Choose and adjust the theme of nature education with children.
Nature is an inexhaustible educational resource.
First, let it be. There are all kinds of materials in nature, which can greatly meet the needs of children. Different from many manual processing activity materials in modern kindergartens, natural educational materials may not look beautiful, but it is precisely because rough materials keep the original natural appearance as much as possible that children can have full opportunities to try, feel and explore without being limited by materials.
Second, make the best use of everything. The function of the same material is infinite. For example, ice can be used as a way for children to understand the seasonal changes, and it can also be used as a carrier of sensory experience and an operating material to explore melting and solidification ... Leaves, fallen flowers and dead branches can not only be used as decorations for artistic activities, but also become a way for children to understand the size, color, shape and smell, and also bring real opportunities for understanding seasonal changes, plant varieties and experiencing the death and regeneration of life.
The choice of nature education theme needs to follow children, and the unknown nature can bring new discoveries to children. As partners or collaborators, teachers should track children's existing experiences and problems, leave room for their free exploration and activities, and give timely guidance and support.
For example, children in kindergartens show great interest in butterflies in spring, and they can try to carry out thematic activities related to butterflies. Some children meet butterflies in outdoor activities and ask, "What is this?" If you give an accurate answer directly, then the opportunity of education is unfortunately missed. After hearing children's questions, teachers can ask children about their experiences, listen to their thoughts and doubts, and openly discuss with them the growth, flight, species, diet, color of butterflies and their relationship with human life in the following activities. In this way, the purpose of nature education is not limited to letting children know specific scientific facts, but to adjust the theme along the children's problems and exploration clues, so as to promote them to actively gain positive experience and support the development of their curiosity and observation ability.
The nature education that children really participate in is the most effective.
"Participation" refers to real activities, which also conforms to the requirement of "Children's learning is based on direct experience and carried out in games and daily life" in the Guide to Learning and Development for Children Aged 3-6. Children should be freed from indoor and amusement equipment and be free to explore and move in nature. Children in nature will involuntarily explore with their bodies. They can touch the earth, rain, snow and ice, listen to the sound of rain and thunder, and see the colorful scenery all year round. They can walk and jump barefoot on the beach, grass, puddles and mud pits. They can also hide under a pile of fallen leaves, behind blooming flowers, carefully observe the insects on the ground, and concentrate on recording the growth of vegetables and fruits ... Wholehearted investment is to let children truly integrate nature with life and meet nature "vividly".
Being close to nature involves rich activities. Only by sowing, caring, observing, measuring, harvesting, weighing and tasting can we really get close to nature and prevent nature education from becoming a temporary prop for visiting and posing. And the richness of the environment determines the diversity of children's experiences and activities. Therefore, in the planting activities, kindergartens should purposefully plant plants with different colors, types and shapes according to the growth of plants in different seasons, so that children can constantly experience the beauty of nature, release nature and meet the internal needs of spiritual growth. At the same time, in these activities, children should be guided to feel and judge risks, and learn and improve their awareness and ability of self-protection in an uncertain natural environment.
Appropriate natural education content is an organic whole.
For young children, nature should not be just a topic, a kind of knowledge, a stage for a theme course. Maintaining the integrity of content means respecting the undifferentiated nature of children's experiences. We hope that children can get an experience that everything in nature is closely linked and affects the whole body.
For example, children will observe how seeds germinate and grow into their favorite flowers and trees, how the changes of seasons and weather will affect the growth of plants, what changes will be brought to plants by their own actions of sowing, nursing, fertilizing, turning over the soil and harvesting, what wonderful experiences will shade, flowers and green grass add to our lives, and what impact will littering have on the ecology. In this process, children will think about the relationship with nature, learn to adapt to nature, protect their bodies and develop good hygiene habits.
Children are the sons of nature, therefore, in the process of adhering to nature education, we should maintain an appropriate emotional orientation. Nature education in kindergarten is to make use of children's pro-nature, so that they have the opportunity to get close to, understand and feel nature, and establish feelings of loving and cherishing nature. For example, you can't pick flowers and branches at will, protect the habitats of animals and plants, invite insects around you to observe and send them back to nature in time, and don't hurt their lives ... Let children really participate, do some activities to help and care for nature, become a member of nature, and bury the seeds of sincere love for nature in their hearts.
(The author is from the School of Education Science of Nanjing Normal University)
China Education News 2021August 15 Second Edition.
Author: Feng Xuankun