Selling our Kids Short: Educating the Disadvantaged

This is a topic that has been around since I was a teacher many years ago. How do we support and help children who are disadvantaged to learn and flourish? The challenge is close to my heart, for I was one of those children. Born with a father who was a coal miner, as was his father, grandfather and great grandfather. Before that my family was growing potatoes in Ireland.

There were nine boys in my father's family, and when they came to Australia in 1922 they were all highly literate. They were all readers, performed reasonably well at school and went on to become leaders of a movement seeking to support and promote the needs of the worker, by helping to build strong unions. Two built the nation's largest poultry farm. How were a bunch of mine workers whose ancestors struggled, and lived in a two room miner's cottage with only shared a outside pit toilet and washroom able to do these things (my Father's town below). 

           Above: Main street of Caldercruix (Scotland)

Beyond the amazing resilience of the miners and their families, there was a strong commitment in Scotland to school education. In the late 18th and early 19th Century the government set out to educate the poor. Its public education system was a leader around the world. What about today? How well do our public systems compare today?

Why was their education so good?

I discovered an old post that I didn't quite finish back in 2011! In it I reported the comments of Alfie Kohn titled "Poor Teaching for Poor Children". The following snatch from it is still very current:

"Love them or hate them, the proposals collectively known as 'school reform' are mostly top-down policies ... pitting states against one another in a race for federal education dollars...  offering rewards when test scores go up ... firing the teachers or closing the schools when they don’t."

I hear many echoes of this today. Alfie Kohn continues:

"Policy makers and the general public have paid much less attention to what happens inside classrooms - the particulars of teaching and learning - especially in low-income neighborhoods."

 

Education Week was held just three weeks ago in NSW. We put our best face forward for the general public, and rightly celebrated all the good things about our schools and our teachers. What we didn't hear much of were the inner groans of our teachers, who find it hard to teach the way many would like to, due to the pressure politically to ensure children do well on public testing published for all to see. Every time, bureaucrats and governments groan about "falling standards", we are back on a familiar merry go round.

 

Meanwhile, how are our teachers using their time?

 

In Australia, our teachers are typically buried in paperwork, helping their students prepare for public testing (national and state), ticking boxes, writing reports etc. Where is the time to prepare the lessons they might plan, and the opportunities to form creative young people to become the leaders of tomorrow?

 

As a young teacher, in my first appointment in a difficult community in Western Sydney in the 1970s, this wasn't the case. I found myself with primary school classes of 30-36 students with mixed ability students. No classes were graded. What to do? Thankfully, we were not hounded to teach to the test. So my plan was to work hard to excite my students about learning, to get them to enjoy school and be challenged. Along the way, I still taught them the basic skills for life. Yes, reading, writing, mathematics, knowledge of the world etc.

Above: My first class

But I had a fair degree of autonomy to vary my routine when something exciting happened. These opportunities occurred often in my classrooms with questions and comments like "I don't get it", "Sir, did you know that...", "have you ever seen a Wedge Tailed eagle" and so on. I had the chance to follow some of these interests and questions, and be creative myself. I wrote a book over 30 years ago in which I shared some of my ideas and strategies for making literature and reading exciting. 'Other Worlds, the Endless Possibilities of Reading'. You might still find a copy on Amazon.

 

For example, one day on my way to school, I saw an old 1930s gramophone on the footpath, being tossed out. I asked the owner could I have it, he said yes! I jostled it into the back of my car and took it to school. With the help of another teacher we carried it to my room. I just sat it at the front of the room. As the children arrived, they saw it and questioned, "what's that Sir?" I asked them to tell me.

 

Above: Gramaphone restored

One child finally recognized it; there was one in his grandfather's garage. He went home for lunch and brought back some old 78 Bakelite records. I set aside most of the day to help them find out more about it. We played the records, discussed the differences between the player and the records. We then spent the rest of the day in varied exploration, drawing, writing, researching etc. Sadly, this type of spontaneous activity is hardly possible today. Paperwork, reporting and preparation for public exams take up far too much of teachers' time (not by choice).

 

Finding ways to break this cycle

 

The life of the teacher has been discouraging for quite some time in Australia. Things seem to be getting worse as a direct result of the “reform” and strategies pursued by governments in most countries. Most are promoting getting back to skills, 'the basics', testing students and schools against the standards of other unlike groups. Sadly, such reforms are cheered on by education departments, many parents and journalists.

 

 

It's hard to see how we change things, but we need to look for opportunities. I am so happy that during 'Book Week' in Australia this month, we can return (in a sense) to celebrating and enjoying learning with a creative focus on literature. We can try to recapture the joy, and challenge of education which can occur by reading for pleasure and enjoyment. No test afterwards, just the joy of reading, responding to it, sharing it with friends and so on. 

 

One of our key performance goals in schools, should always be to influence our students to become avid readers. That was something the Scottish system in the 18th and 19th centuries understood. We need to recapture this in Australian schools, and work to enable our students to explore, enjoy and perhaps even write inspired by literature. I'll write a post on our award winning children's books when they are announced next week.

The last word

Alfie Kohn's thoughts helped frame this post. He offered good insights from varied educators and scholars, including Deborah Meier. I'll let this educator and author who founded extraordinary schools in New York and Boston have the last word:

 

"...The very idea of 'school' has radically different meanings for middle-class kids, who are “expected to have opinions,” and poor kids, who are expected to do what they’re told. Schools for the well-off are about inquiry and choices; schools for the poor are about drills and compliance. The two types of institutions barely have any connection to each other".

How can we work to achieve this in our varied countries? I can't say I recognize it in many schools. Do we just keep enduring the stress on skills and testing, or in the interest of our children's education, will we take a stand to see some changes made?

I may offer a second post on this in the future.

 

Above: One of my early primary school classes (41 students)

What is Mindfulness? Avoiding the Temptation to Overthink and Overreach

The term 'Mindfulness' is used frequently, but what does it mean? And how can teachers and parents benefit from understanding what it is? Dr Stephen McKenzie and Angela North have co-written an interesting book titled 'Mindfulness at Play' (Exisle Publishing, 2023).

This is timely because unpacking what 'Mindfulness' is can be confusing. It seems while many teachers talk about mindfulness, each does it for different reasons, and with different understandings of what it is, and how it helps. The concept can become distorted as teachers seek to manage their students.

Ask a group of teachers what mindfulness is and I suspect you will be given a number of different answers. Ask the same people why they believe in it, and again you will hear different responses. Even within this book, the two authors who contribute separate named author chapters, adopt slightly different approaches and emphases to one another. And I should say up front, I adopt a slightly different view in places to one or both authors.

The need to remove distractions

In chapter 1 Stephen McKenzie defines Mindfulness as a "state of simply being fully focussed on whatever we are doing". In other words, screening out distractions and "paying attention". But something which in essence is very simple, can become somewhat messier when people begin to try and overlay different philosophies and even faiths. I agree with the general position he adopts.

 

Removing distractions in life will always help people to focus, concentrate on tasks at hand, and pay attention. The great challenge we have though as teachers and parents, is the world is filled with constant distractions, which can quickly divert our attention. A book could be written on this alone!

For example, how many of us can allow messages to lay untouched on our phones, as they constantly invite us to check them? Or how often can WE sit still in contemplation and notice the world around us? I walk everyday along a beautiful river near my home, usually with my wife, but sometimes alone, or I ride my bike instead. You'd be amazed how often I see people walking through the beauty of the world in conversation on their phones. I see one young man every day, who doesn't speak or even look up! He is reading and searching with his eyes never leaving the phone screen; he is 'glued' to it. I have never seen him look up to see the sky, look at the water, hear and look at the birds everywhere, or the stunning sunsets. It amazes me that he hasn't run into something. 

How might parents and teachers respond to such distraction?

There is much good advice in McKenzie and North's book, but I'd urge you NOT to over complicate the concept. Avoid linking it to philosophies and faiths to prescribe what it is. Buddhism and Hinduism are often linked to mindfulness, but I'd encourage teachers to avoid weaving aspects of separate faiths into your desire to increase mindfulness in your students. 

Of course, if you are a teacher in a faith-based school, then this will influence how you and your students integrate faith with life. But mindfulness has great relevance for all, and need not be connected to religious worldviews to help our students. All teachers need to cultivate the ability to get to know their students on more than just a superficial level. This requires us to give them our attention by observing and listening to them.

 

Young children and teenagers need help in being able to screen out distractions in their world. As a parent, if they come back at you with "but Mum I concentrate on my phone every day", then they're missing the point. Our phones can be used for more than texts and a few favourite sites. We can read novels on devices, learn new things, pursue interests and grow in knowledge. But sitting and reading every aspect of our friends lives, including what they're wearing, seeing, listening to, who is 'hot' and so on, is not 'mindfulness'.

Parents also need to demonstrate to their children what it means to shut out distractions and 'noise' in the world. We need to be examples of how we manage such distractions caused in part by devices like phones. It's more important to help our students to manage time and try to listen better to one another.  

The need for key models and mentors in life

Parents should be the first of many models in children's lives who demonstrate mindfulness. For example, I'd encourage all families to share as many meals as possible together without always having devices next to us, or the television in the background. All of us need models who help to shape what we value and how we negotiate the challenges of life. Angela North makes a great comment about this: 

"We all need just one person in our childhood who truly sees us - so that we feel deeply heard, understood and loved".

Of course, hopefully children will have more than one model, from different parts of their lives. I completed primary school in a family with two alcoholic parents. Not surprisingly, I was in trouble a LOT at school. But in 4th grade I was fortunate to have a teacher who saw beyond the grubby neglected kid, and set out to teach me, care for me, and seek things for me to do that challenged and inspired me. He was one of the people who helped to turn my life around.

 Above: 5th Grade with Mr Campbell (4th from Left back)

As teachers, how well do we know the children we teach? And parents, how well do we know our teenage children? Do we try to spend time with them? Can we have significant undistracted conversations with them? Let's be honest, the problem isn't just simply with our children. We need to work on mindfulness ourselves, while modelling and helping our children early in life (birth to 15+). If we wait till they're 15, I'm afraid it's often too late. Summing up, parents don't forget to examine your own life to consider when you are distracted as well.

A final challenge. What is your role?

I like many of the ideas in 'Mindfulness at Play', but please don't read it simply looking for new strategies to enable you to make teaching easier. Nor skim read it looking for six tips for making tough children more attentive and better behaved. Sure, there are some games that calm children down, or activities to help them focus. But nothing will help us as teachers more than simply knowing every one of our students better. What makes them tick? What do they like or not like? Are there things that excite them, and what are their lives like outside school...? There are many great ideas in the Resources section of 'Mindfulness at Play'. By all means use some of them, but don't use them keep them busy, or make your life easier. Rather, use them as the authors suggest to help your students: 

• Pay attention 

• Increase connection to their world 

• Enjoy time with one another 

Finally, and most important of all, as teachers get to know your students better. What are their dreams, hopes and aspirations? How well do you know them? How can you have an impact on their well being and futures?

 

Three New Picture Books & An Illustrated Junior Novel

This post previews four wonderful picture books and one brilliant Junior Graphic Novel suitable for readers aged 6-8 years by the brilliant Jon Klassen.

1. 'Dads and Dogs', by Mick Elliott

Author illustrator Mick Elliott has produced another engaging picture book for children aged 6-8 years. I love the way Elliott targets the younger end of the range with a very funny book that highlights just how distracted Dads can be when minding a toddler. This isn't a Dad who just takes his toddler out for an afternoon walk down a favourite walkway. No, this type of Dad always attempts to do some other things as well, with some 'interesting' outcomes. Dad can be easily distracted.

There's the 'Coffee Dad' who sits in the sun with his toddler in the pram and while they both snooze, their dog eats the cake he bought at the cafe to go with his coffee. Then there's the 'Dashing Dad' who has to chase the escaping and 'Muddy Dog'. The 'Bikie Dad' takes his daughter and their dog in the sidecar. And what could possibly go wrong if Dad paints with the 'help' of his daughter and the dog. But there's more.... This is a very funny book.

2. 'A Boy, His Dog And The Sea', by Anthony Browne

Dogs also make an appearance in Anthony Browne's wonderful new picture book 'A Boy, His Dog and the Sea'. Young readers will love Scruff.

This is a poignant picture book about a boy and his dog finding adventure where they least expect it. Anthony Browne is the acclaimed Kate Greenaway and medal-winning author-illustrator and former Children's Laureate. The British Sunday Times review says of the book:

“As is usual with Browne, the scene expresses the mood. Painstaking artwork conjures the wide sea, while faces are hinted at in beach huts and pebbles. Misunderstanding and suspense lead to a happy, heroic rescue.”

The images of faces hinted at in the stones are interesting. Kids will have fun looking and searching them, as well as a few in the clouds. But how the images reinforce the central message of the narrative, wasn't clear to me, but it is intriguing? It reminded me of fun collecting fragments of old glass on pebbled beaches with my children along English seashores; perhaps the stones will have that same impact. 

3. 'The Wheelbarrow Express', by Sue Whiting & Illustrated by Cate James

The Wheelbarrow Express is a lovely story that every child close to their grandparents will understand. After a stay with Grandparents and the inevitable fun you have, going back to normal life is difficult. The love of a grandparent for their grandchildren is typically unconditional and without the demands of everyday parenting. I remember well how every holidays when I left my grandparents how sad and empty I felt. Back to my home with lots of rules, school and more.

It’s Tommy’s last day at Pa’s farm and it’s time to say goodbye. Tommy doesn’t want to go. Not yet. He loves the farm and its playful pigs and clucking chickens and galloping goats and the dam that is deep and blue and perfect for skimming stones. And he loves Pa.

Like any besotted grandparent (and speaking from experience), there is always time for "...one last run on the wheelbarrow express." And I thought only I had one of these!

There isn't much that can compare with a holiday on the farm with Grandparents who love you. Such a lovely story and Cate James' wonderful sensitive and loving illustrations, help to bring out the emotions of the story. A beautiful example of text and illustrations in perfect union. Bravo!

4. 'The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale' by Jon Klassen

In this post, I find myself in the unfortunate position of being a little equivocal with one of my favourite Author/Illustrators. Jon Klassen, has received every award and honour imaginable. The art is stunning as usual, and the text is so well supported by the illustrations. 

The plot is simple. A small child called Otilla is running through a dark forest at night, and hears her name being called by a strange voice in an abandoned house. She knocks at the door and calls out "Hello" and the reply "Hello" comes back. It comes from a window. A skull was looking at her. It shows her around the house and a series of magical things occur. The skull tells how a skeleton comes each night looking for his head. Otilla steps in and destroys the skeleton (in a gruesome way) and lives 'happily ever after' with the skull.

I struggled a little with his re-imagined take on an old Tryolean story or yarn. Klassen takes a child friendly story that in the original was amusing - and yet still a little weird - and turns it into a fairly bleak and potentially disturbing story, especially for children aged 6-8 years.

I enjoyed reading his Author's Note at the end of the book, that explains how his reading of the original stayed with him for a year, and he spent time wondering how he would use it for a picture book. He wrote his version without reference to the original, which he suggests is what happens to Folktales. "They are supposed to be Changed by who is telling, and you never find them the same way twice".

In summary, this is an intriguing book, but I don't think I'd read it to a six-year-old at bedtime. I'm sure if it is used in classrooms with children 7-8 years, there will be an interesting discussion.

 

The 'New York Times' book reviewer Ransom Riggs has no problem with the dark ending and says:

"Folk tales are meant to be flexible things, open-source stories infinitely mouldable to the needs of teller and era." 

Riggs believes the original version has been "marvelously reimagined". I'm interested to hear what teachers and parents think.

Four Special Children's Picture Books

1. 'Harriet's Hungry Worms' by Marcus Pfister (translated by David Henry Willson)

Not everyone likes worms, but after hearing or reading this wonderful 'eco story', children will! They will be pulled along by the clever story line and as they are, they will learn more about these wonderful creatures.

"Harriet’s nine-hundred-and-eighty-three hungry worms live in a shady corner of her backyard in a big, green box. They spend their days munching on anything from Aunt Tilda’s herbal teabags to the sports pages of Uncle Sam’s paper. Harriet watches and waits, eventually deciding the worms are ‘so BORING’. Until one day, the worms leave Harriet a big surprise … worm wee!"

This is another delightful picture book that tells a story while teaching as well. And as a bonus, you get a set of "Worm Facts" at the end. Did you know there are "...around 3500 species of worms in the world"? And did you know that "...worms breath through their skin?" How cool is that.

Readers aged 2-6 will enjoy this great book. Of course, reading to a 2 yr old will be different than to a 6 year old, but it could be just as engaging.

2. 'One Book Was All It Took' by Wenda Shurety & Illustrated by Amy Calautti

Sometimes finding the right book to read on a rainy day can be difficult. But Violet has a special problem. As a keen reader, how can she find a book she hasn't read before? Ordinarily, I'd say the library. But what if you don't have one in your town?

Violet begins a campaign and writes to the mayor to ask him to do something about it. But, "will anyone read it?" she wonders. She becomes desperate for something to read. She spots a book propping up the dining room table. In desperation, she pulls it out from under the leg to read. This starts a chain reaction. When Dad's breakfast crashes to the floor, he knows it's time to act! They head to the Town Hall and the mayor.

Her quest, with her Dad's help leads to an interesting outcome, with twists and turns along the way. The book offers a great insight into how advocacy can lead to action, and sometimes can have great outcomes. A wonderful read-aloud book for children 3-6 years. Children 6-7 years will also enjoy reading it themselves.

3. 'This is My Dad' by Dimity Powell & Illustrated by Nicky Johnston

'This is My Dad' celebrates families of all shapes and sizes in a heartfelt, beautifully illustrated story that parents and carers will love sharing with their children. 

"Leo loved Show and Tell, but when his teacher, Miss Reilly, announced the topic, Leo's tummy belly-flopped."

His classmates can’t wait but all Leo can think is … "how can I celebrate someone I’ve never met?" Leo is an only child who lives with his mother. He has never known his Dad, nor had someone like a Dad in his life. He tries to find out more about his Dad, then decides he already has someone who is VERY special to him. His Mother! He decides to tell them about her. This is a timely book given the diversity of families in children's lives, with 25% of British children living with one parent.

4. 'Violin & Cello' Written by Catherine Greer, Illustrated by Joanna Bartel & music by Alexander Lau

I love this book! 

"In a tall apartment tower two busy families live side by side. A calico cat played on one balcony. A garden grew on the other. Someone played a violin... and someone played a cello. But the musicians never met."

The children can hear each other person playing, but neither knows who it is and what they are like. Till one day, the violinist sends a message by paper airplane. A duet is born from their paper plane exchanges, and one day it is played, each on their own balcony. A crowd gathers in the street to listen and marvel. And from this the mystery friends become real friends.

Award-winning Australian composer, Alexander Lau, composed an original duet for violin and cello, ‘The Mystery Friends’. The score for the allegro and adagio movements are printed in the book. This beautiful composition is simple enough to be played by young cellists and violinists.

What an inspirational idea for a story, but one that offers even more!

 

Five Stunning Picture Books for 2-6 Year Olds

I've just received a batch of 5 stunning picture books that you won't be able to read just once to toddlers, and which readers 5-8 will read again and again.

1. 'Colour Makes the World Go Round' Written & Illustrated by Christopher Nielsen

"Imagine a RAINBOW without colour, or FLAMINGOS, or RED SHOES, what about a ZEBRA? Oh …
Christopher Nielsen invites the reader to imagine a world with colour ... and without. Cleverly juxtaposing illustrations, he shows how colour, in all its variety, is what creates our wonderful world. Deceptively simple, this is a book that can spark discussion about difference and the depth that it creates"

Christopher Nielsen is an Australian author/illustrator. As well as this incredible book, he does many things including, work for Disney/Pixar and Templay/Big Picture Press. His aim as an illustrator is to bring "joy and wonder to children through his art and storytelling". And this is certainly on display in this wonderful children's book. When he’s not busy with a book he can be found raising his beautiful young family or playing with his band The Ramalamas. Yes, this much talent could make us all envious, just enjoy his work and share this book with children.

2. 'Cat's Very Good Day' Written by Kristen Tracy & illustrated by David Small

This is a very funny picture book about a mischievous cat and he spends the day. Kristen Tracey is from an award-winning poet, and illustrator David Small is a Caldecott Medallist.

It's a busy day for Cat, who is living his best life and managing to cause plenty of trouble along the way! After all, he's a mirror attacker and a morning-tea whacker. A potted-plant disaster and an acrobat master. A vacuum avoider and a sofa destroyer.
 
But when thunder and lightning strike he is a VERY different cat. A curled-up scaredy-cat. But when the storm is done he's an "all-night snuggler". 

Kristen Tracy's ingenious verse and David Small's masterfully expressive and uproariously funny artwork capture all the charm and personality of these irresistible fur babies—hairballs and all. Here's the perfect gift for feline lovers of all ages! This book with minimal text will be 'read' by children aged 2-6. And what a great bedtime story.

3. 'The Kindest Red' by S.K.Ali & illustrated by Hatem Aly

 

This is the second book in a series that celebrates the love of family and faith. It tells the story of siblings in a Muslim family and celebrates family, kindness and shared beliefs.

It is the sequel to 'The Proudest Blue' a New York Times Bestseller which explores sisterhood, and kindness, from Olympic medalist Ibtihaj Muhammad. Faizah longs for a world where kindness is passed from one person to another.

When Faizah's teacher asks her class to imagine what kind of world they want to live in Faizah imagines a world where everyone is kind to one another, and tries to create that world in the school playground. But what Faizah wants most is be like her big sister, Asiya. Will Faizah's classmates repay her kindness and find a way for her to match Asiya in time for school photo day?

An important and uplifting story about celebrating each other's differences and similarities.

4. 'Rainbow Fish and the Story Teller' by Marcus Pfister

 

The rainbow fish with its iridescent scales might be the most beautiful fish in the ocean, but he is also very proud and vain. But he doesn't have any friends and is very lonely.

One day he meets Humbert who is - well - different! He makes up lots of tall tales. For example, that there's a plug at the bottom of the ocean, and a blue whale will eat all of their food. Might this impossible pairing lead to a strong friendship? 

Well not at first. Humbert begins to be isolated as the other fish stay away from this tall story teller. One day Red Fin and Rainbow Fish feel sorry for him. Might there be something they could do for him? 

Children will be able to relate to this story. A wonderful read-aloud book for children aged 3-6 years.

This stunningly beautiful book has already won a number of Awards. Read on!

5. 'Ella and the Useless Day' by Meg McKinlay & illustrated by Karen Blair

This is a delightful children's book that demonstrates how often one person's trash is another person's treasure. Any of us who have had a garage sale will know how things we no longer value can be loved by others.

"A heart-warming picture book about community, sustainability."

Ella’s house is full of things. They seem useless and just clutter to her and her Dad. They decide to have a cleanup, but as fast as they can make a pile, there are onlookers who want their 'trash'. They discover that what is trash to them, might just be treasure to others.

A delightful story about sustainability. Great to read with children or for them to read it themselves. Perfect for children aged 4-7.

The Importance of Play Revisited

One of the most popular posts I've ever written on this blog (in fact the 2nd most popular at 35,000 reads) was one that considered how soon children can and should start writing (in the sense of writing 'real' words)? This might seem a silly question today, but for those of us over the age of 50, we all recall that researchers, educators, teachers and parents assumed that children should only learn to express themselves in handwriting once they had the foundations in listening, speaking, reading, writing letters and pretty much in this order. Of course, now we know this was incorrect.

 

Above: Two children reading together

While there were some reasonable grounds for supporting the traditional order, including the young child's difficulty physically handling pencils to create letters and words, more limited hand eye coordination etc, we accept now that it was simplistic to assume that there needed to be a lock step developmental sequence for spoken and written language. 

 

We also know, there are good reasons (and evidence) to support the early introduction of writing early (and some of us spent many years making this point). For example, while educators, psychologists and paediatricians once assumed there is little communicative intent with a newborn baby, it's clear that almost from the first day of life, babies begin to respond to their world. And many of their very early vocalisations, eye movements, gazes, facial movements and body movements are attempts to communicate. I'm a bit of a baby whisperer myself, and can get smiles from babies very early (and NO older readers, it isn't 'wind'!!).

Well known paediatrician Dr Kim Oates gave a wonderful lecture on this topic at New College in 2006 as part of the New College Lecture series (that at the time I hosted here). While speaking follows well after the ability to hear and respond to sound, attempts to communicate commence almost immediately. Babies will begin to focus their eyes on objects, and particularly faces talking to them VERY early.

Lydia writing at Palace of Versailles

Any as for writing, parents will attest to the marks small children will make on floors, walls and paper if they get hold of a crayon of pencil! Children begin attempting to place their mark on the world as soon as they can grab anything that will make a mark. It's as if they want to be able to say:

"Look, I did this. This is MY mark." 

And of course, if you ask older toddlers what it says, they will often say things like, "me and mummy", "It's just a word", "it's a drawing", "dog" etc.

What do we know about early scribble and drawing?

We now know that even children's earliest scribbles very quickly have meaning associated with them. While at first children are as much interested in the gross motor movement (the rhythmic drawing of circular patterns, fast scribble to fill a page etc), they soon begin to attempt much more, as they seek to communicate or create meaning through their scribbles, patterns and drawing.

 

Above: Sample from the "Young in Art" site showing intent in the drawing of a young child

There have been numerous studies of children's early art, and many examined early literacy prior to the 1970s, but few looked closely at the relationship between the two. A colleague and dear friend of mine (still!) from Indiana University, Professor Jerome C. Harste conducted significant research in the late 1970s and early 1980s that taught us much about children's early writing. With his colleagues Professors Virginia Woodward and Carolyn Burke and many graduate students, they studied the early writing of children aged 3, 4, 5 & 6 years. They concluded that the process of scribbling "bears sociolinguistic and psycholinguistic similarity" to the processes we observe in reading and writing [See Harste, Woodward & Burke (1983), Language Stories and Literacy Lessons.

Harste, Woodward and Burke concluded that most children know the difference between reading and writing by age 3, and by this time they are developing an understanding of written language, demonstrated in their scribbles and attempts to write and draw. They argued against traditional developmental notions and suggested from at least the age of 3, children begin to demonstrate elements of authoring. They named this the "authoring cycle". As they examined the early 'scribble' and 'writing' of very young children they identified:

• Organization (evidence of conventions and the genesis of cognitive processes similar to adults)
• Intentionality (evidence children knew their marks signify something)
• Generativeness (an attempt to generate or make meaning)
• Risk-taking (trying things they hadn't before)
• Awareness that writing & language have social functions
• Understanding that context matters in language (i.e. the situation is related to what you write and how you use it)
• Meaning making in children's 'scribbles', and later words using invented spelling, that formed a text or unit of meaning. They also realized that the sum of the elements collectively meant something.

For example, picking up on just one of the above elements of authoring, Harste, Woodward and Burke observed in the scribbles of children from families who had a first language other than English, some interesting differences. 

The writing below shows just how different scribble can be for four-year-old children living in homes that speak different languages; in this case, English, Arabic and Hebrew. 

They concluded that evidence like this demonstrates that at age four, and even before, these children were trying to write words, and their 'scribble' demonstrated organization similar to the processes used by proficient writers.

So, what does this mean for early writing?

Even though we've moved a great deal in family and school practices in the last 30 years, the following brief comments are still relevant and important for parents and Preschool teachers to understand. 

I believe we need to:

• Take children's early drawing and scribble seriously - look at it, enjoy it, discuss it with your children (e.g. "What's this?" "What does this mean?" etc).
• Encourage children to write - give them blank paper and simply suggest they "write"!
• Let children see you writing and talk about your writing.
• Look for patterns in children's early drawing and scribble and expect to learn things about your child from it.
• In short, encourage writing just as much as you encourage reading and celebrate their drawing and 'writing'. How? Put it on the wall, fridge, notice board. Date it and keep it, or make up a writers' folder etc.
  

I have also written about this topic at length in other publications such as my book "Pathways to Literacy", Cassell: London, 1995.

What's different since I first wrote about this topic over 25 years ago? And why does it matter?

a) The Differences

There are a number of key differences in 2023. 

First, children are more likely to use devices for writing and drawing today. Early scribbles might be made on an iPad or similar device as well as on paper, walls, footpaths etc. And of course, most of these are rarely retained.

Second, adults should take early writing and drawing in any form more seriously. Look intently, ask your children to explain what they've written, drawn and so on. For example, the image below was drawn in 2007 and is one of my favourites from a grandchild who at the time was 4 years old. We'd been to the aquarium and he drew this back home and explained that he'd drawn it from the perspective of the fish. After he drew the image below he said, "that's how the fish looked at us while we were looking at them." 

Third, children probably spend less time with parents in the earliest development phases (0-4 years) than they did 30-50 years ago; attending playgroups and childcare centres. 

b) The adjustments we need to make

Today, parents and teachers are far less likely to observe their children or students as they compose, whether in text or drawings. 

As parents, we need to see iPads and other devices not just as a way to keep our children quiet, while we do other things. To be sure, there are times when we do NEED to do this. In days gone by the TV and toys played their part in achieving this, as did sand pits, parks etc (but let's not lose these either).

Above: A teacher using an iPad to demonstrate

My recommendation to parents (& teachers) is that when children are using devices, we need to ask them regularly what they're doing, and comment on drawings etc. You might even capture screen shots of special things to share with others (like parents, family etc). Create an electronic portfolio for toddlers.

Teachers of course can make much greater use of iPads and other devices in the classroom to encourage writing, drawing and far more. They are now tools that can be used individually or in groups. I have a graduate student Norah Aldossary who has just completed an interesting PhD on this titled 'The Potential of iPad Apps to support Vocabulary Development in Children Learning English as an Additional Language'.

Other literacy educators have been doing great work in considering how to use devices for learning in classrooms. For example, Michelle Neumann has written about this in 'Teacher Scaffolding of Preschoolers' Shared Story App and a Printed Book' (2019). The many studies by Michelle and others have shown varied benefits from using iPads in this more educational way. Some have found varied benefits, for example:

• Vocabulary benefits (e.g. Shang & Gray, 2014)
  
• Comprehension benefits (e.g. O'Toole & Kannsass, 2018)
• Word learning in 5 year olds (e.g. Korat et al., 2010)

However conversely, others have found that if used badly, devices might lead to poorer vocabulary and story comprehension (e.g. de Jong and Bus (2003). This seems linked to the children ignoring the text and 'reading' the pictures alone. I'd also suspect, this is linked as well to less child and adult interaction, which we know 'stretches' children's language and learning.

Another interesting study by Roskos, Carroll and Burnstein (2012) looked closely at how teachers used the iPads. They found benefits when teachers used the iPad to extend shared reading by asking questions, explaining word meanings and engaging the students in conversation as they read the iPad stories. This of course leads to development.

In short, as we live in times where the parent and child, or the teacher and her/his students no longer sit reading book stories like they once did with their children, the iPad has potential to facilitate play and experimentation with language and with it growth in language, reading and writing.

Summing up

Children's play always has been, and still is, very important for learning. While the world has changed as technology has developed, the importance of stories and the interaction of children with adults as well as other children, is a key factor in early learning. There is a freedom in play that encourages:

• Risk taking
• Experimentation
• Boldness

We must never allow our busyness, or the convenience of devices to reduce the place of play in children's early years, both prior to school, but also at school. This is a challenge that teachers and parents alike need to take on.