Categories
Early Childhood Education

Workshop IV

“Workshop are an organization of entertainment or educational activities that uses concrete intelligence, assisted by manual motor skills, for the production of objects. A workshop tends to provide the necessary bases for the knowledge of a profession or for the gestural and intellectual training essential to later occupy a job. By extension, the term workshop also designates the place in which such activity takes place or the group that engages in it ” (Vigy, 1986, cited in López 1997, p.36)

Some of the characteristics or facets that constitute the workshops can be specified from the ideas presented by Borghi (2005).

Workshops can be used in many ways since, in some cases, you may choose to carry out a single workshop, thus giving the school a specific identity and, in other cases, you can opt for the versatility of workshops.

In addition, in terms of materials, they can be specific and specialized, therefore, aimed at the development of certain tasks or, on the contrary, non-specialized materials (ones, such as stones, ropes, etc.), so that it is very useful for many enriching activities. However, the absence of specific materials would not allow the specificity of the workshop to be established, but it would be necessary not to lose focus on the objectives of the dynamics.

On the other hand, the presence of several teachers can occur simultaneously in the same class, favoring the division of tasks and the use of specialized skills. This can be beneficial if it is used in an enriching way but is at risk of opting for excessive specialization, leaving aside other fields. In the workshops, without giving up the role of teacher guide, stimuli arise from the context and from other infants, so special importance is given to the learning context, leaving the teacher more on the sidelines.

The vision that is put on the workshops can be very contradictory, since they can be welcomed as separate and exceptional activities within the school routine or, on the contrary, integrated as part of the school’s day today and an opportunity for more experiences .

Regarding workshops we can find two different organizational modalities: outside the school and within it.

Within the school, workshops can be understood as a specific, alternative and complementary space to the class spaces (work corners), in which ad hoc activities are developed with a single objective. On the contrary and preferably, workshops can be conceived from the versatility, where the school cares about each one of the infants, valuing their individualities and diversity, offering them different multipurpose spaces for their development.

Regarding the fulfilment of workshops outside the school, we can find three privileged spaces for their attainment. The first of them, in the open air (in farms, orchards, the garden, etc.) where the natural activities of observation and experimentation will prevail. On the other hand, we find the environment close to the school surroundings, in which a visit to the garden, the park or the forest can offer us abundant activities. And finally, the city’s resources can offer us the opportunity to make cultural visits to museums, associations, libraries, etc.

References 

Borghi, B. Q. (2005). Los talleres en educación infantil: espacios de crecimiento (Vol. 12). Graó.

López, S. T. (1997). Talleres y rincones en educación infantil: su vigencia psicopedagógica hoy. Comunicación presentada en el Congreso de Córdoba.

Authorship

Paula Cañarte Reoyo y Alia Ibáñez García, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Workshop III

The proposal of the workshops is very relevant in the infantile stage, because they are “a pedagogic strategy that tries to improve the conditions that make possible the participation of the child in the construction of his knowledge” (Torio, 1997, p. 7).

In addition, they provide infants with the opportunity to do things, both individually and in small groups; “they incite reflection on what they are doing: they play, investigate, explore, they can be curious, try and try again, look for solutions, concentrate, act calmly without the obsession of obtaining immediate results at all costs” (Laguía and Vidal, 2008, p. 17). Likewise, the workshops are going to favor children, because the activities carried out in them promote experimentation and social relations (Laguía and Vidal, 2008).

Below, we will describe some of the general ideas that Torio (1997) puts forward about the workshops:

The objective of the workshops is to create something new, that is, to make innovative creations. Therefore, in this proposal we learn procedures, because the activities that are carried out are systematized, they have a certain order and time.

As for the role of teachers in this process, before carrying out the workshops, they meet with the rest of theteachers to decide the topic on which the proposal will be based, planning the spaces where they will be held, either inside or outside the classroom, to organize and plan the activities; as well as to decide what materials will be needed,since thanks to the workshops they will have the opportunity to bring other tools and objects that are not usually in the classroom. So, once the workshops start, the teacher will have a total intervention, observing the process, designing and organizing the spaces and materials.

Regarding the role of the students in this process, before starting the workshops they will be informed of what is going to happen. Thus, later on they carry out the different activities of the workshops, where they play, manipulate, experiment, relate to other students, besides learning strategies on how to do certain things, which, is beneficial for them, since they are going to obtain a greater autonomy.

In conclusion, we believe that the workshops are an innovative way of working with children, since they provide them with a great variety of knowledge, skills and learning, while serving to promote the development of their autonomy.

References 

Laguía, M.J. & Vidal, C. (2008). Rincones de actividad en la escuela infantil. Barcelona: Graó.

Torio, S. (1997). “Talleres y rincones en Educación Infantil: su vigencia psicopedagógica hoy”. Comunicación presentada en el Congreso de Córdoba. Córdoba, España.

Carrascosa-Molina, S. (2009). Los talleres en el aula de Educación Infantil. Revista Digital Innovación y Experiencias Educativas (14), 1-9. https://bit.ly/2UN9Bgm

Authorship

Alexandra Lobera Gil y Carlota Rincón Fanego, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Workshop II

“The workshops understood as spaces for growth guarantee the children the possibility of doing things and, at the same time, encourage reflection on what they are doing. The workshop is a specialised place where thoughtful activities take place”. (Borghi, 2005)

This methodology presents some objectives according to the Federación de Enseñanza de CC.OO. de Andalucía (2010, p.1 & 2)

  • Develop the socialization of children.
  • Encourage habits of respect, sharing and order.
  • Acquiring different techniques
  • Improve relations between equals.
  • Make use of the objects produced in the workshops.

As for the characteristics of the workshops, we can highlight the following:

In order to carry out the workshops, the interests of the students must be kept in mind, since it is preferable thatthe starting point of the workshop begins with what the students want to do.

These workshops help to develop the autonomy of the children, both space and time will be considered for their planning, trying to allow the student to follow his or her own learning pace.

The students can access the materials through different types of expressive languages.

In these projects not only teachers and students participate, families must also join together in order to collaborate.

One of the objectives is to connect the knowledge that the students already have with the activity to be carried out by adopting a constructivist model.

References 

Borghi, B. Q. (2005). Los talleres en educación infantil: espacios de crecimiento (Vol. 12). Graó.

Federación de Enseñanza de CC.OO de Andalucía (2010, p.2) https://www.feandalucia.ccoo.es/docu/p5sd7011.pdf

Federación de Enseñanza de CC.OO de Andalucía (2011, p. 1) https://www.feandalucia.ccoo.es/docu/p5sd8641.pdf

Los talleres en el aula de infantil. (2011, septiembre). Temas para la educación, 16, 1-6. https://www.feandalucia.ccoo.es/docu/p5sd8641.pdf

Universidad de Córdoba. (s. f.). Los talleres en Educación Infantil. uco.es. http://www.uco.es/docencia/grupos/aulaexpei/Docs/MetodoTalleres.pdf

Authorship

Patricia Martínez Martínez, Adrián Pérez Arce, Cristina Revuelta Guerra y Adriana Temiño Martín, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Workshop I

Food experimentation workshop

Workshops are “systematized and very directed activities, with an ascending progression of difficulties, to achieve that the child acquires diverse resources and knows different skills that will later be used in a personal and creative way in the corners or spaces of the classroom” (Fourcade, 2009, p. 4). One of the main objectives of the workshops is to create an object or a product, in other words, it is a place where things are done and where people think about the process that is carried out to achieve that product. Furthermore, holding workshops brings a large number of benefits that promote the integral development of children in the classroom, above all their autonomy, since, as has been indicated, the workshops provide a series of strategies and techniques that allow children to do things for themselves. On the other hand, the workshops are a space for socialisation, where the children meet others, as well as the different objects offered to them (Torio, 1997).

As Quinto Borghi (2005) points out, from the point of view of organisation and use, there are different types of workshops, more specifically three. Firstly, there are the workshops held within the infant school, known as internal workshops. Inside a school there can be two types of spaces in which workshops are held, on the one hand a specific classroom, a specific space where only workshops are held and, on the other hand, the workshops can be held in multi-purpose spaces, that is to say, they are the same spaces in which other types of activities are carried out (classroom, school canteen, etc.). The second type of workshops that can be found are those that take place outside the classroom, known as external workshops. Within this section there are different spaces or contexts in which these activities can be carried out. On one hand, the workshops can be held in the school space, outside the building, but inside the school premises, for example, in the playground. On the other hand, workshops can be held outside the school, such as in the neighbourhood or the city. And lastly, workshops can be held that are linked to an institution, which are carried out in different spaces such as museums, theatres, etc. Finally, the last type of workshop mentioned by this author is the workshop in a suitcase. This consists of carrying all the necessary materials for a specific workshop in a suitcase, facilitating their transport to different places and spaces, both in the school and outside it.  

On the other hand, when carrying out a workshop in the classroom a series of decisions have to be taken, such as, for example, the materials to be offered to the children, which have to be polyvalent, so that the children can carry out different activities with them and develop different skills. Another aspect to take into account is what kind of teachers will be in the workshop, whether they will be specialists in the subject or not. On the other hand, you have to take into account the groupings that you are going to make, this will depend on the activity that you are going to carry out. Finally, you should think about the space in which the workshop is going to be held, the atmosphere that is going to be created, the furniture, etc. (Ceballos, 2018)

On this occasion, in particular, an experimental workshop will be held. As mentioned by Morillas (2014), experimentation and manipulation play a very important role in children’s learning, as it helps them to develop mental activities, contributing to increasing their knowledge. On the other hand, during these moments, not only is learning through manipulation, but also through observation and relationships with other classmates. In other words, manipulation is a tool that helps children to get to know the world around them.Finally, in order to relate the activity to one of the most important moments in the daily life of a school, food, it has been decided that the workshop carried out will consist of experimenting with food and different instruments that will be offered to the children. The aim of this activity will be to make the pupils aware of the different characteristics of food through all their senses. From the sense of taste, tasting the different foods; going through the touch, discovering the different textures; the sight, observing the different colours and shapes; to the smell, discovering the thousands of different smells that these foods can have. In addition, as indicated above, the aim is for the children to establish a relationship, to comment on what they are feeling with each of the foods, to show each other what they are discovering, to play with each other… In conclusion, the aim is for the workshop to be a fun space that allows the children to get to know the world around them and to establish relationships with others.

References 

Ceballos, N (2018). Los talleres en Educación Infantil [Material de aula]. Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Cantabria. Recuperado de https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3qzn101ggp2yvf3/AADfBASFIZXORk_AZvc2pw4Ya/Bloque%204/Presentaciones/ok.Los%20talleres%20en%20educaci%C3%B3n%20infantil.pdf?dl=0

Fourcade, A. (2009). Los talleres en Educación Infantil. Universidad de Alicante, Alicante, Comunidad Valenciana. Recuperado de https://rua.ua.es/dspace/bitstream/10045/12189/1/Talleres_EI.pdf

Morillas, V (2014). La manipulación y la experimentación en Educación Infantil (Trabajo de Fin de Grado). Universidad de Cádiz, Cádiz, Andalucía. Recuperado de https://rodin.uca.es/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10498/16622/tfg%20final.pdf

Quinto Borghi, B. (2005). Las características metodológicas del taller. En B. Quinto Borghi, Los talleres en Educación Infantil: espacios de crecimiento (pp. 57-76). Barcelona: Grao.

Torio, S. (1997). Talleres y rincones en educación infantil: su vigencia psicopedagógica hoy. Congreso de Córdoba. Recuperado de https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3qzn101ggp2yvf3/AAAYRwUocQI4LqC4_aVhioZua/Bloque%204/Talleres%20y%20rincones.pdf?dl=0

Authorship

Vanessa Molleda, Sara Ruiz y Ángela Sierra, 2020.

Categories
Primary Education

Work projects

Project learning in the classroom is an innovative educational method that arises from Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. This methodology allows children to acquire knowledge and skills by becoming protagonists of their own learning. In this way, they will be able to develop their autonomy by being responsible for planning, structuring, implementing and evaluating their own work. That is, they can actively participate in their own educational process. This perspective tries to claim the transgressive and creative potential of work projects based on the search for non-fragmented knowledge and the development of an integrated curriculum.

To carry out this work plan, we must take into account what we want to do, why we are going to do it, what we are going to need, what we will do it with, where we can find what is necessary, and who is going to do each task and how.

Authorship

Alejandra Alonso y Sara Alonso, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Symbolic play II

Children during early childhood develop a multitude of types of games, but the game par excellence from 2 years to 7 years is the so-called symbolic game. This consists of a type of game that arises naturally, boys and girls imitate situations, objects and characters that are not present at the time, using various materials that are within their reach and developing their imagination capacity.

Despite the fact that the symbolic game is the game par excellence from the age of 2, it appears earlier specifically around 8 months with the pre-symbolic game. Normally, boys and girls carry out this type of activity because of their proximity to the situations raised (Pecci et al, s.f).

There are a lot of benefits to be found about the use of symbolic play in early childhood classrooms.

  • Understand and assimilate the world around them, as well as the different roles established in the lives of adults (Pecci et al, s.f).
  • Social skills, encouraging cooperation and socialization (Roldan, 2020).
  • Problem solving and thus working on decision making (Roldan, 2020).
  • Language development, since when carrying out the symbolic game they usually verbalize what they are doing (Pecci et al, s.f).
  • Express your feelings through developing empathy and channeling of emotions (Roldan, 2020).
  • Develop the imagination and creativity of children (Pecci et al, s.f).

Within the symbolic game we can find a great variety of games, such as playing kitchen, moms and dads, imitating different professions, animals, wearing costumes, among others (Mama Juana Banana, s.f).

References 

Mama Juana Banana (s.f) El juego simbólico: ¿Qué es? Actividades y ejemplos. https://mamajuanabanana.com/el-juego-simbolico-que-es-actividades-y- ejemplos/

Pecci, Mª.C., Herrero, T., López, M. & Mozos, A. (s.f). El juego en el desarrollo infantil. En Mª.C. Pecci, T. Herrero, M. López & A. Mozos. (E.d) El juego infantil y su metodología. McGraw-Hill Interamericana de España. https://bit.ly/38YWAsG

Roldan, M.J. (2020, junio 11). Que es el juego simbólico: etapas y ejemplos. ParaBebés. https://bit.ly/3nGp3Ym

Authorship

Ana Ruiz Domingo, Tania Barrigón Ruiz y Nerea Agüera Rodríguez, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Symbolic play I

The game according to Piaget (1996) is very relationed to child development because it is an essential element for the correct physical and psychological development of the minor. Also, he confirms that this element allows the child to form his/her personality besides to know the characteristics of the environment around him in a more effective way. In relation with education, this author establishes that the game helps the kid to acquire his/her motor, mental, social, affective and emotional skills, besides awakening his/her interest for observing and exploring the world that surrounds them. In this way, López (2010) confirms that:

The game is converted in a process of discovery of the outside reality in that the child is forming and reconstructing progressively his/her concepts about the world. Besides, it helps him/her to discover his/herself and to form his/her personality.

Focusing on the process of documentation, the symbolic game inside the stages of development established by Piaget, the symbolic game is in the preoperational stage (2-7 years old) (Valdés, 2014). It is in which the kid recreates the reality, he/she plays “as if…”. In it, the kid reproduces situations of daily life in which appears complex subjects such as illness, death, household problems….

Book titled 'LA FIESTA SORPRESA DE LUCÍA'Read this book made on StoryJumper

In this way, the game itself can help them to experiment their emotions, recreate and treat conflicting issues which they will have to live with. They recreate situations which allow them to prepare for the moment when they have to live it.

Freud talks about the symbolic game as a part of the reality represented in a particular way in which the kid creates and organizes his/her own world (Landeira, 1998). In the same way, Piaget (cited in Bofarull, 2014) considered that the symbolic game is like the key moment of the child’s game in which they create his/her own world through which they assimilate the real world, the “adult world”. In it they assume different roles without the limitations imposed by the grown-ups. On the other hand, Vidal (2014) defines it as that game in which the objects are transformed into not present elements.

To sum up, the authors mentioned above agree that symbolic games are a very important part of childhood, in which the most important things are not the objects or the actions but what the child represents with it.

References 

Bofarull, N. (2014). El juego simbólico y la adquisición del lenguaje en alumnos del 2° ciclo de E.I. (Trabajo de maestría). Universidad Internacional de la Rioja, España. Recuperado de: https://reunir.unir.net/bitstream/handle/123456789/2500/bofarull.sanz.pdf?sequen ce=1

López, I. (2010). El juego en Educación Infantil y Primaria. Autodidacta. Revista de la Educación en Extremadura, 19-37. Recuperado de: http://educacioninicial.mx/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/JuegoEIP.pdf

Landeira, S. (1998). El juego simbólico en el niño: explicación e interpretación en J. Piaget y en S. Freud. Buenos Aires. Recuperado de: https://luzaro.net/wp- content/uploads/juego_simbolico.pdf

Piaget, J. (1966). Response to Sutton – Smith. Psychological Review, 73, 111-112.

Valdes, A. (2014). Etapas del desarrollo cognitivo de Piaget. [Doctorado Psicología- Educación,       Universidad Marista de Guadalajara]. Recuperado de: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Armando_Valdes_Velazquez/publication/327219515_Etapas_del_desarrollo_cognitivo_de_Piaget/links/5b80af4c4585151fd1307 d84/Etapas-del-desarrollo-cognitivo-de-Piaget.pdf

Vidal, A. (2014, Noviembre 29). Juego simbólico ¿Qué es?. Simbòlics  Psicoteràpia. Recuperado de: https://www.simbolics.cat/cas/juego-simbolico-que-es/

Authorship

María González González, Lucía de María Allende y Lydia Trueba Expósito, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Symbolic game III

The symbolic game as a starting point. Breaking down the word we could talk about two concepts: On the one hand, play, a fundamental need for every child to know and grab or own  the world around them, is the engine of development. On the other hand, symbolic, “to pretend”, it is about all that reality created by the children. According to J. Piaget (1896-1.980), this process corresponds to the balance between assimilation and accommodation. That is to say, face a stimulus from the environment and then modify our behavior by adjusting to external conditions.

This type of game appears, according to the stages of Piaget’s cognitive development at the end of the sensory motor period, prior to the preoperative period, between 2 and 7 years, but spontaneously as the subject acquires the notion of permanent object, simulating non-existent situations, people or objects. The child understands that even though the object is not in front of their eyes, it still exists. In addition, there is a subdivision in stages of: pre symbolic game and symbolic game.

There is a succession of stages according to their evolutionary age, depending on whether they play alone or in the company of adults or their peers (individual game in solitude, parallel to both children but unrelated or shared and cooperative), whether they are structured games or without organizational logic, and the presence or disappearance of egocentricity and social roles. All these, with common objectives of promoting meaningful learning, benefiting fine motor skills, allowing socialization and a new way of communicating.

Symbolic play has great benefits in child development, stimulates creativity and imagination, through games that involve roles, dialogues, creation of characters and descriptions. Like, for example, such as playing moms and dads, doctor cures, creating a hairdresser, dressing up, simulating scenes from everyday life, etc. They begin by simulating everyday scenes, then they include fictitious roles and emotions. Later they substitute objects and create complex scenery.

All these allow the subject to represent mental situations and develop cognitive skills, as well as promote the effective use of spoken language, since they generate rich interactions in the narration of roles and negotiation. This interpersonal intelligence generates an increase in their socio-emotional capacity.

The whole set of indirect learning that we achieve with symbolic play reveals the positive consequences for early childhood: enrichment lexical resources,vocabulary in vocabulary, stimulation of symbolic language, creativity, imagination, social skills (friendship, empathy and cooperation), increased intellectual and motor capacity. It helps to structure thinking, assimilate new behaviors, influence curiosity, experiment and need to know reality. Possibilities for action are not limited, quite the opposite. Children’s freedom emerges and helps to forge their own personality and identity. Based on your abilities and interests.

References 

Klga. Macarena (2018). Juego simbólico. Estimulación Temprana y Neurohabilitación- Crece de colores. Recuperado de: https://www.crecerdecolores.com/post/etapas-del-juego

El juego simbólico en los niños.  (24 de agosto de 2016). Recuperado de: https://www.etapainfantil.com/juego-simbolico

SerPadres. El juego simbólico en la escuela . (2028). Recuperado de: https://www.serpadres.es/1-2-anos/educacion-estimulacion/articulo/el-juego-simbolico-en-la-escuela-infantil-591477393342

Escuela de padres. La importancia del juego simbólico en los niños. (9, diciembre de 2019). Recuperado de: https://www.educapeques.com/escuela-de-padres/juego-simbolico.html

 G. Alba y M. González. Prácticum II de la universidad de Cantabria. (2018-2019).

Imágenes: CEIP Antonio Mendoza. Santander.

El juego en el desarrollo infantil. Unidad 2. (2020). Pag 30. Recuperado de: https://www.mheducation.es/bcv/guide/capitulo/8448171519.pdf

Ceballos, N. (2020). “El valor de lo cotidiano” – Atención psicoeducativa 0-3. (Diapositivas de PowerPoint). Universidad de Cantabria. 

Authorship

María González Real, Sara Castellanos Rivas y Alba Grijuela Rodrigo, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Sleep II

The RAE states that the definition of “dream” is the act of sleep, and the definition of “sleep” is to be found in a state of rest that consists of the inaction or suspension of the senses and of all voluntary movement. 

Definition of ‘sleep’

The concept of sleep as stated by Pin (2010) is considered a physiological process highly organized where both the necessary maturity of the central nervous system and the singular and self-adaptation of each child in their family context intervene. 

sleep is a fundamental physiological need for our health (Albares, Alonso, Canet, Cano, Cubel, Estivill, … Villalobos, 2010).

Main ideas: observation, interpretation and visibility of sleep 

A teacher should learn to observe and be able to listen to the movements of the children between 0-3 years to understand their actions and act in consequence with the best professional response to achieve the optimal evolution development in students. 

As said by Albares, Alonso, Canet, Cano, Cubel, Estivill, … Villalobos (2010), both the progenitors and the education professionals should know a series of guidelines that provide the children with emotional and physical stability when falling asleep. 

  • During the baby’s first months of life, most of their day is spent sleeping. while they sleep, they can make involuntary movements or spasms. These movements are normal, and we should not wake the baby up. 
  • It is very important that while the baby is eating, he/she is awake, so they distinguish sleep from food.
  • After the hygienic cares, the baby will be left alone in their crib, so they learn to sleep by themselves and that the last thing they remember before falling asleep is the crib. 
  • We have to establish routines before putting the baby to bed, follow the same steps every time so they interiorize the process of sleep 
  • When the baby is 5 or 6 months old, we will put a stuffed toy in their crib to make them feel accompanied. 
  • If the baby wakes up at night, we should not pick them up or turn the light on. We will soothe him with caresses and affectionate words
  • The room has to be peaceful, dark, and quiet. 
  • We have to make sure that before putting the baby to sleep, he is calm. If he is calm, he will sleep and rest better
  • In order for the baby to have a deep, relaxed, and unaltered sleep, the professional has to know the type of foods that are adequate for that age once they can ingest solid food, like chocolate, or fizzy drinks 
  • Children between 2 and 5 years old should always take a nap, otherwise, they will fall asleep in the middle of the afternoon because they need it, and this will alter their sleeping pattern

Conclusion 

To finish, as we can review, the children take naps after lunch in all schools where we have practiced. Even though there are differences between them, like having beds so children can take a nap in them and in others, they have to take their own sleeping bag and sleep on the floor.

Another difference is the space destined for this activity. One has a separate space, other adapt spaces. Because of this, we want to highlight that sleep is one of the most important procedures in the evolution of the child. It is something we should all observe, know how to interpret it and document it.

References

Albares, J.; Alonso, J.; Canet, T.; Cano, M.; Cubel, M; Estivill, E.; … Villalobos, P. (2010): Informe del Grupo Pediátrico de la Sociedad Española de Sueño (SES) y del Grupo de Sueño de la Sociedad de Pediatría Extrahospitalaria y Atención Primaria (SEPEAP): “Medidas preventivas de los problemas del sueño desde el nacimiento hasta la∫ adolescencia”. Acta Pediátrica Esp. (La Coruña). 2010; 68(4): 00-00. https://www.adolescenciasema.org/usuario/documentos/14_-Higiene%20de%20sueno%20en%20la%20infancia%20adolescencia.pdf

Cádiz, Emilia (2013). Hábitos del sueño infantil en el seguimiento de 0-3 años en Rocafort (Valencia). Pautas educativas. [Tesis doctoral, Universidad de Valencia] https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/71018455.pdf

REAL ACADEMIA ESPAÑOLA: Diccionario de la lengua española, 23.ª ed., [versión 23.3 en línea]. <https://dle.rae.es> [17 noviembre 2020].

Vlog No Copyright Music. (27 de enero de 2017) Fredji – Happy Life (Vlog No Copyright Music) [archivo de video] YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzQiRABVARk

Authorship

Almudena Parra, Nuria Renedo y Cristina Salcines, 2020.

Categories
Early Childhood Education

Sleep I

“Sleep is a biological state present in animals and human beings that is defined by behavioral and physiological characteristics” (Bernardo, 2018, p.9). In the first years of life, in relation to the first cycle of Infant Education, sleep corresponds to a biological need that allows infants to develop on a cognitive (mental processes), physical (metabolism) and emotional level. 

Below, we highlight some of the main ideas that Garcia (2015) has taken up: 

  • Firstly, although the sleep state apparently has a passive role, it has great relevance at a functional level in the organism, both in mental and physical processes.
  • Secondly, it allows them to recover energy for the activities they carry out in the second part of the morning. 

As indicated by Garcia (2015), the school must follow guidelines to make this moment possible:

  • Firstly, since it is an activity that is carried out in the school environment on a daily basis, it needs to be organized temporarily within the school day. Therefore, a certain amount of time is dedicated to the development of this moment in the classroom. However, the moment of sleep depends on the needs of each child, so you must be flexible with it. In case the children have very different needs, a common time interval will be set during which the children will sleep what they need.
  • Secondly, in order for the child to have an adequate moment of sleep, we must take into account the spatial organization of the context in which the sleep will take place. It will have to be a comfortable place, where there is no noise, excess light, or distractions (computer sounds, toys with sound on…). It must be a space with windows that facilitates the process of ventilation and natural lighting, as well as having a pleasant temperature. In addition, it must meet safety conditions (decorated with few furniture, avoid plugs within reach of children …). In this way, it seeks to provide optimal moments of rest. 
  • Thirdly, the school must have the furniture (cradles for children of months of age and sleeping pads for children of three years) necessary for the moment of sleep, varying the place and resources according to the age. 
  • Finally, the importance of teachers in the moments of rest will be highlighted. To anticipate the moment, the teacher will play relaxing music, lower the blind to diminish the natural light, and try to reduce the appearance of stimuli. Depending on the age, the children will be accompanied more or less time.
References 

Bernardo, M. (2018). Aprendiendo a dominar el sueño en Educación Infantil (trabajo de fin de grado). Facultad de Educación de Segovia, Castilla y León, España. Recuperado de:  https://uvadoc.uva.es/bitstream/handle/10324/30477/TFG-B%201110.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

García, M.D. (2015). Importancia del hábito del sueño en la etapa de Educación Infantil. Innovación y experiencias educativa, 63, pp: 1-13. Recuperado de: https://archivos.csif.es/archivos/andalucia/ensenanza/revistas/iee/Numero_63/M-DOLORES-GARCIA-RUIZ-03.pdf

Authorship

Lorea Aranguren Márquez y Fran González González, 2020.