Materials Matter

04/15/2019

The moments of happiness we enjoy take us by surprise. It is not that we seize them, but that they seize us.
Ashley Montagu

"Who would have thought that exchanges between four-year-olds and simple plastic cups would result in such intricate, creative building designs?" ask Bridgette Towle and Angela Heape, authors of the book, Cup. The authors describe how the project helped them think more deeply about the importance of the materials that early childhood educators make available for children to explore. In their words:

"The 'cup craze' was affecting us as much as the children. As we listened, observed, and participated in the unfolding events, our sensitivity to the force of materials as agents in the children's creative learning processes was being activated and enlivened...we offered them additional materials and objects to experiment with, including fabrics, numbers and loose parts such as sticks and cardboard tubes...We thought carefully about how we could provoke new threads of thinking and creative possibilities."

Zaentz Professional Learning Academy - Professional Development Designed for Early Education Leaders.

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