Specific Blog 11
Bring your vision to life--> page 253
I live in the country, but I work
in the city. The children where I live
are totally different compared to children that I work with. They are different in the sense of how the
environment impacts them. We are so
lucky to live on an island where the ocean and the mountains are so closely
attainable. But the city children seem
to not view the island as children in the country do. To country children, the ocean and the
mountain is so easily accessible, it’s their back yard, they know the ins and
outs of the mountain and the ocean, and they know how to use the mountain and
the ocean as resources. City children, I
have noticed, enjoys the beach, playing in the ocean, running around in the
mountains, but they don’t necessarily focus on what the ocean and the mountain
has to offer, and they don’t necessarily go deeper into the ocean and the
mountains. I know of children who have
grown kalo in lo’i patches, I know of children who have gone fishing with nets,
and I know of children who have participated in offering the ocean and the
mountain life by planting, caring, and cleaning the environment. There was this one time at the school that I
work at where we had a camp as a dramatic play scene. But I noticed that the children were not
exposed to that type of scenery. They
didn’t know what to do with the props, they didn’t know what to do at a camp,
and they didn’t know much about the outdoors.
Recently we were blessed with a mala (a dry land taro patch), taken care
by another program, which was near our school. The children were exposed to
planting in a new way, but they didn’t actually experience connecting with the
land, learning the process, and connecting the experience to them.
I liked the
idea that Sarah included the families in her plan to draw closer to the natural
world. In doing this families seemed
like they were active participants in seeing and connecting with the natural
world, which gave meaning to the children.
I liked the idea that Sarah used her staff and her center’s environment
as a template to draw families into seeing the environment around them. I think going on fields trips around island is
a practical idea, but actually connecting to island by seeing where the
children live, since the children at my center don’t live in the same
area. I would like to include my
families in the process of how they care for the land, since my families
consist of different cultures.
Sarah’s
experience was very interesting to me, but I feel that families in Hawaii see
the natural environment differently from families on the mainland. They enjoy the natural environment, but they
may not necessarily draw a connection or use the natural environment as a resource. I would like to do activities in the natural
environment, like fishing, walking with no shoes, or even collecting mountain
fruits. I think families notice the
natural environment, but using and caring for the environment is what I feel
the families in Hawaii need to grow a sense for.
Hi Jadelynn,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your last statement about I think families notice the natural environment, but using and caring for the environment is what I feel the families in Hawaii need to grow a sense for. I live and work in a preschool that is surrounded by the mountain and ocean. The children over the years have a sense of their environment. I also know that they know how to use it. We have several families that are fishermen and participate in tournaments. We even have hunters that do hunt in our mountains for pig. But what we need more of is caring for it. We find difficulty when others don't care for it and we are left with cleaning up after them. This can get weary and hopeless because we can't change others only ourselves. Sarah was very inspiring with her practices. She provides and example of changing a community.
We have a good sense of caring and loving in our preschool environment. The children know the expectation and standard we have. They know to clean up after themselves. Being able to carry our practices outside of the preschool is my challenge. We have done walking field trips to the beach and have picked up rubbish. The families have also show interest in caring but have not been consistent. Consistency makes a difference in carrying on the sense of loving and caring for the environment. This is for me first. What is the next step in supporting this practice? What will need to change to move forward? How can we make consistency consistent for us?