Technology in the Sandpit

Today, as part of setting up outdoor activities for the children at the centre, I placed a new toy digger in the sandpit together with some pails and spades.  The children very quickly spotted the toy digger and they all wanted to play with it.  As it was new and popular, the children had to stand around and wait for their turn.  I was there so that I could interact with them.

Child A was first to play with the digger. He mounted it and with his legs he tried to move it around the sandpit.  When he had finished, another child, M, took his turn.  Child M’s action soon caught my attention.  I noticed that he was trying to manoeuvre the digger’s arm as though to scoop up some sand and to transfer it to another spot.  The digger arm did not seem to move as he wanted it to, so he tried ways to manipulate the handles in attempts to get the arm moving.  It was obvious that Child M knew the key function of a digger.  Later in the day, I talked to Child M’s mother and learned that there was some construction work going on at his neighbour’s place where a digger was used to remove some building materials.  His mum also told me that Child M would watch the work from his windows for a long time.  At the centre, he was experiencing an environment where connecting links with the wider world are affirmed and extended (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.56).

I observed another event at the centre.  This time it was a pulley that was installed above the sandpit.  Child U was seen pulling the rope to lift up a pail filled with sand.  Although he was using the pulley, he was having some difficulty lifting up the pail of sand.  I watched attentively to see how he was going to find a solution to the problem. Then he took a few steps backwards and pulled the rope. This time he was able to lift the pail of sand without much effort. The incident has demonstrated that Child U was able to use problem-solving skills. Although he did not understand the physics of it, he had displayed some common sense judgement that by moving further away from the load, he was in a better position to lift it up. He was expressing spatial awareness.

Through these activities in the early childhood setting, the children are acquainting themselves with the basic technology of equipment around them such as the digger and the pulley. According to Mawson (2010),  the “major influence on the children’s developing understanding of technology was their home experiences” (p.12).  They have gained an impression of what they have seen outside of the centre. Then they try to practise it by way of simulation.     Through what they do, they are experimenting, investigating and learning the differences in pushing, pulling, lifting, holding and dropping (Eliason & Jenkins, 2003).  As a further step to extend the children’s learning, I can show them video clips and books on how various technological tools and equipments are used to perform their respective functions.

Reference List

Eliason, C., & Jenkins, L. (1999). A practical guide to early childhood curriculum. (6^th ed.). New Jersey, United States of America: Merrill Prentice Hall.

Mawson, B. (2010). Children’s developing understanding of technology.  International Journal of Technology & Design Education, 20 (1), pp1-13.

Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.