1. A Creative Curriculum – nurturing creativity and imagination at the Thomas Coram Children’s Centre

2. Introduction Bernadette Duffy
Head of Thomas Coram Centre for Children and Families
Chair of the British Association for Early Childhood Education
Author of ‘Supporting Creativity and Imagination in the Early Years’

3. Today we will be looking at the work we have been doing at Thomas Coram on:-
The importance of creativity for children
Being a creative practitioner
Creating an environment that encourages creativity
Working with artists and others to encourage a culture of creativity

4. Part One The importance of creativity for children

5. England and the EYFS The aim of EYFS is to:-
Increase coherence, provide a flexible approach to care and learning and raise quality and play a key role in improving the life chances of all children
End the sometimes unhelpful distinction between care and learning and between birth-to-three and three-to-five provision.
Help us see children’s learning and development as a process starting at birth

6. EYFS Principles Every child is a competent learner from birth who
A Unique Child
Every child is a competent learner from birth who
can be resilient, capable, confident and self-assured
Positive Relationships
Children learn
to be strong and
independent from
a base of loving and
secure relationships
with parents and/or
a key person
Enabling Environments
The environment
plays a key role
in supporting and
extending children’s
development and
learning
Learning and Development
Children develop
and learn in different
ways and at different
rates and all areas
of learning and
development are
equally important
and inter-connected
Child
People
Contexts
Curriculum
1. 1 Child Development
A Unique Individual
A Skilful Communicator
A Competent learner
1.2 Inclusive Practice
Children’s Rights
Equality and Diversity
Early Support
1. 3 Keeping Safe
Being Safe and Protected
Discovering Boundaries
Making Choices
1. 4 Health and Well Being
Emotional Well-being
Growing and Developing
Physical Well-being
2.1 Respecting Each Other
Understanding feelings
Friendships
Professional Relationships
2.2 Parents as Partners
Respecting diversity
Communication
Learning Together
2.3 Supporting Learning
Positive Interactions
Listening to Children
Effective Teaching
2.4 Key Person
Secure Attachment
Shared Care
Independence through Support
3.1 Observation, Assessment and Planning
Starting with the Child
Planning
Assessment
3.2 The Learning Environment
Children’s Needs
The Learning Journey
Working Together
3.3 The Physical Environment
The Outdoor Environment
The Indoor Environment
The Emotional Environment
3.4 The Wider Context
Transitions and continuity
Multi-agency working
The Community
4.1 Play and Exploration
Learning through Experience
Adult Involvement
Dispositions for Learning
4.2 Active Learning
Mental and Physical Involvement
Decision Making
Personalised Learning
4.3 Creativity and Critical
Thinking
Making Connections
Transforming Understanding
Sustained Shared Thinking
4.4 – 4.10 Areas of Learning and Development
Personal, Social and Emotional
Communication, Language and Literacy
Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy
Knowledge and Understanding of the World
Creative
Physical

7. The EYFS and Creativity
4.1 Play and Exploration
Learning through Experience
Adult Involvement
Dispositions for Learning
4.2 Active Learning
Mental and Physical Involvement
Decision Making
Personalised Learning
4.3 Creativity and Critical Thinking
Making Connections
Transforming Understanding
Sustained Shared Thinking
4.4 – 4.10 Areas of Learning and Development
Personal, Social and Emotional, Communication, Language and Literacy, Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy , Knowledge and Understanding of the World , Creative , Physical

8. ‘’Children’s creativity must be extended by the provision and offered support for their curiosity, exploration and play. They must be provided with opportunities to explore and share their thoughts, ideas and feelings, for example, through a variety of art, music, movement, dance, imaginative and role-play activities, mathematics, and design and technology.’’ [EYFS 2007 Practice Guidance p 104]
Practitioners ensure that children have the opportunity to develop the following aspects of creativity:-
Being Creative – Responding to Experiences, Expressing and Communicating Ideas
Exploring Media and Materials
Creating Music and Dance
Developing Imagination and Imaginative Play

9. When am I most creative ?

10. What is creativity
We have been influenced by Anna Craft s work on - “Big c ” and “little c” creativity
‘Creativity enables individuals to find routes and paths to
travel...It is a process of conscious invention and describes
the resourcefulness of ordinary people rather than
extraordinary contributors.’
It is about:-
thinking along unorthodox lines
breaking barriers
using non-traditional approaches to problems.
making new connections

11. Through creativity we:-
Promote the full range of human potential
Explore values and ways of working
Understand our own and other cultures
Respond
Experiment

12. Why is it important Through their creativity children:-
Express their thoughts
Think about and create new meanings
Solve problem and gain mastery
Gain self esteem
Create their own view of the world

13. The creative process
Curiosity
Exploration
Play
Creativity

14. The difference between Representation and Reproduction

15. How we use the arts to promote all areas of learning
Personal Social and Emotional
Concentration, staying on task , problem-solving , planning and seeing things through to completion
Representing experiences, feelings and thoughts . 3Learning to share, interact and relate to others through meaningful experiences.
4.The creative processes that links children with the idea of creation in world religions.
5 Exposure to the arts helps children learn about their own and other cultures
6A sense of self-respect and valuing of others. .
Communication , Language and Literacy
1.Opportunities to speak and listen , for example when negotiating roles and sharing resources
2.Understanding the elements of music ,such as rhythm and pitch , from which develops children's ability to speak
3.Understanding the process of representation which leads to understanding the symbolic nature of written language
4.The fine motor skills which are needed for writing .
5.The narrative skills necessary for storytelling ,
Problem Solving, Reasoning and numeracy
understanding patterns in two and three dimensional representations which helps children to identify number patterns later on
concepts of shape, size, line, and area which they will use to classify and sort objects
the opportunity to explore spatial concepts through block play and other forms of three dimensional representation
the opportunity to explore measurement in meaning full contexts while constructing models and textiles
symbolic representation which introduces children to the concepts they will need to record data

16. Knowledge and Understanding of the World
exposure to a wide range of materials and their properties .For example , through using a wide range of methods for fastening - sticking , tying nailing - discovering the most appropriate method for a particular task
Cause and effect. For instance , through experimenting with different ways of balancing blocks
Representations based on observations of the natural world which develop an understanding of life and living process
opportunities to cut , fold and fasten
Problem solving. For example , deciding the best media to use to create a representation
Introducing the children to ICT in meaning full contexts such as imaginative play .
Opportunities to reflect on what children know about their locality and the wider world. For instance, through representing their local environment using a variety of media
sequencing events and objects .For example, when creating a pattern on a piece of clay
expressing views on attractive and unattractive features of the environment
exposure to artefacts, dance and music from a variety of cultures and times which helps children to develop a sense of time and place
representation and a sense of spatial awareness which is needed in map making
Physical
opportunities to develop and practise fine motor skill .For example ,through cutting, drawing , sculpting, playing an instrument
gross motor skills .For instance , through dance and block play
planning , performing and practising physical skills,
linking actions and work with others .For example , through dancing together and working on large construction
exposure to dance traditions
exploring mood and feeling using movement
body control , balance, co-ordination and poise

17. Part two Being a creative practitioner

18. Who helped or hindered your creativity ?

19. The role of the adult Our role is to: -
create conditions within which children support children to be creative thinkers
develop children's creative thinking through our interactions with them

20. Creating conditions which inspire children
Be aware of the nature and value of creativity and imagination
Be aware of the importance of equal opportunities and the need for equality
Be honest about personal prejudices and challenge our own assumptions
Value each child's representations
Encourage the children to use adults as a resource
Communicate with parents and others
Provide access to artists, crafts people, musicians, dancers

21. Developing children’s creativity through our interactions with them
offer children secure relationships which allow curiosity to flourish
be facilitators
recognise that the process may be more important than the product
value children's self initiated activity
work alongside children as a partner
be genuine and honest

22. Examples from Audit Are there :-
Outside spaces that complement the inside space?
Spaces for storing and displaying a range of equipment and resources
Materials organised in ways that encourage children to combine them in new and creative ways?
Materials and resources organised in ways the allow the children to take responsibility for their environment?

23. Part four :- Working with artists and others to encourage a culture of creativity

24. Music day

25. Developing the garden

26. Using found materials

27. The tunnel project

28. Garden Room Project

29. Conclusion