Reflections written by artist Kirsty Claxton
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| © Chris Wilkins Photography |
Tuesday 09 July
Making maps with the children the teachers work with small groups and have discussions about the outside environment, what the children remember of the outside area. Together they plot it, adding familiar landmarks made up of where they remember certain things happening and what is important to them (see photographs). When the children have gone home, the teachers place the resources and materials that we are going to use the next day in different areas of the playground. They then record these by adding pictures on the maps, creating a key.
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| © Chris Wilkins Photography |
Tuesday 09 & Wednesday 10 July
We revisit the maps before heading out into the playground. At first the children approach the playground like some sort treasure hunt or detectives before beginning their work which extends from previous sessions – the schema are very strong, enclosing, wrapping, creating boundaries, enveloping themselves together or cordoning areas to shut other people out, even creating an exclusive space to sit and have snack time. I can’t help thinking of Brexit or Trump or of the invisible wall of power that me and Simon, the Head have discussed happening within St Philips neighbourhood in its redevelopment. Are these primal behaviours. The children use materials to track their explorations we can follow their journeys as they leave a trail of high viz netting twine wherever they go. We can see how they seem to uncover every area of their space. How do the children make themselves visible? We are enabled to see how they make themselves visible. How do they use and occupy space? They are mapping it out for us.
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| © Chris Wilkins Photography |
In our discussion of What is a plan? and what does the concept of planning mean when you are 3 or 4 years old, am struck by how the children, like artists don’t have an overt plan. They are led by the materials, and if something doesn’t ‘work’ they adapt, if they uncover something exciting the plan changes. Occasionally someone gets in the way, the children find various ways of dealing with this, some more carefully negotiated and some requiring a more conflict resolution intervention. How do town planners adapt?
In the afternoon, Kim and I reflect with a small group of children and a limited selection of materials. We revisit the maps. What would they do in their playground, what do they want to put in it or change in it? Led by materials there is talk of a boat, Making a boat, a plan. What is a plan to a 3 or 4year old?
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| © Chris Wilkins Photography |
The children plan to build a boat. They give me instructions of what resources they need. ‘Resources’ has become part of their vocabulary – they use it to describe the things they need to do stuff.
I arrive on Wednesday with resources but best laid plans…really the children want to take the materials off in their own directions. Some of them want to stay with the plan and some of them have other ideas. There is a discussion about what is real and what is pretend. The boat evolves into a new plan, to make a river in the playground. Where has this come from? Earlier some of the children had been unrolling fire hose from Scrap-store and piping water across the playground. The Nursery and St Philips is by the river. Bristol is the river.
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| © Chris Wilkins Photography |
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