Technology in the sandpit!

I have noticed just how popular the sandpit is, and how many children spent time there over the day.

What is happening in the pictures below?

On first glance it is simply some children playing in a sandpit but this has nothing to do with technology     right?

Wrong, technology is not just about plugging things into a wall socket, but creations and inventions to make our lives better or fuller. Our children are growing up in an ever changing and evolving world "a world that people have created and changed through technology" (Smorti, 1999, p. 5). 

If the concept of a safe and clean space filled with sand specifically for children to play and experiment, is not part of technology, then every resource they are using is. The resources are made of plastic or metal, there are spades, scoops, funnels, buckets and bowls, spoons, plates and rakes. There is a plastic kitchen unit, cookie cutters, watering cans, trucks and a car track and with these resources the children are interacting with technology tools.

From this while they interact and have fun they are refining their manipulation of equipment like spades and buckets, while they are making sense of their actions within their surroundings. For example digging in the sand will make a hole, if the sand is dry it may slide back in to the hole, wet sand is heavier than dry sand and can be molded or shaped, and they are different in texture and feel. There are opportunities for grasping and refining spatial awareness and chances to build upon social skills and friendships. These simple interactions build understanding about the working world, supporting Te Whāriki’s exploration strand goal 4 where “Children experience an environment where they develop working theories for making sense of the natural, social, physical, and material worlds” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 90).

It builds an understanding that with every action there is a cause and an effect or outcome, a working order. Mindes (2006) suggests "all children must build upon prior knowledge" (p. 141). Child OL in the green turtle outfit spent a lot of his time scooping sand into different vessels. He sat interacting with his hands, his tools and feet while he dug and loaded his containers and buckets filling them and emptying them again. OL moved around one area within the sandpit which made it look from the outside that he was busy in the process of doing something.  

Mean while OL’s brother TL, in the green t-shirt, spent most of his time moving around while he interacted with the sand, rather than actual sandpit resources. TL used only the yellow spade and would jab it into a spot of sand then remove it to see what had happened. Depending on the way that TL pushed the sand into the ground depended on the effect and the hole that it made. This seemed to engage TL and make him think while he carried the spade around and continued his routine moving around the entire sandpit space.   

                                                                                             

            

Children do the things that they see and hear, and this is supported through the many faucets of role playing that children do. Through this role play children act out different scenarios trying out different roles while developing understanding to how their world works. The actions and movements that OL is doing look like someone preparing a meal or a chef in the kitchen, measuring out ingredients and putting them into various cooking utensils. It is just another environment for him to explore and interact in but until I actually reflected on this I had not recognised it. While OL experiments in his space he is touching on math and science concepts while he gains understanding and knowledge to the cause of his actions and the affects that they have on the space. OL is also gaining knowledge about how sand can be manipulated, how it feels and moves and that he is capable and able.

TL’s approach was completely different he was not creating anything he simply was slicing through and displacing sand from different areas and looking at what effect this had. When TL jabbed the spade in deep, on an angle it removed a huge chuck of sand, however when TL simply pushed the spade in and out of the sand it left a small crevasse with minimal damage.

It took me reflecting on what OL and TL were doing within their seemingly simple play to see what a valuable learning space they were in, where interaction with technological tools extend their ideas.

What are the children getting from this and how does it connect to technology?

Children use a variety of technologies for different purposes as they explore their world” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 98). With guidance and support in the use of these tools we are able to provide content rich and relative information and interactions. 

Each child is learning in their own individual way and there will be many mutli-layered rewards that come in knowledge, understanding and reasoning, all aspirations of Te Whāriki's  exploration strand, like "Children experience an environment where their play is valued as meaningful learning and the importance of spontaneous play is recognised" (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 84).

Technology has given us many tools that we can stimulate and engage children’s interest in while they are gaining understanding and learning. This supports Te Whāriki’s exploration essential learning areas in technology where “

Ministry of Education’s (2009), Kei Tua o te Pae booklet number 20 links directly to Te Whāriki’s aspirations for the child and technology in early childhood. It states “the thoughtful and meaningful use of ICT in early childhood education services can support children ‘to grow up as competent and confident learners and communicators, healthy in mind, body, and spirit, secure in the sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society” (p. 2).    

I agree with Smorti's (1999) conclusion where she describes the impact of reflecting on technology in her practice and the outcome.

            I have been excited and challenged by technology as an early childhood curriculum area. It has refocused my thinking and practice. As a learner, my ideas about technology are still developing, and I expect they will change as I continue to research and reflect on what is happening for educators and children as we explore technology in the early childhood curriculum (p. 9).



Reference List

Mindes, G. (2006). Social studies in kindergarten. In D. Gullo (Ed.), K today: Teaching and learning in the kindergarten year (Chpt. 10, pp.107115). Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children. 

Ministry of Education, (2009). Kei Tua o te Pae. Assessment for Learning: Early Childhood Exemplars.      Information and Communication (ICT) Te Hangarau Pārongo me te Whakawhitiwhiti. Wellington: New Zealand: Learning Media.

Ministry of Education, (1996). Te Whāriki. He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington: New Zealand: Learning Media.

Smorti, S. (1999). Technology in Early Childhood. Early Education, No. 19 Autumn 1999, 5-10.