PAINT EXPLOSION

Using technology can benefit children in a number of ways. Using technology offers children the skills to be able to participate within society as informed citizens. (New Zealand curriculum, 2007). We live in a rapidly interactive media age where technology is a normal part of a growing society where technology is used everywhere for a number of reasons. It has shifted the way we communicate, think, delivers ideas and it has become “the tools of the culture at home, school, work and community”. (Naeyc, n.d.). Technology has become tools for communication, collaboration and how we manage our daily lives.

 

By providing an environment that offers challenges, children can then begin to develop concepts and build their confidence in themselves as capable learners acquiring new skills to solve practical problems.

 

The use of technology is not limited to just electronics, but on the basis that everything that we use is technology. In our centre, the use of technology is by the teachers. We do not have an active computer for the children to use but this can be seen as a teaching opportunity for teachers and children to work together.  This allows opportunities to build relationships and maintain on-going communication between teachers and children.

 

Another piece of technology we use is paint and paint brushes. We use paint as a mean of self- expression for the children. All children have different ways of learning, and painting is a great expression to show who the child is about.  Through painting, children are able to pick up on essential skills such as communication. Children may find painting easy to help communicate ideas and express how they are feeling. Here they are able to document actual experiences. “Art goes beyond verbal language to communicate feelings that might not otherwise be expressed.” (Barnes & Noble. 2013., ¶ 4). 

 

Painting is the process of testing possibilities and experimenting rather than being told what to do. “Art is a process, not a product” (Barnes & Noble. 2013., ¶ 9). Using paint brushes to paint also supports self-control in making the desired mark on the paper; developing their fine motor skills.  In the centre we like to ensure children experience an environment where they can work alongside their peers to socialise and work together. Through painting, children learn to appreciate difference and each other’s work.

 

One activity that we set up was the use of water balloons and paint. We pinned sheets of cardboard paper outside on the fence and filled the water balloons with paint and pinned them to the cardboard. The children then had to use darts and aim to pop the balloons. The children had some challenges throwing the dart, as it was their first time using the darts. It was a good exercise and challenge for children. “Children develop strategies for actively exploring and making sense of the world by using their bodies, including active exploration with all the senses, and the use of tools, materials, and equipment to extend skills”. (Ministry of education, 1996, p. 86). Children had to concentrate on their aim and built on a number of skills such as developing fine motor skills of gripping. Majority of the children needed help in holding the dart the right way to ensure that when they threw it, it wouldn’t go back and hit one of their peers.

Through this activity, tuakana-teina relationships were encouraged where the older children were encouraged to support their younger peers with supervision of the teachers. Some of the children who knew had to hold the dart, showed other children who were unsure.

 

‘’Children’s development occurs through active participation in activities. Collaboration with adults and other children plays a central role in this development” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 64).