Throwing toys? Why do they do that?
WHY ? does a child constantly throw things across the room, dump stuff or drop food from a high chair? It’s a tough one isn’t it and can be really frustrating as adults and parents. We instinctively assume children are doing it on purpose or having us at it!
We spoke in previous blogs that children learn in a range of ways.
Repetitive actions or urges. It’s the way that they make sense of the world around them. (scroll back previous blogs)
Those schematic learning styles!
Some children love to explore objects and their surroundings through movement! Whether this is horizontally or vertically! Dropping food from a height, throwing objects across a room or running down a long thin corridor! It’s all about the movement - either themselves or an object! It’s the movement that interests them
It’s called a Trajectory Schema!
Many educators often ask us the question ‘ well how do we stop children dumping, dropping or throwing resources -at our setting?’ To be honest, we can’t! It’s their learning style and they are not doing it to annoy or frustrate us.
They are repeating behaviours because it interests and fascinates them. They are learning through early scientific exploration, speed, distance, trajection, how far will it travel, where will it land? How will it land? What noise will it make when it hits the floor? They are constantly LEARNING
As adults it’s important we learn to understand behaviours, instead trying to ‘manage’ them. To understand WHY children do what they do
To observe, acknowledge and facilitate. We need to understand brain development and the particular schematic styles of children.
This will enable us to support and facilitate play and learning.
If you have children who love to throw, drop or roll things, why not provide opportunities for this in their environment & play experiences? We are then meeting their individual needs and providing a powerful rich learning environment set up ready for them to explore & investigate. If WE provide those spaces, places, objects and things they CAN throw, launch or hurl, then they are less likely to have the URGE to seek opportunities that are deemed inappropriate.
- Roll balls, sand, water down tubing
- pushing vehicles along a track
- Riding scooters or bikes
- Kicking, throwing balls
- Throwing Paper Aeroplanes
- Throwing beans bags
- Splat painting, use fly swats
- Playing Skittles, tin cans
- Knocking down towers
- Bats and ball games
- Dripping glue
- Pouring Water
- watching Dominoes topple
- Wet sponge throwing
- Target practice
- Dribbling Gloop
Here Project Hapinezz https://www.facebook.com/projectHappinezz/provided resources to support the children’s Trajectory schema learning style.
A recycled wine rack, cardboard tubing and some loose parts! The children then became deeply immersed in their play, through active hands, minds and bodies. They spent extensive time exploring, discovering and assimilating information, knowledge and understanding.
They are working it out! Being curious learners
‘Curiosity is one of the most permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous intellect’
Quote by Samuel Johnson
Have you purchased our Curious resource that is all about schemas? It opens into an A2 poster that you can display at your setting Click below
https://www.thecuriosityapproach.com/.../issue-03-schemas
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The Curiosity Approach® written by Stephanie Bennett
