See What Children Know
Dusk and his friends are interested in building a track for their racecars. As a provocation, some of the chairs are lined up in the classroom. The children see this line of chairs as a good location for their track. Dusk decides to extend the line of chairs and recruits his friends to help. Listen as he repeats the words “more, more, more!” Watch how Marty responds and how the boys get to work, spurred on by Dusk’s motivational speaking throughout the footage. Dusk gathers his friends to explain where to build the track and what to do once the track is finished. He outlines the work and entices his friends with the thrill of what it will be like when the track is complete. These boys have built many tracks, but they have never constructed a track under the chairs before.
Dusk thinks about the materials that the group will need and realizes that many of the blocks are being used in the block area. He understands that he must talk to his friends and convince them to break down their previous work with the blocks in order to move ahead with the racetrack project. His friends listen to him but are easily distracted. Dusk repeats his goals to his friends as their attentions wander. He cannot come up with a name for what he wants to build. Roarke listens to Dusk and helps him clarify his desire to break down the blocks in order to build a “racetrack.”
This episode shows the following about what children and teachers know:
· The teachers know that an unusual arrangement of large objects (the chairs) can generate more creative play.
· The boys know that building a racetrack under a row of chairs deliberately creates difficulty.
· The boys know that breaking-down (disassembling) is not the same as breaking something.
· The boys know that a block structure, unlike a block pile, has a proud builder who must be consulted.
· Dusk knows to motivate his friends he must give them a clearly stated objective.
· Dusk realizes that a child who can help state goals clearly can be a great ally.
· Teachers know that Dusk’s use of “big” to modify “block” and “idea” is an early form of metaphor.
We thank Diana Giattino for her help in writing this analysis.
To enter our VSS library and view this six minute clip click here. To subscribe to our entire Video Streaming Service click here. To download a high resolution Quicktime video file of this six minute video clip click here.
Notes from the Field
If you would like to check out national initiatives to support and fund early childhood education go to the First Five Years Fund website at www.ffyf.org. Click on “What’s New” to see a long list of events, interviews, and press releases about the importance of the first five years, leading advocates, and what is happening in different states. For example, Susie Buffett from Omaha (yes, she is related to Warren) has established the Buffett Early Childhood Fund. Even if you are not looking for funding yourself, this web site offers some great talking points to support early childhood education as well as information about the objectives contained in bills coming from Congress. Maybe you will even find national initiatives to use more video to document program quality!
