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Pacini-Ketchabaw, V., Kind, S., &amp; Kocher, L. L. M. (2016, September 20). Encounters with materials in early childhood education. Routledge &amp; CRC Press. Retrieved May 7, 2023, from https://www.routledge.com/Encounters-withMaterials-in-Early-Childhood-Education/Pacini-Ketchabaw-KindKocher/p/book/9781138821460

Arena, F. (2023). Pasta. Affirm.

Pelo, Ann. The Language of Art : Inquiry-Based Studio Practices in Early Childhood Settings, Redleaf Press, 2016. ProQuest Ebook Central,http://eboo kcentral.proquest.com/lib/vu/detail.action?docID=4674378.Created from vu on

2023-05-07 11:55:04.

Hanna, Wendell. The Children's Music Studio : A Reggio-Inspired Approach, Oxford University Press, Incorporated, 2017. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/vu/detail.action?docID=4747980.

In the Spirit of the Studio, Second Edition : Learning from the Atelier of Reggio Emilia, edited by Lella Gandini, et al., Teachers College Press, 2015. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/vu/detail.action?docID=3544852.

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This is a small volcano I made by using paper and ketchup. I cut the paper into two piece, and use one piece to make a mountain shape, and put it on paper, then I pour the  tomato sauce onto the mountain paper, which just looks like magma. As volcano have smoke, and the smoke is white color, so I rub a toilet paper to make it not flat and place it on the top of the mountain paper. The paper is soft on the flat but sharp on the side. The paper can be cut, rub, and restructure to the things you want. There are many different material of paper, like the normal A4 paper, the toilet paper, the paper jam, etc. The paper is blank, so we can use our imagination and creativity to make some art work.

For children, I will show them the volcano I made, and tell them what does volcano looks like and what is in the volcano. Then, I will try to make a better volcano with children, I will use paper jam as it is harder, and I will let them use their imagination to think about what materials can be part of the volcano, I will provide them different kinds of paper and color, to let them create the volcano on their mind. As art is a way of thinking, feeling, imagining, relating, and expressing. Art is a way to be in the world (Pelo, 2016), I may also encourage children to use the rest of paper to create the “art” . These activities practice their hands-on ability and promote their imagination, which link to EYLF.

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At first time when I was attracted by this book pasta (Arena,2023), it is because of the pasta on the cover, I am a person who loves pasta, so it makes me desire to want to find out what this book is talking about. The book is pretty colorful, not only on the cover but also on the inside. In the book, it got many pasta with different kind of shapes with their name on it, each pasta got a different kind of personality, which is very interesting. Although this is a book designed for children, I still learn something from it, from the book, I can tell the names of different shapes of pasta, and through this innocent book, I feel like it brings me back to my childhood, which reminds me of the imagination in the childhood. The drawings in the book are also very cute, which makes me want to learn the way that people draw it.

The reason why I choose this book is that I think it’s colorful and beautiful, it is quite enjoyable when you are looking at this kind of book, and the various color may attract children more. The name of different pasta in the book can let children learn more about pasta, and as the book is very interesting, so children are actively involved with foo. As pasta is a common food in life, so I think learning some knowledge about food can help them choose more when having food. By extending the experience to children, at first, I will bring the topic “pasta” to children first, and let them share their own experience with pasta first, then I will read the name of different pasta to children first and know what different pasta looks like, and let them repeat what I read, which can practice their speaking and increasing their vocabulary. With the knowledge of this pasta, I will bring the actual pasta to the children, let them touch it, smell it, and ask them how they feel about the different shapes of pasta. I will also cook the different shapes of pasta for the children to let them taste it, and let them choose their favorite one and ask why. During this whole experience, I will keep repeating the name of this pasta, which can strengthen their memory.

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This is an aboriginal dance that I learn with aborigines, which happened in Cairns. Cairns is not as developed as the big city, and as it is a place that many people travel to, so I feel the sense of aboriginal culture there is pretty strong. At first, I find out the dance is pretty silly for me, as I feels like I am just copying the Aborigine movement, but later, with deep research about this movement, I understand they all got a meaning within it. The dance requires you can control your legs very well, as you need to shake your legs really fast, also, you need good balance, that is because you need to lift up your shoulders and one leg, and once your shoulders and leg stay in the air for a long time, you may easily fall down.

The Reggio Emilia approach acknowledges the significance of diverse art forms, such as dance, in fostering expression and communication. It recognizes that children possess multiple avenues for self-expression, and dance serves as a compelling medium for their creative exploration and interpersonal communication (Gandini et al., 2015).  By teaching the dance to children, I will familiarize myself with the specific aboriginal culture and the history, and the meanings of the dance. If it is possible, I may contact the local Aboriginal community, to let the specialist teach children how to do the Aboriginal dance. I will start by telling children the story and the history behind the dance, then, I will show them how to do these movements, I will split a dance into small pieces, and I will let children practice small movements when they can master these movements, I will combine these movements together as a dance. To encourage children’s creativity, I will also invite children to create some dance movements while respecting aboriginal history, and I will invite the children to illustrate the meaning of the dance that they create.

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Charcoal is a thing: a stick of compressed burned wood. But it is also a continuum, a story, event, a happening, a doing (Pacini-Ketchabaw,2016). At first time when I touch charcoal, I feel it’s really dirty, as it will make your hands black easily, and the scrap of charcoal will falls out. This is a painting that I paint with charcoal, I use the side of the charcoal to draw some lines, and draws a ball in the center of the paper, as the lines are symmetrical, so I draw some circles beside the ball. I use the side of the charcoal to scratch on the paper, but it looks not that significant, and it is not very easy to control the charcoal when I scratch it. The “ghost” in the paint is comes from, I want to know what will happen if I use my finger to rub in the charcoal then rub on the paper, and it just looks like the shape of my finger pulp, and the combination of three just looks like a ghost. The whole paint for me is like an universe, a atom in the center, and there are many “dark things” in this universe.

By extending this experience to children, I will bring the charcoal to children, let them feel it, and play with it first. Then, I will teach them the techniques of painting with charcoal, and let them practice with it, later I will encourage them to draw the things that by using their imagination and creativity. It is not very easy to control the charcoal sometimes, as children’s hands are small and charcoal got different shapes, so practicing the charcoal painting techniques can increase their finger flexibility. I will also show children how charcoal engages with different materials, I will put charcoal into the water and see what will happen to water and charcoal, and I will also use the fire to burn the charcoal. I will set up the activities with charcoal as group activities, as all the children in the group can engage in the activities, and put their creativity into the work, different ideas will contribute together as a new work, during this process, the children can also understand cooperation and practice their social skills. At the end, I will invite children to share the story of their work, which can practice their language ability.

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This is a project made with clay, the three items are banana, ramen, and cookie, when I play with clay, I just use my hands to rub it, which really needs a lot of patience. It explores how our identities are shaped by our countries and raise the question of how we can successfully adapt to different cultures. When I play with clay, at first, I feel it is a little bit dirty and wet, and when I touch it, I feel it is pretty soft and easy to structure, when I smell it, it smells like grass and rain, the things in nature. Playing with clay is full of creativity and imagination, as you can use it to make everything you want to make, this is linked to EYLF, which encourages educators to promote children’s creativity. Usually, clay is something we see every day, but going through the experience of playing with clay, I feel like clay also can be a “toy”, which can stimulate people’s creativity. When I want to create something with clay, I may fail to make it at first, but I can always find ways to fix it, as I can put all the clay together again and rebuild it. Also, when I play with clay, I observe clay carefully, I noticed that each piece is all different and they all can become different items, the ecologies of clay compel educators and children to engage in thoughtful contemplation, emphasizing the need for attentive care, nurturing, and contextual comprehension. These ecologies serve as a reminder that not everything originates from human creation, challenging fixed standards and highlighting the distinctive properties and behavior inherent in each piece of clay (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al., 2016). The reason why I want to introduce this project to children is that I think clay is very common and we can get it everywhere, and also Clay can stimulate children’s creativity, imagination, and hands-on ability, as when children get clay, they will just pinch it and rub it which can practice their finger flexibility. When I do the project by using clay with children, I don’t want to tell them what to do at first, I will let the children feel the clay first, which is a kind of “communication”, then I can tell them that the clay can be split, can be a ball or a string if we rub it, telling them that clay can be anything. I will encourage children to use their imagination to create a project, and I will let children tell the story or meaning of the project, which can practice their language ability.

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This is a song that comes from the aboriginal language, the word Ngaya Naba means my family or our family. This is a heartfelt song sung in the Dharug Aboriginal language, accompanied by the rhythmic beats of clap sticks, conveying the significance of family bonds. It beautifully captures the essence of valuing and cherishing one's family connections. The song is very chill and the melody makes me feel really happy, the lyrics all show the meaning of this song, and tell us that we need to value kinship.

Feris and Nyland (2007) outlined ways in which music, combined with the Reggio approach, could foster citizenship in preschools (Feris and Nyland,2007, as cited in Wendell, 2017). As this is an aboriginal language song, children can learn some aboriginal words, which is good for them to understand the history, so they can better understand the land where they live right now. By teaching the children, I will start with the word “Ngaya Naba” first, teach the children what this word means in Dharug Aboriginal language, that is because we receive an invitation from Aborigines. I will extend an invitation to them for an Aboriginal-themed party, providing decorations and face painting to help them dress up as Aboriginal people. Assuming the role of an Aboriginal chief, I will invite the children to join my tribe in an outdoor setting. I will create a simulated tribal environment using wood and fire, immersing them in the atmosphere. I will share stories about the history of my tribe and invite them to sing a traditional song together.