Regina Kruse-Özçelik
Early Birds Istanbul Founder and Author
Unexpected changes will continue to play a role in our children's future. They require flexibility and creativity in order to find immediate, effective, and efficient solutions.
How can children learn to identify problems and develop solutions independently?
The project starts with something I call "creative chaos." On the one hand, we need well-organized, safe, and inspiring environments in our kindergartens; on the other hand, we need to prepare our children to be able to organize their environment themselves. A healthy dose of "creative chaos" works wonders!
An example:40 kindergarten children have no place to hang their coats and bags, and no fixed place for their shoes. You can imagine what that means: jackets, bags, and shoes scattered everywhere! For my team and the little kindergarten children, it's a complete mess. Everyone complains about the chaos because no one can find their things, and the jackets and boots become tripping hazards. This provides the perfect opportunity for a "creative chaos" project .
How do children resolve creative chaos?
It doesn't take long before someone asks, "Can we have hooks for our coats and bags and shelves for our shoes?" And the answer is, "Yes, you can! Let me know where and how you want to hang your things and store your shoes, and I'll help you with the materials and setup."
This marks the beginning of a phase of research with amazing learning opportunities:
- Where is the best place for shoes and hooks?
- Does every classroom need its own area?
- How many hooks do we need for bags and coats?
- What should the area look like?
- How wide/long should the shoe rack be?
- Where can we find the raw materials?
- Can we recycle materials that we already have in the kindergarten?
- Who helps with the design and assembly?
We look at the children's numerous ideas, drafts, and drawings together and discuss them until the final design is decided. The children look for the most suitable location, and decide on the shape of the wardrobe. The number of hooks must also be carefully considered, as well as the length, width, and height of the shoe rack. Different heights for small and large children are taken into account.
Who is responsible for procuring materials?
Can we recycle materials from our kindergarten, or do we need to purchase materials? If so, organize a trip to a local hardware store with the children. Do we need the skills of a craftsman, such as a carpenter? If so, invite one to your facility so the children can watch him at work.
As soon as construction and assembly begins , the entire construction site must be secured. Health and safety precautions must be taken and all children must be supervised while watching the craftsmen at work. Even the youngest children can help with some of the tasks. For example, they can use a cordless screwdriver to screw a screw into the wood.
Once the coat pegs, hooks, and shoe racks are installed, we will all celebrate with a housewarming party. The creative chaos has inspired the children to design their environment according to their own ideas and problem-solving skills, and this great success must be celebrated!
If you'd like to learn more about creative chaos in a kindergarten, I recommend my book:
“Constructed Chaos”(soon to be available in German and Turkish)