Training Module 20 Structured and unstructured play and exploration

1. Training Module 20Structured and unstructured play and exploration

2. Introduction to the CEYS project(use dependent on context) • European Erasmus+ project • Partners in Belgium, Greece, Romania, UK • Continuation of the Creative Little Scientists project http://www.creative-little-scientists.eu • Aims • Development of a teacher development course and accompanying materials • Promotion of the use of creative approaches in teaching science in preschool and early primary education (up to age of eight)

3. Aims of the module • Introduce participants to the nature of exploratory processes as part of play and exploration in early years. •  Increase awareness of how exploratory processes can be used to foster inquiry-based and creative approaches to early years science education. • Offer guidance on how to capitalize on ‘seizing the opportunity’ through exploration of unexpected elements, situations, moments and ‘opportunities’. • Explore the role of exploratory processes in supporting the synergies between inquiry and creativity.

4. Outline of the Module • Overview of the module. What is exploration? • Exploratory activity. Introduction to the central role of exploratory processes in play • Sharing classroom experiences and discuss challenges of ‘seizing the opportunity’ in response to an example of playful exploration • Analysis of classroom examples • Discussion of implications forovercoming challenges and barriers • Reflections on what has been gained from the module

5. Links to Content Design Principles and Outcomes (1) 7. Teacher education should familiarise teachers with a range of formal and informal inquiry- and creativity-based learning, teaching and assessment approaches and strategies and their use in relation to authentic problems within the areas of science and mathematics. 7.2 Teachers should be able to use a range of strategies both formal and informal for supporting children’s extended engagement with an area of study and progression in learning in science and mathematics.

6. Links to Content Design Principles and Outcomes (2) 14. Teacher education should equip teachers with knowledge and skills to use a range of formal, non-formal and informal learning environments, including the outdoor environment, both the school grounds and the wider environment beyond the school, in their teaching of science and mathematics. 14.2 Teachers should be able torecognise and build on opportunities for informal learning in science and mathematics within the school environment, for example within day to day routines or child-initiated gamesand other activities in school classrooms or outdoor play areas. 14.3 Teachers should be able to elicit and build on children’s informal learning of scienceand mathematics outside school, at home or in the wider environment.

7. Links to Content Design Principles and Outcomes (3) 17. Teacher education should address with teachers issues in ensuring rich provision, planning and use of resources (including digital resources) in and out of the classroom to support children’s inquiry and creativity. 17.1 Teachers should be able to organise and use materials (including everyday materials), resources (including ICT and natural resources) and equipment (including digital equipment and simple laboratory instruments) in the classroom, school and wider environment, both indoors and out, to support independent inquiry and creativity. 17.4 Teachers should be able to evaluate provision for free flow play in their school settings.

8. Definition of creativity adopted by CEYS(Creative Little Scientists, 2014)

9. Rationale for the module (1) Importance of playful exploratory processes in early years science education Children are naturally curious and explore in order to make sense of the world Armga et al., 2002) Play and exploration is identified as one of the synergies between creative and inquiry- based approaches to teaching and learning. (Creative Little Scientists, 2012) Inquiry capitalizes upon children’s fascination, engagement, awe and wonder which in turn can prompt their aesthetic engagement and ignite their curiosity, leading to the use of scientific inquiry (Milne, 2010) Creativity research highlights the importance of engaging children affectively and emotionally and this is enhanced when children are engaged in playful exploration. (Milne and Cremin, 2016)

10. Synergies between Inquiry based science education and creative approaches • Play and exploration • Motivation and affect • Dialogue and collaboration • Questioning and curiosity • Problem-solving and agency • Reflection and reasoning • Teacher scaffolding and involvement • Assessment for learning

11. Rationale for the module (2) The nature of creative exploration during play Exploration plays a vital role in scientific inquiry Creative exploration is a sequential or cyclic model of exploring for understanding in children’s science (Milne and Cremin, 2016). It recognizes that young children naturally seek explanations for experiences that have some effect on their feelings and attitudes and connect to how they think about or view natural phenomena. As they create explanations they often develop a richer understanding, particularly if they have communicated their ideas and justified these. This can lead to an appreciation of the nature of science. Children may engage in many processes and may ask many questions as they explore creatively.

12. Key issues for practitioners (1)The complexity of the exploratory process (Milne and Cremin, 2016:63) Table 1 Sequential elements of the creative exploration model for developing personal understanding (Milne and Cremin, 2016: 63)

13. Key issues for practitioners (2)Seizing opportunities(Fletcher & Stead (2015 p.75) ‘Spontaneous sciencing’ Capitalising upon children’s wonder about some natural phenomena that is happening and can be observed, can be challenging. It is not always possible to pre-plan and needs the teacher to respond in the moment when a child sees something of interest to them and responds to it for example noticing the ice formed on a puddle outside.

14. Key issues for practitioners (3)Providing the space and time for extended exploration • Balancing time needed for exploration of natural phenomena within the time available can be difficult. • Time needs to be set for children to engage fully - both cognitively and aesthetically - before they can generate hypotheses or explanations. • Children need both space and time to engage in extended exploration and to be able to return to this at different times; sometimes on their own, sometimes with their peers and sometimes with a teacher present. • Leaving materials for exploration out for children to return to can present logistical issues in some settings.

15. Key issues for practitioners (4)The balance of teacher intervention • Exploration is promoted when the teacher adopt the role as a facilitator rather than an imparter of knowledge (Johnson, 2014) • Open discussion in exploratory contexts without a teacher can nurture children’s creativity and scientific understanding (Kramer and Rabe-Kleberg 2011). • Children need space/opportunities in science to explore and work on their own and in peer groups (Kramer and Rabe-Kleberg 2011). • Too much teacher intervention can reduce children’s collaborations and their agentic and aesthetic engagement in the problem or phenomenon. (Bonawitz et al., 2011). • Delaying instruction until the children have had a chance to investigate on their own may promote innovation and discovery (Bonawitz et al., 2011).

16. Key issues for practitioners (4)Subject knowledge It can be a challenge to some teachers to recognize and make explicit the ‘science’ inherent in the natural phenomena that have interested the child and the opportunities for further exploration.

17. Brainstorming • What is exploration? • Where does play come into this? • Look at the photographs of moments which might spark curiosity and lead to exploration. • What processes are the children involved in? (Linked to Explore and Wonder - handout)

19. Exploratory activity http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/educators/classroom-resources

20. Milk magic • Record what you have wondered • Note down any questions you came up with. • What else might children want to explore?

21. Milk magic • Continue your explorations • What could you change • Quantities? • Materials? • Approach?

22. The complexity of exploratory process (Milne and Cremin, 2016:63)

23. Classroom experiences • When do you feel you foster exploratory processes in your classrooms (in general)? • When do you feel you foster exploratory processes in your science-based lessons? • Challenges?

24. Introduction to classroom examples • Framework for the Classroom Examples • Setting the scene – focus, rationale, background • Starting points • Developing the learning journey – activities and their rationale, examples of children’s responses, teacher reflections and implications for the next session. • Reflections – children’s progress, teacher role, classroom environment, next steps

25. Investigating snails Children aged 3-4 years

26. Discussion and reflection on classroom examples In pairs discuss examples of Classroom Examples • Read through first to gain an overview of the learning journey • Answer the questions How has the teacher: • seized opportunities? • given space and time? • made science explicit? • balanced her intervention with standing back? How could the teacher build on the detected explorations?

27. Implications for overcoming the challenges • What are the challenges of fostering exploratory processes in your setting? • What is one thing you are going to do differently? • Consider this on your own • Then exchange ideas with a partner – any tips to share?

28. Reflections In groups of 2 or 3: In what ways have the different activities and discussions supported your thinking? How far have the aims of the module been met?

29. Further information Creative Little Scientists (FP7 EU project 2011 – 2014) Design principles and exemplar materials based on fieldwork www.creative-little-scientists.eu Creativity in Early Years Science Education (Erasmus+ EU project 2014 – 2017) Curriculum Materials and Training Materials for teacher CPD to promote creative approaches to early years science www.ceys‐project.eu