An inquiry into Sound Art with Materials by Jaclyn Hi

hijaclyn — 2023-03-09 16:27:42 UTC

'Sound art is any artwork that makes use of the idea of sound, the experience or perception of sound, the physical effect of sound, or the residual traces of sonic activity as its primary material and does not fit squarely within the confines and traditions of existing artistic genres' (Holmes 2022, p. 1).

Sound is latent in everyday life. Sounds of people, of animals, of nature, of things. We have connections to the sound we hear and we can visualise sound when we listen. Sound creates the environment. Our perception of an encounter changes with sound, our emotions and our experiences can be affected by sound.

Additionally, 'materials can evoke memories, narrate stories, invite actions, and communicate ideas' (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al. 2016). When engaged with materials, we become provoked by their potential to prompt questions and ideas.

Hence, I want to discover how the connection between the visual and the audible can create new meaning with materials and how these experiences can be explored in the early childhood setting to build rich, multidisciplinary learning for children.

Here, I will use paper, charcoal, paint, blocks, light and nature as artefacts for my exploration, where sound is incorporated in the abstract or as part of the experiment.

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INTRODUCTION

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ARTEFACT : PAPER

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Discussion

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Paper - a product made from trees is often used to carry messages, drawings and stories. However, to know paper is to learn how it moves and changes when interacted with. When connected to paper, we are moved by its movement and then prompted by its liveness to act on our thinking resulting in a continuous motion that creates new ways of knowing and being (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al. 2016).

As educators, we need to set aside our assumptions and let children play and explore, ask questions, and think about possibilities in continuance. Children will create their unique learning journey and immerse in the experience to find meaning that connects them with the world.

Implications for practice

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To explore sound and paper with children. I will set up an area with a collection of used papers. A clear box with different paper ball sizes in it. Also, an open box for children to explore. Children can choose to make different sizes and amounts of paper balls to drop into the empty box. Children can also explore the sound of the box with the paper balls by shaking it or comparing it with the sound box they made.

Through sound and explorations with paper ball sizes, children can learn about simple scientific and mathematical concepts such as force and motion, quantity, number and weight, 'which supports children in learning problem solving, creative thinking, investigation skills and design' (Holdom 2018).

Exploration

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I was inspired by the sound of moving trees in my neighbour's garden and wanted to explore the sound of moving paper. Prompted by curiosity to hear what different paper size sounds like, I tear paper into various sizes and make paper balls from big to small. Dropping them individually, they sounded like different pebbles when I closed my eyes and listened. I was surprised by how I related the paper to other objects and makes me think about how materials become a vehicle for encounters and make meaning.

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ARTEFACT : CHARCOAL

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Exploration

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The last time I made charcoal was when my family went camping in the Grampians during the school holidays. Thinking back, I remember the smell of campfire and firewood's sound. Charcoal always brings back fun memories. Now at home, the only charcoal I have is for backyard barbecues. I want to know what this charcoal would sound like and if I can make new memories with it. I did not mind that my fingers were all black with charcoal. I just wanted to rub my hands all over the paper and feel the grains of charcoal. I was satisfied with the crunching and scraping sounds. Looking at the paper with all the blackness, it now holds my memories of the sound of charcoal.

Discussion

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Charcoal is a tool for not just drawing. It is embedded with life and history before and leaves traces after it, marking everything it touches. It is expressive and an object for encounters where charcoal meets the other in unexpected ways. In encounters, we become aware of the in-between and the relations between things and pay attention to what is around us (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al. 2016).

As educators, we need to let go of our previous understandings and expectations of a predetermined outcome, and be open to new concepts and creative thoughts. Through openness, we can listen and attend to the voice of children and respond to what is emerging responsibly.

Implications for practice

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To explore sound and charcoal. I will set up a mindfulness drawing session with the children. I will ask them to think about their feeling. When are they happy, excited, sad and angry, and express it on paper. They will be provided with charcoal and children can listen to their creations as they draw their emotions on the paper. Children can share thoughts of their drawings when done.

Drawing supports children's language and literacy learning. 'Drawing provides children with their first means of making a permanent, tangible, concrete, and communicable record of their ideas' (Brooks 2017, p.25). It is a tool for creating meaning when used collaboratively and communicatively and also develops emergent literacy skills like fine motor and early writing attempts (DET 2019).

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ARTEFACT : PAINT

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Exploration

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It was sunny, and I wanted to have fun outside before the months got colder. I was thinking about summer, water fights, and the sound of water splashing. I want to recreate the sound of summer with paint. I made some water paint balloons, sponges, and brushes and threw them onto the paper. Anticipation was the only word I could use to describe how I felt, not knowing where my "bombs" would land, holding my breath wildly when I threw the water paint balloon and relief it splashed on the paper and not on myself or the driveway. The splash is my favourite sound. Covered in blue paint, I wish I did not run out of paint balloons.

Discussion

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Paint invites a coming together of bodies to collaborate, cooperate, interact, and interfere with each other. Paint helps us realise our creative potential and extend on discoveries that emerge. It is something to think with and an assembly 'of "human-nonhuman working groups" where each element is in relationship with the others' (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al. 2016).

Educators can improvise and be active innovators and creators to provide children with an experience that opens for experiments from curiosity to investigate and make sense of the world around them. We can also provide opportunities for children to practice their skills in various ways to strengthen their learning.

Implications for practice

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To explore sound and paint. I will set up the activity outdoors. On the ground will be laid with a long roll of paper. Water-paint balloons of various colours will be prepared. Children will be asked to line up and pick a balloon to throw on one end of the paper, and move to the other end and repeat in turns. We can ask children where they think their paint will land. We can also ask the other children to close their eyes to listen and guess where the paint landed.

'Outdoor play promotes children’s physical and cognitive development and their ability to assess risk' (VEYLDF 2016). Through physical activity, 'children develops spatial awareness, and the ability to move around their environment confidently and safely which is known to positively influence the development of their mathematical capabilities' (VEYLDF 2016).

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ARTEFACT : BLOCKS

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Exploration

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Feeling inspired after watching Wintergatan's Marble Machine, I wondered if I could create something like that with blocks. I decided to gather all the rectangle pieces I could find from the toybox as I remembered making the domino effect as a child and wanted to try it. I wondered what they would sound like on different surfaces or what about if I arranged them a certain way. Setting up each block took patience as they kept falling over, and it took some time to get the angles right. The blocks create a new pattern and sound every time it falls over, which is mesmerising to watch and hear.

Discussion

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Blocks carry a journey of past and present in time, where time is an active and dynamic participant that moves and stays with us. Blocks possessed particular stability, and their movements were structured. It provoked us to engage with everything each moment entails in its entanglements. By becoming immersed in moments, we are open to what these moments might bring (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al. 2016).

As educators, we need to be present with the children in their learning and make observations of moments, and we can support children's learning through scaffolding when such moments emerge.

Implications for practice

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To explore sound and block. I will set up the blocks on surfaces such as carpet, grass, table, rubber mat etc. Children can choose the surface they want and build their structure as high as possible. Giving them opportunity to collaborate with each other and negotiate on who gets to knock it over.

'Block play is multimodal and can allow children to experiment with materials to represent the world in many forms of literacy' (Cohen 2011). Children form representations of verbal and non-verbal meanings in a symbolic structure using their imagination or real-world objects. Children also use language skills when they talk among themselves during play (Cohan 2011).

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ARTEFACT : LIGHT

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Exploration

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It is raining tonight. I can hear the raindrops hitting the ground and the window outside. I thought about how rain looked like and imagined the clouds, the water droplets and the puddles. Rain is one of my favourite ambient sounds and I want to use this sound as my background to explore light. I took out the camping torch and some items I wanted to experiment with and started playing with the objects, trying to see their shadows. Unknowingly, I began creating a scene of the rain, I was connected to the environment. As I listened to the sound of the rain outside while exploring, I was recreating rain inside.

Discussion

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Light reflects off surfaces and casts shadows. It surrounds us, spread around and passes through spaces (Mahshulah et al. 2022). Light is reflection and diffraction. Diffraction encourages change and challenges the fixed concept of emotion and intention as a reflection of self (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al. 2015).

As educators, we need to think about the image of the child and children are capable and competent. We also need to continuously critically reflect on our practice to guide our teaching.

Implications for practice

hijaclyn — 2023-03-12 13:57:38 UTC

To explore sound and light. I will set up a "dark room" in a corner with black curtains enclosing the space and have a projector shine a light against a blank wall. Playing in the background will be different ambient sounds, such as rain, ocean, and rainforest. It is repeated so children can listen to a different sound whenever they enter the space. Some props will also be provided that may or may not relate to the sound. Children are welcome to play freely in this space.

Sociodramatic play allows children to explore and create new worlds. Children can take on roles and act out various scenarios and stories using language and movement (DET 2019).

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ARTEFACT : NATURE

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Exploration

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Being outdoors and with nature has always been a favourite activity of mine. There are so many things I can discover during my walks. I can hear the birds chirping, the leaves crunching as I walk, and the trees rustling in the background whenever the wind picks up. I want to explore the sound of nature. I pick up some sticks and tap them together. Then I noticed a tree stump. What if I hit that stump? What about rocks? I cannot see any. Can I find some in the ground? That tree trunk looks interesting. If I scrap it with the fallen bark, what will I hear? I made music with my instruments as I continued to explore nature.

Discussion

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Nature is the teacher. It is where entanglements occur, and we learn with and from them. It teaches us about 'ourselves as being a part of and dependent upon something greater than ourselves' (Wilson 2018, p. 3). When we listen deeply, we 'connect with the acoustic environment, all that inhabits it, and all that there is' (The Center for Deep Listening 2021). We learn to pay attention to the environment and what is in it through nature.

As educators, we need to set up an environment that invites and sustains active investigation and also provides children with materials after thoughtful consideration to encourage dramatic play, construction projects, active exploration, and artistic expression.

Implications for practice

hijaclyn — 2023-03-12 14:04:08 UTC

To explore sound and nature. I will like to take the children on a place-though walk in the park. The children will be asked to listen to the environment and talk about what they hear. Afterwards, they can explore the place and gather loose parts that interest them in making their sound instrument. Sitting back together, we look at what they got and ask them to make any sound they like with it. I will ask the children if they want to make a little ensemble together, and we can create some music.

Nature walk and deliberately noticing things encourages children to observe with all their senses. Children can learn to focus their attention and take in the details of things around them (raisingchildren.net.au 2020). Additionally, music experiences provide numerous opportunities for language learning and self-expression (DET 2019).

CONCLUSION

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Art is a visual discipline that includes dance, drama, music and movement.

Creating art with sound goes beyond that. It is about what you touch and about what you smell. It is about the sidelines, the resonance and the reverberation of sound. It is embedded with histories, memories and stories, and we are embedded in it.

We make meaning through explorations and play, and the materials we encounter prompt our curiosity to investigate and search for continuous learning.

Through art, children communicate thoughts and ideas and explore the world to make meaning. To support children's learning, we need to view them as capable and competent and be open to new discoveries and concepts.

Our practice is guided by critically reflecting on emerging moments in children's learning that will help us to build rich, multidisciplinary learning experiences for children.

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Brooks, M 2017, ‘Drawing to Learn’, in Narey, M (ed.), Multimodal Perspectives of Language, Literacy, and Learning in Early Childhood: Educating the Young Child, Springer International Publishing, Switzerland, pp. 25-44.

Cohen, L & Uhry, J 2011, ‘Naming Block Structures: A Multimodal Approach’, Early Childhood Education Journal, vol. 39, no. 1, pp. 79–87, viewed 10 March 2023, .

Department of Education and Training (DET) 2019, Literacy Teaching Toolkit for early childhood, VIC, Australia, State Government of Victoria, viewed 9 March 2023, <https://www.education.vic.gov.au/childhood/professionals/learning/ecliteracy/Pages/default.aspx>.

Holdom, J 2018, ‘Science, technology, engineering and mathematics learning through the lens of Te whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o Aotearoa: early childhood curriculum’, He Kupu (The Word), vol. 5, no. 3, New Zealand Tertiary College, pp. 1–11, viewed 9 March 2023, <https://www.hekupu.ac.nz/article/science-technology-engineering-and-mathematics-learning-through-lens-te-whariki-he-whariki>.

Holmes, T 2022, Sound Art : Concepts and Practices, Routledge.

Mahshulah, ZA, Syaodih, E & Rachmawati, Y 2020, ‘The ray of light: an activity approach of Reggio Emilia’, The 2nd International Conference on Elementary Education, Department of Early Childhood Education, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, pp. 1–6, viewed 10 March 2023 <http://proceedings.upi.edu/index.php/icee/article/view/687/603>.

REFERENCE

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END

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Pacini-Ketchabaw, V, Kind, S, & Kocher, LLM 2016, Encounters with Materials in Early Childhood Education, Taylor & Francis Group, London.

Pacini-Ketchabaw, V, Nxumalo, F, Kocher, L, Elliot, E, & Sanchez, A 2015, Journeys : Reconceptualizing Early Childhood Practices through Pedagogical Narration, University of Toronto Press Higher Education, Toronto.

raisingchildren.net.au 2020, Noticing nature walk: activity for children 3-6 years, Raising Children Network (Australia) Limited, viewed 11 March 2023, .

The Center for Deep Listening 2021, Deep Listening – The Center For Deep Listening, The Center for Deep Listening, viewed 11 March 2023, <https://www.deeplistening.rpi.edu/deep-listening/>.

Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) 2016, Victorian early years learning and development framework, Department of Education and Training, viewed 10 March 2023, <https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/childhood/providers/edcare/veyldframework.pdf>.