Expressive Arts and Design Play Activities for Children

Art and Design is a key area of the EYFS and something that i have a great amount of enthusiasm for. I'm not the best artist in the world, however I have come to realize that it is a great way for children to interact with one another, in addition to expressing how they feel.

Every culture/religion has something unique regarding what they class as art. In Islam they have patterns which make beautiful and colourful designs. Some of the different examples can be seen below: 

     

My activity that i would plan would try to get the child to see the different kinds of cultures and kinds of drawings people do and to try to get the children to be able to express what they would like. 

I would set up a table with about 5 chairs and get Rainbow Colour scratch paper (as seen below) and allow the children to scratch out different patterns of pictures as they please. not only does this enable them to socialize by having a few chairs at the table, however that are able to share ideas and draw in a more fun way as the paper changes colour while scratching and not by getting a pen and drawing. In order to encourage some of the children to get started with their picture I would do one myself before the lesson and show the children what I was able to do and how. From this point I would put my example up on the board for them to get an idea of what they can do and then go around once in a while and see how everyone is getting on.

In order to make the children more confident about their artist skills and their ability to create pictures I would then have a class discussion about the different pictures drawn after and what they mean to the children. After getting the feedback I think that making a display of this would not only look good in the classroom, however also show parents and the children about the skills and different ideas each child has.

If it was a successful activity and I saw that the children thoroughly enjoyed it, I would then go on to using this paper throughout the year, to make different things, for example nice banners, pictures based on a certain topic, possible masks and so on. Examples of these can be seen below:

"Playing Out" During Childhood

While growing up one thing that I deeply enjoyed was to play outside my house with the other children on the road. We would play all kinds of games such as Stuck in the mud, Hide and seek and Grandma's footsteps. Not only did I find that it helped me social with the others, however me being the oldest was left with a lot of responsibility, especially when it came to ensure the others safety. This gave me a sense of leadership which I was extremely proud of and hoped to gain more.

Most memorable time of my childhood.

While playing the different games with the children gained knowledge of what it meant to take turns and to also take into account how others would feel. I was able to sympathize with the children when they would get hurt or upset and would try to help them.

The main thing I was able to do while playing out, as we used to say, was to develop physically, socially and emotionally. I was able to gain the independence and freedom I needed in addition to being able to rely on the adults when I needed the help. Due to this I believe I am who I am today and for that I am grateful.

Another memory that I have is playing with my older brothers and sisters. I remember thinking that I would be the fastest in the family as I used to be pretty fast in my class, little did I know that that wasn't entirely right. After loosing to my elders I remember getting really upset, and throwing a tantrum as my family says, and not participating in the games anymore. They were then able to encourage me to play a different game which they allowed me to win without me knowing, in order to make me feel better and continue playing the game. From this I feel that I learnt that you are not always the best at everything, however this is okay.