We were all so happy to have a great turnout for our eighth annual Museum Night! The children worked very hard on their projects and art work, and were very interested in thinking about how they could choose their “best work” to show family and friends. They also seemed to appreciate the “artist interview” process, where they could talk about themselves, their interests in school, and could describe their art. Museum Night is a wonderful celebration of engaged play and the creativity of our children!
In early childhood, creativity springs from playful interactions with the environment and from the process of generating ideas. When children manipulate an interesting material, or combine familiar elements in new ways, possibilities emerge that can be played with, discussed with friends, and developed. Adults can provide the safe and accepting environment, time, and engaged attention children need to explore, generate new approaches, and solve problems with materials in their art, in their interactions with the world, and in their stories and language.
At Learning Circle Preschool, projects develop spontaneously from the children or may be suggested by teachers who have observed a strong interest among the children. Teachers may also pose challenges to the children, and so suggest project themes themselves. Discussion follows, when teachers and children explore the topic together, describing what they know about it and what they would like to learn. Teachers make time and materials available, as they observe and record the collaborative learning that unfolds.
At Museum Night, samples of the children’s projects and art were on display, along with descriptions of the processes children and teachers developed together.