How many species of ladybirds are there?
I’ve been asked to write a blog addressing the question ‘How do you bring curiosity into your setting?’ It’s such an interesting question and one that is pertinent to Early Years. It’s also a really big question that I’m not sure will be sufficiently answered in one blog, but I’ll try.
The definition of curiosity is to have a strong desire to know or learn something. It links closely to awe and wonder; something which is referenced in the latest Early Years Inspection Framework. It is “the role of the setting to help children experience the awe and wonder of the world in which they live…” Furthermore, if you are aiming for a Good judgement from Ofsted then the children in your setting must “demonstrate their positive attitudes to learning through high levels of curiosity, concentration and enjoyment.”
So, what does this look like, and how can you ‘bring’ it into your setting?
Let me start by saying what it’s not (necessarily). It’s not creating a ‘Curiosity Corner’, ‘Curiosity Cube’ or even a cupboard, ticking it off the list of Instagram ‘must-haves’ for the EYs classroom. Especially if you are to fill the space with small world of your latest focus book. Small world has a place in an EYs classroom, but does it spark curiosity? Does it spark a ‘strong desire to know or learning something’? I would argue not.
What I would say is that children are naturally curious and want to know and learn everything, and our job is to foster that. A child finding two different coloured ladybirds in the outdoor classroom sparked an investigation into how many different species of ladybird there are and what did they (all) look like? (If you’re interested, it is at least 3,500 worldwide!)
A child’s sense of curiosity is something which cannot always be pre-empted or planned for. It’s something that happens in the moment and is usually something which, for the adults in the setting is perhaps rather mundane but is of great interest to the children. So, let’s take a moment to think about how our actions and reactions can spark and foster this curiosity in the children and have them asking lots of questions to find out more.
Taking the ladybird example, I had no idea how many different species there were and honestly, it’s not my job to. But what is my job, is to show the children where these answers can be found, giving them the tools to be life-long learners, and to encourage them to always be curious and to ask questions by being excited and enthusiastic in my response. On our way to the library to find books on ladybirds, I picked up my iPad - a tool I often use to ‘Google’ questions. I am never afraid to show the children I don’t know something because I always use it as a teaching moment. So, after finding out that there are 3,500 species and looking at lots of photos on ‘images’, I sparked further curiosity by asking the children questions and linking back to their previous learning and knowledge. ‘I wonder if ladybirds are nocturnal or diurnal?’ ‘I wonder if they are carnivores, herbivores, or omnivores?’ Excitedly, the children asked me to ‘Google it’ and it led us down a path of what seemed like never-ending questions like ‘why they have spots’, ‘why they have those funny under-wing wings’, and ‘what does ladybird poo look like?’
This curiosity and learning path could have easily stopped at finding out how many different species there is. But with adult intervention, it became so much more. More questions were asked and answered, and knowledge acquired. But perhaps more importantly was the ‘curiosity process’; intrigue, awe and wonder; the collective excitement of finding out something new, the togetherness of the experience; the contagious curiosity.
To be clear, I’m not saying an adult initiated pre-planned activity cannot spark curiosity or that Curiosity Cubes should be banned from our classrooms. But let’s think carefully about what curiosity looks like day-to-day and how we can foster it with our interactions with the children. Let’s also think about what we are putting inside our Curiosity Cubes (if we have one) but perhaps that’s another blog.
As always, I’d love to know your thoughts in the box below.