The Red Shed - Autumn
Crushing egg shells, crunchy leaves, Easter & welcoming cooler days
These posts document my teaching adventures starting up a Reggio-inspired school in my farm shed in January 2023. I’ll share more about how all this came about soon, but in the mean time, I hope you enjoy these moments & learnings.
March in South Africa is when we start to welcome in the (slightly) cooler mornings that lead to Autumn. It’s also when the Cosmos is in full flower, and my own children know that that means the Easter Bunny will be here soon! We’ve got some lovely trees that change colour right by our school, and so I took the kids out eagerly start collecting crunchy leaves to play with. I also pulled out the craft goodies (along with ALL the beans that the kiddies love to collect from the Food Forest) and I let the kids go wild gluing and decorating their gorgeous leaf collection. I also collected some of the blooms in my garden for a frozen egg activity that my own 3 kiddies loved doing when they were smaller.
I also wanted to make a nice Autumnal ‘gallery’ type wall of all their crafts over the weeks so we set out to decorate some big sheets of newsprint paper. During one of our snack times I read everyone a sweet little book on the changing seasons so I could elicit some of the important vocabulary (and also to bring attention to the colours that usually accompany this season). We did some marble painting (this was my first time trying out this activity and I used a large flattish box with the paper sort of folded to fit…but I’ve since found some great plastic trays that work far better…click here for a full explanation in another post).
Another REALLY fun activity is shadow play with an overhead projector. I love seeing how this draws in different children, and if you set it up for a nice chunk of time and leave it (safetly) to be played with and explored by the kids, you will be rewarded with wonderful creative stories as they play with different objects and textures to see what sort of shadow they produce on the walls. In the Reggio Emilia approach (which is what my school is modeled on), light and shadow play is a powerful tool for exploration and learning. There are so many deeper connections and moments of learning that take place in the seemingly simple tasks that happen during ‘free’ play, and this is why I love the Reggio approach so much. Here is some more insight into all that is actually going on in the child’s mind when they are engaging with light and shadows:
“Playing with light and shadows is considered a powerful learning experience that nurtures creativity, exploration, and critical thinking. Here are the key benefits:
Stimulates Curiosity and Inquiry: Light and shadow play encourages children to ask questions, make predictions, and explore cause-and-effect relationships—central to the Reggio emphasis on inquiry-based learning.
Supports Sensory and Cognitive Development: Engaging with light and shadow enhances visual perception, spatial awareness, and an understanding of abstract concepts such as transparency, reflection, and transformation.
Encourages Creative Expression: Children use light and shadow as expressive mediums, often integrating storytelling, dramatic play, or visual arts. This aligns with the Reggio principle of “the hundred languages of children,” which values diverse forms of expression.
Promotes Collaborative Learning: Activities with overhead projectors, torches, or natural light often invite group interaction, fostering communication, cooperation, and shared problem-solving.
Connects to Nature and Environment: Reggio Emilia values the learning environment as the “third teacher.” Playing with natural light helps children become more attuned to their surroundings and seasonal changes.
Integrates Multiple Domains of Learning: Light and shadow experiences touch on science (physics of light), math (shapes, sizes, symmetry), literacy (storytelling through shadow puppets), and art (shadow tracing or installation work)” Prodigy Early Learning
For the Frozen Flower Egg activity, all you need are some (mostly intact) eggs shells and little flowers, petals and leaves. Simply fill up the egg shells with your pretty floral things and then fill them up with water and place in the freezer overnight. I gave each child an egg box and 6 eggs to fill.
