CREATIVE CORNER TO CAPTURE THE CHILDREN'S INTEREST AND LEARNING

Creative Corner to Capture the Children's Interest and Learning





Abstract

This project reflects on the key issues in my investigation and how I can develop an effective learning environment for children in my setting. The EYFS, (2008) states 'When children have opportunities to play with ideas in different situations and with a variety of resources, they discover connections and come to new and better understandings and ways of doing things. Adult support in this process enhances their ability to think critically and ask question (Creativity and Critical Thinking). I support this statement because I believe that adults play a crucial role in providing opportunities and experiences. This will enable children to develop their thinking skills making them more confident and motivated. Practitioners working with children need to teach, explain, demonstrate and scaffold them. More importantly, they need to give children the time and space to experiment with the knowledge and skills they have experienced. Members of staff in my setting need to take on key roles, and start supporting and extending the children's experiences and background knowledge to enhance learning in all aspects of creativity and providing them a more stimulating creative corner.

My enquiry and the methodology focus on identifying examples of outcomes from the observations, questionnaires and interviews. Developing children's creativity means using their ideas, allowing them to make choices and decisions, helping them to solve problems, allowing them time and space to follow through their own ideas and develop them.

Introduction

I work in an Infant and Nursery School as a nursery nurse, in a reception class. My setting is in a multi-culture and a bilingual school. The reception class I work in has 30 children from which 80% children are Asian, 15% are White and 5 % children are from Somalia.

Creativity is a way in engaging and developing children skills such as being independent, being self-confidence and having knowledge about using different materials. Children are always curious about things and objects and have the best imagination when it comes to play. They carefully plan how they are going to play and who will involved. However, this cannot happen successfully if the right type of environment is not given in the beginning and, as a result, may hinder the child's progress. I will be opening the enquiry to my main question 'How can I develop the Creative Corner to capture the children's interest and learning in my setting'? This will lead me into my five key issues of concern such as staff approach to creativity, stimulating the environment, resources and time, implement according to the Early Years Foundation Setting (EYFS, 2008) and how the adults can be more involved in supporting the children. As a practitioner, I should find solutions to these issues and make the necessary changes through this research.

An action research is a reflective process of development, solving issues lead by individuals working with others in teams and in practices to improve the way they address concerns, as Fisher (2002:199) states “It aims to improve and to ...