Wednesday, 22 August 2012

Scissors

Over the week I saw that children were really interested in cutting so I thought of challenging them by introducing this zig zag pair of scissors. Then I went ahead in setting the table with some old magazine papers and gave children choices of which paper they would like to cut because there were animal, dolls, cars and peoples pictures on the paper. The Ministry of Education (1996) also articulates that, children experience materials and technology used in the creative and expressive arts, such as scissors (p.81). These pictures attracted older children’s attention and so they went ahead cutting the pictures they liked. But the younger toddlers liked this new zig zag scissors and were fascinated to just hold to cut the paper. This was interesting when some of the toddlers were struggling to hold it properly to cut the paper as they were watching the older toddlers beside them. The toddlers got busy with this scissors as I watched their hand and eye coordination. The toddlers were developing their fine motor skills by moving their fingers to cut the paper (Gonzalez, 2009).

This technology also made children to practice holding scissors and learn different patterns as they were being involved in cutting. This new technology made it easier for the children having to make master designs on the paper. It also saved a lot of time for the children to cut papers and invent new designs using this scissors.  
The children even voiced out saying that they could cut zig zag on the paper.
Some of the children collected the papers after cutting and pasted it on big papers as they did their art work. The Ministry of Education (2007) also elaborates on this further that children learn about technology as a field of human activity (p. 32). But in about ten minutes I saw that children had cut about 12, A4 papers into bits so quick.
This technology made life easier for the children to cut new shapes or designs with the help of this scissors. From the help of this technology I had a group of children joining me at the table and got engaged in cutting. I even modelled how to hold scissors and children copied me. MacNaughton and Williams (2009) also suggested that modelling is a good technique to foster children learning.

References
Gonzalez-Mena, J., & Eyer, D. W. (2009). Infants, toddlers, and caregivers: A curriculum of respectful, responsive care and education (8th ed.). Boston, MA: McGrawHill Higher Education.
MacNaughton, G., & Williams, G. (2009). Techniques for teaching young children: Choices in theory and practice (3rd ed). Frenchs Forrest, Australia: Pearson Education Australia.
Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki Mātauranga mō ngā Mokopuna o Aotearoa. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media Limited.
Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media Limited.



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3 comments:

  1. Priya Chand23 August 2012 at 04:59

    I had no idea before doing this course that scissors can be a technology. This course has made me realise that technology comes in many varieties with different life experiences. It is good to see you extending children’s interest using this technology. Scissors is one of the non digital technologies that is used by the children almost everyday in the centre. Children not only learn to use scissors but they also learn how to be creative in different ways especially if they are using zig-zag scissors. This supports Te Whariki where “children develop familiarity with the properties and character of the material and technology used in the creative and expressive art” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 80). I really liked the way you are supporting the children in creative process through cutting and pasting as The NZ curriculum (2007) notes that teachers should create a supportive learning environment for the children. What I suggest here is that ECE teachers should take extra safety precautions when dealing with sharp technologies like scissors with children.
    Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
    Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.

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  2. Unknown27 August 2012 at 05:49

    24th August 2012
    Hi Deepika, I was not aware that scissors is part of technology; there’s a lot I still need to know more about technology nowadays. I liked it when you demonstrated the use of scissors to some of the children as I think infant and toddler’s still struggle to hold the scissors as their fine motor skills are yet to develop. Therefore the use of scissors in the activity is very crucial to support the development of fine motor skills. Children should have opportunities to work on activities like cutting and pasting in order for them to develop and improve hand-eye-coordination as well(Bruce & Meggitt, 2002). Like the old saying, “practice makes perfect”, I think children should use scissors every day to cut up shapes and patterns and can be used in screen printing to make it more creative. Children surely love to paint and especially when they see different designs on their painting, they just absolutely love it. Good work Deepika, and remember technologies aren’t going away, they are here to stay but the good thing is that it helps solve problems and makes life easier for us all.

    Bruce,T., & Meggitt, C. (2002). Working in partnership with parents. Child Care and Education (pp145-166). United Kingdom: Hodder & Stroughton.

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  3. Shamiza31 August 2012 at 20:26

    Hi Deepika,

    It is very insightful to see that technology comes in handy in many different ways. Our children are surrounded by various technologies that we include in our everyday practice without even realizing it. Reading this blog about scissors as a technology makes me realize that work would be so hard and time consuming it weren’t for technology. I can’t stress enough the importance of technology to my life and my role as a teacher. Such tools often attract children’s attention and become part of valuable learning experiences. Very recently, I read an article about how important it is to teach children how to use scissors at a young age. One reason is that cutting allows children to build up the tiny muscles in the palm of their hand, since they have to continuously open and close the hand and these muscles are also used when the child is writing/painting or holding onto anything with a grip. (Wiggins, 2010) Therefore, instead of telling children that they are too young to use a tool like a pair scissors, we as teachers should encourage and motivate them as it builds to their growth and development. I strongly agree with you in saying that modeling a great technique to foster children’s learning. Hughes and Hughes, (1937) suggest that “watching a skilled movement being made helps a learner to acquire skill…by deliberately imitating other people, they get the fee of the movement and the learning process is accelerated”. (As cited in MacNaughton & Williams, 2009, p. 46)

    McNaughton, G., & Williams, G. (2009). Techniques for teaching young children: Choices in theory and practice (3rd ed.). Melbourne,Vic.: Addison Wesley Longman.

    Wiggins, K. (2010). The Importance of Teaching Your Child How To Use Scissors. Retrieved from: http://www.gandetherapies.com/PDF%20Files/TheImportanceofTeachingYourChildHowToUseScissors.pdf

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