Category: Early Learning
Articles on early childhood education
Sustainability and the NQS: program priority or area of focus
Growing gardens, nurturing worm farms, recycling and saving water are all a great start… but let’s ask ourselves, how they are impacting the bigger picture, the outcomes for children and overall community? Sustainability: Program Priority or Area of Focus The real question is what are we hoping to achieve holistically? Growing gardens, nurturing worm farms, recycling and saving water are...
The loud teacher quandary
The Storypark blog shares diverse opinions from educators and parents all over the world. Today our guest opinion piece is from the author of ‘Uplifting Early Childhood‘. What are your thoughts? Share them below in the comments, we’d love to hear from you! The loud teacher quandary… When I began my journey in early childhood education and care, I had...
Imagine a classroom without walls – video
3 and 4 year olds can climb mountains! I know this, because I went up a mountain recently with some very capable young children. They trekked for over 2 hours to get to the top of Mount Kau Kau, one of the great walks in Wellington, New Zealand. This excursion was part of the Nature Explore component of Daisies Early...
How imaginative play helps children learn
Many of the memories I have of my childhood include my two older sisters, who are close in age to me, and we played together often. On weekends and school holidays we would distract ourselves for hours, often outside on the small farm we grew up on – climbing old water tanks or spending hours in the cattle yards, pretending...
Children and technology
The use of technology by children has changed rapidly in a short period of time. Many children as young as 3 years own their own devices, but how are they using this technology and what sort of learning is happening with it? Watch this interview with researcher Dr Joanne Orlando about how children are actually using technology at home, and...
Art explorations for early learners
Art is often about the process, rather than the product – which is particularly important to remember when doing art activities with young children. As early childhood educators, we’re all familiar with the idea that if the end products all look identical, there probably hasn’t been much learning, creativity or imagination taking place. Pre K + K Sharing put it...
The workout for children: A different kind of Village
Our latest guest post is from Beth Clements from Affinity Education Group in Australia. Beth is a passionate educator who works as a consultant in the Early Years framework with a mission to empower educators to change the lives of children one connection at a time. A child arrives into this world with knowledge and capabilities, they are wired to...
More exciting science activities for young children
Our team of early childhood educators have created a new range of DIY science activities for you to try with your children, at home or in your centre. For more early learning inspiration, subscribe to the Storypark YouTube channel <=
The Golden Gift – Marte Meo at home
Dutch born, Maria Aarts, studied parent-child interactions for 40 years across varies countries and cultures. She recognised the difficulties in explaining scientific observations of a child’s problems to parents and other educators and in turn developed ‘Marte Meo‘. Marte Meo means ‘One’s own strength’ and is a method which is widely used in 43 countries. It gives parents and caregivers information that’s not only...
Helping Children to Identify and Manage their Feelings
How do we raise children to be empathic human beings? One of the biggest challenges faced by those working in early childhood care and education services is managing the behaviour and emotions of young children. “Brain research studies have shown us that when we try to use distraction, punishment or logic with children to help them calm down then they...