There was a small group of children in the home corner. They had been busy there for quite some time, so I decided to sit with them and join in their play... ya know "Scaffold", "extend the play", "Make sense of what they know".
Little did I know I was about to completely destroy the play (AKA - F'd play up)
I sat down and said "What's for dinner? I'm so hungry".
They paused, looked at each other and without saying a single word, stood up and exited home corner.
There I was, sitting at the table, completely "lonely", "hungry" and perplexed about what had happened.
By joining the children in the home corner, I had immediately steered the play towards my own agenda by asking about dinner, I had unintentionally disrupted the flow of their play. Destroyed their play, creativity, imagination, role play, play themes, their chosen connections, and their whole play world.
This was a very unintended consequence that made imprints on my heart and my mind.
Message from now Tara to my 17-year-old self:
Tara, be gentle on your journey of developing your pedagogical style, but be open to deep listening, reading, learning, actively doing and reflect on your practices.
Through reflection, we can remind ourselves as educators, to approach children's play with sensitivity and mindfulness, recognising it as a valuable space for exploration, learning, and development. It highlights the importance of allowing children the autonomy to drive their play experiences while educators act as facilitators and supporters (when invited by children and through being attuned and responsive to noticings) rather than imposing our own agendas and adult lens into the play.
Throughout the years you will be reminded of the profound impact educators can have on children's play experiences and the responsibility that comes with nurturing and safeguarding this essential aspect of childhood.
Listen to your heart, have faith in your instincts (especially when actions diverge from core values and beliefs), gracefully adapt practices to create transformative change and always remember to...
✨ Protect children's play with everything that you've got ✨
💖 Tara