During the snacks break 4 to 5yrs old wanted to sit outside and eat. We all went out and sat. 

While doing so a child pointed out the temperature and how she feels,
D: Ma’am it's hot here.
Facilitator (F): Why don’t you go and sit in the shade?
VR responded immediately to D, “I like to sit in the sun. Whoever wants vitamin D can come and sit in the sun!”
Aa replied to VR, clarifying her intentions: I want vitamin D but now I will sit in the shade and eat my snacks and then play in the sun.
VR, not paying heed to what else was going on: Ma’am, why do we get tears in our eyes when we look at the sun? 
F: Good question VR! Why do we get tears while looking at the sun, do you know?
D, overhearing this conversation, contributed : Because sun is hot!
And Dit added, “It gives light.”

A few others told him the same about sun being too hot. Then V agreed, feeling satisfied with the explanations he received from his friends.

He then reasoned out to himself, “Now I know why tears come from our eyes - it's because the sun is bright and very hot that's why... When we look at it water comes from our eyes.!”
​
Most of the children forgot about their food as their curiosity began to rise towards the sun. They all began looking at the sun with wonder, agreeing to what VR said.
Dit suddenly had an interesting thought to share, “After seeing the sun when we close our eyes why is it colorful?”
Aa jumped in with, “Because the sun is colorful that’s why!”.
C, hearing this, recalled the story from the book ‘The Day The Crayons Quit’ that they had read and came to the rescue, “You remember the Duncan crayon story, when orange and yellow were fighting, Duncan said the sun has all the color that’s why!”
 
They wondered about for a few more minutes what they heard, recalling the story, sun bathing, reminiscing over the conversation that just happened. Children, when left to wonder and experiment with their thoughts and words, can explore places that have never been explored before. 

#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#youngachieversacademy
#everychildcanwonder

Contributed by Sheela Peter, Learning Facilitator at Sparkling Mindz Global Preschool.

​It was around 10:20am and our 4-5 year olds were setting their class up for snacks. Just then, the facilitator spotted Ad and Sh fighting for the red chair. The class had just one red chair and this was not the first time children were fighting over it. The facilitator intervenes and takes away the red chair from both of them.
 
F: Okay! Looks like we have a very serious problem.
Ab: Because of all of us!
F: What do we now? There is just one red chair and so many of us want to sit on that one chair.
Ash: I’m sitting on a yellow chair, Everyday I’m sitting on different, different chair.
F: People sitting on different chairs everyday, that’s great! Now, how can we solve this red chair problem?
Ab: No red chair (He meant, taking away the red chair)
(Ad, visibly very upset, takes a chair and sits away from the circle, making angry gestures.)
F: (To the class) Ad will calm down and tell us how he wants to solve this problem.
 
F (now addressing the whole class): Do you all have any suggestion for Ad?
Sh: I have! Maybe he can say sorry to the red chair and not fight with the red chair.
F: Was he fighting with the red chair or was he fighting for the red chair?
Ab: He was fighting for the red chair.
Ar (Raises his hand): Take away the red chair!
An: He can take the chair some of the days, he cannot take the chair tomorrow.
F: So you are saying, Ad can take the chair on some days and some days he can give it to others?
Ab: I have a solution, we can paint the red chair in different colors.
Ash (Interrupts): If we paint the red chair, all the paints will be over.
Ab: We can stick paper on the red chair and paint the paper.
F: Hmmm… Ad loves the red chair, if we change it to another color, would that solve the problem?
M: We all love the red chair. All of us love all the chairs.
F (To Av): Do you have a solution?
Av: The solution is when Ad is going to take the red chair, somebody else should take the red chair.
F: Do you think Ad will like it?
Av: If Ad wants red chair, we can just cover it with white.
F: How will that solve the problem? He still loves the red chair isn’t it?
Ab: Maybe we can get more red chairs.
Ta: Ma’am, I’ll give my red chair to Ad and take a different one.
F: You could do that, but Ad likes only that Red chair (The bright one).
Sh: Ma’am, all the other chairs are saying we love Ad.
Ad (still angry): (makes roaring noise)
T: Maybe I’ll tell everyone that Ad wants the red chair and please can you let him take the red chair?
F: Do you think it’s fair to let Ad take the Red chair everyday? Sh also likes the Red chair and she also wants to sit on it sometime.
T: Maybe, you can let him take the Red chair today.
F: OK, how about we agree on An’s idea? She said Ad can take it some days and give it to others on some days, Would that work with you Ad?
Ad: Today I’ll take it, tomorrow I’ll give it.
T: Maybe Sh and Ad can keep on exchanging.
An (Raising her hand): I should also get it.
 
Everybody else in class also started raising their hands one by one saying “I also want the Red chair”, and we decided to make a timetable and put it up in class so that everybody gets to sit on the red chair. Ever since then, there has not been a conflict regarding the Red chair.
 
Taking away the red chair would have easily solved the problem but that would have been momentary and would have robed the opportunity form children to discuss and arrive at a solution. Here, they not only displayed their reasoning and problem solving capabilities but also, in the process felt that their voices mattered. Encouraging or involving children in decision making and problem solving will help them build trust in themselves as well as creates a sense of ownership as the child feels understood and listened to. 

Contributed by Yashika CG, Learning Facilitator, Sparkling Mindz Global Preschool

#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#youngachieversacademy
#everychildcan

Our cubs (4 year olds) were sitting on the mats near the doll house and were enjoying looking at other classes practice for Sports Day. The practice was paused for a bit to ensure a water spill was cleaned up. As I looked at the cubs from a distance, I saw them all watching keenly at the cleaning in complete silence. It looked as though something was running in their minds, and I was curious to know more; hence I took a place next to them on the mat.
 
Driti broke the silence looked at me and said, “It looks like we are sitting in an island, full of water”
Saanvi with a sad face said, “Yes we are stuck here forever”
I asked “What can we do now, how can we escape?”
“We can swim and escape”, said Driti casually.
Saanvi exclaimed, “I don’t know how to swim!”
Aliyah who was listening for a while agreed to Saanvi saying, “Me neither. Maybe we can build a
Ship and escape”
Saanvi agreed, “Oh ya! We can build one”
 
Just then Aliyah who was thirsty went to get water for herself from her bag.
Looking at Aliyah going Saanvi cried out, “Oh a big fish has eaten up Aliyah!”
To which I immediately asked to further tickle their imagination, “Should we help her? ”
Driti caught question and carried on, “But she knows how to escape, she can swim and come out of the fish easily, because the fish is big and Aliyah is small inside the fish!”
After a few seconds Aliyah returns not knowing what had happened.
 
Driti then said, “There! Aliyah has escaped”
She then held my hand and continued,  “I know to swim, so you can all hold me and keep swinging your hands pretending to swim, I will swim and take you out of the water”
All of them held hands and pretended to swim, Roshni, Zohar and Sara who were enjoying listening to the story joined us, all sitting in one row held each other’s hands and started swaying.
 
Just then Driti looked at me and said, “Ma’am swing the other hand too”
After a while of pretending, “Ah! Now we are out!” rejoiced Driti.
Everyone sighed with a relief of being escaped from the island.

It is such moments that show us children's vivid imagination, their inner voices in the face of challenges and how they motivate themselves to come out of even the most difficult of situations. The stories are not merely stories, they are maps for how they can swim through the ocean of this uncertain world and maps can be updated, refreshed and new ones can be drawn up. It's upto us to ensure they stay flexible that way.

Every moment of creative imagination is a chance to build a confident, inspired learner. Have you captured one with your child yet?

#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#youngachieversacademy
​#everychildcanbecreative
​
Contributed by Grace Veronica, Facilitator, Sparkling Mindz Global Preschool