When I filmed the artefact, I was lucky to capture the shimmering light on the sidewalk, I also can feel the light scent of the grass and trees, the sound of the traffic like a chaotic symphony, and the sound of the wind that day like it was opening a rock concert. In my imaginary game video, the truck became a “tired dragon”, the trees happily danced, waved and asked for a friendly handshake, the birds were calling each other to join in the fun, and the sound of the wind was like the background music for the parade. These experiences not only awakened my senses, but they also gave me the feeling of returning to my curious childhood.

The combination of movement, sound between real environmental sounds, plus my drama created a powerful combination. I believe that when you watch the video, you will not only see but also feel the invisible world happening around you. This is the power of sounds, movements, and drama together to create a comprehensive experience. According to Ruth Wilson, “Play in natural environments promotes the holistic development of children as it fosters growth in all of the developmental domains (adaptive, aesthetic, cognitive, communication, sensorimotor, and socioemotional).” (Wilson, 2007, p.6). My experience illustrates this vividly: I developed my deep listening skills, my narrative language, my emotions, and my creativity through a familiar street viewed through an imaginative lens. I now believe children need such a natural space to interact and create. The royal parade I witnessed is an example, without high technology, just deep listening and imagination can turn an everyday street into a magical stage.

This experience brings a sense of joy and freedom, and reminds me of my childhood, when each drop of water was a kingdom, each leaf was a letter from a green tree to me. The important thing is imagination does not need guidance, just space and improvisation. Based on this experience, in my future teaching, I want to create time for my students to listen to nature, listen to themselves and encourage them to describe space through narration, action or role-playing to stimulate their imagination and creativity. For example, I will create opportunities for them to recount their experience of going to school at the beginning of the school day, I will stimulate their imagination by asking: Did the wind say anything to you? Were the cars on the road happy? and so on.

The royal parade I witnessed showed me in every step, every daily sound, there is a hidden story if we know how to stop, listen and imagine. The combination of movement, sound and drama helped me not only see, but also “feel” the world around me. And I believe in early childhood education, nurturing imagination can simply start with the smallest things like a route to school, and an imagination without limits.

TEDx Talk. (2015, November 13). The difference between hearing and listening | Pauline Oliveros | TEDxIndianapolis  [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/_QHfOuRrJB8?si=I3I0583mKIBZjwpJ

Wilson, R. (2007). Nature and Young Children: Encouraging Creative Play and Learning in Natural Environments. Routledge. https://vu.ereserve.vu.edu.au/app/manage/resources/access?item_id=193726&session_public_key=a335109d1abb4dd387b0110267931f26