Monthly Archives: August 2013

Frozen disks of colour

Posted on August 31, 2013 by backyardbooks

The book Designs for Living and Learning has some really cool ideas in it. One (even if I don’t have the photograph) is described in the following blurb: “Children [from Little House for Little People, Spokane, Washington] created …enchanting frozen … Continue reading →

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More notes on play

Posted on August 30, 2013 by backyardbooks

Again, some more quotes from Vivian Gussin Paley on the importance of play: “The children themselves continually reminded us that play was still their most usable context.  It was not the monsters they invented that frightened them in kindergarten; it … Continue reading →

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The child’s ability to play in a sustained manner opens the gates to all other pathways

Posted on August 29, 2013 by backyardbooks

“Sara Smilansky studied many areas of academic readiness; children are not one-dimensional, nor does their development proceed along a well-defined path.  Everything we add to the mix along with play further advances learning.  Drawing, clay, books, music, games, and dance … Continue reading →

Posted in early years education, Metaphors and Narratives around children and learners, Questions, Understanding Education | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On the Science and Culture of Learning – Kieran Egan

Posted on August 28, 2013 by backyardbooks

According to Kieran Egan, the reason “why so many research findings seem to have had no discernible beneficial impact on education is that most of the research on learning, development, and so on is not about education.” (p.182) Concluding his educational … Continue reading →

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When play is curtailed…

Posted on August 27, 2013 by backyardbooks

Some more comments on imaginary play from Vivian Gussin Paley: “Children are placed in a quandary: When play is curtailed, how are they to confront their fantasy villains? The potential novelists in our midst are endlessly hampered in the name of … Continue reading →

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Play is the model for the life-long practice of trying out new ideas

Posted on August 26, 2013 by backyardbooks

Vivian Gussin Paley writes: “From the earliest ‘pretend I’m the mama and you’re the baby,’ play is the model for the life-long practice of trying out new ideas.  Pretending is the most open-ended of all activities, providing the opportunity to escape … Continue reading →

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Herbert Spencer – according to Kieran Egan

Posted on August 24, 2013 by backyardbooks

“Men dress their children’s minds as they do their bodies, in the prevailing fashion” ~ Herbert Spencer, 1928 Explaining Herbert Spencer’s influence on education over the last century, Kieran Egan writes: “Although John Dewey’s educational ideas are widely known today, … Continue reading →

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Progressivism and ‘getting it wrong’ in the history of Education

Posted on August 23, 2013 by backyardbooks

Introducing his Getting it Wrong From the Beginning: Our Progressivist Inheritance from Herbert Spencer, John Dewey, and Jean Piaget (2002), Kieran Egan writes: “During the late nineteenth century, the modern apparatus for schooling everyone was put in place. [This book is about…] the … Continue reading →

Posted in Images of Parent Child and Expert, Metaphors and Narratives around children and learners, Understanding Education | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On being a mathematician and telling good math stories

Posted on August 22, 2013 by backyardbooks

George Gadanidis writes: “Looking in the mirror of society to explain why children cannot be (or would not want to be) mathematicians, we might see two unflattering images: “math sucks” and mathematicians are geeks”. Of course, mathematics is beautiful and mathematicians are … Continue reading →

Posted in Metaphors and Narratives around children and learners, Teaching excellence, Understanding Education, Understanding numeracy | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

wonderfully imaginative maths educationist, George Gadanidis

Posted on August 21, 2013 by backyardbooks

I just had this “wonderfully imaginative maths educationist, George Gadanidis” recommended to me – apparently he makes use of both narrative and metaphor in primary maths education. His website is certainly full of material… http://www.joyofx.com/ In his article, I Heard … Continue reading →

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