; yet he/she still produces works which
unintentionally contain many characteristics of the schematic stage. For instance, a
picture may include a natural looking ground plane with trees of diminishing size going
off into the distance. However, the child may include the top view of a swimming pool
and place several stiff figures on the edge of the paper. Thus, the art work contains visual
contradictions. The base-line is replaced by a receding ground plane, and there is frequent
use of intentional overlapping. Much attention is given to details, sex roles, and clothing
differences. Some linear perspective may be used during this stage.
e. The realism stage
The stage of realism is entered when the child (who is 12 years or older) is producing
art work in the manner of adult artists. In general, the child aims to draw realistically, but
that does not usually happen just yet. However, considerable control over the medium,
content, and organisation is evident. The figures become natural in appearance or are
intentionally stylised. The consistent use of many organisational devices is also quite evident
in art work produced during this stage, such as overlapping, diminishing size, placement
on the picture plane, and linear and aerial perspectives. It is at this stage that the child
becomes most critical and self-conscious about his/her ability to produce realistic artwork.
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f. The group dynamic stage (10 to 12 years)
• Pupils in this age group are comfortable to produce art and craft items as part of the
group (groups could be same sex or heterosexually composed).
• The pupils are progressively moving away from producing schematic images to gaining
pleasure in producing more constructive images.
• The representation of figures is more defined, for example, human figures are
represented with full body parts and show actions that the figure is involved in.
• The representation of colour is executed with a sense of realism.
• Depicted images are represented by thoughtful spatial relationships.
• The images can be differentiated through dress code for men and women’s
representations.
3.6.4 The role of the teacher in guiding learners through scribbling

The teacher must understand and share his/her understanding regarding the holistic child
development concepts and how such concepts influence children’s learning abilities in
the classroom.
At this stage, he/she needs to alert children of endangering others spaces. The teacher
must also give light guidance regarding the application of crayons on paper as children
would be enjoying the scribbling outputs. Furthermore, the teacher must design scribbling
exercises that will positively strengthen the child’s muscles as part of a motor development
exercise.
The teacher should also endeavour to stimulate children who are in the pre-schematic
stage by taking them out for physical exercise – to play for example with balls. After the
outdoor activity, move them to an art class and ask them to draw themselves playing
with the ball with their friends. (The sympathetic handling of children is to be prioritised
during this stage.) The educator should be conscious not to enforce realism during the
schematic stage, because children at this stage still produce art as part of artistic play.
ACTIVITY 3.4
Read the case study below and answer the questions.

Miss Mazibuko was hired to teach a Grade R class. In the first term, she spent time
planning and arranging the classroom in order to allow the children to spend time
in learning centres for most of the day. She created a book corner with an art play
area nearby and even located a sensory table where children could experiment
with concepts such as shape, colour, measurement and volume. During the first
month of school she familiarises the children with classroom routines, building
a sense of community, and allowing children to explore the materials in the
classroom. During the third week of school, her principal expressed concern
that the children in her art class were just making “disordered scribbles” and not
learning. The principal recommended that she should rearrange her class into
desks with rows or groups, so that she could make sure that all the children were
getting the same information and mastering the same concepts. Answer the
following questions based on the case study above.
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Questions
(1) What do you understand by the term “disordered scribbles”?
(2) If you were Miss Mazibuko, how would you respond to the principal’s concern? In
your response, identify and explain the art developmental stages and the learners’
art work you could give the principal to help her understand how young children
learn.
(3) Critically discuss the support you can give to learners that stay in the scribbling
stages.
(4) How can you compare Lowenfeld and Kellogg’s stages of artistic development?
In response to this activity, it is important that you understand how children grow. In this
section you have learned that children’s drawings vary according their stages of child
development and ages. In your explanation, it is important to be critical when you express
your views on the weaknesses and strengths or the disadvantages and advantages of the
support you will give the learners who stay in the scribbling stage.
3.7 THE HOLISTIC MODEL OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT IN ART
3.7.1 Holistic development

Holistic development is the concept that considers the interrelationship of the various
aspects of a child’s development: physical, social, emotional, cognitive, perceptual motor,
creative and moral/spiritual. This integrated view of learning sees the child as a person
who wants to learn, sees the task as a meaningful whole, and sees the whole as greater
than the sum of its individual tasks or experiences (Varun, 2015). All the domains of human
development are fundamentally linked together to define the child’s whole context, for
example, the physical surroundings, the emotional context, relationships with others,
and the child’s immediate needs at any moment will affect and modify how a particular
experience contributes to the child’s development. This means that the child’s development
cannot be fragmented into separate components, such as health, nutrition, education,
social, emotional and spiritual variables. These are inter-connected in a child’s life and
are developing simultaneously. The best way to holistically develop a child is to provide
him/her with real-life challenges, which require them to consider their full context and
surroundings. It will require whole-brain thinking, which in turn requires the child to be
fully immersed in the experience
3.7.2 Physical development

Children develop physically from the top down. In that manner they are gaining awareness
and increasing control of the head, then the arms down to the legs and feet. Gross motor
skills are the movement and control of large muscle groups for walking, running, jumping
and climbing. Fine motor skills involve fine and accurate movement of the hands and
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fingers for drawing, writing, using a knife or tying knots. The physical nature also includes
sensory development – the information received in the brain from the senses of sight,
hearing, smell, taste, touch and balance. When the teacher offers art activities, they are
supporting children’s large and small muscle development, as well as their eye-hand
coordination. Using crayons, markers, and paintbrushes helps children practice the fine
motor control they will need for writing later on.
3.7.2.1 Gross motor skills and development

Gross motor skills are movements that involve using the large muscles of the body. The
development of gross motor skills starts as soon as a child is born. As children age, their
gross motor abilities continue to develop and improve. Boys usually develop gross motor
skills much sooner than girls, with the exception of skills that involve balance and precise
movements (i.e., skipping and hopping). Children rely on gross motor skills to engage
in physical play. For example, playing a game of tag requires running after friends and
reaching out and touching someone (gross motor skills). Children also rely on gross motor
skills for everyday activities, such as walking in and out of a room.
Other examples of gross motor skills include
• running
• climbing up a tree
• throwing a baseball
• dribbling a basketball
At age five years, a child should be able to
• do a somersault
• gallop at least 2 metres
• catch a tennis ball from five metres away using only their hands
• run while pumping their arms
• walk down the stairs independently
At age six years, a child should be able to
• hop 20 metres without falling

• walk 15 metres on the tips of their toes
• skip ten metres
While participating in art activities, young children develop control of their large and
small muscle groups (Koster 1997). The large arm movements required for painting or
drawing on large paper or on the floor build coordination and strength. The smaller
movements of fingers, hands, and wrists required to cut with scissors, control model clay,
or draw or paint on smaller surfaces develop fine motor skills and control. With repeated
opportunities for practice, young children gain confidence in the use of tools for doing
art activities and later for writing.
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3.7.2.2 Fine motor skills
Fine motor skills are movements of the small muscles that require the functioning of the
limbs or joints to handle objects. Beardsley (2015) in her definition asserts that fine motor
skills are the small motor movements of the hands, fingers, wrists, feet, toes, lips and
tong. In small babies, the moving of hands is natural but uncontrolled. From buttoning
a shirt to writing a note, people use these skills at home, school and at work. Children
need opportunities to practice these, just as they would with their spelling words or
multiplication tables. Arts and crafts are a fun and easy way to practice fine motor skills.
Pre-school teachers need to design activities that are necessary to engage children in
smaller movements, where they can normally use the hands and fingers. During the ages
of two to three years, children can create things with their hands. They can build towers
out of blocks, mould clay into rough shapes, and scribble with a crayon or pen. Other
activities that develop the fine motor skills are for example the threading of beads or
placing blocks into corresponding shaped holes.
Participating in art activities also helps children to develop eye-hand coordination (Koster
1997). As children decide how to make parts fit together into a whole, where to place
objects, and what details to include, they learn to coordinate what they see with the
movements of their hands and fingers. This eye-hand coordination is essential for many
activities, including forming letters and spacing words in formal writing. Below is an
example of fine motor skills activities.
Figure 3.10
Fine motor development activity
3.7.3 Social development

When children work together in the art area, they learn to share with others, to be
responsible for clean up, and to put materials away. These are positive and important
changes for social learning. In young children, creativity is often a social act. Singing,
dancing, puppetry, and theatre all teach the child to pay attention to others as well as
develop an understanding of social rules like give and take, and cooperation.
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3.7.4 Cognitive development
Young children can learn the names of colours and shapes through creative art activities.
They find out what happens when they mix two primary colours together and get a
secondary colour. Sending older children outside to carefully examine a tree, feel its bark,
and study the shape and colour of its leaves, and then asking them to draw or paint trees,
help them develop observational skills needed for science. Therefore, teachers must
create activities that will help children to develop attention skills and cognitive learning.
Their imagination is in full use and it encourages them to come up with new ideas and to
think outside the box since creativity involves exploration and problem solving. Through
creative activities such as playing with dough, children can learn pre-mathematics skills
such as the concept of less and more. When children match shapes or colours in their
creations, they are learning the mathematics skill, one-to-one correspondence.
3.7.5 Emotional development

Emotional development is concerned with how children feel about themselves and others
and it develops a growing understanding about how and why they feel a particular way
and how to interact usefully with others. Through creative art, children may be able
to represent experiences that they cannot verbalise. They may draw pictures out of
proportion, exaggerating things that are important to them. When we value children’s
creativity, we help them feel valued as people. Through their drawings, teachers can see
when a child is struggling or perhaps some kind of abuse is going on. Based on what
and how they draw, it will become evident what the child’s emotional state is and how
the aspects that they cannot verbalise are communicated to an adult (whether a teacher
or a parent).
Young children feel a sense of emotional satisfaction when they are involved in making
art, whether they are modelling with clay, drawing with crayons, or making a collage from
recycled scraps. This satisfaction comes from the control children have over the materials
they use and the independence they have in the decisions they make. Deciding what they
will make and what materials they will use may be the first opportunity children have to
make independent choices and decisions.
Making art also builds children’s self-esteem. The teacher must give them opportunities
to express what they are thinking and feeling. When children participate in art activities
with classmates, the feedback they give to each other builds their self-esteem. This help
them learn to accept criticism and praise from others. Small group art activities also help
children practice important social skills like taking turns, sharing, and negotiating for
materials.
3.8 A MULTICULTURAL APPROACH IN VISUAL ARTS

In every classroom, there is always diversity. Every child comes with his/her differences in
terms of cultural origins, lifestyles, abilities, gender, religion, ethnicity and their individual
needs (Edwards 2010). These differences bring richness to the classroom setting. It is
imperative that the teacher creates a learning environment that respects children’s
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diversity that will set the scene for fostering children’s positive self-concept and attitudes.
Such an environment assists children in developing positive ideas about themselves and
others. The teacher should create conducive conditions under which children initiate
conversations about differences. To maintain diversity in the classroom, the teacher must
introduce art from different cultures. According to Edwards (2010), the teacher needs to
have the following questions in mind before introducing art from another culture:
• What cultures are represented by children in your classroom?

• What cultures are represented by families in your school and community?
• What art from other cultures attracts you? And why?
• What kind of art is appealing to the children?
The early childhood programme environment should reflect the following:
• The classroom must be bright, colourful, safe and clean.

• It should include children’s artwork and show the diversity of the world through the
programme’s abundant supply of age-appropriate toys, dolls, books, magazines,
pictures and musical instruments.
• The environment must provide opportunities to explore cultural diversity including
baskets, pillows, jewellery made from a variety of materials, puppets, rugs, wall hangings,
eating and cooking utensils, recordings of music in many languages and other objects
that reflect the world’s cultures.
• Children can explore diversity in family structure, gender roles, and abilities if their
environment contains materials such as dolls, books, dress-up clothes, puzzles,
manipulatives, and dramatic play materials that depict a variety of family structures,
gender roles, and people with a variety of disabilities.
• In many cases, the norms of different cultures are opposite to one another. It is
important that the teacher handles this in a respectful manner. For example, in some
cultures it is considered rude not to look someone in the eyes while they are talking
to you, yet in other cultures, it is considered inappropriate to look someone who is
older than you (or in some cultures even if it is a male person) in the eyes while they
are talking to you. This can cause internal conflict – how should a teacher handle this
in the classroom?
3.9 SENSORY DEVELOPMENT – ART THERAPY

Fox and Schirrmacher (2015:79) outline that art therapy is the psychotherapeutic use of art
for emotional understanding and healing of the child. According to them, art education
helps pupils to express their non-verbal emotions through artistic expression. Fox and
Schirrmacher (2015:79) further mention that qualified therapists are observant of child
art products and look for the following in their art:
• An expressive use of colour with bright colours such as reds and yellows being used
to symbolise emotional affection, whilst a dark colour such as black would symbolise
unhappiness.
• Personal meaning behind the repeated use of a symbol, which could mean an emotional
connection or a threat.
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• An exaggeration or distortion of objects often has a degree of emotional significance.
• The omission and underemphasising of objects could also signify emotional frustrations.
• The composition and placement of objects in the picture plane could be interpreted
in a therapeutic manner to signify the pupil’s low self-esteem. (Learners who may have
been abused would portray themselves in unusual colours.)
ACTIVITY 3.5
(1) Define the term “holistic development”.

(2) What is the difference between gross motor and fine motor skills?
(3) Create an activity in which you indicate how you can develop learners socially?
3.10 CONCLUSION
In this unit, we have discussed the concept of art as an introductory topic, the developmental
stages of art, the holistic model of child development in art and the theories underpinning
children’s art. The stages of development discussed in this unit will help you to understand
your learners and determine the meaningful activities that you ought to design for a
particular stage. The purpose of creativity and art developmental stages is not only to
understand how children grow, but to empower teachers of young children to be explicit
when designing art activities and to be in alignment with the desired outcomes that
learners in these particular stages are able to accomplish.
3.11 ADDITIONAL LEARNING EXPERIENCE

Video links
1. Stages of child development:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhcgYgx7aAA
https://youtu.be/eUNAMjUkVFU
2. Art teacher inspiring children:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gd2wQUfF_AA
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Learning unit 4
Implementing the Grade R programme
4.1 INTRODUCTION
In this unit, you will learn how to deal with various aspects of art activities for the Grade
R class. You will also be introduced to design a Grade R daily programme. This unit will
expand your knowledge and will give you some ideas about skills development and the
layout of the Grade R class in order to accommodate the holistic development of learners
in a Grade R class. You will also be assisted in designing art activities that are meaningful
to your learners in a certain context or theme, and how art activities can be presented
across the current curriculum.
After the completion of this learning unit, you should be able to:
• Design visual art activities and equipment for implementation in Grade R.
• Plan appropriate lessons which will suit the developmental level of learners in Grade R.
• Assess creative activities.
4.2 DEFINING KEY TERMS
4.2.1 Daily routine

A daily routine is a set structure followed throughout the day, where children participate
actively, such as arrival, snack time, home time and toilet routines. The daily routine
provides children, parents and staff alike with a familiar framework, promoting feelings
of security and belonging. The smooth running of the preschool to accommodate the
needs of the children and the staff is based on setting aside time for various activities
each day. A familiar timetable allows the children, the parents and the staff to anticipate
what will happen when, thus avoiding uncertainty and confusion.
4.3 UNDERSTANDING THE DAILY PROGRAMME IN GRADE R

A daily programme refers to the timetable or daily schedule followed by the teacher
and learners in a Grade R classroom. The daily programme is about what happens in
the classroom every day and should be a reflection of all the intentional events that are
planned during the school day. A daily programme creates the framework and format
for how learners will experience the events of the day and therefore offers structure for
each day.
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4.3.1 Elements of a daily programme
There are common elements in all daily programmes and also in the Grade R daily
programme. It is important that the daily programme must allow for flexibility and
spontaneity every day. Teachers must ensure that the learning activities that are planned
meet the learners’ needs, interests and the diverse contexts in which teaching and learning
happen. This helps the teacher to ensure that the programme offered is developmentally
appropriate and culturally relevant. In this way, teaching and learning can be more
successful. The elements are;
i. routines and transitions

ii. group time
iii. teacher-guided and child-initiated activities
iv. play time
v. flexibility
vi. components of the Life Skills subject
4.3.2 Breaking down of the themes

Working socially and collaboratively would allow all teachers to learn how to constantly
improve and strengthen their teaching through interacting together regularly, like having
planning meetings (Vygotsky 1978). All the Grade R teachers meet with the purpose of
planning what needs to be done in a particular term of the year. They select themes as
per the school curriculum and according to the needs of the learners they are teaching.
Collectively, they determine the content of the theme by deciding what to discuss under
each key topic (heading) that underpins the main theme. This basic content is outlined in
the National Curriculum. However, since only the basic content is provided, each theme
still needs to be unpacked to explain the content in more detail. Teachers can decide on
their own content, which should be developmentally appropriate and culturally relevant
for all learners.
For example, the theme “Me” is part of the Life Skills component, Beginning knowledge
and personal and social well-being, and this will for example provide the focus of the
theme discussions, creative art activities and story during the implementation of the daily
programme. The theme content provided in the National Curriculum (CAPS) is as follows:
Theme: Me
Theme content:
• personal details – name, age, address, contact number

• what makes me special – include name, language/s, gender
• abilities and interests
• my family
In the meeting, the teachers must decide which activities are relevant to the theme “Me”
and outline them according to the other focus areas of the Life Skills subject. The teachers
must refer to the National Curriculum statement to determine the content for Creative
Arts and plan their activities accordingly.
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4.3.3 Things to consider when developing the theme
• The meaningfulness and relevancy to the students’ lives
• The state and district standards, benchmarks and curriculum goals
• Age appropriateness
• Opportunities for real-world experiences
• The background knowledge of the children
• Opportunities for connections throughout the year
• Opportunities for child-directed activities
4.3.4 Preparing for emergencies

Teachers must ensure that they are well prepared for emergencies. He/she must make a
list with emergency telephone numbers such as doctors, the ambulance, fire station and
the police and display it where it can be accessed quickly. A file of the learners’ parents/
guardians and their contact numbers should be kept either in the class or it must be
available in the office. Each class must have its own first-aid kit.
4.4 PLANNING FOR A GRADE R CLASS

There are four levels of planning as indicated in the diagram below:
Figure 4.1
Structure of the year planning
(Source: Author)
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The following table is an example of a daily programme with time allocation according
to the CAPS Grade R Curriculum.
Table 4.1
Grade R daily programme with time slots
Time Activity Description
07:00–07:30 Arrival time and The teacher is in class and available to greet and see
(30 min) greeting time that all the learners arrive. She/he communicates with
the parents.
07:30–07:45 Register, devotion, The teacher checks all the learners; paste flash cards of
(15 min) weather-chart and the month and the name of day on the board; birthdays;
news news; counting of learners present and absent; discuss
the weather and draw or put up a picture of the weather.
07:45–08:15 Breakfast The learners eat breakfast.

(30 min)
08:15–08:45 First teacher- Beginning knowledge and personal and social

guided activity development
Theme discussion Theme discussion
Talk about personal details – name, age, address
08:45–09:45 Creative ar t Art activities (1 main and 3 to 4 side activities related

activities to the theme)
Cut, paste, draw, paint, box-construction, collage, blocks,
puzzles, doll-corner, book nook, educational-toys
Teacher and assistant in class
Indoor free play
09h45–10h00 Tidy up or clean up All learners tidy up the classroom; the assistant and
routine teacher help with this.
10:00-10:15 Toilet routine Learners go in small groups to the toilet and wash their
hands. The assistant helps in the bathroom. The teacher
keeps learners in class busy with rhymes and songs.
The teacher and assistant reinforce Life Skills – ways of
conduct during the toilet routine, for example:
• flushing toilet after use
• how to wash hands
• closing the tap properly
• wash hands after going to the toilet
• hanging up the facecloth after drying hands
10:15–10:45 Teacher-guided Numeracy or literacy of Life Skills

activity
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Time Activity Description
10:45–10:40 Snack time Learners sit at the tables and enjoy their refreshments;
teacher teaches them good table manners such as
• washing hands before eating
• chew with mouth closed
• chew food properly before swallowing
• do not talk with food in your mouth
• put everything away neatly after snack time
10:40–11:40 Free-play outside Assistant helps outside with activities: the sandpit, water
basin, jungle-gym, swings, the slide, tyres, bicycles,
balls, skipping-ropes, etcetera.
11:40–11:45 Small group The teacher is busy in class with small groups (one group
activities inside at a time) – intensive work like mathematics, language
and school-readiness activities. More or less 15 minutes
per group. Four to five different activities, teacher and
assistant rotate between groups.
11:45–12:00 Story time The teacher tells a story in the class to the learners.
Hand out the pictures they made. When finished some
of the learners go home, the rest play outside and wait
for their transport.
12:45–13:00 Tidy up and Learners, assistant and teacher clear up the playground.
departure time The learners play outside and wait for their transport.
ACTIVITY 4.1
(1) There are common elements that the teachers must include to meet the learners’
needs, interests and the diversity when designing the Grade R daily programmes.
Name them.
(2) Design a Grade R daily/weekly programme that will meet the needs of the learners
in your community.
4.5 ART ACROSS THE CURRICULUM FOR THE FOUNDATION

PHASE
Silverstein and Layne (2010) are of the opinion that arts integration is an approach to
teaching in which learners construct and demonstrate understanding through an art form.
Learners engage in a creative process which connects an art form and other learning areas
and meets evolving objectives in both. Nations construct their own culture and tradition.
Such cultures and traditions are shared amongst each other during classroom interactions.
Therefore, art can promote an understanding of different societies. As a result, children
should be granted an opportunity to visualise their world from myriad perspectives.
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Art activities can be integrated in other learning areas through concepts and relevant
themes. Art has traditionally been an important part of early childhood programmes.
The Foundation Phase curriculum includes activities that will help children develop their
cognitive, social, and motor abilities. Making art and enjoying the art of other people and
cultures are very important to the development of the whole child. An art programme
should be part of a developmentally appropriate curriculum. When children are involved
in art activities, there are areas that develop consciously or unconsciously.
By engaging in creative play or projects, children can learn new vocabulary as well as to
associate pictures with words. Creative activities help children to develop attention skills
and cognitive learning. Their imagination is in full use and it encourages them to come
up with new ideas and to think outside the box since creativity involves exploration and
problem solving. Children’s encounter with art provides many learning opportunities.
Such opportunities include natural linkages to literacy, mathematics, science, social
studies, the arts and technology.
a. Literacy
• Through art activities learners expand their vocabulary and also their art language.
Learners should learn art language and therefore the teachers must introduce them
to descriptions of art elements such as
– colour (warm, cool, bright, dull)

– line (straight, zigzag, wavy, curly)
– shape (round, square, oval, diamond)
– space (near, far, inside, on top of)
– texture (smooth, rough, bumpy, prickly)
• The teacher should ask questions that encourage children to express their thoughts
and feelings through art production.
• Expose the children to children’s books and other texts on art that call attention to
artists and their painting styles.
• Group work and interactive sessions – allow learners to critically evaluate each other’s
works (in a positive and constructive manner) – will develop their visual literacy skills,
as well as the sharing of cultural knowledge and background.
b. Mathematics
Teachers must introduce children to number concepts by pointing out that many artists
both sign and number their prints. This will help children develop an understanding of
one-to-one correspondence. This can be seen when they place one paintbrush in each
paint pot or place a cap on each marker. Encourage children to explore geometry and
spatial sense as they use three-dimensional shapes in sculpting and constructing. Talk
about the shapes children use in their paintings. Let children practise measurements, for
example, by having them tear paper to a certain length. They can also measure ingredients
as they follow recipes.
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4.5.1 Integrating art across the Grade R daily programme
Integrating the curriculum is also reflective of a developmentally appropriate practice.
The curriculum is integrated so that children’s learning occurs primarily through projects,
themes, or topics that reflect their interests and suggestions. Projects and themes are
valuable instructional tools for accommodating all learners in the classroom. Skills are
taught as needed to accomplish projects (Bredekamp & Rosegrant 1992).
4.5.2 Characteristics of an integrated curriculum

An integrated programme includes
• experiences to develop children’s attitudes, skills, and knowledge and to help them
make connections across the curriculum
• activities that provide for a range of abilities
• activities that are both teacher-initiated and -directed and learner-initiated and -directed
• whole class, small group, and individual experiences
• opportunities for critical and creative thinking
• teacher, peer, and self-assessment
• opportunities to experience learning as a meaningful whole
4.5.3 The following is an examples of art lessons

Example 1
Grade Grade R
Theme Colours
Subject Life Skills
Topic Introduce painting with paintbrush (all primary colours)
Objectives Learners will know how to mix primary colours to produce secondary colours
Learners will know how to handle and use brush when painting
Resource • A3 background paper for groups

• red and blue paint in paint containers
• yellow and red in paint containers
• blue and yellow in paint containers
• two paintbrushes per table
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Introduction Main activity:
The teacher talks about the colours blue and red. She asks learners to look for
the red and blue colour in every objects and everywhere in the classroom.
The learners point out other objects in the class that are red and blue in
colour. Learners point out another learner’s clothing that is red or blue. The
teacher explains how to use the paintbrush, for example, wipe excessive paint
off the brush, paint and replace paintbrush in the correct colour container.
Introduce learners to the different art activities for the day.
Development Step 1:
The teacher divide learners into three groups.
First group will be seated at the table with red and blue paint in paint
containers
Second group at the table with yellow and red in paint containers
Third group at the table with blue and yellow in paint containers
Step 2: Group activity
Teacher tells learners to work in groups and mix colours by putting drops
on the paper. Learners experiment with the two colours (colour mixing).
Teacher rotates, attends to all the different activities.
Teacher tells learners to show their papers to the class and say what colour
they came up with after mixing the two colours.
Step 3: Individual activity.
Learners go back to their seats. Teacher gives learners work sheets with
different pictures. Learners colour in pictures using wax crayons. Teacher
walks around and talk to children about their creations.
Conclusion The teacher asks learners questions to consolidate the lesson. The teacher
checks that learners’ names are on their pictures and hangs learners’
paintings up to dry.
Example 2
Grade Grade R
Theme Weather
Subject Visual Arts
Topic Making a collage
Objectives Children see art in a new light using found objects; art element: texture
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Resource • A4 paper
• a brown paper lunch sack filled with found objects (yarn scraps, fabric
scraps, pop bottle caps, moveable eyes, sticks, wood shapes, rocks,
acorns, anything)
• glue
• cigar box or something to put all the stuff in
Introduction Main activity:

Teacher gives a brief description about collages.
Development Step 1
The teacher explains different kinds of collages.
The teacher tells learners that they are going to do a collage.
Step 2
Discuss the raw materials. Ask the children to focus on the way they feel,
for example, ask questions like: are they soft? hard? metal? wood? rubber?,
etcetera. Give each child a paper sack that has been filled with these “scraps”
before class. Invite the children to select their own bag from the lot of them.
Ask them to pull items from the bag and to start gluing them in place. The
surprise element with regard to what is in the bag is exciting for the kids.
The teacher demonstrates how to put material on the paper and then tells
learners to start their collage.
Step 3
Sort the tools on the tables and check if all learners are provided with enough
material. The teacher goes around all the tables checking the learners’
creations and assists where possible.
Conclusion Learners show their collages. The teacher displays learners’ creations on the
wall. Allow the learners to look at each other’s work and discuss it with them.
ACTIVITY 4.2
(1) Name any five (5) characteristics of an integrated curriculum.

(2) Discuss with the help of examples how you can integrate art with Mathematics
and Life Skills in Grade R.
(3) If you were to teach the topic “Weather” in Grade R, how would you design your
lesson?
4.6 DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE PRACTICE (DAP)

Developmentally appropriate practice is a concept based on knowledge about how
children develop and learn. It is a teaching perspective in early childhood education where
a teacher nurtures a child’s development (social, emotional, physical, and cognitive). Each
child has his/her own cultural and family background. Having this knowledge ensures
that each experience is respectful and meaningful for each child and family. There are
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many basic principles of development that inform DAP, which include: the domains of
development, observations/documentation, seeing each child as unique, and knowing
the impact that early experiences, relationships and play have on the early years. Here
are the basic principles of development:
• All the domains of development and learning are important, which include: physical,
social, emotional and cognitive, which are interrelated to one another and influence
what takes place in each of the domains.
• Learning and development are observed and documented.
• Each child is unique and develops at his/her own pace.
• Early experiences are important for children’s development and learning.
• Children develop best when they have secure and consistent relationships with adults
and peers.
• Social and cultural contexts influence development and learning.
• Play promotes self-regulation, language, cognition and social competence.
The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) adopted this
approach in 1987. NAEYC outlines five key areas of early learning practices for effective
teaching, which include: creating a caring community of learners; teaching to enhance
development and learning; planning curriculum to achieve important goals; assessing
children’s development; and learning and establishing reciprocal relationships with families.
4.6.1 Applying developmentally appropriate practice (Dap) when

designing a daily programme
Early childhood teachers need to understand the developmental changes that naturally
occur in the years from birth through to age eight and beyond. This will guide their decisions
about practice and how best they must support children’s learning and development
during these years. When designing the daily programme, teachers must consider all the
domains of holistic development which are personal, social, emotional, intellectual, and
physical growth. The needs, interests, strengths and challenges of the learners should
also be considered. The programme must take into consideration the needs of learners
with barriers to learning, learners with special needs and those who are gifted. Early
childhood practitioners must consider these three areas of knowledge:
• What is known about child development and learning: referring to knowledge of

age-related characteristics that permits general predictions about what experiences
are likely to best promote children’s learning and development.
• What is known about each child as an individual: referring to what practitioners
learn about each child that has implications for how best to adapt and be responsive
to that individual variation.
When young children are in a group setting outside the home, what makes sense to
them, how they use language to interact, and how they experience this new world
depend on the social and cultural contexts they are familiar with. A skilled teacher
takes such contextual factors into account, along with the children’s ages and their
individual differences, in shaping all aspects of the learning environment.
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4.6.2 During the preschool years
Young children need developmentally appropriate experiences and teaching to support
literacy learning. These include but are not limited to
• positive, nurturing relationships with adults who engage in responsive conversations

with individual children, model reading and writing behaviour, and foster children’s
interest in and enjoyment of reading and writing
• print-rich environments that provide opportunities and tools for children to see and use
written language for a variety of purposes, with teachers drawing children’s attention
to specific letters and words
• adults’ daily reading of high-quality books to individual children or small groups,
including books that positively reflect children’s identity, home language, and culture
• opportunities for children to talk about what is read and to focus on the sounds and
parts of language as well as the meaning
• teaching strategies and experiences that develop phonemic awareness, such as songs,
finger plays, games, poems, and stories in which phonemic patterns such as rhyme
and alliteration are salient
• opportunities to engage in play that incorporates literacy tools, such as writing grocery
lists in dramatic play, making signs in block building, and using icons and words in
exploring a computer game
4.7 THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER IN DESIGNING ACTIVITIES
4.7.1 Teacher-guided activities

Teacher-guided activities refer to the carefully structured and prepared lessons presented
by the teacher. The teacher takes the lead during such activities. These activities are,
however, still informal, play-based and fun. The current National Curriculum requires
Grade R teachers to teach three subjects, namely Mathematics, Languages and Life Skills.
During this time, the teacher supervises, guides, facilitates and (if necessary) re-directs
learners’ play and learning.
• beginning knowledge and personal and social well-being

• Creative Arts which consists of:
• Performing Arts – dance, drama and music activities
• Visual Arts – two-dimensional and three-dimensional pictures to develop small muscles
(fine motor activities).
• Physical Education – activities to develop perceptual behaviours and large muscles
(gross motor activities).
According to Hyson (1991), large-group, teacher-directed instruction is the primary form

of instruction in the teacher-directed programme. Separate times (periods) are set aside
to learn material in specific content areas such as mathematics, science, or social studies.
The role of the teacher is to direct children – what they will do and when. In the teacher-
directed activity the teacher is expected to plan specific lessons based on well-defined
subject matter and conduct classes usually using abstract or two-dimensional materials.
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4.7.2 Child-initiated activities
Child-initiated play is sometimes called “free play”. This is because children are free to
choose resources and toys and to decide how to play with them. During this time in
the daily programme the learners have the opportunity to make choices from a variety
of activities planned and prepared by the teacher. This allows learners to participate
in decision making, problem solving and independent learning; which are necessary
and important life skills. What children choose to do during child-initiated play varies
according to their age and stage of development, but also according to what is available.
It is common to see children mix resources, for example, putting grass into a bucket of
water and pretending to cook it or taking dough into a home corner. In child-initiated play,
adults can join in with the children but they have to do what the children ask them to do.
It is more important to observe the learners to see in what kind of play they engage in,
the roles that they take and the conversations they have as this gives the teacher insight
into the child’s inner world (Van Rensburg 2020). Children select and initiate their own
activities from a variety of learning areas prepared by the teacher. Areas usually include
dramatic play, blocks, science, mathematics, games, puzzles, books, recordings, art and
music. The teacher allows each child to choose the activity he or she wants to participate
in and when.
• Children are involved in concrete, three-dimensional learning activities. Learning

materials closely relate to the children’s daily life experiences.
• Teachers ask questions that encourage children to give more than one correct answer.
• Teachers use activities such as block building, measuring ingredients for cooking,
wood working, and drawing to help children learn concepts in mathematics, science,
and social studies.
• Children use a variety of media such as finger paints and clay in ways of their own
choosing.
• The sound of the environment is marked by pleasant conversation, spontaneous
laughter, and exclamations of excitement.
The teacher guides and encourages his/her learners to choose from the variety of activities
that he/she has planned and set out but does not decide for them what activities they
should do. The learners decide how long they wish to be involved in an activity, with
whom they prefer to play and where they want to play, keeping to the timeslots on the
daily programme with the guidance and reminding of the teacher. Child-initiated activities
include indoor activities and outdoor activities.
i. Indoor activities
Independent play in Life Skills activities include, fantasy or house corner. The teacher
can place objects in the class or initiate an activity – grate a carrot (linked to the topic
“healthy food”) or place food such as milk, bread and a vegetable – and allow learners
to observe what will happen to food if it is left outside. By so doing, the teacher teaches
the learners aspects of change and growth (such as rotting and mould) and it would
integrate knowledge of Natural Sciences under the focus area,
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Beginning Knowledge
Opportunities for indoor free play (inside the classroom) include activities such as block
play, construction toys and spending time in the book corner/area.
During free play indoor activities, art activities are available in the playroom/classroom.
The teacher presents art activities to learners at the main art activity table plus two to
four additional side/supplementary art activities, for example, modelling dough or clay,
cutting, painting, drawing, weaving, collage and box construction. The rest of the learners
are allowed to play freely in any of the activity centres, with all the planned equipment
available, while waiting for their turn at the main art activity table.
ii. Outdoor activities
Outdoor free play (outside play time) is ideal for child-initiated activities – learners choose
whether to run around, join in a group game, climb onto apparatus, play in the sandpit,
at the water tray or just play on their own. The outdoor space forms an essential part of
the Grade R curriculum. It is therefore just as important as the indoor environment. The
picture below represents outdoor activities.
Figure 4.2
Outdoor activities
4.8 A GRADE R ART CLASSROOM

A good arts classroom must be learner-centred and collaboration is most encouraged
among learners. Real-world tasks are frequently employed in arts education. Young
children are always curious about the world and their surroundings, as well as how
objects at hand respond to actions. It is at this time when the child coordinates senses
with motor responses and links objects to smell, taste, feel, and hearing as suggested by
Fox and Schirrmacher (2015:77–78).
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4.8.1 The role of the teacher in a Grade R class
According the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement for Life Skills (DoE 2011),
one of the most important roles of the Grade R teacher is to provide learners with an
environment that is safe, clean and caring, with adequate opportunities to play and
explore the world under the careful guidance of their teacher.
The teacher should provide the following:
• routine, structured and free play activities for learners that are enjoyable and manageable
• a range of resources for routine, structured and free play activities
• a well-managed, child-friendly and freely accessible environment
4.8.2 Classroom layout

The Grade R classroom need to be a stimulating environment that enables spontaneous
and real knowledge sharing. In South Africa, the Department of Basic Education (DBE)
has drawn up a recommended classroom layout for all Grade Rs:
• interest areas to provide activities such as block play, art and writing activities, pretend
play, science and mathematics, and reading corners
• space for transition activities such as greeting time, story time and snack time
Make visual borders to separate the areas by using low shelves, chairs, mats or carpets,
rope or low homemade cardboard screens that teachers can see over and children can
be seen.
• Allow enough space in each area for a small group of children to play comfortably.
Make signs indicating how many children can play in one area at a time (a picture of
three children, a hand with three fingers held up, etc).
• Allow space at children’s eye level to display their own drawings, paintings or any other
work. Provide a space on a small table or low shelf to display children’s own models.
• Constantly change and adapt these spaces throughout the year, depending on the
themes, seasons and circumstances that change.
• Have a display or interest table near the carpet area. This table can display the theme
for the week, or a new skill to be learned. Sometimes the table can be a “touch and
learn” table and other times it can be a “look only” table. All items on the table should
be labelled. If more than one language is being represented by learners, name tags
should be on different backgrounds throughout the year, for example, English words
on blue cards and Sesotho on yellow cards (Van Rensburg 2020).
• Allocate a space in the classroom for children to store their personal belongings. A
great way to do this, is to make use of a pigeon hole divider, with labels with the child’s
name or symbol.
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4.8.3 Factors to consider when planning your preschool classroom layout
1. The size of your classroom
How much space you have to work with will determine the number of learning centres and
materials you can include in your classroom. If you have a small classroom, consider mobile
or multi-use options to make the most of your space. Keep in mind that a small classroom
can still be a great learning environment if you make the appropriate preparations.
2. How many learners will be in your class?
The number of learners in your care will have a direct impact on your classroom layout.
If you need to accommodate more children in the space, you will have to cut back on
learning centres and activity areas or find alternative ways to incorporate them in your
classroom.
3. The type of class space you would like to include
Whether you want your class space to be a sitting area, desk area, or combination of
both, it is important that you establish a place in the classroom where you and all your
students can sit down together and learn. Remember to include a teacher workstation
for you to use in your classroom layout.
4. The number of learning centres you want to include
Base this decision on how much space you have to work with after planning your class
space and teacher station. If you only have room for a couple of learning centres, pick
the ones that would have the biggest impact on your learners.
5. How much space you need for each learning centre
Any learning centres you choose to include in your classroom should have room for three
to four children. Depending on the space you have to work with, you can accommodate
less or more as needed.
6. Any sinks, windows, closets, or other permanent fixtures in the classroom
It is always best to utilise the permanent fixtures already present in your classroom for
space efficiency. Try to place activity areas and learning centres that are typically messy
(e.g. art, sand and water) near a sink, if you have one. A science area placed near windows
is also a great way to encourage kids to make real-time observations about nature and
the weather.
7. The noise levels of learning centres and other classroom spaces
When planning a classroom layout, it is important to consider the noise level of each space
being planned out. The teacher must try to keep spaces with a low noise level placed
together and separate from spaces that tend to have a high noise level.
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8. The furniture needed for the learning centres and the overall classroom
Furniture can either take up more space than is needed or help maximise your classroom
space. Plan to use furniture pieces as learning centre dividers and to use a variety of
furniture pieces to enhance your classroom layout.
4.8.4 The role of the teacher in a Grade R class

According the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement for Life Skills (incorrect
2011), one of the most important roles of the Grade R teacher is to provide learners with
an environment that is safe, clean and caring, with adequate opportunities to play and
explore the world under the careful guidance of their teacher.
The teacher should provide the following:
• routine, structured and free play activities for learners that are enjoyable and manageable
• a well-managed, child-friendly and freely accessible environment
ACTIVITY 4.3
(1) Name five (5) factors that teachers need to consider when planning their classroom
layout.
(2) What are the important areas that must be included when planning a classroom
layout?
(3) Design your own classroom layout and include important areas for Grade R learners.
(4) Discuss the term “developmentally appropriate activities” and by means of examples.
(5) Give two examples of indoor art activities you can design for your Grade R learners.
(6) Why do you think teacher-guided activities are important?
4.9 INCLUSION OF PLAY IN THE ART CLASSROOM

Learning through play (by doing) is how pre-school children make sense of the world
around them. Through play they develop social and cognitive skills, mature emotionally
and gain the confidence required to try new experiences within the environment. Through
a variety of activities and routines, children are being prepared for more than just the
next grade, they are prepared for life-long success (Master & Pretorius 2012).
Play takes many forms, for example on streets, in villages, on playgrounds and in classrooms.
Children from every culture, economic background and community engage in play
from their earliest years. Through play children get opportunities to develop physical
competence and enjoyment of the outdoors, understand and make sense of their world,
interact with others, express and control emotions, develop their symbolic and problem-
solving abilities, and practice emerging skills.
Children engage in various kinds of play, such as physical play, object play, pretend
or dramatic play, constructive play, and games with rules. Babies, toddlers and young
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children learn when they play with things around them, they learn how things feel, what
the teacher or any adult do with them and what they smell and taste and sound like.
4.9.1 Types of play

i. Solitary play: This is when the child plays by him/herself. Children love to draw
especially with wax crayons. During the play time, the children select the colours
by themselves.
ii. Parallel play: This happens when the child plays beside another child, but they do
not interact or play together. Toddlers enjoy parallel play where they observe and
often imitate what others do.
iii. Imitative play: Children imitate or copy an animal, a person or a situation.
iv. Social activity: This is the first step towards playing and having fun with others.
Children begin to offer crayons or paintbrushes and communicate with other children.
v. Cooperative play: As children get older, usually around age three, they start to play
with other children, or sharing ideas on what to put on the picture and what colour
to use on the drawing.
4.10 ASSESSING LEARNERS’ PROGRESS IN VISUAL ART
4.10.1 What is assessment?

Assessment is an important component in the teaching and learning process as it
provides teachers with information that is important for decision making in the classroom.
Assessment informs teachers if different teaching methods are effective and which
methods are more effective than others. Assessment provides a record of a learner’s
achievement and areas that need improving. These tasks are designed with the intention
to provide accurate and valid evidence of a learner’s performance over time. The results of
these assessments that include tests, school readiness tasks and portfolios of evidence, are
used to directly inform parents and other educators about the learner’s achievements. In
other words, these assessments are used to record the level, grade, and competencies of
learners in the different subjects and programmes that make up their schooling (Gordon
& Browne 2014).
4.10.2 Why do we assess in Grade R

The three main reasons we assess in early childhood teaching are:
i. To assess the learner’s level of development: The most important reason why
we assess the Grade R learner is to get to know the learner better and to be able to
• plan developmentally appropriate content through themes and activities

• identify learners with learning and development barriers
• adapt teaching to assist learners who experience barriers in their learning and
development
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ii. To provide guidance and assistance to parents: Teachers of young children
need to give parents educational assistance in the upbringing of their children. This
should be done to complement the home and the school environment. This helps
the parent or the caregiver to provide/receive feedback about the child and to offer
advice should the child experience barriers to learning.
iii. To improve the teaching of learners: This helps teachers to improve their own
teaching and to reflect on the teaching methods they have been using in a particular
lesson. By continually reflecting on their efforts, teachers can identify their weaknesses
and strengths (Davin & Sethusha 2013).
4.10.3 Principles of valid and reliable assessment for young children

There are certain rules or principles that the teacher should abide when assessing learners
to ensure valid and reliable assessment. According to Davin (2013), the following principles
apply when assessing the learner:
a. Each learner is unique
When assessing, teachers must keep in mind that the learner is unique; therefore, individual
patterns of development should be assessed. Remember that learners should not be
categorised. Teachers should not use words such as “naughty” and “lazy”.
b. Assess the whole learner
It is important to assess every aspect of the learner and that the assessment does not reflect
a one-sided view. If the learner is not assessed holistically, this can lead to oversimplified
interpretations on the learner’s side. Assess the learner throughout the day as the learner’s
behaviour varies from time to time.
c. Assess the learner in a variety of situations and use a variety of methods
When assessing the learner, it is important to use a variety of methods and to assess the
learner in different situations. The following should be used:
• a variety of assessment methods

• various settings inside and outside the classroom – the learner should be assessed
inside and outside the classroom and in as many different situations as possible
• various times of the day – the learners should be assessed throughout the day
d. Assess both the learning process and the outcome
In the context of Grade R, the teacher should not only assess and interpret answers or end
products but should also assess the process of how the learner arrived at the solution or
end product. The teacher will be able to find out why the learner is making mistakes by
observing the learning process and how he/she establishes thinking patterns.
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e. Assessment should be reliable
Assessments must be valid and reliable. Valid refers to assessing what actually has been
learned. Reliable assessments are consistent when the same conditions are repeated. To
be able to make a reliable assessment, the teacher should have more than one assessment
of the same behaviour. The teacher must limit the negative effects of certain factors,
environmental distractions, interruptions and unexpected events during the day. The
teacher must take into account any negative effects that may occur during the assessment.
f. Repeat the assessment in order to arrive at valid results
For valid assessment to take place, teachers have to assess more than once. It is essential
to be conscious of the purpose of each assessment and to ensure that what is assessed
is what was supposed to be assessed.
g. Remain objective
It is important that the teacher does not allow traits or characteristics in the learners that
they like, dislike, easily accept or do not easily accept to affect their objectivity. To achieve
objectivity, teacher should
• record events as accurately as possible, without making any value judgements

• avoid judgemental comments such as “bad” or “naughty” and avoid labels or jargon
• take into account that no one is totally objective – the information that any individual
chooses to collect is influenced by their personal experiences, beliefs and interests.
h. Know what you are going to assess
Assessment must be goal directed. What the teacher wants to know about the learner
(what behaviour or aspects of the learner they are going to assess) must be determined
before assessment. Assessment without a definite reason or purpose will lead to very
superficial knowledge of the learner.
i. Assessment must be confidential
Confidentiality is perhaps one of the most important principles of meaningful assessment.

A teacher will assess and know information about learners that is very sensitive. Therefore,
teachers should never discuss any information about their learners with any person outside
the school. If there is a need to get expert help in handling a learner, the teacher must
get permission from parents before they discuss the learner with any outside person,
even an expert or a specialist.
4.10.4 How does the teacher assess the Grade R learner?

The holistic model for artistic assessment serves many purposes when assessing the
young child. Fox and Schirrmacher (2015) identify the following purposes:
• to understand child development

• to plan appropriate experiences
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• to report to parents
• to justify our programmes
It is important that the teacher assesses the whole learner throughout the year. This
cannot be done in one day and the teacher must focus on the following:
a. Physical development
In using artistic tools, does the child demonstrate the following:
• large muscle or gross motor control

• small muscle or fine motor control
• proper use of the artistic tools such as scissors, glue, brushes, crayons, markers, clay
and water colour set
• concentration and sustained involvement in art
• completion of the art activity
b. Social development
Does the child demonstrate the following:
• the ability to work alone in doing the art activity

• self-responsibility in getting and returning art materials, in cleaning up, in following
the rules of the art centre
• self-direction in using own ideas in art rather than copying others
• the ability to work cooperatively with others at the art table or centre
• tolerance of others’ art ideas, styles and products
c. Emotional development
Does the child demonstrate the following:
• acceptance of own mistakes, errors, and unsuccessful attempts at art

• self-assurance and confidence in art rather than an inhibited, fearful, overly cautious
attitude
• expressions of feelings, moods, emotion and personality through artwork
• enjoyment and pride in own art
• additions, omissions, distortion and exaggeration of things that are emotionally
significant
d. Cognitive development
When assessing the cognitive development of the child, the teacher needs to observe
if the child
• understands art and usually ask why people have made art in the past and continue
to do so
• is interested in talking about own art and dictating labels, titles, sentences or stories
• knows and uses art vocabulary
• demonstrates knowledge of colours and colour mixing
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• reflects a knowledge of shapes, including
– a circle
– a square
– a triangle
– a rectangle
– lines
• reflects knowledge of people, places, objects, experiences and events of personal

importance in the environment
• draws human figures
4.10.5 The role of the teacher in the assessment of young children

Early childhood teachers play multiple roles in the teaching of young children. One
very important role is that of an assessor. As an assessor, a teacher must think critically,
creatively, and logically. Assessing children gives the teacher an idea of how they learn and
develop, their attitudes, what skills they have, what skills they are working on, and how
they are progressing. Fox and Schirrmacher (2015) identified three roles, which includes
“assessor”, “observer” and “recorder”.
i. The teacher as an “assessor”
Teachers need to draw a distinction between assessment and evaluation. Assessment

refers to the tools and resulting measurements. Evaluation is using those assessments to
find the value in certain events. Teachers use assessment to determine where the child is
in the learning process and what teaching processes have worked. Tests, quizzes, papers,
discussion and observation are a few examples of assessments. The assessments are used
by teachers to evaluate the learners with grades and/or parent conferences.
ii. The teacher as an “observer”
The most important and frequently used method for obtaining information from the young
learners in Grade R is observation. Observation is to take notice, to watch attentively and to
focus on one particular aspect of the learner with a specific purpose in mind. Observation
helps early childhood education (ECE) teachers to look at their interactions with children,
and to discover how important interactions are as they get to know and support children.
Observation is a way to connect with learners to discover their connections to others and
to their environment. Children who feel cared for, safe, and secure interact with others
and engage in their world to learn. They are more likely to gain skills, and to do better
as they enter school. The teacher observes the child and takes notes of every behaviour
inside and outside the classroom.
iii. The teacher as a “recorder”
Knowing and understanding children involve two major aspects: recording and observation.
Observing and recording are complementary. A descriptive record is a continuous written
record of everything said or done during an observation period. When using descriptive
records, the teacher writes down in detail his/her observation of what happens with the
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learner. Recorded information enables teachers to better evaluate and set goals for an
individual child. Over time, observations of the child can reveal patterns of behaviour,
learning preferences, mastery of skills, and developmental progress. Other purposes of
recording are that teachers are able to
• identify learners’ needs, behaviour and learning patterns

• track progress and changes in learners’ behaviour and performance when generated
over a period of time
• plan for activities and strategies to use in the classroom
• determine the efficiency of pedagogies in learning.
• demonstrate learners’ progress to parents at parent-teacher conferences
4.10.6 The assessment process

a. Planning your assessment
Davin (2013) highlights that teachers must plan their assessment with care because it is
a process consisting of certain steps or actions. To plan the assessment involves the first
five steps of the planning phase of the assessment process. She further states that these
steps are completed while planning the daily activities and lessons to be presented. These
steps are as follows:
Step 1: Decide on the overall reason for the assessment.
Step 2: Formulate the learning or behaviour that needs to be assessed.
Step 3: Select the focus. (Who is going to be assessed?)
Step 4: Select the method of assessment. Here are methods most commonly used to
assess the young learner:
• observation by the teacher

• oral discussions
• practical demonstrations
• written recording
Tests are not used by the Grade R teacher but by specialists for diagnosing specific barriers.
The Grade R teacher uses the test results or reports to address the specific barriers.
Step 5: Decide on the time and length of assessment.
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Reflection exercise
ACTIVITY 4.4
Read the scenario below and answer the questions that follow.
In the Grade R classroom, playing continues to play a pivotal role in promoting
children’s understanding of their world. Through play activities with other children,
for example, skipping games, football, dancing and athletics, children become
increasingly proficient and capable of autonomous performance.
By engaging in playful activities with their peer group, children also practice
capabilities like understanding social rules and conventions, communication
with others, learning about social relationships, and being confident with others.
Questions
(1) Identify, two (2) developmental areas of the learner and show how each area is
assessed in the scenario above.
(2) Discuss the role of assessment in art.
(3) Describe how the holistic model of artistic development can be used as a framework
for assessing children’s artworks.
(4) Discuss the teacher’s role as an observer, recorder and assessor and how observational
data assist in artistic assessment.
Responses to these questions require an understanding of assessment in Grade R. The role

of the teacher in assessing art must be mastered. You need to know and be able to describe
holistic development.
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RESOURCES
Examples of observation sheets for the subject Life Skills
Life Skills observation sheet .................................................................................. Term 2 assessment
Holding Draw Colour in Draw the Mixing

 I can crayons curved picture face colours
correctly lines
· I am almost
there
x I need help
DATE
Names of learners
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Figure 4.3
Tool for assessment
(Source: Author)
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4.11 SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES FOR GRADE R
ACTIVITY 4.5
• Construct objects to develop fine-motor and sensory co-ordination: (eye-hand-mind)

manipulation of scissors and other tools and equipment.
• Make use of recycled objects, or objects in the classroom to build a model according
to the theme for that week – for example, a garden creature using egg boxes, papers
and paint.
• Make paper chains, popcorn chains, Christmas stockings, angels, etc.
• Modelling and constructing: Develop craft skills and techniques – cutting, pasting
and tearing.
Three dimensional:
• Use play-dough to model freely by shaping, twisting and rolling.
• Use play-dough to improve fine-motor ability by rolling, pinching and joining.
• Use greater detail in play-dough modelling like pinching, pulling and rolling smaller
pieces.
• Informal modelling in clay – choose a 3D-shape to make yourself after looking at the
object closely from all angles.
• Create according to a theme: fruit, vegetables, objects that can be recycled, objects
from dairy farming, wool farming, objects that float or sink in water.
ACTIVITY 4.6
• Create by freely using a range of materials: small boxes, recyclable materials like
buttons, egg boxes, cardboard off-cuts, pipe cleaners, fimo clay, coloured paper,
stickers, glue, glitter, buttons, bottle-tops, toothpaste tops, scraps of wool, cotton
wool, ice-cream sticks, etcetera.
• Make a window box, paint it and make flowers to “plant” in your garden.
• Make a spring tree/spring paper cup chimes, using recycled objects.
ACTIVITY 4.7
• Encourage the development of skills thorough the manipulation of materials.

• Give learners a 3D-object to describe after looking, touching, smelling, and listening
(not necessarily tasting!).
• Learners must make a 3D-shape using waste materials: cereal boxes, toilet rolls, cones,
glue, crayons, paint, sandpaper, elastic bands, coat hangers, and straws.
• Create to theme: make your own house; robot; transport, etcetera using waste
materials.
• Bake small cakes and biscuits.
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Other activities for Grade R
ACTIVITY 4.8
Painting: Use pre-mixed tempera paint or dyes in primary and secondary colours to
respond to the week’s topics.
Primary colours:
Let pupils go outside and collect things in nature that can be found in the primary
colours, for, example, leaves, flowers and grass. Let the learners look, touch and smell
them. Discuss shape and texture – do not taste!
Secondary colours:
Mix green, purple and orange, using the three primary colours. Let the learners discuss
the colours of the rainbow and the colours in nature. Ask: what two primary colours
must one mix to get: purple/green/orange?
Suggestions of different ways to apply paint: fingers, hand, spatula, ice-cream stick,
brush, big sponge held by a clothes peg, cloth, cotton wool, straw, feather, potato,
etcetera.
ACTIVITY 4.9
Draw a picture of yourself. Add facial features. Finger paint to add colour. Use of primary
colours.
For a fruit theme: talk about three fruits and their colours. Let learners choose their
favourite to draw and colour in.
Use leaves collected from playground or home. Add paint to leaves and press down
onto paper. Use a variety of colours and shapes for the Autumn theme.
Figure 4.4
(Source: Adapted from MacMaster & Pretorius 2012)
4.12 CONCLUSION
In this unit we dealt with various aspects of art activities for the Grade R class. We aimed
to expand your knowledge and gave some ideas about skills development and the layout
of the Grade R class to accommodate the holistic development of the learners in a Grade
R class. We also assisted you to be able to design art activities that are meaningful to your
learners in a certain context or theme, and how art activities can be presented across the
current curriculum.
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4.13 ADDITIONAL LEARNING EXPERIENCES
Video links
1. https://youtu.be/arhjvcSdiUI
2. https://youtu.be/PZY-hB2C_Iw
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJJbn2LqzZU
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61lZpLRnXUM
4.14 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Read the articles below to enhance your learning experience on the content presented
in this learning unit.
1. Thompson, CM. 2015. Constructivism in the art classroom: praxis and policy. Arts
Education Policy Review, 116(3):118–127. DOI: 10.1080/10632913.2015.1015759.
2. McClure, M., Tarr, P., Marmé, C., Thompson, CM & Eckhoff, A. 2017. Defining quality
in visual art education for young children: Building on the position statement of
the Early Childhood Art Educators, Arts Education Policy Review, 118(3):154–163. DOI:
10.1080/10632913.2016.1245167.
3. Wiggins, J. 2015. Constructivism, policy, and arts education. Arts Education Policy
Review, 116 (3):115–117. DOI: 10.1080/10632913.2015.1038673.
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What Visual Art Students Are Saying.” Frontiers in Psychology 9 (2266): 1–13.
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Epstein, AS. 2001. Thinking about art. Young Children, May: 38–43.
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level. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.
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Section C
Creative arts – music, dance and drama
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Learning unit 5: T he value of music for child development126

Learning unit 6: Teaching music in the Grade R classroom134
Learning unit 7: The importance of dance for child development 150
Learning unit 8: Teaching dance in the Grade R classroom 154
Learning unit 9: Drama in early childhood education 163
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Learning unit 5
The value of music for child development
5.1 INTRODUCTION
In this learning unit, we will explore the importance of music for the holistic development
of Grade R learners.
After completing this learning unit, you should be able to:

• Understand the value of music for the holistic development of Grade R learners.
5.2 IMPORTANCE OF MUSIC IN THE EARLY LIFE OF

CHILDREN
Music and children just naturally go together (Lindeman 2016:2). When thinking about life,
music is present in our lives right after birth. Some mothers even deliberately expose
their unborn babies to music to calm both mother and unborn baby. After birth, when
babies need soothing, the mother, father or caregiver would rock the baby gently to a
slow rhythm and sing a calming song or hum softly to a specific tune.
To imagine our lives without music is impossible. We listen to music on the television or
radio, and even when we go to the shops. Most communities include music in a variety
of social and educational activities, such as birthday celebrations or for praise and worship.
Whether listening to music, singing a song, playing an instrument, moving to a song, or

creating new music, musical experiences are prominent in our lives (Campbell & Scott-
Kassner 2014:3). Southcott and Joseph (2014) also argue that interaction through music
leads to wider social benefits such as integration, engagement, participation, networking
and connectedness.
Reviewing literature, it seems that the years from birth to the age of six is the most
important period for a child’s musical development. Let us look at how music contributes
to the young child’s holistic development.
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5.3 THE VALUE OF MUSIC IN YOUNG CHILDREN’S HOLISTIC
DEVELOPMENT
Child development is the study of how children think, feel and grow. Child development
refers to the natural growth and learning that occur in all children from birth to adulthood,
including physical, intellectual, social and emotional growth. Although the development
of children follows predictable and sequential stages, the development of each child is
different from that of another.
According to Van Vreden (2016, 2020), music has a significant influence on the holistic
development of young children, including the development of creativity, social skills,
expression, cognition and coordination. Belapurkar (2015) agrees that “Music ignites all areas
of child development, which include intellectual, social and emotional, motor, language, and
overall literacy”.
The general benefits of music are as follows:
• Music promotes a positive learning environment and adds an element of fun.

• It creates anticipation.
• Music energises learning activities.
• It focuses concentration and improves memory.
• It facilitates a multisensory learning experience.
• Music influences the mood and relieves tension.
• It enriches the imagination.
• It promotes group work and cooperation.
• It inspires and motivates.
• Music strengthens the discussion topics of every week.
• It demonstrates learning across the curriculum (Campbell & Scott-Kassner 2010:349).
These competencies will now be discussed in detail.

Cognitive development involves how mental processes, that include learning, remembering,
problem solving and thinking, develop from birth until adulthood. It also looks at how
these thought processes influence how we understand and interact with the world.
Understanding cognitive development is useful in determining the kind of thinking children
are capable of at different age levels. Piaget proposed a theory that revolutionised how
we think about child development. His theory of cognitive development accounts for
the steps and sequence of children’s intellectual development.
Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development proposes that, as children continue to grow,
they pass through four stages, namely sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operations
and formal operations.
• The sensorimotor stage involves children from ages zero to two years. An infant’s
knowledge of the world is limited to his or her sensory perceptions and movement.
Behaviours are limited to simple motor responses caused by sensory stimuli.
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• The preoperational stage involves children from ages two to seven years when they
learn to use language. During this stage, children do not yet understand concrete logic,
cannot mentally manipulate information and are unable to take the point of view from
others. They are self-centred and find it hard to follow rules. When it comes to music
and music teaching, they would need concrete, hands-on learning experiences, as
they learn best through play and movement.
• The concrete operations stage involves children from ages seven to eleven years. In this
stage, they gain a better understanding of mental operations. They begin to think
more logically about concrete events, but have difficulty understanding abstract or
hypothetical concepts. Although children’s task performance improves with age, the
music teacher still needs to match the curriculum to the developmental level of the
children. The teaching of musical concepts and structure should be through familiar
music and visual cues (Serafine 1980:8).
• The formal operations stage involves children from ages 11 through to adulthood. In
this stage, people develop the ability to think about abstract concepts. Skills such as
logical thought, deductive reasoning and systematic planning also emerge during
this stage.
For the purpose of this learning unit, all the ideas we use will be geared toward children
who are in the preoperational and concrete operational stages.
Although the Mozart effect (a claim that listening to Mozart improves cognitive ability in
young children) is now considered to be invalid (Rauscher, Shaw & Ky 1993; McKelvie &
Low 2002), there are evidence that musical training has an impact on children’s cognitive
development.
Cognition: Hyde, Lerch, Norton, Forgeard, Winner, Evans and Schlaug (2009) found that
children who played and practiced a musical instrument showed improvements in fine
motor control and in auditory discrimination skills. Learning an instrument also develops
the brain’s executive functions which are coordinated in the brain’s frontal lobe. It allows
a child to manage time and attention, organise his or her thoughts and regulate his or
her behaviour (Zuk, Benjamin, Kenyon & Gaab 2014; Williams 2018). Foundational skills
for self-regulation develop in the first five years of life and is a critical period for brain
development (Williams 2018). Self-regulation is an umbrella term to refer to a range of
processes in relation to the regulation of attention, behaviour and emotions (Williams
2018). Some children struggle to maintain attention, remain emotionally distressed after
negative experiences or display impulsive behaviours that are likely to bring them into
conflict with teachers and peers. Musical training enhances focus and attention and
lessens impulsive behaviour.
Language and linguistic development: Anvari, Trainor, Woodside and Levy (2002) found
that music skills were correlated with phonological awareness and early reading skills. The
basic auditory skills for music perception were similar to early reading skills which shared
some of the same auditory mechanisms that predicted reading ability. As children get
older, they begin to expand their vocabulary and they start to make connections with
words and their meanings. Habibi, Cahn, Damasio and Damasio (2016) also found that
learning to play musical instruments accelerates the brain development of young children,
particularly the areas that are responsible for processing language development, speech
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perception and reading skills. This is confirmed by Williams’ longitudinal study (Williams,
Barrett, Welch, Abad & Broughton 2015) that found that children who grew up in a home
where family members engaged in informal music-making activities, had better literacy,
numeracy, social skills, and attention and emotion regulation by the age of five. Forgeard
(2008) found that instrumental music training may enhance auditory discrimination,
vocabulary, and non-verbal reasoning skills. Gromko’s (2005) study shows that children
who receive musical training will develop an enhanced awareness for spoken sounds and
spoken words faster than children who did not receive musical instruction, which helps
when it comes to learning in the classroom.
Memory: Franklin, Moore, Yip, Jonides, Rattray and Moher (2008) concluded from their
study that musicians perform better on verbal working memory tasks as well as verbal
long-term memory tasks than non-musicians. This may be because musicians have a
more developed verbal rehearsal mechanism. Orsmond and Miller (1999) concluded that
music instruction and the use of musical instruments seem to strengthen coordination
of visual and auditory sensory input and motor output.
Concentration: Because music has such a big impact on our mood, calming background
music may help to bring focus and improve concentration. Furthermore, learning musical
skills and concepts, or learning to play a musical instrument, requires attention to detail
and analysis and therefore improves on-task behaviour and concentration (Van Vreden
2020).
Howard Gardner’s multi-intelligence theory
Musical intelligence, according to Howard Gardner (1983), is one of nine types of intelligences.
In Gardner’s view, musical intelligence may be regarded as the most important kind
of intelligence, since children often exhibit musical intelligence before other kinds of
intelligence. Gardener describes musical intelligence as abilities of awareness, appreciation
and communication using musical sound. Serrat (2009) expands by including cognitive
functions such as visual and auditory memory, perception, mobility coordination, sensitivity,
emotions, symbolic representation, pleasure and creativity.
Research has indicated that musical experiences include pattern building, rhyme making,
sound and rhythmic constructions, the development of left/right orientation as well as
auditory discrimination skills (Hirsh 2004:6). These abilities are enhanced when learners
sing or play an instrument.

Children love to move around when they hear music. According to Gilbert (1980) and
Coetzee (2010), the most fundamental motor patterns emerge before the age of five. When
learners play on various instruments, they develop coordination in movement as well as
fine motor and gross motor development. According to Freeman (2002), good posture
during performances also sustains muscle and bone alignment. When we sing, we also
exercise and develop our vocal cords, lungs and the diaphragm. With action songs, children
can gradually work out the muscles in the different parts of their body. Participation in
musical activities such as listening, singing, playing on instruments, moving, and reading
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music theory increase eye-hand and eye-foot coordination, laterality between the left
and right sides, balance and control and fine and gross motor skills. Therefore, children
should be allowed to move freely when they listen to music.
The following table (De Villiers 2017) illustrates how music contributes to the physical
development of learners.
Table 5.1
The contribution of music to the physical development of learners
Physical developments The contribution of musical education activities
1. Gross motor skills • Rhythmic movements performed with the whole body,
like clapping in time to a simple beat, creating or imitating
movement patterns, performing sequences to dances, or
performing with a partner in a musical game.
2. Balance and control • Rhythmic movements, body balance skills, coordination and
the controlling of movements improve body posture.
• Link various movement gestures when singing rhymes such
as Row, Row, Row your boat and If you’re happy and you know
it clap your hands.
3. Eye-hand coordination • Playing on melodic and non-melodic instruments.

• Incorporating new movements in adaptations of sports, like
bouncing balls on a musical beat.
4. Fine motor skills • Playing on melodic and non-melodic instruments.

• Using finger play and puppets while singing or when doing
action rhymes.
5. Eye-foot coordination • Body percussion with dances and rhythmic feet movements,
such as exploring actions for up/down, left/right, back/forth
shapes, performing letter/shape dance, waving flags in either
march or waltz tempo.
6. L aterality (distinction • Singing songs referring to both sides of the body, like Incy
between left and right) Wincey Spider or Hokey Pokey.
• Playing melodic percussion instruments with both hands.
5.3.3 Social and emotional development

Music is a universal language and represents the first means of communication of a child
with an outer world. Music is a tool in communicating the needed love and affection to a
newborn. Through a mother’ singing and rhythmic movement, a child perceives musical
rhythm. Music and dance are therefore perfect ways to create a bond and share thoughts
and emotions (Hodges & Sebald 2011).
130
According to Huron (2000), one of the first functions of music was to support group
cohesion. Making music at an early age can significantly improve pro-social behaviour,
such as an infant’s cooperativeness, agreeableness and willingness to help others (Kirschner
& Tomasello 2012). Phillips (2010) believes that music has a strong affective force, which
manifests itself when learners succeed in forming a variety of emotional connections
during classroom activities. When learners are singing or playing instruments together,
they learn how to share attention, to cooperate and to collaborate in a group. These
collaborative musical activities teach them emotional regulation and enhance learners’
social behaviour towards their peers as well (Williams 2018).
Socialisation is the process through which people are taught to be proficient members
of a society. Social-emotional development describes how children develop skills that
allow them to interact with other people and to express and control their emotions.
Social-emotional stages are often harder to notice than signs of physical and cognitive
development. The ability to wait patiently, make friends, share toys and take care of
others are all examples of social-emotional development. Young children develop these
abilities incrementally over time. Children are emotional beings and should be given a
chance to express their feelings through listening to music and demonstrating how they
feel. Children who are emotionally developed have a good advantage as they are able to
tolerate frustrations and adverse situations better. They are healthier, less impulsive and
more focused (Belapurkar 2015). Music also connects children who may not otherwise
discover they have anything in common. Sharing a love for certain types of music creates
an almost automatic bond. Participating in music – either as dancing, studying or playing
an instrument – gives children a sense of confidence that they take into their interpersonal
relationships (Belapurkar 2015:34).
ACTIVITY 5.1
5.1.1 Explain how music benefits the cognitive development of young children.
5.1.2 Give examples of musical activities that you can encourage children to do to
facilitate development of the following:
Physical skills Musical activities
Gross motor skills
Balance and control
Eye-hand coordination
Fine motor skills
5.1.3 List the social skills that can be developed through music.
5.1.4 Explain how learners can benefit emotionally by music.
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5.4 SUMMARY
Itisveryimportantformusicteacherstoknowhowchildrendevelopphysically,emotionally and
cognitively. Without this foundational knowledge, it will be hard for the teacher to know
how to prepare lessons that will appeal to children and address their developmental needs.
In the next learning unit, we will explore the implementation of music in the classroom.
We will look at musical concepts, activities and skills as proposed by the Curriculum and
Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for the Foundation Phase and apply our knowledge
to put the theory into practice.
https://www.brighthorizons.com/family-resources/music-and-children-
rhythm-meets-child-development
https://penfieldbuildingblocks.org/early-education/the-effects-of-
music-on-childhood-development/
https://www.corkbutterexchangeband.org/benefits-of-music
5.5 RESOURCES
Anvari, S., Trainor, L., Woodside, J & Levy, B. 2002. Relations among musical skills,
phonological processing and early reading ability in preschool children. Journal of
experimental Child Psychology, 83(2):111–130.
Belapurkar, A. 2015. Music for emotional and social development of the child. Scholarly
Research Journal for Interdisciplinary Studies, 4(30):32–37.
Campbell, P & Scott-Kassner, C. 2014. Music in childhood: from preschool through the
elementary grades. 4th edition. USA: Schirmer.
Coetzee, E. 2010. Creative group music teaching and the principles of Gestalt Play Therapy
in the Foundation Phase in South African education. Unpublished MMus dissertation.
Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University.
De Villiers, R. 2017. A teacher training framework for music education in the Foundation Phase.
Unpublished thesis. Pretoria: University of Pretoria.
Forgeard, M. 2008. Practicing a musical instrument in childhood is associated with
enhanced verbal ability and nonverbal reasoning, PLoS One, 3e3556.
Franklin, M., Moore, K., Yip, C., Jonides, J., Rattray, K & Moher, J. 2008. The effects of musical
training on verbal memory. Psychology of Music, 36(3):353–365.
Freeman, TR. 2002. Spirituality in music education: Respecting and elevating students
with music. Visions of Research in Music Education, 2.
Gardner, H. 1983. Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences. New York: Basic Books.
Gilbert, JP. 1980. An assessment of motor skill development in young children. Journal of
Research in Music Education, 28:167–175.
Gromko, J. 2005. The effect of music instruction on phonemic awareness in beginning
readers. Journal of research in music education, 53(3):199–209.
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Habibi, A., Cahn, BR., Damasio, A & Damasio, H. 2016. Neural correlates of accelerated
auditory processing in children engaged in music training. Developmental cognitive
neuroscience, 21:1–14.
Hirsh, RA. 2004. Early childhood curriculum: Approaching musical intelligence in the
classroom. In: Artigos meloteca appropriate practice and play (pp 101–105). Virginia:
Pearson.
Hodges, D & Sebald, D. 2011. Music in the human experience: An introduction to Music
Psychology. New York: Routledge.
Huron, DB. 2003. Is music an evolutionary adaptation? in I Peretz & R Zatorre (Eds). The
cognitive neuroscience of music (pp 57–75). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hyde, K., Lerch, J., Norton, A., Winner, E., Schlaug, G., Evans, A et al. 2009. Musical training
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Learning unit 6
Teaching music in the Grade R classroom
6.1 INTRODUCTION
In this learning unit, students are required to demonstrate the practical application of
musical concepts in play-based musical activities in Grade R.

• Demonstrate knowledge of teaching theoretical aspects of music such as rhythm,
melody, beat, music form and expressions.
• Demonstrate knowledge of teaching music-making activities in a music programme,
such as movement, listening, singing and playing instruments.
• Encourage learners to use their personal experiences and senses during musical
activities.
• Demonstrate an understanding of play-based teaching approaches in the design and
implementation of musical activities for learning and enjoyment.
• Demonstrate how cross-curricular links to music are identified, and plan integration
activities through lesson planning and classroom practice.
• Plan and conduct assessment through the observation of individual learners during
musical activities.
6.2 MUSIC IN THE CONTEXT OF THE GRADE R CURRICULUM

According to researchers, the early years of childhood are critical to learn to unscramble
the tones of music and to build up a mental organisation system to memorise music. Like
language development, toddlers develop their musical skills through observation, imitation
and memorising rhythms and tones of songs, such as clapping to a beat and singing
in tune. Without this ability, children would not be able to develop their musical skills.
Therefore, sufficient stimulation and exposure to music and musical play are necessary
to help children turn their potential into actual musical growth.
Many education systems include music to complement the teaching of numeracy, literacy
and science. The South African school curriculum also recognises the importance of
developing learner’s musical growth and provides for music instruction through the
National Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS). International students are
encouraged to consult the curriculum requirements of their respective countries.
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The curriculum for Grade R (CAPS) is structured according to three subjects, namely, Home
Language, Mathematics and Life Skills. Life Skills as a subject is concerned with the social,
personal, intellectual, emotional and physical growth of learners.
Life Skills as a subject in the Foundation Phase (Grades R–3), has been organised into
four study areas: beginning knowledge, personal and social well-being, creative arts and
physical education (see figure 2.1 below) (DBE 2011:8).
Figure 6.1
Creative arts within the Life Skills curriculum
Due to the interdisciplinary approach to teaching in Grade R, teachers are expected to

infuse performing arts experiences with other curriculum components, for example, dance
and drama with physical development, drama and music with language development
and visual arts, music and dance with mathematical concepts.
6.2.1 Music as a component of the Creative Arts

Creative Arts expose learners to four art forms, namely music, dance and drama (section
A of this study guide) and the Visual Arts (section B of this study guide). The main purpose
of the Creative Arts is to develop learners as creative and imaginative individuals, with
an appreciation of the arts. It also provides basic knowledge and skills to be able to
participate in creative activities. Grade R learners are inherently creative, and play is their
natural way of learning. The focus of learning should be on the development of skills
through enjoyable, experiential processes, rather than on highly polished end products.
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Performing Arts (music, dance and drama) allow learners the opportunity to creatively
communicate, dramatise, sing, make music, dance and explore movement. Through the
Performing Arts, children develop their physical skills and creativity. Performing Arts
stimulate memory, promote relationships and build self-confidence and self-discipline
(DBE 2011:9).
6.2.2 Principles of teaching music

Creating a safe environment: The grounds for planning music activities are based
on quality musical activities in a safe, stimulating musical environment. The role of the
music teacher is to ignite the child’s curiosity and desire for his own musical learning and
to create a safe environment in which a child will be able to freely and spontaneously
express themselves musically. Teachers should ensure that classrooms are supportive and
safe, and that learners can take risks and make mistakes to learn and grow in confidence.
Play-based learning: When teaching music, the teacher must ensure that there is more
music and less teaching. For example, it is a good idea to start a lesson with a greeting song,
instead of holding a greeting conversation. Let children sing “Hello everyone and how are
you?” – in this way the music lesson is more social and fun and less instructive, which is what
children prefer. Singing should be a positive experience for children. Apart from the fun of
singing and playing games, they will also enjoy the satisfaction of mastering new skills.
Active participation: A learner-centred classroom will allow learners to play an active

role in their own learning. Learners should be allowed to be creative and learn through
interactions with peers and adults. They should have opportunities and enough time
to participate and experiment in a variety of learning activities which include concrete,
hands-on learning experiences. Abstract concepts such as low and high notes, or fast or
slow music, should be demonstrated by using pictures, gestures or physical activities. The
teacher can take this opportunity to use different materials to produce sound, for example,
using bottles to produce pitch, and pots and tins to produce rhythmic patterns, creating
percussion instruments from bottle tops, using plastic bottles for shakers with pebbles
inside or creating drums from tins for children to make music with.
One-step-at-a-time approach: Choose songs with a limited pitch range and simple
rhythms to promote accurate singing. The teacher should also go for more appealing tunes
with actions children can perform. Take a one-step-at-a-time approach, as opposed to the
whole song approach. For example, first teach the song verse by verse, then the actions,
then get the children to sing and do the actions.
Repetition: The repetition principle arises from the child’s primary need for repeating
known musical concepts. Repeat musical activities as often as possible.
From the known to the unknown: Begin from what they know and develop to the
unknown. Implement at least one new unknown musical element or concept, which can
ignite the child’s curiosity and interest in music. Learning activities should also respect the
cognitive and affective development of learners. Create a variety of musical experiences
so that all the different abilities of learners can be accommodated. Learners should also
be given the opportunity to reflect on their own learning.
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6.3 TEACHING MUSIC IN GRADE R
The activities below are proposed in the National Curriculum and Assessment Policy
Statement (CAPS) (DBE 2011) for Grade R.
Term 1
• Keeping a steady beat: playing rhythmic games such as clapping, stamping, and
percussion using different rhythms and tempos.
• Exploring music, movement and voice: focusing on tempo (fast and slow).
• Singing action songs using different parts of the body to interpret the song.
• Spontaneous use of voice and movement in participatory rhymes and stories.
• Expressing moods and ideas through movement and song.
• Expressing the senses through dramatising stories, rhymes and songs.
Term 2
• Music, voice and movement: focusing on dynamics such as loud and soft, strong
and gentle.
• Indigenous songs, rhythmic games and rhymes using different dynamics (loud,
soft, strong, gentle) with clapping and stamping.
• Listening skills: reacting to signals, cues, stories, rhymes and songs, such as “freeze”,
“up”, “down”.
• Interpretation of indigenous and other songs using dynamics such as soft and loud.
• Use of objects or props creatively.
Term 3
• Music, voice and movement, focusing on pitch: high and low.
• Using percussion instruments to keep a steady beat and develop numeracy skills
by counting.
• Using body percussion and/or percussion instruments to perform simple rhythm
patterns.
• Focus on pitch such as “Twinkle, twinkle little star” (high pitch) and “My grandfather’s
clock” (low pitch).
• Rhythms: long and short note values (durations) using body percussion and/or
percussion instruments.
Term 4
• Singing and action movements to a song.
• Use percussion instruments to sing and perform a simple song in a band.
6.3.1 Resources to teach music in Grade R

According to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement: Life Skills in the Foundation
Phase (CAPS) (DBE 2011), a learning environment should provide the following resources:
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• Open space to allow children to experience music practically through moving, dancing
and playing instruments.
• Musical instruments (bought and made).
• Audio and audio-visual equipment with a range of suitable music for singing and
listening activities.
• A variety of props, such as old cloths, hand puppets and masks.
• Charts and posters such as pictures of instruments and notation signs to make sense
of music notation.
• Material for drawing and construction.
6.3.2 Terminology and concepts explained

According to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) (DBE 2011), the
following musical concepts should be taught in a well-structured music programme:
Beat: It is also known as the pulse of the music. Similar to a heartbeat, it is a repetitive
pattern of stressed notes (pulses). A beat is therefore the main accent in music. To put it
simply, the beat refers to the way we want to move when we hear music.
Dynamics: It refers to the volume of the music that is being performed. All learners in
the Foundation Phase should be able to distinguish between loud and soft.
Duration: It refers to the length of the notes.
Expressive qualities: The tempo (how fast or slow the music is) together with how
soft or how loud music is, creates a specific mood or atmosphere. A gradual increase in
tempo and loudness can create excitement. On the other hand, a decrease in tempo and
loudness can bring calm and creates a relaxing atmosphere.
Melody: The melody is an arrangement of single notes to form a satisfying tune. When
you hum “Twinkle, twinkle little star” (you do not sing the words), you are humming the
melody.
Meter: It is the number of beats in a bar. The meter is notated at the beginning of the
composition with a time signature.
Percussion: Non-melodic percussion instruments are anything that you strike, shake or
scrape and that do not have a definite pitch. These include instruments such as rhythm
sticks, castanets, maracas, triangles, cymbals, tambourine and sleigh bells.
Melodic percussion instruments are percussion instruments used to produce different

notes or pitches or a musical scale, such as a xylophone or glockenspiel.
Pitch: Pitch refers to how high or how low a note is.
Rhythm: Rhythm refers to a sequence of beats. It is a pattern of a single, stressed note

(beat) followed by one or more unstressed notes (beats).
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Timbre: It is the sound of the instrument playing the melody or how the singer’s voice
sounds. Young learners in the Foundation Phase should be made aware of different kinds
of instruments, for example wind, string or percussion instruments. They should be able
to distinguish these instruments from one another from a very young age. Older learners
in the Foundation Phase should be able to distinguish between specific instruments and
vocal sounds.
6.4 MUSIC ACTIVITIES IN A MUSIC PROGRAMME

Since a child’s first musical experience are through listening and singing (Borota as cited
in Zadnik & Habe 2017), the basic activities for young children are musical performance
(singing and playing instruments), creative activities and educational musical games.
According to Van Vreden (2012:2), a successful, integrated musical programme should
comprise singing games, singing, movement activities, selecting songs, music listening
and music notation. These musical activities are used to support multi-sensory learning
and make the lessons fun. Therefore, it is essential for music teachers of the Foundation
Phase to know which concepts to teach first and which activities are appropriate for the
level of development of the child (see 2.3 and 2.3.2 above).
6.4.1 Singing
Singing is a joyful and sociable activity and young children take to it very naturally.
Learners’ voices are light and small in the Foundation Phase and singing becomes more
accurate and expressive as they sing alone and with others. Singing can be one of the
most popular activities in the Foundation Phase and is usually accompanied by a CD, an
instrument or the teacher’s own voice. Since singing is an important means of expression
for young learners, teachers should incorporate singing into daily activities. Ideas for
singing in the Foundation Phase include:
• Greeting songs.
• Songs related to the theme of the week.
• The dramatisation of songs.
• Action songs.
• Folk songs.
Teachers should also include the national anthem as early as possible (Van Vreden 2020).
Learners in the Foundation Phase should experience the following:
• Independent singing on pitch and in rhythm with appropriate timbre and posture
while maintaining a steady tempo.
• Expressive singing with appropriate dynamics, phrasing and interpretation.
• Opportunities to memorise a varied repertoire of songs representing diverse genres
and styles.
• Singing in groups, blending vocal timbres, matching dynamic levels and responding
to the cues of a conductor (Campbell & Scott-Kassner 2014:433).
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Presenting the song
Teachers should always choose an age-appropriate repertoire. Pre-schoolers should

discover the difference between speaking and singing voices, which shifts songs in
quality from light and airy to the “playground yell” for lively songs. Pre-schoolers enjoy
six- to eight-line songs. Young children also like repetition, as songs with repetitive words
and a repetitive melody are easier to sing and remember. A perfect singing posture is a
pre-requisite for gaining good breath control. Breathing exercises should always precede
a singing activity. Sipping juice through a straw to inhale and the fullness of a blown
balloon with the expansion of the lungs are age-appropriate breathing exercises for
young learners (Campbell & Scott-Kassner 2014:77–78).
Teaching a song
For children to learn a new song effectively, it must be sung or played a number of times.
The number of repetitions will also depend on the length, the difficulty of the melody
and the words, and the level of musical development. They should first hear the whole
song without any interference. Longer and more complex songs should be taught verse
by verse. For more complex songs, start by learning the melody. Play the song over and
over throughout the day, even if it is just as background music when they are busy with
other work. Then you can teach the words. Follow a “listen-and-sing” pattern until the
learners can sing the song line by line or verse by verse correctly. For songs with a difficult
tone pattern, use hand levels or line notation on the chalkboard to show the learners
how the melody works. For songs with problematic rhythm patterns, the teacher can clap
the rhythm for the learners and let them clap it while the teacher sings. Call attention
to obvious musical detail such as repetition of tone patterns or phrases, and even and
uneven rhythm. Inform the learners about the background and purpose of the song so
that they can apply this knowledge to expressive singing. When leading the song, the
teacher needs to:
• Know the song well and show confidence.

• Be sure about the key, the first tone of the melody and meter and the time signature.
• Sound the first pitch with their voice or any device that will help children to work out
the key.
• Use rhythmic arm motions to maintain the tempo.
• Communicate the mood and spirit of the song with their body, and especially with
their facial expression.
• End the song with a definite cut-off motion with one or both hands.
6.4.2 Games and action songs

Young children enjoy singing games and action songs. This type of rhythmic activity
differs from other types in that the words of the songs tell the children what to do,
such as moving and freezing with sound and silence, and using costumes and props to
dramatise movements.
• Make sure that the children know the song well before they play the game or sing
action songs.
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• Do not overcrowd the space in which they play a musical game. If space is limited, let
smaller groups play the game while others sing and watch. Take turns.
• Encourage the children to sing with a hearty tone, quality and well-accented rhythm,
and to move with the rhythm of the song.
6.4.3 Instruments and the body as percussion instrument

All children have an interest in playing musical instruments, depending on their age. For
example, infants shake rattles, toddlers bang on cardboard boxes, tables, chairs or pots
and pans (Campbell & Scott-Kassner 2009, 2014). This means that musical instruments
provoke excitement and action in young children. Instruments are useful in reinforcing the
acquisition of musical concepts such as melody and rhythm. Children should be taught
how to handle instruments appropriately and develop correct playing habits. Children
should be encouraged to experiment with different instruments, and not to focus on
only one type of instrument.
When creating on instruments, learners first start simply with a micro/macro beat.
Thereafter they choose a movement and make a pattern or choose from known rhythm
patterns. Learners can play any pitch in a pentatonic scale. Early in the Foundation Phase,
learners improvise rhythm patterns using non-melodic instruments with music. Only
in Grades 2 and 3 will learners improvise more complex rhythmic patterns and create
instrumental or vocal sound effects to enhance a story (Van Vreden 2020).
Non-melodic percussion instruments (metal and wood)
Children are naturally fascinated by non-melodic rhythm instruments during their early
years, especially by instruments such as hand drums, the triangle and shakers. As children
mature, melodic (pitched) instruments should be introduced.
Illustration 6.1
Non-melodic percussion instruments
Melodic percussion instruments
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Melodic percussion instruments are percussion instruments used to produce different
notes or pitches or a musical scale, such as a xylophone or glockenspiel.
Illustration 6.2
Melodic percussion instruments
The body as a percussion instrument
The body can serve as a musical instrument in various ways such as clapping, slapping,
tapping, snapping, stamping and patting of different parts of the body. Therefore, body
percussion exercises can also be used to prepare children to perform on non-pitched
rhythmic instruments. Children can transfer the pattern they have practised on their
bodies to a drum, woodblock or xylophone (Van Vreden 2020).
6.4.4 Movement
Throughout the world people respond to music physically. Actions can portray beat and
rhythm (walking, running, hopping, swaying, skipping) and other musical concepts. Ideas
for teaching include:
• Creating free movements with music, which can later develop into structured
movements.
• Portraying musical concepts through improvised movements.
• Improvising rhythmic patterns using body percussion, such as beating on your chest
to imitate the galloping of a horse.
The teacher guides the learners’ movements through questions, for example: “How
does an elephant dance?” and “Can you sing while you walk, or run or skip?” (Campbell
& Scott-Kassner 2014:149).
6.4.5 Listening
Listening is the cornerstone of all musical activity; it pervades all other musical activities.
When learners develop good listening skills, they become good performers and respond
well when required to move to music. Listening can be developed through a variety of
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ways such as hearing the music, discovering significant detail in the music and hearing
the music again. Examples of exercises can include:
• Identifying simple musical forms through listening.

• Demonstrate perceptual skills by moving, or answering questions about music.
• Using appropriate terminology in explaining music, music notation, musical instruments,
voices and music performances.
• Identifying the sounds of a variety of instruments, children’s voices and male and
female adult voices.
• Responding through purposeful movement to select prominent musical characteristics
or to specific music events while listening to music (Van Vreden 2020).
Teaching listening
Teachers can use a variety of techniques to help learners become aware of sounds:
• Learners must close their eyes. Drop a familiar object and let them name the object.
• Learners hide behind a screen and play different rhythm instruments while the rest
of the learners listen and name what they hear.
• Learners close their eyes and identify the voice of a classmate after hearing a verse
they had sung.
• Learners imitate pitch, that is, shape the upward/downward sounds of a slide whistle
as they listen with their eyes closed (Campbell & Scott-Kassner 2014:245).
ACTIVITY 6.1
6.2.1 You find that the song you are trying to teach your learners is long and has
challenging rhythmic patterns. Which approach can you apply to help the
learners understand the song quicker?
6.2.2 Children in the Foundation Phase learn rhythmic responsiveness through
participation in a variety of rhythmic activities. List five rhythmic activities that
can facilitate rhythmic responsiveness in Grade R learners.
6.5 LESSON PLANNING

A successful music teacher takes pride in carefully and deliberately planning their teaching.
He or she pays attention to the needs and abilities of their learners, decides on outcomes
and comes up with strategies to reach the proposed outcomes. A teacher needs to keep in
mind that an effective lesson should immediately attract the learners’ attention through
well-designed introductory activities.
The teacher must be clear about what he or she would like to accomplish in a given
lesson and use appropriate teaching strategies to meet the national outcomes. When
planning the lessons, the teacher should remember to prepare the learning environment,
to consider the background of the learners, their age level and developmental stages.
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6.5.1 Aspects required for a good lesson plan
Lesson planning should be guided by the learning outcomes as stated in the Curriculum
Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for Life Skills. Refer to CAPS Foundation Phase for
topics on grade levels. A good lesson plan should take the following into consideration:
Table 6.1
Aspects required for a good lesson plan
Components Explanation
(1) Developmental level Determine how much the learners know about the concept or skill
of learners you aim to teach (assess their prior knowledge). This will help you
choose appropriate resources and age-appropriate activities for
your learners.
(2) M
usical skills and Determine the skills and concepts you want to focus on.
concepts to be taught
(3) O
bjectives to be met Short-term goals of the lesson. The following are examples as
by the learner indicated in the CAPS:
• communicate
• dramatise, sing, make music, dance and explore movement
(4) Music and resources Determine the resources you will use, for example, sound clips,
needed for the lesson instruments, illustrations and posters.
(5) S teps in the lesson:

(a) Introduction Your introduction should immediately get the learners’ attention. For
example, make a gesture and ask learners to guess which instrument
you are thinking of. Provide illustrations of instruments and ask the
learners to point to an instrument each time they hear it.
(b) Main body of the This is what you would like the learners to learn and the activities
lesson you do with the learners, for example, singing, moving and playing
instruments.
(c) Closing Conclude the lesson by summarising the concepts and introduce
the next lesson.
(6) E valuation of learners’ Provide an activity to either reinforce the skills or concepts or to
progress assess if the learning outcomes were achieved.
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6.5.2 Lesson plan examples
Example 1
Teacher’s name: Maggy
Grade: R
Subject: Music
Topic: Beat – no beat
Objectives: Experience beat and no beat in a song
Materials: CD player, CD, pictures of children, Junior collage: Music activities for tiny
tots (pp 7–9)
Introduction: Call the learners to a carpet where you will play them a song. Ask them: Do
you sometimes feel so happy and full of energy that it is hard to do what
you are asked?
Encourage them to try to:
• Discover what the child on the recording of “Everybody Says” is told to
do (sit down, be good).
• Fnd out what the child would like to do (dance around).
Development: Ask the learners to come up with ways that they could use their whole body
to show the high and low sounds in music. Lead them to stand tall on tiptoe
and reach for the sky for high, and to squat down low to the ground for low.
Practice: Display a chart with pictures of children. Play the song again, tapping the
beat against each of the images of the marching boy on the chart, moving
from left to right twice. Encourage the children to:
• Listen quietly as the adult sings and then clap the beat as the child sings.
• Stand still like a statue as the adult sings and then move on the beat in
their personal space as the child sings.
Invite the children to dance in general space and
• Do a favourite steady-beat movement on the beat as the child sings.
• Then move freely with no beat as the adult sings.
Help the children to employ various parts of their bodies in creating body
percussion for “Everybody Says”.
Closure: Close by saying that many sounds around us have a steady, even beat;
while some sounds have no beat. Play the recording, naming the sounds
heard as they occur.
Name the sounds as they occur and tell learners to point their thumbs up
in the air if they hear a steady, even beat. If they do not, they should point
their thumbs down.
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Evaluation: Evaluate the learners informally on their ability to distinguish between a
steady, even beat and no beat. Also evaluate them on their participation
during the activity.
Example 2
Teacher’s name: Nancy
Grade: R
Subject: Music
Topic: What I like to do in school
Objectives: A song with words to show how we feel about school (mood)
Materials: CD player, CD, pictures of children, Junior collage: Music activities for tiny
tots (pp 7–9)
Introduction: Invite learners to think about the fun they can have in school.
Questions:
• What is your favourite thing to do in your Grade R class?
• How can you show that you like what you do?
Display four pictures with different activities. Each chart must be covered.
Ask individual learners to remove the covers. Once all four covers have been
removed, talk with the children about which of these they like to do best.
As you play the recording of “Hurray! I Like it Here”, ask the learners to listen
for whether any of the things they talked about are mentioned in the song.
Development: Encourage the learners to name some of the other things that are fun to
do in the Grade R class that are mentioned in the song.
Ask the learners to listen again to the recording and invite them to wave
their arms each time they hear the phrase “Hurray! I like it here”.
Practice: Lead the learners in showing their enthusiasm for school by dramatising
the song. Lead the learners in moving as follows:
• “Hurray!” – jump up, raising both hands above their heads.
• “I like it here” – move arms down to their sides.
• “I like it here, I like it here, I like my friends so near” – snuggle close to
their friends.
• “Hurray! I like it here” – move arms down to their sides.
Closure: Divide the learners into two groups. As the recording plays, let one group
create movements while the other group sings the song.
Evaluation: Notice whether the learners’ singing and movements show that they hear
the short repeated phrases each time they occur in the song.
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ACTIVITY 6.2
The teacher should always keep young learners’ attention focused. Should the teacher
fail to do so, it may lead to a lack of concentration and consequently a boring lesson.
6.2.1 How would you introduce your music lesson to keep the attention of learners?
6.2.2 What kinds of activities can you design to teach?
6.2.2.1 beat or no beat
6.2.2.2 pitch (high or low sounds)
6.2.2.3 dynamics
6.2.3 Design an activity to either reinforce the concepts or assess if the outcomes were
achieved.
6.6 INTEGRATING MUSIC WITH OTHER FOUNDATION PHASE

SUBJECTS
Apart from music education (teaching music), music can also be used in the following
manner in the classroom:
• Learning from music (it happens spontaneous when learners are offered opportunities
to explore their musical knowledge in an informal way).
• With music (when regular classroom activities are accompanied by music).
• Through music (when musical activities are used to reach a non-musical goal, like
teaching the alphabet song, or a song teaching young children how to count) (Van
Vreden 2020).
Because music includes and influences many areas of human development, it is the ideal
medium to facilitate integrated learning.
Use music to teach music, to learn from music, to learn with music and through music. This
is not only creative, but also an economical way of dealing with the time constraints for
music in CAPS. The use of music can enhance the level of learning because music creates
a positive learning environment, creates anticipation, sets the atmosphere, energises
learning activities, focuses concentration, improves attention span and memory, facilitates a
multisensory learning experience, relieves tension, enriches the imagination and promotes
group work through the development of cooperation.
6.7 SUMMARY
In this learning unit, we discussed music in the context of the Foundation Phase curriculum.
We explored the principles of teaching music and introduced the concepts that need
to be taught and we provided ideas on how to plan lessons and concluded with the
integration of music with other subjects in the curriculum.
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In the next learning unit, we are going to explore dance activities in early childhood
education.
ACTIVITY 6.3
6.3.1 Which body movement would you use to demonstrate the rhythm of a train?
6.3.2 Which teaching tool (aid) would you use to help learners follow certain sounds
in a song – identify them, such as a flute for the sound of a bird?.
6.3.3 Which concept can you reinforce by clapping or using rhythm sticks?
6.3.4 Which skills are you teaching when you ask learners to identify different voices or
the sounds of different instruments?
6.3.5 Which concept are you teaching when you ask learners to say which sound is
low and which sound is high?
6.3.6 Bouncing the ball can be associated with which musical concept?
https://dabbledoomusic.com/blog/18199/primaryschoolmusicgifs
https://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/lesson_plans/music/
https://kidactivities.net/music-games-for-the-classroom/
https://www.mrsmiraclesmusicroom.com/2015/01/five-strategies-to-
incorporate-music.html
https://makingmusicfun.net/htm/mmf_music_library_the_lesson_zone_
index.php
6.8 REFERENCES
Campbell, P & Scott-Kassner, C. 2009. Music in childhood: from preschool through the elementary
grades. 3th edition. USA: Schirmer.
Campbell, P & Scott-Kassner, C. 2014. Music in childhood: from preschool through the elementary
grades. 4th edition. USA: Schirmer.
Department of Basic Education (DBE). 2011. Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS):
Life Skills – Foundation Phase. Pretoria: Government Printer.
Malan, M. 2014. Musical understanding: an analysis of the creative arts CAPS outline for the
Foundation Phase. Unpublished dissertation. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University.
Van Aswegen, R & Vermeulen D. 1999. Junior collage: music activities for tiny tots. Pretoria:
Collage.
Van Vreden, M. 2016. Maestro for a moment: a conceptual framework for music integration in
Grade R. South African Journal of Childhood Education, 6(1):a373. http://dx.doi. org/10.4102/
sajce.v6i1.373.
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Van Vreden, M. 2020. Teaching music in the Foundation Phase. In Meier, C & Naude, M. (Eds).
Teaching Life Skills in the Foundation Phase. Pretoria: Van Schaik.
Zadnik, K & Habe K. 2017. The Developmental benefits of early music education: An evaluation
study of the two Slovenian projects. Journal of Educational Research, 11(3):330–354.
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Learning unit 7
The importance of dance for child development
7.1 INTRODUCTION
In this learning unit, we will explore the significance of dance for the holistic development
of the young child.

• Discuss how dance contributes towards the holistic development of the Grade R learner
7.2 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF DANCE

Dance is an essential component of the curriculum in the Foundation Phase and is taught
alongside creative art activities such as music, drama, and visual art as well as physical
education (DBE 2011) (also see learning unit 2, under 2.2).
According to Slade (1977), the purpose of dance in the Foundation Phase is to contribute to
the development of the whole learner. It aims to stimulate physical, intellectual, imaginative,
social and emotional development and is not concerned with the teaching of dance
sequences or specific techniques. If presented correctly, it will result in an expressive, free
and creative use of the body. In addition, it can encourage confidence, social awareness and
concentration. In contrast to physical education, where the focus is mainly on the acquisition
of physical skills, the dance programme should also include activities that will stimulate the
use of the imagination and the development of group sensitivity.

Dance involves a range of motion, coordination, strength and endurance. Dance develops
fine and gross motor skills and creates an awareness of the body, its capabilities as well
as its limitations (Wood 2020). It encourages confidence in, as well as the healthy use of,
the body. Even in Grade R, problems with alignment, posture and incorrect use of the
body start to emerge. If not addressed, it can lead to life-long problems with movement
and health. Learners as young as five can already be starting to experience the effects of
inflexibility and lack of strength. This, in turn, leads to avoidance behaviour as the learner
feels unable and unconfident to participate in physical activities. Learners are becoming
more and more sedentary as they spend increasing amounts of time interacting with
technology. Unlike sporting activities, dance can be done by every single learner, no
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matter what the physical condition of the learner might be. According to Faber (2017),
the physical benefits of dance in early childhood:
• Are bodily strength, flexibility and endurance as it develops muscles, bones and
aerobic capacity.
• Are eye-motor control (enhances accuracy in observation and perception of movement
for recognition and repetition).
• Are a realistic and accurate understanding of what the body is doing.
• Are coordination (integrates movements of parts of the body into a unified whole).
• Promotes neurological synapsis throughout the body.
• Helps coordinate communication between the right and left hemispheres of the brain.
• Are awareness and understanding of spatial relationships.
• Are an understanding of body identity, organisation, shape and design.
The goal in dance education is to gain basic motor control. At first, toddlers’ coordination is
choppy (Faber 2017), and only by the age of six years can they achieve smooth movements,
have more accurate eye-motor coordination, replicate movement, balance on one foot
and make cross-lateral movements.
7.2.2 Social development

Since early humanity, the function of dance has been communal and social. Every nation,
culture and society have a form of dance. As adults interact with children through dance,
young children internalise and understand it as non-verbal communication (Faber 2017).
Through dance, we potentially pass social values along to our children. In contrast,
creative movement in early childhood is a neutral dance form that teaches children to
relate socially without imposing a role or any stereotypes (Faber 2017). The dance class
is a social event, and even though it may be focused on individual development, it still
occurs within a group context where learners will have to consider others within the
space. Dance provides them an opportunity to learn to work with others and develop a
sensitivity for the needs of others. Dance also encourages the development of emotional
control. Although a shy learner may initially feel threatened by having to dance with others,
he or she will soon notice that everyone is too preoccupied to notice another person. This
creates confidence and freedom to participate and the learner becomes empowered. For
this reason, all learners should participate equally without anyone being singled out for
demonstration (Wood 2020).

According to Faber (2017:172), anecdotal evidence is mounting that symbolic movement
in the first five years of a child’s life enhances cognitive development. Infants and young
children’s bodily movements establish neurological connections which in turn forge
the foundations for language development. An infant’s first understanding of symbolic
movement is through gesture (Seitz 2005). This implies they can understand meaning
in movement before they understand speech. For example, toddlers can read a head
nod for “yes”, or a head shake for “no”. Dance requires the ability to perform a series of
complicated instructions. The infant develops an understanding of space and time as he or
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she becomes mobile and later starts to crawl and walk. It is through physical experiences
that the young child learns about distance in relation to the time it takes to cover it
(Faber 2017). Dance provides bodily awareness so that movements and gesture become
consciously expressive and communicative. The brain functions required to coordinate a
series of movements are the same brain functions required for other intellectual pursuits.
According to Faber (2017), dance is the intentional embodiment of thought. In addition,
the exploration of rhythms aids language development and the exploration of shape and
form can lead to better understanding of mathematical concepts. Focus and concentration
are greatly increased by the repetition of dance movements. Dance also often requires
the making of decisions about how movements can be put together. In addition, lateral
thinking is often required in decision making as learners have to figure out how best
to move to communicate specific ideas (Wood 2020). According to Faber (2017), dance
promotes each of the eight intelligences defined by Howard Gardner:
• Bodily-kinaesthetic intelligence demonstrates fluency of body movements, the use

and understanding of movement, and the ability to problem solve in movement.
• Kinaesthetic and spatial intelligences are fundamental to dance as the dancer moves
through and organises space in spatial patterns and designs.
• Dance is a bodily interpretation of music and sensitises musical intelligence.
• Collaborative, verbal communication enhances linguistic intelligence (Gardner 1983;
Faber 2017).
7.2.4 Emotional development

Our physical condition affects our mental and emotional health and vice versa. Learners
who are shy usually also move in a constrained manner, while learners exposed to
unfavourable socioeconomic backgrounds may already start to reveal that they carry
unnecessary stress within the body. Dance can help to release inner tension and anxiety
and lead to greater confidence (Faber 2017). For some learners, it may even become a
means of communication when they are unable or unwilling to do so verbally. Learners
who are hesitant to communicate usually find it easier to express themselves physically.
As confidence grows, they gradually move to a point where they are able to do both
with confidence. Dance can also be an acceptable channel for outbursts of emotions,
which learners still experience at this phase (Wood 2020). In early childhood, young
children are egocentric and, according to Piaget, perceive themselves to be the centre
of the universe. A child must learn to conform to what is expected in class (Faber 2017).
Through the process of creating, performing, responding to and connecting movement
to experiences, young children learn to internalise their knowledge and grow personally.
Through creative dance they develop intrapersonal intelligence (Gardner 1983).
7.2.5 Creative development

Dance encourages learners to explore new options creatively in terms of movement
and expression. It develops creative thought and imagination and helps learners to
understand and process what they are perhaps unable to verbalise. Foundation Phase
learners still function very strongly in the physical realm and often use movement to
portray emotion. Dance should tap into this natural inclination. It will keep the channel
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to use the imagination open. Dance is a means to maintain creative and imaginative
thought processes (Wood 2020).
ACTIVITY 7.1
The dance teacher should see the child holistically. All aspects of the individual are
interconnected. Dance can help to unite the body and the mind, teach identity, a sense
of community and the curriculum (Soot & Viskus 2013).
Based on the above citation, illustrate how the following fields relate to the child’s
holistic development:
(1) social awareness
(2) cognitive development
(3) emotional maturity
(4) creative development
(5) physical development
This section aims to enhance your learning experience of the content

presented in the learning unit. If you have access to the internet, please use
the following links to watch YouTube videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGUjm0DFD7I (holistic development
of the child through dance)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3o2ii5rEaI (dance as a therapeutic tool)
https://www.dancetoevolve.com/blog/bid/207943/How-Dance-Classes-
Benefit-Early-Development
7.3 RESOURCES
Faber, R. 2016. Dance and early childhood cognition: The Isadora Effect. Arts Education
Policy Review, 118(3):172–182.
Gardner, H. 1983. Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences. New York: Basic Books.
Preston-Dunlop, V. 1980. A handbook for dance in education. London: Longman.
Redfern, HB. 1973. Concepts in modern educational dance. London: Henry Kimpton Publishers.
Seitz, J. 2005. The neural, evolutionary, developmental and bodily basis of metaphor. New
Ideas in Psychology, 23(2):74–95.
Slade, P. 1977. Natural dance. London: Hodder and Stoughton.
Soot, A & Viskus, E. 2013. Contemporary approaches to dance pedagogy – the challenges of the
21st century. Estonia: University of Tartu.
Wood, M. 2020. Teaching drama in the Foundation Phase, in C Meier and M Naude, (Eds).
Teaching Life Skills in the Foundation Phase. Pretoria: Van Schaik.
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Learning unit 8
Teaching dance in the Grade R classroom
8.1 INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this learning unit is to clarify terms related to dance in early childhood education.
The elements of dance will be explored and we will discuss strategies to teach dance in the
Grade R classroom. Finally, we will look at the integration of dance across the curriculum.

• Define key terms relevant to this learning unit.
• Explain elements of dance.
• Discuss improvisation as the main element of dance in early childhood education.
• Identify and discuss strategies for teaching dance.
• Give consideration to practical implications when teaching dance in early childhood
education classrooms.
8.2 KEY CONCEPTS OF DANCE

Several concepts are linked to dance and provide meaning to the dance vocabulary.
Although this module will focus on general concepts applicable to dance in the classroom,
student teachers are encouraged to familiarise themselves with each concept as it has an
impact on the knowledge and overall understanding of dance.
General concepts in the dance programme are included below.
8.2.1 Body awareness

To be able to move with ease and confidence, it is necessary to know the body, what it
is capable of and its limitations. Modern technology has resulted in learners spending
more time indoors involved in sedentary activities. Learners now spend less time running,
climbing, cycling and experimenting with and testing the limitations of their bodies. The
consequence of this is a lifestyle where the individual exists in a state of separateness
from their physicality. Body awareness helps the learners to develop the ability to listen
to their own bodies and identify its needs.
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Basic movement qualities such as flexing, contracting, extending, relaxing, floating and
gliding should be experienced and understood. Coordination, strength, flexibility and
balance should be explored (Wood 2020).
8.2.2 Choreography
Choreography refers to the compiling of a series of dance movements to be memorised
and executed. In early childhood education, the focus is on free, creative, expressive and
unchoreographed movement (see improvisation under 4.2.3).
8.2.3 Improvisation
Improvisation refers to a free form of expression with little or no preplanning. The
movements are spontaneous and in immediate response to a specific stimulus. Also refer
to 4.3.1 that deals with improvisation as the main element of dance education in early
childhood education.
8.2.4 Stance
Stance refers to the dancer’s positioning or placement and the correct alignment of the
spine. Explorations with balance should be included. Rigidity of posture should be avoided.
An awareness of stance is important as it improves body posture.
8.2.5 Space
When learners first participate in a dance programme, it is suggested that they begin
by exploring their own individual space and personal movement abilities. Learners can
explore possibilities of moving within their own space through activities such as physically
demonstrating a word or an object (for example, move as if you are a little bird emerging
from an egg). When that is mastered, interconnectedness between individuals can be
explored through activities such as combining movements with a partner to create for
instance a sea creature or a plant. Keep in mind that you cannot assume that learners will
make creative use of space. If left to themselves, they often move in predictable, repetitive
movement patterns. By introducing them to movement concepts, floor patterns and
directions, their free dance can be enhanced creatively (Wood 2020).
8.2.6 Rhythm
Rhythm is a regular pattern of beats. The specific arrangement of beats usually implies a
specific dance style, for example, a three-count suggests a waltz and a two-count a march.
Tempo refers to how fast or how slow the pace is at which the rhythm is executed, for
example, a slow waltz or a fast waltz. Duration refers to the length of time the movement lasts.
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8.2.7 Gesture
Gesture is a form of non-verbal communication that involves movement of any part of the
body that is not weight bearing. It is the movement of the face, body or limbs to express
ideas and emotions. Gesture is often used in mime and may carry a universal meaning,
for example, hands on the heart suggesting being in love.
8.2.8 Jete
This refers to a jump, that is, the body leaves the ground and weight is transferred from
one foot to the other foot.
8.2.9 Kinesphere
The kinesphere refers to the individual’s personal space. Refer to section 4.2.5.
8.2.10 Projection
This word is commonly used when referring to dance executions performed in such a
manner that they visibly express and communicate a certain theme or emotion.
ACTIVITY 8.1
8.1.1 Can you describe kinesphere in your own words? Consider whether the social
environment can have an effect on an individual’s experience of kinesphere.
8.3 DANCE IN THE CLASSROOM

The following activities are proposed by the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement
(CAPS): Life Skills in the Foundation Phase (DBE 2011).
Term 1
• Warming up and breathing using every day actions, such as waking up and getting
dressed.
• Developing special awareness: freeze games, finding own space, no bumping.
• Expressing moods and ideas through movement and song.
• Cooling down the body and relaxing (e.g. ice cream melting activity).
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Term 2
• Warming up using every day activities such as cleaning my shoes or making my bed.
• Body awareness exploring space and direction such as large, small, high, low, far,
near.
• Locomotor movements such as skipping and hopping, while sharing space, without
bumping into others.
• Interpretation and dancing to songs.
• Creating and imitating sound effects in stories, such as bees buzz, horse gallop.
• Directions, levels (high, medium and low) and shapes explored through creative
movement and stories.
• Dramatising, using an existing indigenous story, poem, nursery rhyme or song as
stimulus.
• Using of objects or props creatively in dance movements.
Term 3
• Warming-up movements using actions to stories as a stimulus.

• Pony gallops using rhythm and movement.
• Spatial awareness through movement making shapes, circles and lines.
• Cooling down the body and relaxation, that is, floating in the water like a leaf.
Term 4
• Warming up the body using levels (high, low, medium) such as reaching for stars
in the sky, roller-skating or crawling like a worm.
• Making shapes with the body, focusing on circles and squares.
• Balancing on one leg, such as being a stork, a flower blowing in the breeze, walking
on a tight rope.
• Cooling down the body and relaxation: leaf blowing gentle in the wind.
8.3.1 Improvisation as main component of the dance programme

The greater part of the dance programme in the Foundation Phase should consist of
opportunities for free dance movement. Wood (2020) cautions that too often teachers
end up teaching learners endless dance sequences. Learners quickly find this boring
and this boredom turns into disengagement and problems with classroom control and
discipline. The teaching of dance sequences also introduces an element of competition,
which shifts the focus from participation to a comparison of who performs what the
teacher demands. The dance programme should not attempt to train future dancers, but
rather be seen as part of the process of developing learners holistically (Wood 2020), as
was discussed in learning unit 3.
According to Slade (1977), the dance programme in the Foundation Phase should be based
on the learner’s natural desire to move and play. Through the use of various stimuli, the
teacher should stimulate and encourage free dance, rather than demonstrate what should
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be done. Stimuli can be based on sensory experiences, such as “what does it feels like if
…; or how did it look like when …” The teacher should draw on well-known movement
actions, such as digging in the sand. Each learner should be allowed to develop his or
her own style, rather than getting it right. Wood (2020) advises that the teacher should
rather control the energy than the creative process.
There may be instances when it will be necessary to teach dance sequences, like for a school
production or an eisteddfod. Then the teacher should also rather base dance movements
on moves that are natural to the age of the learners, rather than imitate inappropriate
adult dance movements. Never punish or embarrass learners in any way for an inability to
perform. When practicing dance moves, rather focus on fostering group coherence, or an
activity to follow a rhythm or an exploration of a personal or shared space. When dancing
sequences, rather use “mirroring” or a “follow the leader” approach. Choreography at this
level should rather be based on the group’s natural creative movement.
8.3.2 Elements of a dance lesson (lesson structure)

The lesson structure should keep in mind the needs of the age group. Grade R and Grade
1 learners will, for instance, not be able to maintain the lesson for longer than 20 minutes.
Longer lessons should rather be divided into a series of shorter activities to accommodate
their attention span. At the start of the Foundation Phase, greater teacher participation
is required. At the end of the Foundation Phase, activities can be more teacher directed
as learners are able to understand what is required of them.
Grade R learners are not always able to improvise without guidance and will often copy
each other. Movements are generally based on their known world, that is activities that
we do at home. It is only by the end of the Foundation Phase that learners become far
more creative when their creative and improvised work enter the realm of fantasy.
Learners should be given enough personal space in which to explore. Hula hoops can
for instance help to demarcate personal space. Group and partner work can gradually
be introduced to develop group sensitivity.
Throughout the Foundation Phase, dance lessons should have a definite and known
structure. Learners at this level find comfort in repetition and new activities should be
introduced in the form of new challenges. The following sections describe the phases of
a well-structured lesson:
Warm-up: The lesson should start with a high-energy activity to get rid of self-consciousness
and create a sense of fun. This is then followed up by a warm-up:
Start with a series of movements to encourage flexibility, including stretches (in all
directions) and rotations (wrists, shoulders, neck, hips and ankles). Attention should also
be paid to posture – aligning the body in a neutral stance. The learners can, for instance,
be taken through a routine where they imagine themselves as being constructed out of
Lego blocks. Activities that will develop balance should also be included, such as standing
on one leg like a stork and walking on tiptoes along a line on the floor.
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Shaping: This refers to the shapes the body forms as mobile formations within the available
space. The created shapes may be based on a specified or free style rhythm. According
to Gilbert (2015), the following movement skills should be transferred to the learners:
• A series of locomotor activities: runs, hops, jumps, slides, gallops. Learners can be asked
to skip across the room, then crouch down and jump like a frog or gallop like a horse.
• A series of non-locomotor activities: here experimentation can be done with various
movement actions, such as light movements vs heavy movements, slow vs fast
movements, direction (upwards, downwards, forwards, backwards, circular and straight
lines), or symmetrical and asymmetrical movements.
• Activities to develop coordination and control of movement, such as movements
with arms and legs simultaneously (for example, clapping hands and stamping
feet, alternating arm and foot movements, and moving and freezing in a position
intermittently).
Leaping: This is based on body balance and the explorations of the vestibular system
(Gilbert 2015). Different types of leaps are determined by specific dance styles.
Cooling down: Dance classes close with activities that prepare the body to relax and
cool down through stretching movements that are less intensive in relation to the dance
movements conducted throughout the active dance class (Gilbert 2015). Discussions may
be included at this point, if necessary.
Teachers should be flexible during the presentation of the lesson.
ACTIVITY 8.2
Discuss the following elements of a dance lesson and demonstrate what they would
look like within a specific dance style:
• warm-up in the dance sphere
• shaping
• leaping
• cooling-down
8.4 PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS

According to Wood (2020), the following practical considerations have to be taken into
account by the teacher to ensure a safe and structured environment for the dance class.
• Venue: the dance venue should preferably be a large, open, uncluttered area such as
the school hall. Ensure that all potentially hazardous objects, such as stacked chairs, are
either removed or clearly demarcated as out of bounds. A wooden floor is ideal as this
provides cushioning for jumping movements. When dancing on a tile floor, learners
should be shown how to cushion their landing with bent knees and jumping should
be limited. A carpeted floor area is also not ideal as this may cause carpet burns. If the
teacher finds the area too large for class control, then a smaller area may be taped off as
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the work area. The venue should have a CD player or a device for playing music. Make
sure the music is available immediately at the switch of a button. If you search around
for a specific track, you will lose control of the class within an instant (Wood 2020).
• Clothing: there is no need for learners to change into special dance clothes. This
wastes time and leads to unnecessary costs. Remove shoes and socks and if they are
in a school uniform and the girls feel uncomfortable about being in their dresses,
merely encourage them to bring shorts to wear under their dresses.
• Management of the class: learners often misbehave because they do not know what
is expected of them. Learners need to know what is going to happen. Give a brief
explanation and clearly stipulate all boundaries in terms of physical space and expected
behaviour. It is a good idea to use a specific prearranged signal such as freezing all
movement when the teacher for instance says “freeze” or strike a tambourine as a means
of class control. If the learners become overexcited or get carried away by an activity,
immediately freeze the movements if the energy level becomes uncontrollable. Bring
the energy back under control through the use of a relaxation activity (Wood 2020).
8.5 THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER DURING A DANCE CLASS

The teacher is responsible for leading learners in a dance class either as individuals or
as groups. The teacher’s focus in this instance is to teach and guide learners as they go
through various dancing techniques. The teacher needs to guide learners to do proper
stretching and well-coordinated dance moves to avoid dance injuries.
Young children develop and refine their dance practices and steps under the teacher’s
instructive guidance. Most children also feel comfortable being taught and guided
by their fellow classmates. The teacher therefore should allow such lateral dance
movement guidance and tuition. After each lesson, the teacher can conduct a summative
assessment and evaluate the session, advising children accordingly to make alterations
and improvements for the next session.
A dance teacher is often faced with the following additional roles: monitoring learners
during the dance class and rehearsal; planning the dance activities; instructing and
making suggestions to learners during class; being flexible to adapt teaching methods
and strategies to improvise; and creating a coherent, well-sequenced and quality dance
session. The teacher may also explore the teaching of alternative genres of dance. The
dance teacher should ensure the safety of the dance space (Wood 2020).
8.6 INTEGRATION OF DANCE ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

Dance can be used across the curriculum as part of an integrated arts strategy. Hanna (1987)
agrees that dance practices in the classroom can be integrated in, for instance, language
teaching. A good example illustrating the relationship of dance and language can be seen in
the traditional dance practices of the Venda people where dance moves are influenced and
guided by the words and story line that skilfully merge during rituals, such as at initiations,
weddings or praise-singing ceremonies.
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Dance education has parallels in multidisciplinary content and can be integrated with
other subject areas such as literature, music, visual art and mathematics (Koff 2000). Dance
can be integrated with music, as well as mathematics, as learners count the number of
beats per dance tempo.
ACTIVITY 8.3
Case study
Ms Kenosi Letebele has experience in teaching Life Skills from Grades R to 3 in
both urban and rural areas. When she prepares lessons for her class, she requests
a meeting with the team teachers for the grade to decide on the scope of the
lesson plan. Ms Letebele starts by choosing a topic or theme on which to base
the creative art content. Then she lists all the attitudes and skills to be covered
by learners in a specific block of time in all curriculum areas. Ms Letebele further
designs ways of teaching those skills and attitudes using information, concepts
and interests based on the topic. She explores concepts related to mathematics,
language and science. She collects and categorises arts activities based on the
main activities and sub-activities. With the help of the team, she selects songs,
music instruments, stories and movement activities to blend with the topic.
Finally, Ms Letebele shares the information she has gathered with the principal
who sends out a newsletter to parents to seek support for the materials required.
Choose a topic you could focus on for six weeks and answer the following questions:
8.3.1 Choose a specific concept you wish to reinforce in mathematics.
8.3.2 Can you isolate the same concepts in dance? How would you use the same concepts
to teach dance movements?
8.3.3 How would you incorporate health, nutrition and self-care in your topic?
NB: Consider the number of periods/hours you would need for the above.
8.7 CONCLUSION
All learners can dance – it is not an activity reserved for a few so-called talented learners.
All learners should be encouraged to participate to the best of their ability. Dance
assessment at this level should focus on criteria such as involvement, group participation
and exploration rather than the ability to perform sequences correctly or incorrectly.
Learners should be given freedom to select their own moves to express their emotions
and thoughts concerning a certain topic. Repetition and the learning of choreographies
should be kept to a minimum. Instead the teacher should provide a safe and creative
environment for learners to explore and express themselves.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNvVYSDqdEcU (children’s dance rehearsal
class)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEUjxuAV6to (gumboot dance –
innovative dance style)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXYww2l16DA (traditional dance lessons
for young children)
https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/body-movement-and-space
https://www.sasp.co.uk/uploads/dance-extras.pdf
https://hobbylark.com/performing-arts/Creative-Movement-and-
Dance-Lesson-Ideas-for-Preschool-children
https://creativedanceconversation.wordpress.com/tag/creative-dance-
lesson-plans-for-early-childhood/
8.8 REFERENCES
Gilbert, AG. 2015. Creative dance for all ages. Conceptual approach. USA: Shape America.
Hanna, JL. 1987. To dance is human: A theory of nonverbal communication. Chicago, IL: University
of Chicago Press.
Holden, S. 1990. Moving together: the group finds a dance. London: Sage.
Koff, SR. 2000. Toward a definition of dance education. Childhood Education, 77(1):27–32.
Slade, P. 1977. Natural dance. London: Hodder and Stoughton.
Soot, A & Viskus, E. 2013. Contemporary approaches to dance pedagogy – the challenges of the
21st century. Estonia: University of Tartu.
Wood, M. 2020. Dance in the Foundation Phase, in C Meier, & M Naude (Eds). Life Skills in
the Foundation Phase. Pretoria: Van Schaik.
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Learning unit 9
Drama in early childhood education
9.1 INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this learning unit is to reflect on how drama in early childhood education
contributes towards the holistic development of the young child and how teachers
can apply their knowledge of child drama in planning for dramatic play in the Grade R
classroom.

• Define child drama and dramatic play.
• Explain the significance of drama on the holistic development of the young child.
• Discuss elements of child drama in the Grade R classroom.
• Apply your knowledge of child drama in planning for dramatic play in the Grade R
classroom.
9.2 DEFINING CHILD DRAMA AND DRAMATIC PLAY

Reflect on the following quotation:
“In early childhood, drama needs no written lines to memorise, structured behaviour
patterns to imitate, nor is an audience needed. Children need only a safe, interesting
environment and freedom to experiment with roles, conflict, and problem solving” (Hewes
2014).
ACTIVITY 9.1
In your own words, explain the statement “drama needs no written lines to memorise
or structured behaviour patterns to imitate” and illustrate by means of an example.
Moore (2004:113) believes that “life is a drama”. Humans are always acting and improvising.
When we meet someone for the first time, we improvise our conversation and interaction.
Drama is therefore a human process whereby imaginative thought becomes action.
Moore (2004:113) defines it as the act of using the imagination to become someone or
163 GRL1501/1
something other than yourself. It is only limited by the participants’ imagination (or lack
thereof) or the fear of risking.
Dramatic play occurs when children enter their imaginative worlds and play out imagined
scenarios with themselves as characters within the created stories. They will assume
different characters or create fantasy characters using toys, objects or imaginary characters
to partake in the story. They will include other playmates in their storylines and create a
shared fantasy experience in such a way (Slade 1954:37).
Lindqvist (Nilsson 2009:14–22) views child drama as creative pedagogy of play and “an
educational approach, which advocates the joint participation of children and adults in
a collectively created and shared world of fiction”. Nilsson (2009) proposes that children
develop consciousness when they are encouraged and invited to play in a fictitious world
where reality and imagination are harmoniously related.
Dramatic play therefore forms the basis of drama activities in the Foundation Phase (Slade
1954:37). It is not necessary for learners to be conscious of the proposed outcomes of a
lesson at this level. This does not mean, however, that the dramatic play is unstructured,
unplanned and unconsidered as far as the teacher is concerned. Dramatic play should at
all times be supervised and planned for, with clear aims in mind.
A distinction should be made between drama-in-education (DIE) and theatre-in-education

(TIE) activities. Drama-in-education is a process based on the concept that children learn
or develop through whole-group participation in a process where actions are usually
improvised and rooted in free dramatic play. There is no event or performance and no
audience to witness the work (excluding the teacher). The learning process is experiential.
Theatre-in-education activities are product based in that there is a period of rehearsal or
preparation towards the presentation of a final product to an audience. In the Foundation
Phase, the focus is on DIE activities.
Pestalozzi and Froebel’s view on child development and learning
One of the early 19th-century teachers who developed a method of early childhood
education is Pestalozzi who argued for a play-based learning approach. He believed that
any learning, irrespective of the concept to be taught, should be matched against the
child’s level of development. He also identified rote learning as an approach which causes
distress in children and discouraged teachers from presenting lessons in this manner.
His outstanding contribution to play-based learning is the belief that learning should be
fun, bring pleasant emotions and invoke curiosity. Lastly, he argued that the best way for
children to learn is within an interesting environment. He upheld the use of the outdoors
for the expansion of what occurs in the classroom. Teachers should have the liberty to
explore a play-based learning approach to motivate and infuse a love for learning.
The theorist Froebel, who was a student of Pestalozzi, also applied a play-based learning
approach in the development of the first kindergarten. He believed that the environment
in which children learn has an important role in their development. While the environment
needs to be safe, it must also encourage curiosity, stimulation and challenge. Indoor
and outdoor activities widen the possible areas of learning and vary the environment
providing interest and variety. Froebel also saw working in an environment that is integral
164
to the community to be important in helping the child to be both independent and
interdependent, and to understand individuality and community, and responsibility and
freedom.
Froebel’s methods are still valid today and can provide children with a wide range of
experiences and instil curiosity and interest.
ACTIVITY 9.2
Think of the dramatic play corner in a Grade R classroom and choose “family” as your
theme.
Do the following:
9.2.1 List the items you would use for dramatic play and state why they are significant.
9.2.2 Summarise Pestalozzi’s and Froebel’s contributions to the use of dramatic play
in schools.
9.3 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF DRAMA IN THE HOLISTIC

DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHILD
Drama activities in the Foundation Phase are aimed at developing the whole child in a
holistic manner. If sufficient thought and planning go into the drama programme, it will
be possible to develop the child’s physical, verbal, emotional, cognitive, creative and
social skills. According to Wood (2020), some activities such as movements and sensory
explorations appeal to the outer physical world of the child, whilst others function on the
level of emotional response, intellectual argument and imaginative, creative involvement.
The following outlines the role of drama in the holistic development of the child.
9.3.1 Language development and communication

Learners learn how to communicate, express their feelings and relate to others through
dramatic play. They learn to listen to others’ views. Dramatic play provides a space for children
to explore their thought processes without feeling intimidated. It provides a platform for
verbal expression and communication. The following can be explored:
• Appropriate expressive use of voice depicting various tones, emotions and moods.
• Holding dialogues in short sentences.
• Simultaneously using sound, language and actions for role-playing or dramatisation
(Wood 2020).
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9.3.2 Socio-emotional development
The drama lesson can be used to demonstrate an appropriate emotional response in
given situations. Children also learn to respect boundaries, observe social rules and pay
attention to details during dramatic play (Cottrell 1987). Dramatic play provides the ideal
opportunity to role-play certain problematic situations within imagined character roles.
This way they experience certain situations within the safety of an imagined role, and
through discussion can be brought to greater insight regarding appropriate behaviour.
As drama is primarily a group activity, learners learn how to relate to each other within an
imagined situation. In Grade R, many learners will still have difficulty with this, as play is
still largely centred around the self. The drama lesson provides the perfect opportunity
to develop the ability to consider others within the play situation. Learners become
aware of having to negotiate outcomes with others and adapt their own needs to suit
the development of the imagined situation (Wood 2020).

Dramatic play develops imagination and focuses and stimulates creative thinking. Drama
activities are ideal for helping learners to develop focus and concentration (Wood 2020).
Lin (2011) believes that drama offers children an opportunity to be creative and think
spontaneously. Children also learn how to explore different solutions to solving problems.
During an improvisation, the teacher can pose questions to elicit a response and stimulate
reasoning. For example, a teacher could say: “We now face this problem in our story; what
can we do to resolve the problem?”

Drama activities can help learners to develop mastery of their small and large muscles.
Muscle development of the organs of speech can also be attained through specific
exercises. It is important that activities should stimulate the use of body and voice as
an integrated whole. Wood (2020) cautions to not over-emphasise verbal expression.
In the Foundation Phase, learners often find it difficult to verbalise experiences and the
teacher should not expect them to be able to sustain any form of dialogue. Rather try
and create situations where sounds will naturally follow movement, for example, “We
are trees swaying in the wind. Let us make the sound of the wind through our leaves”.
9.3.5 Sensory awareness and recall

All activities in the Foundation Phase can be introduced through sensory stimuli as children
in the Foundation Phase still function largely on a sensory level. Ask: “What does it feel
like? Look like?”. Try to create the imagined situation by using imagined sensory awareness
as stimuli, for example, “We pretend to eat candy floss – what does it taste like?” It is not
necessary to create complicated scenarios.
166
9.3.6 Aesthetic development
Participation in drama activities develops the child’s ability to make aesthetic choices. It
encourages aesthetic literacy by encouraging the child to make choices and judgments,
and to form opinions.
9.3.7 Development of imagination

Dramatic play encourages the child to enter the world of the imagination. The teacher
can stimulate this process through task-setting and questioning. Children should be
encouraged to create and problem-solve imaginary situations. This will promote a
transference of creative thought onto other subject areas as the child develops confidence
in his or her ability to imagine solutions.
9.4 THE ELEMENTS OF CHILD DRAMA

Storytelling and improvisation become the basic tools for leading learners into dramatic
play. According to Wood (2020), the following should be kept in mind when attempting
improvised scenarios with a Grade R class:
• Do not assume that children will automatically know how to create their own stories.
It is not sufficient to tell children to create a story and leave them to get on with it. It
is up to the teacher to lead them in improvised action.
• Do not rush the process. It is a good idea to start with traditional storytelling (the
teacher as storyteller with the children listening), then progress to storytelling with the
learners becoming more involved in the process. Let the learners tell bits of the story
themselves and provide sound effects. Once the children are comfortable with this,
the teacher can progress to storytelling which involves characterisation and action.
• Avoid an audience-performer situation. All children should be involved in the activity.
• In Grade R, it is most effective for the teacher also to assume a role in the action. This
will enable the teacher to direct the action from within.
• The action and storyline of an improvised story should not be discussed beforehand.
The teacher merely sets the situation and characters and then proceeds to direct the
storyline as the improvisation continues. Do not expect learners to be able to improvise
their own complete stories at this level.
• Do not replay a story to improve it. This will shift the focus away from the process to
performance. An improvisation may be discussed, but never suggest a better way or
give performance-oriented feedback, such as “talk louder”.
• In Grade R, themes for improvised stories should be drawn from the known world of the
learners. Grade R learners relate to themes dealing with their toys, pets, daily routine
at home, etcetera. During the later Foundation Phase, more imaginative themes may
be introduced. Also avoid using well-known stories too frequently, as this may stop
learners from developing their own imaginative storylines (Wood 2020).
167 GRL1501/1
9.5 DRAMA IN THE CURRICULUM
According to Wood (2020), the notion of drama in the classroom is generally poorly
understood as a performance activity where children are encouraged to perform in front
of an audience. Drama is often viewed in terms of entertainment and it is believed that
it only incorporates activities such as the staging of plays, participating in eisteddfods
and other types of performance situations where children are expected to perform some
piece of prepared script. This is very far from the basic principles of educational drama,
which use the concept of improvisation, where no emphasis is placed on achieving a
performance outcome.
Drama should be about the process of exploration and the sharing of ideas, rather than
the presentation of a polished end product. Drama in the classroom should provide
opportunities to text, prove and try out ideas. It is a sad fact that adults believe that play
is a wasteful activity. Children should be allowed to use play to explore, test boundaries,
pose questions and develop personality.
Teachers should not, however, assume that play will come naturally to all children. The
moment a child feels that he or she has to reach some predetermined goal, which will
be assessed in some way, the focus shifts from exploring to producing an outcome that
will satisfy the teacher. The child, as a result, disconnects from the activity and focuses
merely on producing a satisfying (to the teacher) result. It is the drama teacher that should
lead the child back to this important activity. The success of every lesson depends on the
creativity and resourcefulness of every teacher.
The following activities are proposed in the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement
(CAPS) for the Foundation Phase: Life Skills (DBE 2011).
Term 1
• Spontaneous use of voice and movement in participatory rhymes and stories.

• Improvising stories based on fantasy or own life experiences using voice (singing/
speaking) and drama techniques.
• Exploring the senses through dramatising stories, rhymes and songs.
Term 2
• Dramatising make-believe situations, fantasy and own life experiences.

• Dramatising, using an existing indigenous story, poem, nursery rhyme or song as
stimulus.
• Use of objects or props creatively in dramatic play.
168
Term 3
• Gestures and facial expressions to communicate emotions such as sad and happy.
• Dramatising make-believe situations or own life experiences with movement and
song.
• Use concrete objects to represent other objects in dramatic play, such as a spoon
as a magic wand.
Term 4
• Simple mime actions such as eating an ice cream, baking a cake, planting and
watering a garden.
• Listening to a story, and then interpreting moments in the story through facial
expressions, movement and sound effects.
9.5.1 Structure of the drama lesson

According to Wood (2020), a drama lesson should consist of the following:
• An introduction: the teacher sets the mood and tone for the day’s lesson. If the energy
levels are low, provide an energising activity to stimulate enthusiasm. If too energetic,
start with a relaxation session aimed at focusing learners. During this session, the
teacher should also set the boundaries.
• A warm-up session (movement and voice): this session prepares the learners for
the activity and also serves to focus them. Warm-up should consist of stretches and
rotations and locomotive and non-locomotive explorations of movement. Warming-
up the voice should include breathing and vocalisation exercises.
• An introduction to the main activity: during this section, the teacher provides the setting
for the day’s improvised drama. If the teacher is not participating in the storyline, the
full storyline should be described.
• The main activity: this will largely consist of improvised play. The teacher can either
be in-role or coach from the side lines. Remember, improvised play should not be
repeated or rehearsed to improve it, unless forced to use activities that are more end
product based (such as preparing for school productions and eisteddfods).
• Cool down of feedback session: Grade R learners can become very engrossed in
improvised activities and need time to wind down and withdraw from the imaginary
world. The teacher should manage the duration of the lesson in such a manner that
there is enough time for this activity. It is not necessary to include feedback in every
session. Be sensitive to when it is appropriate and necessary.
9.5.2 Dealing with discipline

Wood (2020) is of the opinion that learners who are fully focused and engaged seldom
present any disciplinary problems. At times, a learner may act in a manner that is not
acceptable. It is often the result of full engagement and the child becoming overenthusiastic.
169 GRL1501/1
Do not overreact to this. Rather bring the child back to acceptable behaviour in a gentle
way, instead of labelling the child as naughty or out of control.
Occasionally, a learner will repeatedly find it difficult to stay within the given boundaries.
This is generally the case with a child who is struggling with some area of personal
development. In this case, it may be necessary to remove the child from action for a short
while (time-out). Allow the child to return to the activity after a few minutes.
A child who is bossy and likes to order the others around, can be placed in a position
where he or she is supposedly in charge, but without much effect on the storyline, such
as the king who has to sit on his throne. This will allow other learners to make meaningful
contributions without the interference from the bossy child.
Physical attack and verbal abuse should always be dealt with firmly. Learners should
be warned against this at the start of each lesson. Learners who repeatedly have to be
addressed on this issue, may have underlying emotional issues that a professional may
have to deal with.
9.6 PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS IN DRAMATIC PLAY

Venue: Wood (2020) is of the opinion that an open classroom is the ideal venue. If an
open classroom is not available, teachers can move the desks to provide a clear space.
Remove any objects or pieces of equipment that may be potentially hazardous. Wood (2020)
cautions against using the school hall, as the large space may either intimidate learners or
overstimulate them, resulting in the class to become out of control and problematic. If the
hall has to be used, demarcate a smaller area to be used.
Props, costumes, make-up, masks and puppets: These elements can be included to
enhance the drama lesson but should never be overused.
Classroom control: The drama lesson is in many ways the most difficult classroom situation,
as it requires a fine balance between control and freedom of expression. If the activity is
too controlled, the learners may be stifled and become disinterested or restless. On the
other hand, if the lesson is not controlled, it can easily become chaotic. Large classes may
also be more difficult to control than a smaller number of learners.
9.7 HOW TO USE DRAMA TO ASSESS THE DEVELOPMENT

AND READINESS OF A CHILD
We have already explored how dramatic play in the classroom helps learners learn
academically, socially and developmentally.
The following lists the developmental abilities, which can be assessed during the drama
lesson:
• The ability to listen attentively.

• The ability to express personal choices and openly speak about it.
170
• Articulating ideas with ease.
• Demonstrating imagination and creativity.
• The ability to use original ideas to build up a dramatic play.
• Displaying the ability to spontaneously create a dialogue and act out a story.
• Demonstrating understanding of the sequence and order of events in a dramatic play.
• Demonstrating a high sense of imagination by substituting items with other things
(symbolic play).
• The ability to imagine objects (visualise) and the surroundings without actually seeing
them.
• Demonstrating the ability to move the body parts creatively.
• Showing control of gross motor and fine motor skills through movement.
• The ability to interpret signals appropriate for dramatic expressions.
• The ability to make appropriate gestures, using facial expressions and energy
requirements.
• The ability to create own space and articulate needs.
• Showing respect for peers’ initiatives and efforts in a dramatic play.
• The ability to work cooperatively with others.
• Displaying a sense of respect for the personal experiences of others.
• Respecting the ideas of others in a group setting and waiting for a turn.
• The ability to demonstrate increased awareness of roles and positions.
• The ability to use space to demonstrate respect for others and the ability to share space.
• Showing understanding of the needs of others and associated rights in the use of space.
• Demonstrating the ability for self-control and self-regulation.
• The ability to adapt to different story settings confidently.
• Demonstrating an established self-esteem and not being easily intimidated.
• Demonstrating the ability to take risks and explore new ideas and different ways of
doing things.
ACTIVITY 9.3
9.3.1 You have a parents’ meeting and you have been requested to discuss the
relationship between drama and other learning areas. Explain how you would
go about this.
9.3.2 Your class is multicultural and you want the parents to understand their roles in
encouraging children to express themselves in a drama class. List the five most
important aspects of drama elements and why parents should know about them.
3 SELF-EVALUATION EXERCISES
y Explain the concept make-believe or dramatic expression.

y What strategies can teachers use to develop dramatic play?
y How does drama contribute to the socio-emotional development of the child?
Apply the theory of Erik Erickson on the first two stages of development: trust versus
mistrust, autonomy versus shame/doubt, industry versus inferiority.
171 GRL1501/1
y Y
our school wants to showcase a short drama play for parents to understand the
significance of drama in the language development of their children. Select age ap-
propriate activities for the Foundation Phase which could be used as both a process
as well as a product activity.
9.8 STRATEGIES FOR INTEGRATING DRAMA ACROSS THE

CURRICULUM IN TEACHING AND LEARNING
Dramatic play contributes to all facets of development and learning areas and can lay the
foundation for subsequent learning in learning areas that require the use of logic, analysis,
verbal expression and language communication. Drama activities can serve as a useful
medium to introduce and enrich the experience of other subjects. The teacher should
know beforehand what the lesson should be teaching and ensure that this is conveyed
during the final feedback and discussion session. Even in Grade R, the learners should
know what has been learnt at the end of the session.
Other subjects can be introduced and illustrated through voice and movement activities
and improvised scenarios. Learners can physically form numbers, shapes or letters of the
alphabet with their bodies. Mathematical concepts such as addition and subtraction can
be enacted in improvised play. Issues in life skills can be explored through improvised
scenarios and discussed thereafter. Drama activities can easily integrate with creative art
activities, such as making masks and then use the masks in improvised play; or learn a
song and a dance and incorporate it in an improvised story.
9.9 CONCLUSION
The purpose of this learning unit was to demonstrate the significance of dramatic play in
the holistic development of young learners. This module is based on sound theoretical
and practical child development principles. When planning for dramatic play, teachers
are encouraged to keep in mind the developmental needs of the children, their attention
span and the nature of materials required to capture and maintain their interest. You
should now be able to apply the knowledge you have acquired in this learning unit to
plan for dramatic play in the Grade R classroom.

Five elements of drama:
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGG4jxvc_ps
• Learning through drama in the primary years:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFskdLbshd8
Drama in the classroom: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfeOLoElbPA
172
9.10 REFERENCES
Cottrell, J. 1987. Creative drama in the classroom Grades 1–3. Teachers’ resource book for
theatre references. Lincolnwood, IL: National Textbook Company.
Gupta, A. 2009. Vygotskian perspectives on using dramatic play to enhance children’s
development and balance creativity with structure in the early childhood classroom. Early
Child Development and Care, 179(8):1041–1054.
Hendy, L. 2001. Supporting drama and imaginative play in the early years. UK: McGraw-Hill
Education.
Hewes, J. 2014. Seeking balance in motion: The role of spontaneous free play in promoting
social and emotional health in early childhood care and education. Children, 1(1): 280–301.
Lin 2011 – mentioned on page 51?
Lin, Y. 2011. Fostering creativity through education – a conceptual framework of creative
pedagogy. Creative Education, 2:149–155.
McCaslin, N. 2006. Creative drama in the classroom and beyond, 8/E. Boston, MA. New York
University: Alley and Bacon.
Moore, MM. 2004. Using drama as an effective method to teach elementary students.
Senior Honors Theses, p 113.
Nilsson, ME. 2009. Creative pedagogy of play – the work of Gunilla Lindqvist. Mind, Culture
and Activity, 17(1):14-22.
Roskos, K & Christie, J. 2001. Examining the play–literacy interface: a critical review and
future directions. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 1(1):59–89.
Slade, P. 1954. Child drama. London: Hodder and Stoughton.
Wagner, B. 1988. Research currents: Does classroom drama affect the arts of language?
Language Arts, 65(1):46–55.
Wood, M. 2020. Teaching drama in the Foundation phase, in C Meier & M Naude, Teaching
Life Skills in the Foundation Phase (Eds). Pretoria: Van Schaik.
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SECTION A: Movement activities 1

LEARNING UNIT 3: The importance of visual art for young children 64

LEARNING UNIT 5: The value of music for child development 126

All the best with your studies!

Learning unit 1: T he role of physical education on development and the impact on

LEARNING UNIT OUTCOMES

On the completion of this learning unit, you should be able to:

1.2 DEFINITION OF KEY CONCEPTS

In your own words, define the following key concepts:

• Socialisation through movement activities with others in a safe, structured environment,

1.3.2 The physical value and aim of movement

Can you answer the following questions?

• various opportunities to play and socialise with each other

1.3.3 The social and emotional value of movement

1.3.4 The cognitive value of movement

1.3.4.1 Perceptual motor development

1.3.4.2 Psychomotor development

1.3.4.3 Categories of movement

• Stability (non-locomotion skills)

1.4 THE GROSS MOTOR DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHILD

1.4.1 Motor development phases

1.4.1.1 The reflex system, its role and influence in learning

Read the following resources in conjunction with this section:

The Moro reflex

• The rooting reflex

• The asymmetrical tonic neck reflex (ATNR)

• The spinal Galant reflex

1.4.1.2 Rudimentary movement abilities/phases

Crossing midline Crawling (on belly) Four-point on all-fours stance

Creeping Kneeling Half-kneeling

Cruising Standing Walking

• Prone with head extension

In conclusion, crawling helps with the development of the vestibular (balance),

1.4.1.3 Fundamental motor skills

1.4.1.4 General movement skills

1.4.1.6 Specialised movement skills

In conclusion, teachers in the Foundation Phase must understand the progression of

1.5 THE IMPACT OF MOTOR SKILLS ON THE CHILD’S

1.5.1 The link between movement and learning

1.5.1.1 The sensory system

1.5.1.2 The vestibular system

Think of the following situation:

• balance and coordination problems

1.5.1.3 Proprioceptive system

• muscle or joint pain

1.5.2 Essential learning which takes place through movement

1.5.2.1 Movement assists with the development of the vestibular system

1.5.2.2 Movement facilitates the development of body awareness

Insufficient experiences in movement activities will result in a possible negative body

1.5.2.6 Crossing the midline

1.5.2.7 Development of the concepts of “background” and “foreground”

1.5.2.9 Visual tracking

1.5.2.10 Movement improves visual skills

Children require opportunities to become involved in coordinated movements using their

Motor development is marked by a series of milestones or achievements a child needs

1.7.2 Recommended book

1.7.3 Google links

These can be added to additional reading for the following:

Fundamental movement skills

Sensory motor integration https://www.sensoryprocessing.info/sensory-processing.htm

The reflex system, its role and influence on learning

Learning unit 1: T he role of physical education on development and the impact on

Learning unit 3: Introduction to visual art for young children64