Children’s interests and curiosities are as diverse and unique as children are themselves. They gather information from various sources and given the chance they love to talk about what they know.
In our daily practice how do we provide opportunities for children to share knowledge, and ‘expertise’?
‘I didn’t tell them about possums’.
Watching this clip reminded me of some of the wonderful conversations I have had, with nursery children, that have been provoked by questions, their questions about my knowledge.
Some of these have included…
‘Do you know where the best place to see the Aurora Borealis is?’ I was informed that it’s from space.
‘What do you know about Samuel Pepys diaries, and the Great Fire of London?’ As the dough station changed to the Pudding Lane bakery.
‘Do you know about Krakatoa? I have been to the library with my dad, and we got some books.’
I’m sure you will agree that’s an incredible range of subjects that could easily feature on Mastermind.
We can learn so much from children if we create the conditions for a learning community to flourish.
Do we value the knowledge young children possess and recognise how important it is for us to give time and space to allow them to share it?
In our busy day create time to talk - following up a child’s questions and comments often leads to the richest conversation.
Whether it’s natural phenomenon, historical figures and events, or erupting volcanos in Indonesia, create an environment for conversation and who knows where the children may lead us!
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