Creativity, Imagination, and Inventiveness

The South Carolina Early Learning Standards are incorporated into the Sunflower class curriculum.  This week’s focus is: Approaches to Play and Learning (APL).

The Sunflower class has been patiently waiting for some fall weather to hit Charleston and the cooler breeze finally came through!  The Halloween season has been a great time for the students to demonstrate their creativity, imagination, and inventiveness (Goal APL-4).  The students have decorated our classroom with finger-painted pumpkins and tissue-paper ghosts- a great way to practice fine motor skills. Our dollhouse was not looking quite spooky enough, so the students garnished it with black paper and Halloween-colored masking tape.  We even created tiny monsters out of molding clay to live in the newly renovated dollhouse!

In the classroom and on the playground, the children continue to engage in increasingly complex play (Goal APL-3).  Outside, the students run around together as ghostbusters, acting out entire sequences with defined characters and plots.  We are able to practice our problem solving skills (Goal APL-6) when the story isn’t quite working out as planned. Some students offer to be ghosts or other monsters to keep the game active and complex.  The kitchen has turned into a place for witches to make brew and the art center is filled with tricks and treats to make spooky creations. 

Imagination and inventiveness can span far beyond arts and crafts- the students have enjoyed expressing their creativity through cooperative storytelling.  As a large group, we told a ghostly story and each student was able to add some dialogue and twists to further the plot.  We continue to watch the Sunflowers work together and each student is increasingly willing to try new and challenging experiences (Goal APL-5).  Whether inside or on the playground, in a large group or individually, these students are expanding their creativity every day.