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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Creative Movement as an Approach to Learning Science in the Preschool Period
Marjanca Kos, Gordana Schmidt, & Janez Jerman
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DOI:10.17265/2159-5542/2016.12.003
University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Moving and sensory consciousness are the main ways children learn about their world and themselves. Learning is facilitated when a child’s entire body is involved (Boyd, Chalk, & Law, 2003; Chandler & Tricot, 2015; Davies, 2003; Gallahue, Werner, & Luedke, 1975; Gilbert, 2004; Joyce, 1994). The outdoor environment is an ideal place for children to play and learn, since it offers an incredible wealth of sensory experiences (Wilson, 2008). In our project, preschool children (aged 4-5) were offered a direct early science experience and the chance to express it through creative movement. We selected a few science topics (spiders, beetles, a toad, a caterpillar, grasses, trees, rotating maple, linden and ash tree fruits, rain and wind) and conceived outdoor activities that included: an experience and the act of experiencing, learning from the experience and re-living the experience through creative movement. We video recorded the activities. When analyzing the recordings, we focused on evaluating the elements of creative movement (the use of different body parts, space, direction, levels, ranges, pathways, speed, force, and rhythm). We focused our attention on the children’s genuine and credible movement responses and on stereotypical movements. Before each activity, we asked the children to depict a certain science topic by movement, which was based on their own previous ideas and knowledge about the topic. We used those results in the comparison with the movements after the direct experiences. Our results show that nature and direct contact with living beings motivated children to discover new ways of movement and new kinaesthetic senses, develop body orientation and learn the meaning of movement expressions. Through direct contact with nature and expression through movement we achieved increased focus in the child’s on an animal, plant, or natural phenomenon. Children used body language to express their experience, emotions, thoughts, and attitude toward topics dealt with, and thus reinforced the early science knowledge they had gained. The children’s movements were original, non-stereotypical, and we noticed significant progress in their use of creative movement elements. Group activities promoted children’s social development and positive emotions toward nature. An early science experience changed the child’s way of observing nature. So the child, and later the adult, can become more sensitive to nature and more responsible in his/her actions.
creative movement, early science, outdoor learning, preschool children, experiential learning
Marjanca Kos, Gordana Schmidt, & Janez Jerman. (2016). Creative Movement as an Approach to Learning Science in the Preschool Period. Psychology Research, 6(12), 727-734.
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