Being inspired by my visit to Navan Park. I set up sound exploration activity with children in my work place. We made different sounds I experienced during my On country visit. I created up a sound investigation with Dily use and natural objects. By shaking plastic bottles filled with stones and bark, rustling dry leaves, and drumming on plastic buckets and metal containers with tree twigs, The children used shaking, rubbing, and tapping to show their curiosity and investigate the unique sounds that each object created.

This hands-on experience reflects Rachel Carson's concept of fostering a sense of wonder in children. He stated keeping this sense of wonder alive, children should have chances to play freely and imaginatively in natural open play spaces that are full of richness and variety. (Carson, 1965, as cited in Wilson, 2018).

 Inspired by my visit to Navan Park, where I saw birds and Ducks gathering excitedly after a little drizzle, I set up a dance experience with the children based on the song "The More We Get Together, the happier we'll be". Children enthusiastically were moving around with their peers expressing their excitement via dancing, using ribbons and musical instruments they expressed their excitement. Their keen engagement expressed a strong sense of connection, joy, and the beauty of being together.

Inspired by my visit to Navan Park, I created a small drama at work place during group time with toy ducklings as puppets. Based on my observation of ducks swimming along the water, I created a simple puppet presentation with the song "Five Little Ducks”. Making my teaching deeply rooted to my land. My storytelling experience with the ducklings revealed a deeper connection to place, inspired by Watts' concept of place-thought and Aboriginal idea of Country. Rather of using nature as an origin, I let the land take control of my story, embracing the belief that land thinks, teaches, and talks.

(Hamm, 2015). Many children excitedly engaged, bringing the ducks to life by song, performing, and pretend play. This interaction allowed them enhance their creativity and connection to nature via storytelling.

Through practical sound exploration intended to promote children's creativity and sensory development.

Children were encouraged to express themselves through music which was aligned with the Reggio Emilia method and its idea of the "hundred languages.

Active listening and imaginative play helped children learn listening skill such as pitch, tempo, and distance. (Edwards,Gandini,Forman ,2011)

They also imagined the sounds and experienced the rhythm using natural materials.

What was as expected-?

Children very highly engaged to the sound exploration experience. Many children were engaged with shakers, particularly the louder, rock filled one instead of the bark filled one. One child was highly engaged tapping pebbles their happy response demonstrated their interest towards sensitivity to natural sound. Children were so fascinated playing with wood stick and Plastic bucket and metal container drum experimenting slow and fast beats. Their keen interest towards this experience demonstrated curiosity, and a developing understanding of the variations in sound in their surroundings.

What didn’t go as expected-

Although the experience was originally intended for a small group of children with parental permission, significant excitement pushed in more children to join. It became challenging to record and photograph the experience, dry leaves which was added to experience rustling sound, some children began making mess.  This slightly chaotic setting diverted attention away from sound exploration. The experience become overwhelming. As I was only educator leading and documenting the activity.

What might I do differently next time?

The next time, I will arrange the experience with more structured groupings and request assistance from another educator for help. I'll also set clear boundaries for children to explore materials like dried leaves in a small group to avoid mess and over stimulation. I’ll split sessions to provide all children more focused attention.

How I’ll use this growth in my future practice:

The experience encouraged me improve my capacity to translate creativity into meaningful, sensory-rich learning experiences. I gained greater understanding of the "hundred languages" idea developed at Reggio Emilia, as well as how music and natural materials create connection. It strengthened my confidence and inspired creative approaches for engaging learning experiences for children.

During my visit to Navan Park, I noticed that, like human beings, birds and animals crave connection and belonging. They enjoy moments, such as singing and dancing. This promoted me to offer dance to children, allowing them to feel the joy of being together. Dance can help children feel more connected. The song "The More We Get Together" effectively expresses this message of harmony. It supports social-emotional development through music, aligning with the idea that planning should reflect children’s developmental stages and musical growth. (Bond, 2015b; Yusof, Tan, and AG, 2019). Children express happiness and emotional connection via dancing.

What went as expected?

Children were completely engaged and happy during the dance session. They eagerly engaged, and the use of musical instruments and ribbons encouraged creativity and self-expression via dance. Their acts demonstrated an understanding of harmony and joy, which mirrored the sense of connectedness I saw in nature. Dancing in a circle while holding hands emphasised the notion of unity and togetherness, as they enjoyed sharing the occasion via dancing.

What didn’t go as expected?

It was difficult for me to keep all of the children interested for the entire 5-6 minutes of the dancing activity, as children easily get distracted. Furthermore, it was after lunch time, some of the children were tired yet unwilling to sleep, making it difficult to concentrate on the group activities. As a result, not all of the children were able to keep up with the rhythm, breaking the dance's flow.

What might you do differently next time?

Next time, I’d set up the activity earlier in the day when children are more refreshed. I’d also include visual prompts like colourful ribbons, more musical instruments, and animal-inspired movements to keep them engaged and maintain the flow of the experience.

How I’ll use this growth in my future practice:

I plan to continue using music and dance to help children connect, have fun, and feel like they belong. I've learnt to plan activities around children attention spans. In the future, I plan to be flexible in designing engaging experiences that encourage emotional expression while keeping children's needs in mind.

I’ve noticed that children become more engaged during group time when visual toys are used in drama experiences. The use of toy ducklings in the "Five Little Ducks" song supported their imagination, symbolic thinking, and love for storytelling. This familiar and well-loved song offered a meaningful way to help children connect with nature and their surroundings. By combining music, visual prompts, and narrative, the experience encouraged a deeper sense of belonging to land and place.

What was as expected?

 Children showed an important interest in the duckling drama experience. As I sang and played out the story, the children excitedly participated, playing with toy ducks and imitating the actions.

Following the story line, a child started singing "Five Cheeky Monkeys," and I joined in. The rest of the group rapidly followed action, naturally expanding the experience. This spontaneous event demonstrated their strong interests in music, acting, and storytelling.

Their passionate participation demonstrated a deep connection to the tale and an ability to express themselves via sound and inventive play. Following the game, children proceeded to mimic animal sounds with one another.

What didn’t go as expected?

Some children who were not interested in participating began making noise in the background, which distracted others in the group. A few were more focused on grabbing the toy ducklings and other items, creating disruption and affecting the rhythm and flow of the activity.

What might you do different next time?

Next time, I would create clear guidelines for participation, such as encouraging children to join the group before grabbing toys. I may introduce the activity gradually, possibly beginning with a brief introduction to the stories and song to create excitement. In addition, I may provide more focused activities for those who aren't interested in the drama, ensuring that everyone stays involved without being distracted. Offering more organised direction

To reduce disruptions.

How I'll use this growth for future practice: 

 I have improved my narrative skills and managed group involvement more successfully. Reflection has helped me identify areas for development in group activity design and facilitation. Moving future, I will provide specific activities for children who may be less interested, ensuring that all children are included and the event runs well.

Hamm, C. (2015). Walking With Place: Storying Reconciliation Pedagogies in Early Childhood Education. https://research.ebsco.com/c/6kr4lr/viewer/pdf/73npiks3mz?route=details

Wilson, R. (2018, April 2). Nature and young children. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/reader/read-online/5096b0f2-e978-444f-80b2-806bd7e3e4a4/book/epub?context=ubx

Yusof, F.B., Tan, AG. (2019). Teaching Music in the Early Childhood Classroom for Convergent Creativity: Views from a Meta-synthesis. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-13-2749-0_18