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This raw video footage, captured at the Shrine of Remembrance, documents an authentic moment of my three-year-old daughter's play. The sensory elements—the wind, the distant tram, her singing of "Happy Birthday" while gathering sticks into her wagon, and her footsteps—formed the foundational inspiration for my creative and analytical responses.

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The Sounds of Memory: An Auditory Journey

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The Sounds of Memory: An Auditory Journey

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This creative response is an experimental soundscape composed from sounds recorded in a moment of spontaneous creativity. I use this piece to represent the internal soundscape of a soldier's memory—a contrast between the chaos of conflict and the persistent hope for peace.

Language of Music: The piece is a composition of rhythm (the 'galloping' cup, typing), texture (pen friction), and melody (humming), showcasing how music can be found and created from everyday objects.

Language of Drama: The sounds are characters in a drama. The frantic, rhythmic energy tells a story of tension transitioning into calmness and focus.

Language of Movement: The strong, rhythmic elements inherently suggest movement—marching, running, working—connecting to the physicality of both war and the journey towards peace.

This abstract approach allows me to express the themes of my Shrine visit through the universal language of sound.

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My visit to the Shrine of Remembrance was a powerful experience. I saw a clear contrast between the serious history of the place and the lively, natural world around it. This feeling became strongest when I watched my own three-year-old daughter playing there. Observing her became the main focus for my analysis and creative response. Her play perfectly shows the theories we have learned.

My daughter’s play is what experts call authentic, child-directed play (Wilson, 2007). No adult told her what to do. She followed her own ideas. The sticks were loose parts—simple objects that can be used in many ways. In her mind, they became birthday gifts or special treasures. Her wagon was an important tool for her game. This supports what Wallin (2019) says: that natural materials are better for encouraging creative and complex play than fixed playground equipment. The environment itself acted as a “third teacher” (Wallin, 2019). The sounds and sights of the place—the wind, the big building—influenced her play without her even knowing. Seeing her explore so freely and confidently in this space highlighted her wonderful, resilient spirit.

I could clearly see the three temporal arts languages in her play:

Language of Music: She created her own music. Her song, "Happy Birthday," was not just a song. It was a special sound that made her actions of collecting sticks more important and ritual-like.

Language of Movement/Dance: Her body moved with purpose. She carefully gathered sticks, pulled the wagon with strength, walked across the grass, and finally knelt down to look closely. Her movements showed her story.

Language of Drama: The whole thing was like a play. She was the main character in a story she created herself. The Shrine became the stage for her game about a journey and a delivery.

Watching my daughter inspired my own creative response. In my story, I imagined that her innocent game was a symbolic "gift of peace" for the soldiers we remember. Her play became the happy ending to my own serious story. This way of thinking is similar to what teachers do when they document children’s play. They watch carefully, try to understand the child's ideas, and use those ideas to plan future activities.

For my creative response, I chose to use a different soundscape I had previously recorded. This decision allowed me to explore the theme on a more abstract and internal level. The audio features the sounds of a tapping water cup (reminiscent of galloping horses), a pen on a metal spiral, typing, and humming—all occurring at once. I use this piece to represent the cluttered, rhythmic soundscape of memory and conflict—the frantic energy of battle (galloping, typing as communication), the friction of stress (pen on metal), and the underlying, persistent hum of hope and humanity (humming).

Drama: The layering of these sounds creates a dramatic narrative of multiple experiences happening in a soldier's mind.

Music: This piece is a direct engagement with the language of music through rhythm, texture, and improvisation.

Movement: The strong, percussive rhythms inherently evoke movement, connecting to the physical exertion of war and the journey towards peace.

This method allowed me to connect my daughter's play to the larger theme of peace through a more symbolic, auditory interpretation.

This personal experience taught me important lessons for my future work as an early childhood teacher:

1.  See the Value in Simple Things: I will remember that a stick is never just a stick. Children can turn ordinary things into extraordinary play. I will appreciate these small moments.

2.  Watch More, Talk Less: I will spend more time quietly watching children play instead of always directing them. The best learning happens when children lead their own play.

3.  Create Spaces for Stories: I will make sure our outdoor space has plenty of simple materials (sticks, fabrics, buckets) that children can use to create their own stories and journeys, just like my daughter did.

4.  Use Sound and Listening: I will do activities like "sound hunts" where children close their eyes and listen to the environment. This helps develop creativity and a connection to the world.

Watching my daughter play in that place of memory was a strong reminder of the true power of play. My job is not to control the play, but to create a good environment for it, to watch it carefully, and to protect it. It is about nurturing the natural resilience and creativity that every child possesses.

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Wallin, M. L. (2019, June). Let’s play outside: The importance of pretend play in natural settings. Community Playthings. Retrieved September 6, 2025, from `https://www.communityplaythings.com/resources/articles/the-importance-of-pretend-play-in-natural-settings`

Wilson, R. (2007). Children, creative play, and the natural environment. In R. Wilson (Ed.), Nature and young children: Encouraging creative play and learning in natural environments (pp. 5–44). Routledge.