From children's own perspective, play and learning are not always separate in practices during early years. The article explores the character of early years education in terms of play and learning, and also elaborates on the findings of several years of research about children's learning related to the curriculum and proposes a sustainable play-based pedagogy for Sweden for the future to promote creativity.
Research that has shown it is possible to increase students' critical and creative thinking capacities through instruction and practice. With movement to what is often referred to as 'the information age' the ability to be both a critical and creative thinker is considered an important element of life success.
The role of drawing in children's learning is frequently misunderstood, often with an adult focus upon 'mark making leading to writing' rather than communication and creativity. Drawing, however, is one of the many languages, which children use to 'talk' about their world, re-present action, emotion, ideas or experiences and tell complex stories. This paper draws on a longitudinal research project about young children drawing within the home, pre-school and school context.
Over the past 10-15 years, child development researchers have expressed worries about the fact that an increasing number of parents in the western world tend to over-schedule their children. Lego Learning Institute conducted a cross-cultural study of parental values and attitudes toward children, to find out the truth.
A three-year study compared children exposed to musical influences with those exposed to little singing or music in nursery schools. Findings indicated that the experimental group exceeded the control group in frequency of vocalisations, rhythmic movements, initiations of social contact, and positive emotional reactions.
Starcatchers Final Report on their early years theatre programme, 'See the Theatre, Play the Theatre'. The Starcatchers project was a two-year pilot project, funded by NESTA and the Scottish Arts Council, which aimed to explore the creation of theatre for children under the age of three with their parents or carers. By Susan Young and Niki Powers.
Infants can benefit from viewing and making art because these opportunities provide sensory experiences that lay the groundwork for perceptual, cognitive, and receptive language development to occur. Caregivers who view art and create it along with an infant help to facilitate this early development process.
Emma Hutchinson, Director and Founder of The Music House for Children, explores the importance of music for newborn babies.
