Module 4: Abstracting

Topic:

Play/Free Play/ Free Choice

Abstraction:

A cardboard box and a bed sheet.

Abstracting is taking a look at a topic, concept, object, or idea and digging deeper to break them down and taking a closer look at these broken down portions. Helping us to see that even when we break them down they still represent the same overall idea.

Play can be very broad and there can be so many things to think of when thinking of abstracting play. However, the one thing that came to my mind first was pretend play. In Sparks of Genius, the author states in Chapter 8, “We should give children toys that they can use in many ways. Let them adapt blocks, simple dolls, paper cloth, and household items to as many scenarios as they can imagine. Encourage them to imagine a stick to be a sword, a scarf a river, a pair of alphabet blocks a pair of dice” (156). This is exactly what the children do in my classroom. I include many different types of materials in the pretend play area of my classroom. For example, cloth, sheets, rocks, containers of different sizes/shapes, menus, brushes, etc. The possibilities are endless. Now the first abstraction I chose was a cardboard box. Some people might first look at this object as just a cardboard box to transport things/store things, but as a child they see a whole world of exploration. My first kindergarten class used a cardboard box and created a boat.They put flags on it, used tools to make holes, and sailed it out into the deep sea. Due to confidentiality and not having the permission to post pictures of my students I won't be able to show you exactly what they did/made, but we can use our imagination! A cardboard box can be formed into many things: a bus, a boat, a space ship, a rocket, a submarine, a house, a shop, an airplane, etc. Children come up with so many different ideas on how to use simple objects and turn them into something to play with. It is amazing to watch them create such interesting stories and ideas. 

A bed sheet was my next abstraction of play. The same thing goes for a bed sheet. We look at it as something we sleep with, make the bed with, cover a sofa, etc. If you put a sheet in a pretend play area of a classroom your students will take that sheet and turn it into a magic carpet, a veil, a blanket for a picnic, a blanket for a baby, a hood, a ghost, a tent, etc. Do you ever remember turning sheets into a tent in your living room as a child? I do!

It's the simple things that we can look at and think of the endless possibilities to use that object for. When looking at objects like these young children think of how they can play with them and use them to their potential. One of my favorite books when I was younger was called, Beryl's Box by Lisa Taylor. This book is about a young girl named Beryl who goes over to Penelope's house. Their parents are friends, but they don't really like each other. Beryl brings over her cardboard box. At first Penelope makes fun of her cardboard box, but then Beryl helps Penelope see that it is more than just a cardboard box. In fact it is a ship that takes them to a secret island. Than it is a magic carpet that rescues them from the island monsters. Then it is a spaceship that takes them high into space. What Penelope learns from this is that there is a lot a box can be used for besides just being a cardboard box. I love this book because it takes you back to childhood and the imagination young children have that is quite incredible. At the end of the story Penelope gets a new computer for her birthday, but instead of being excited about the computer she is excited about the cardboard box it came in.

Abstracting play helped me see and show others that play isn't just playing with store bought toys. It allows me to take objects and break them down looking closer at them to see what else they can bring to life. How else can these objects be used? The next time you look at an object think in a child's perspective, “What would they make of this object?” It also helped me think about children around the world who don't have money to buy toys. Instead they make use of what is around them. For example, sticks, cardboard boxes, stones, sand, mud, etc. All of these materials can be used and transformed into a form of play. By looking at these objects we can ask ourselves, “Is this really a cardboard box? Or is it a ship, bus, boat, rocket?”

 

Module 3: Patterning

Traditional Patterns: 

New Patterns:

Within my topic, free play, patterns are endless. In the child development world, we teach through play and within free play we set out all kinds of activities. For example, in the “math area” I may put out pictures of different types of transportation. However, I am not forcing the children or telling them this is the math area and over here you will make patterns. In fact I let the children explore the materials. Through exploration the children create patterns on their own. For example, creating a pattern like bike, car, bike, car, bike, etc. (a two-part pattern). This is one of the other examples of why some parents may not understand teaching through play. Although the children are playing teachers create many different centers throughout the classroom during this time. There might be a math center, science center, construction, art, etc. In each area there are many materials for children to choose from. It makes it fun, but at the same time they are learning a lot. Sometimes children can also create patterns with their snack. For example, colored goldfish. Could be arranged by color, or by number, or by alternating colors. The possibilities are endless. In the younger age group this is a perfect time for them to learn all these concepts. Then when they do come to kindergarten they already have a beginning grasp of patterns. In kindergarten we always review patterns, but then later the children notice them everywhere. They will often say, “Ms. Larissa look a pattern (as they play with their snack or found a material to use in the classroom to create a pattern).” This helps my learners with patterns because they figure it out and explore it on their own. Discovering what the world has, what they can create, and what a pattern is.

Above I mentioned simple patterns that the children create with objects around the classroom like the transportation pictures. Next I will discuss my topic and patterns in a more complex way. I am going to discuss the game Tenzi (a dice game). This game comes with 4 sets of dice. Each set is a different color and contains 10 dice. Instead of actually using Tenzi for the game we are going to use the dice to create multiple different patterns and break down the dice. This is similar to The Art of Clean Up. Below are pictures of multiple ways that the dice can be used to form different patterns. You can arrange them by the same number (such as all fours), you can arrange them in order (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6), you can arrange them by color, etc. There are endless possibilities. Children can use something as simple as dice and form many complex patterns. Through play they are exploring and discovering patterns in ways they may have not known before. In my toddler class I put stickers and paper at a table. One child sat down and began to place the stickers in such an interesting way. They were stickers of people and he created a pattern by separating all the different people and making consecutive lines. He was only two and was already exploring and discovering patterns! It was truly amazing.

I believe that the cognitive tool of patterning is to create and manipulate objects by taking them to the next step of their original state. In my original pattern I thought about the basic materials and patterns that I see students create in the classroom. The use of toys, pattern blocks, snacks, and manipulatives to explore and create various types of patterns. Next with my new pattern I took one specific group of materials (dice) and showed how many different ways they can be manipulated into different patterns. This understanding impacts my topic because as I mentioned last week many parents don't understand the theory or the ideas behind teaching through play. This week I show one example of how multiple subjects are taught throughout play using different materials. Learning through play is fun! The children don't have to sit through lectures, or hours of large group sessions. They get to discover on their own what the world has to offer. They also get to pick and choose how they use the materials in the classroom and be creative. The international school I worked at overseas was called 3e International school standing for Explore, Experiment, Express. Children through play explore materials and experiment with them and find ways to express themselves. Which helps them find multiple different ways to show patterns within the classroom or in nature.

The Creative "I"- Defining Creativity

Interview Synopsis:

I interviewed Phillip Skulte my brother. He is a DJ in Minnesota and goes by the name DJ Phenetik. My brother doesn't create music based off of other artists songs. He develops his own sounds in his studio and enjoys putting smiles on his listeners faces for making something that is more unusual. He is not afraid at the fact that maybe not everyone will like his music; but he is willing to change peoples minds on the way they hear different sounds in music. I have always had an interest in his music and wondered how he decides on what sounds, rhythms, and techniques to use. This assignment gave me the opportunity to dig deeper into my brothers creative and interesting mind.

When I asked my brother to define creativity he said that, “creativity in music is evoking emotions in a listener that tells a story using a combination of sounds that you uniquely design.” My brothers songs are mostly representations of himself. It's like a story or message through sounds instead of words.

I then was able to find out a little bit more about my brothers creative process when he creates his own music. I wanted to know how he decided what patterns, rhythms, to use. Phillip states his songs start with a 4 to 8 bar drum loop that matches the tempo and rhythm he is trying for. After the drum loop is created he works on the melody or bass line that matches the feel he is trying to create in that particular song (grungy, aggressive, majestic, groovy). Phillip believes that percussion in a song plays a large role in how the overall song feels to a listener and this is why he always starts here when creating his songs.

Phillip believes creativity and the creative process is like solving a problem. He is always building new songs from scratch. One of the problems he faces is how does he make a song sounds like what he is thinking in his head. Through his music production software he uses tools that make millions of different sounds, crafting a unique sound that matches what he is feeling.

What I learned:

I learned a great amount from my interview with my brother. One of the important aspects to look at is when creating something you have to think about not only your own view, but how other people are going to view it. My brother also mentioned that even if his listeners close their eyes, or comment on his songs online, he knows he has impacted someone somewhere. I believe that moments like this are key to motivation in creativity. When I create a lesson plan and get feedback from others it motivates me to try harder. Phillip also mentioned in our interview that he loves that the average listeners doesn't realize how much time and effort goes into producing music. This is why he thinks its valuable for people to like his music because if they do then he knows all his hard work and small details have really paid off. This is how some teachers feel when they create lessons. The average person may not know how much time and effort goes into planning a lesson, but when a lesson is successful you do get a feeling of pleasure and relief knowing it was a successful lesson and then all that hard work has in fact paid off.

My brother also says the hardest part in his creative process is putting the sounds he hears in his head and making them come to life. I think many people struggle with this. However, if you are passionate and love what you do then you are willing to work that much harder to make those thoughts and ideas come to life.

Check out my brothers music at the following websites:

www.phenetik.com or www.soundcloud.com/phenetik