Storytelling, The Forever Story
The class journal, “The Forever Story” is amazing from the first page to the last. It’s so interesting to read how the children embraced this method of collective story telling and offered their own, unique and lovely additions to a story that goes on forever.
Children's Community
For children, decision-making is sometimes really overwhelming. Often what we think are small or easily made decisions are too much for little ones. How wonderful is it for children to find themselves in a community of other children, who get that and will help each other out when they need it?
Storytellers
Children are natural storytellers, and during play, one child doesn't carry the burden that might come with "writer's block." The play brings the story and each voice adds a layer. "Pretend I am" and "Pretend we are" layer upon layer as each "and then. . ." gets added until the story flows.
Sense of Place
The "Blue House at the Edge of the Forest" site was not selected because it featured opportunities for nature study. It held no plans for literacy, math, or science activities. It was not a classroom moved outside into the forest and yet it is very much in line with what we do every day at our school. The school is designed around destinations and the forest site was chosen because it offered multiple zones for play, because play is what we are after!
What is Dramatic Play?
We take a sharp departure from community helper, teacher-shaped delivery and packaged dramatic play -- that is not the scaffolding we are looking for -- and this departure takes us down a path that is not always a sunny, little place of a brick-solid house with garden. Mostly, our dramatic play is built of sticks and how fabulous is it when it holds? And falls?!?