The day started with the EY1 children helping to con-construct a learning provocation about habitats. We collected leaves and sticks to fill the tray, they enjoyed running around the campus, and working as a team to collect lots of different materials. Discussions about colors, textures, size and shapes filled the playground. We filled the other tray with water, droppers, and different colored water in jars. 

After the provocation was co-constructed by the teachers and children, we sat down with a tray of toy animals and insects to have a group discussion about what we noticed. 

Each child was given the opportunity to choose an animal or insect and put it where they thought it lived. 

Some animals and insects were easy to place. Tony quickly put the fish in the water and Wency put the snake on the tree trunk, Marley added a leaf over the snake because he said “They like to hide.” 

This proved to be an excellent point of discussion as the children used their inquiry skills to ask questions. 

Phukao asked “Where does dragonfly live?” 

The Teacher responded “Great Question! We have seen dragonflies near the water at Prem, but I don’t think they like to be in the water. I wonder how we can make a place for the dragonflies on the water without them getting wet?” 

Some of the children quickly jumped up and used their thinking skills to transport the big sticks from one tray to the water tray to make a bridge. 

A jar with a plant was added to the tray by a teacher, the children took action to place the dragonflies on the leaves so they didn’t get wet. 

We asked all the children how they could make the animals and insects feel safe and happy in their homes. 

This initiated a nice block of uninterrupted play. After a while we noticed the butterflies were upside down in the water and didn’t look very happy. 

Harry said “Fish in the water ok!” 

Kiwi said “Butterflies fly.” 

We responded to the interests of the children by setting up a long wire and providing string, yarn and pipe cleaners to see if they could help the flying insects fly! The children set about standing on chairs to tie string around the toys and experiment with different systems to reach their goal. 

This was a special morning full of children sharing their knowledge about habitats and living things. The children in Ey1 are gaining confidence to use their inquiry skills to ask questions and engage in experimenting with different ways to find answers. 

A big thank you to the children in Ey2 for being patient with our younger learners and being excellent role models as they shared their thinking. 

Georgina Wroe

EY1 Teacher