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I would like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we stand today, and pay my respect to Elders past, and extend my respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

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On Wednesday, September 3, I visited Werribee South Beach, located at a 15-minute drive from Laverton. This is a public space in the country of the Boon Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation.

On the day I went for my visit, the wind was very strong, and the tides were a bit higher than usual. The beach looked full of life.

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This video contains 3 clips I recorded during my own country visit. The first clip is recorded away from the beach, the second near the shoreline, and the last clip captures a small, beautiful moment where there were birds flying over the dancing tides.

When filming the video from the shoreline, I could hear the wind roaring in my ears, tides swaying, rustling of leaves on the trees, along with vehicles driving, and people talking to each other in the distance.

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I created this short dance/movement video directly at Werribee Beach near the shore. As I extended my arms, it felt like the wind was hugging me, welcoming me at its place. I let my body dance along with the waves of the beach, as I intended to copy its restlessness. I let my body spin, jump, swinging my arms and legs in the air. I felt free, happy, and a little unsteady, which perfectly aligned with the environment.

This made me aware of the impact the place had on my body and made me feel connected to the country/place as it reminded me that the area I was standing on was still active, alive, and moving.

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                                                          Analytical Commentary Part 1

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                                                          Analytical Commentary Part 1

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Engaging Temporal Arts Languages through My Senses

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Engaging Temporal Arts Languages through My Senses

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During my visit, sound, movement, and drama all interacted together. The tides were dancing and swaying with great force. The roaring winds sang together, creating a lovely rhythm. My body immediately responded; my arms began swinging in the air, and I started to spin around in the wide pathway to equally match the energy of the place, it felt as if the strong pulse of waves and wind were asking me to match their energy. So, I was jumping, throwing my legs and entire body in the air as if I was letting myself fly and be free as the wind and the tides.

There was a little bit of drama, too, as my body was trying to balance itself as the wind was pushing me towards the water, while the continuous change in the tides was trying to catch me. In that moment, all three components, music, movement, and drama, existed simultaneously to create a beautiful response.

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My senses were sharp and alert when I went for my country visit. The salty wind brushed against my skin, and I could feel the coldness of the air. I could smell the earthy scent of the soil and seaweed on the shore, carried by the sea. Moreover, I also heard the wind blowing and the deep thunder of the tides as they clashed with the sandy shore.
In the distance, I could hear people conversing and vehicles driving along the road, moving as rapidly as the air. The water was deep blue, and the waves from the tides added white traces to the sea, while birds flew over the beach, making the view even more vibrant.

This experience provided me a strong sense of freedom . I felt as if I had no responsibilities in the world, and I was as free as the wind and waves. At some points, I was unbalanced from spinning too much and was afraid that the cold water would catch me, but I was successful in avoiding getting wet. Overall, this experience made me release the stress I didn't know I was carrying, and it felt like the beach was urging me to join instead of just observing.

This event also reminded me of when I was a child and would go to a river near my house in my own country. I used to spend a lot of my time there, throwing stones in the river, watching the river flow, and walking along the riverbank. It was a different experience compared to the beach, but the feelings/emotions were very similar. As a child, I liked splashing water and jump in the river; reviving this memory helped me understand how children comprehend sound, movement, and drama in nature and how such unstructured moments invite creativity, joy, and happiness.

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                                                     Analytical Commentary Part 2

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                                                     Analytical Commentary Part 2

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My creative response was 25 seconds movement/dance that I created by listening and feeling the area I was standing on. It wasn't choreographed beforehand, but it came spontaneously from within. In my opinion, such responses invite participants for deep listening to the environment through its gesture, which is deeply connected to the idea from The Hundred Languages of Children (Edwards et al., 2011), which explains that expression can emerge in many forms and not just words, and that everyone has a unique way of expressing themselves.

Similarly, it also reminded me that children don't need planned activities or a lot of materials for the play to be meaningful. As per Wilson(2018), living things and other natural elements give children varied opportunities to feel, smell, see, hear, and taste. My movement at the beach surely demonstrated how such sensations translate into dramatic movement and sound. Moreover, Wilson(2007) states, "play engages all the senses as powerful modes of learning"(p.3), highlighting that play itself is a part of learning.

This idea is further reflected in Dadirri practice, which encourages deep listening practices as a way to connect to the environment, explaining how attentiveness and presence create a creative expression (Miriam Rose Foundation, 2017). This idea guided the way I paid attention to the wind and water. Ultimately, this is also related to the Reggio Emilia philosophy that the environment acts as a "third teacher " in children's learning.

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Connection to my Early Childhood Practice

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Connection to my Early Childhood Practice

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Reflecting on my experience has changed the way I view sensory-rich play and its importance in early childhood settings. My experience invited deep listening as suggested by Oliveros(2015), "Listening is a mysterious process that is not the same for everyone". In my future, I plan to do activities that provide children with the opportunity to interact with the environment as a part of their play. I want them to hear and feel things in different ways, where they have the freedom to explore by themselves without any strict rules and limitations.

In most early childhood practices, learning is still bound to specific outcomes, and creative play is undervalued and often not given much priority compared to academic tasks. However, I truly believe that when children are allowed to interact with nature, express themselves through arts of movement, storytelling, dance, and music, they engage in the deepest form of learning,

My reflection also suggests a shift towards valuing improvisation, deep listening, and unplanned play. While music, drama, and dance are often practised beforehand for a polished product, I strongly believe shifting our view towards not planning plays/ arts and especially letting children interact with nature for their arts will help them remain connected to the place and encourage artistic exploration. My goal in the future is to promote a learning environment that nurtures curiosity and imagination, where nature becomes the central part of their learning journey!

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Edward, C. P., Gandini, L., & Forman, G. E.(2011). The hundred languages of children: The Reggio Emilia Experience in Transformation (3rd ed). https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/vu/reader.action?docID=820317&c=RVBVQg

Miriam Rose Foundation. (2017). DADIRRI (Official Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr Video): 3-minute promo. On YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tow2tR_ezL8

Oliveros, P. (2015). The Difference between Hearing and Listening | Pauline Oliveros | TEDxIndianapolis [YouTube Video]. On YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QHfOuRrJB8

Wilson, R. A. (2007). Children, creative play, and the natural environment. In Nature and young children: Encouraging creative play and learning in natural environments (pp. 1–18). Routledge. https://vucollaborate.vu.edu.au/content/enforced/1816406-ECE2008-1-2023-HWB-151670/Nature_and_Young_Children_Encouraging_Creative_Pla..._----_(Chpater_1_Children_creative_play_and_the_natural_environment)2.pdf?ou=2253526

Wilson, R. A. (2018). Nature and young children: Encouraging creative play and learning in natural environments (3rd ed.). Routledge.https://go.openathens.net/redirector/vu.edu.au?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.taylorfrancis.com%2Fbooks%2Fmono%2F10.4324%2F9781315148533%2Fnature-young-children-ruth-wilson