Engineering
Warm greetings to all who are utilizing the Educational Resources designed specifically for Engineering Instructors
The concept of engineering in early childhood education is aimed at making children design, construct, test, and refine their thoughts using materials within their surroundings. It encourages creativity by allowing children to experiment with how things work, resolve real-life issues, and devise solutions to the problems through activities. Children can explore how things function, solve problems in real life, and come up with answers through activities, which fosters creativity. Because engineering values teamwork, resilience, and critical thinking, it is a type of education that fosters the growth of cognitive and social-emotional abilities. Early childhood educators make invaluable contributions by providing children with open-ended resources and thought-provoking questions that help them see themselves as capable young engineers and problem solvers.
Creative theories and perspectives
- Howard Gardner - Multiple Intelligence Theory. He provides the theory on multiple intelligences, where he says that bodily-kinesthetic and spatial intelligence can be naturally accommodated in engineering.
- Lev Vygotsky Sociocultural Theory: According to Vygotsky, children learn more through interaction with peers and adults.
Resources, materials, and digital technologies
- Physical materials: wooden blocks, foam blocks, cardboard boxes, tube lids, tape, glue, recycled materials (bottle caps, containers, straws), stones, leaves.
- Creative tools: scissors, glue, Play-Doh, and clay.
- Digital tools: apps and games, iPads/tablets, camera apps, Toca builders.
Learning experiences by age group
- 0 to 2 years
- Soft Blocks Stack and Build: The infants will be given several sets of soft blocks and other textured objects. They will combine and stack them together, balance them, and knock them over repeatedly. It is devoted to spatial day and design at an early age.
- Moving parts treasure basket: offer a basket of safe household objects that have flat things that open/close, twist, or roll (e.g., plastic jars with lids, rollers, spoons).
- 2 to 3 years
- Cardboard box construction: Toddlers get more complex with boxes, tape, and lids, creating simple tunnels or houses with the help of cardboard.
- Water walls system: children pour water through tubes, funnels, and recycled material, which is fixed on a wall or a fence. Teachers scaffold inquiry by asking open-ended questions, such as “Why does the water always go downwards?” and by encouraging open-ended systems thinking.
- 3 to 5 years
- Imaginative build zone: using blocks, miniatures, and recycled materials, children may make their cities. They handle and solve mechanical problems at the building location.
- Build a bridge challenge: children will make a bridge using craft sticks, tape, and recycled stuff. They will also try to see whether toy cars and animals can cross designs. It is an innovation-oriented way of thinking.
- 6 to 8 years
- Invent a Machine workshop: children may be equipped with motors, gears, and recycled materials to design machines to perform realistic, imagined tasks, and make instruction booklets and stories about their machines. It is also geared towards innovation and problem-solving.
- Parachute drop test: It helps children to investigate the air resistance on the velocity of dropped objects. Through the designing and testing of their various types of parachutes, they got to discover gravity and drag as well as how a change in design affects the performance.
Original creative learning opportunities
Water wall system (2 to 3 years): children learn the pumping of water when they pour water through a sequence of tubes, funnels, bottles, and recycled containers. Bottles and recycled containers are fixed on a wall, fence, or vertical board. It is a practical exercise that gives a child an introduction to physics and engineering. By giving open-ended questions, educators scaffold the learning process. It supports the outcome that 2 children are connected with and contribute to the world they know about the physical forces, that as pouring water (ADGE, 2022).
Zone of imaginative building (3 to 5 years): children create their creative towns using cardboard, building blocks, toy miniatures, and recycled materials. As they are being built, they may include homes, roads, tunnels, parks, or stores, solving problems along the way. Asking open-ended questions, educators watch and gently lead. This supports outcome 4, children are confident and involved learners as they solve problems and engage in some creativity. (ADGE,2022).
Critical thinking
The power of simplicity became clear to me when I was letting children learn about engineering. I got the impression from seeing a toddler attempt to build a water wall or test out a parachute that, given enough time and space, children are naturally good at solving problems. It made me think about whether I was providing them enough flexible tools and letting them take on actual leadership responsibilities. There are times when I interfere too soon to repair or clarify, but engineering has taught me the importance of waiting just to allow the child to experiment, reconsider, and keep on trying. Additionally, the practice will not only assist in facilitating an established basis of STEM, but the practices can also develop confidence, collaboration, and creativity in all components of the curriculum. A combination of the idea of engineering with notions of art literacy, play allows me to promote learning in this setting so that each child feels empowered to create and organise the world in their unique way, and innovation can become ingrained in daily life.
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Original Creative Learning Opportunities for Children