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In a garden, quiet and still,
stands a mother of stone with a heart that can feel
She holds her child, so close and so tight,
a hug that lasts from the day to night.

Two little birds come dancing near,
their songs bring joy for all to hear.
They hop on the grass, they flutter, they play,
they visit the statues almost every day.

“Look, my child,” the stone mum sings,
“the world is full of beautiful things.
Though we are still, our love still takes flight,
carried by birds into the light.”

So in that garden, side by side,
a mother, And her child, and the birds abide.
Together they tell, in whispers so sweet,
that love is forever, and is always complete.

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- Music: Bird Song Orchestra

Children explore and create bird-inspired sounds using a variety of instruments and their voices.

- Movement: Birds in the Garden

Children use creative dance to move like birds, hopping, fluttering, soaring.

- Drama: Statues that Come Alive

Children act out the story of statues, birds, and love from the poem.

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These activities are grounded in my poem from Assessment 2, which explores love, stillness, and joy through imagery of a mother, child, birds, and a garden. The poem provided a rich stimulus for children to creatively explore their environment and relationships through the languages of music, movement, and drama.

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Music supports brain development, memory, and language growth in early childhood (UNICEF, 2023). Through the bird-song activity, children not only enjoyed creative expression but also practiced listening, turn-taking, and responding.

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Dance and movement allow children to connect imagination with physical exploration. Dance Teaching Ideas (2023) shows that creative movement helps toddlers and young children develop confidence, coordination, and communication. My movement activity invited children to embody the freedom of birds in the garden, deepening both physical and imaginative play.

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Pretend play in natural settings enhances social, emotional, and cognitive development (Community Playthings, 2023). The drama activity reflected this, as children pretended to be statues and birds, engaging in imaginative storytelling linked to nature and relationships.

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This assessment aligns closely with the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF). Outcome 5 highlights that children are effective communicators when they use a range of media, including music, movement, and drama, to express ideas and connect with others. The music activity supported this by encouraging turn-taking and call-and-response, which built children’s capacity to listen and communicate creatively. Outcome 3 emphasises that children have a strong sense of wellbeing; both the movement and drama activities contributed to this by allowing children to express emotions, develop confidence, and experience joy through embodied play and imaginative storytelling.

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- LO1: Articulating aesthetics and poetics from a philosophical perspective – the activities translated the poem’s aesthetic qualities of love, stillness, and joy into experiences children could feel and express.

- LO2: Exploring the languages of dance, music, and drama in life, on Country, and in early childhood contexts – the activities invited children to engage with the “languages” of art through their bodies, voices, and imaginations.

- LO3: Applying the arts to build rich, multidisciplinary experiences – the integration of music, movement, and drama demonstrated how these art forms can overlap and create holistic, meaningful learning in early childhood settings.

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Materials:

- Percussion instruments (bells, shakers, chimes, triangles)

- Open circle space

Steps:

1. Read aloud the poem’s lines about “two little birds come dancing near, their songs bring joy for all to hear.”

2. Ask children what sounds birds make. Brainstorm together.

3. Hand out instruments or invite body percussion/voices.

4. Model a short “bird call” and invite the children to echo it back.

5. Take turns creating bird calls, using call-and-response.

6. Build up to a “bird symphony,” layering sounds together.

7. End by returning to stillness, reflecting the quiet garden.

Reflection:
i did this task with my drama class and the children were highly engaged in experimenting with sounds. The call-and-response built listening skills and social cooperation. Some children were very enthusiastic, creating loud noises, so clearer prompts for “soft” and “loud” dynamics would help next time. This reinforced UNICEF’s (2023) insight that music at an early age builds not just language and memory, but also social-emotional growth through shared music-making.

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Activity 2: Movement – Birds in the Garden

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Activity 2: Movement – Birds in the Garden

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https://youtu.be/7iH35Gi5uSQ Materials:

- Open space

- Light instrumental background music

Steps:

1. Read aloud the poem lines about the birds hopping and fluttering.

2. Ask: “How do you think a bird moves?” Encourage children to share ideas.

3. Play instrumental music and invite children to move as birds – hopping, fluttering, soaring.

4. Allow them to “fly” on their own, then together in pairs or groups.

5. Introduce “rest moments,” where they perch by the statue mother and child.

6. Conclude by stretching wings out and folding them in with calm breaths.

Reflection:
i performed this with my daycare children, they expressed themselves freely, showing creativity and joy in exploring movement. A challenge was maintaining safety in the space, as some children ran too fast. Next time, I would set clearer boundaries for safe movement. This experience reflected Dance Teaching Ideas (2023), which highlights that creative dance supports both physical coordination and self-expression. It also reinforced how embodied play can connect children with imaginative storytelling.

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Peaceful Instrumental Music, Relaxing Nature music, "Nature's Morning Song" by Tim Janis

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Activity 3: Drama – Statues that Come Alive

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Activity 3: Drama – Statues that Come Alive

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Materials:

- Poem text for introduction

- Open space

Steps:

1. Read aloud the poem’s opening about the “mother of stone with a heart that can feel.”

2. Invite children to freeze in “statue poses” as mother, child, or other garden figures.

3. One by one, children begin to “come alive” – slowly moving arms, smiling, reaching out.

4. Introduce the “birds,” with other children fluttering and bringing joy.

5. Together, act out the full story: statues, birds, love, and joy filling the garden.

6. Finish with everyone returning to stillness.

Reflection:
the children in my drama class enjoyed pretending to be statues and transforming into living characters. Some found it difficult to stay still during the “freeze” stage, so next time I would begin with a warm-up freeze game. This activity reflected Community Playthings’ (2023) point that imaginative role play in natural settings supports social and emotional growth. Acting out the poem together fostered a sense of belonging, empathy, and joy within the group.

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Through this assessment, I realised how music, movement, and drama are interconnected “languages” that give children opportunities to explore emotions, relationships, and imagination.

- Music showed me how children can build memory, attention, and shared expression (UNICEF, 2023).

- Movement highlighted the value of physical creativity, helping children embody ideas and connect imagination with their bodies (Dance Teaching Ideas, 2023).

- Drama reinforced the importance of pretend play in supporting social, emotional, and cognitive growth (Community Playthings, 2023).

My perspective has shifted from seeing these art forms as “extras” to recognising them as core experiences in early learning. They provide children with powerful tools to communicate love, joy, and imagination, just as my poem expresses through the symbols of the garden, mother, child, and birds.

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Australian Government Department of Education [AGDE]. (2022). Belonging, being and becoming: The early years learning framework for australia (V2.0). In ACECQA. https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-01/EYLF-2022-V2.0.pdf

Community Playthings. (2023). The importance of pretend play in natural settings. https://www.communityplaythings.com/resources/articles/the-importance-of-pretend-play-in-natural-settings#:~:text=When%20children%20are%20given%20the%20time%20and%20space%20to%20play,to%20cognitive%20and%20linguistic%20growth

Dance Teaching Ideas. (2023). Creative dance & movement for toddlers. https://danceteachingideas.com/creative-dance-movement-for-toddlers/

UNICEF. (2023). How music affects your baby’s brain. https://www.unicef.org/parenting/child-development/how-music-affects-your-babys-brain-class#:~:text=Music%20at%20early%20ages%20helps,these%20words%20and%20memorize%20them

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