I was sorting through some files of pictures today when I came across this series of pictures from earlier in the year. I really like that you can see the thought processes that this group of 3 and 4 year olds are working through.
First one boys tries to lift a log, and finding it too heavy calls his best friend over to help him. They involve a growing group of willing helpers but are still unable to move the big heavy log. Another boy who had been on the peripheries of the action comes over with a thinner but still long log which they carry together.
What I really like about this series is not just the story it tells of co-operation, problem solving, friendships and camaraderie. But it reminds me how, when I am working outdoors with a group of children that there are three initiators of activity. I will often be the one to introduce and idea, or a springboard for action. Sometimes the children lead the direction and I follow on. But the third initiator, the one that both the children and I take our inspirations from, is the affordance offered by the environment we are in.
Once you accept the invitation the adventure can begin.
When you start looking around, the invitations are everywhere…
